Paychex Flex vs. Payroll by Wave

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Paychex Flex
Score 6.7 out of 10
N/A
Paychex Flex, of Paychex' Online Payroll Services, is a cloud-based human resource management and payroll platform. Paychex offers core and specialized services, and scales to meet the needs of small businesses, SMBs, and large enterprises.
$59
per month/+$4 per employee
Payroll by Wave
Score 9.0 out of 10
N/A
Wave Accounting headquartered in Toronto now offers Payroll by Wave, a payroll app for small businesses.N/A
Pricing
Paychex FlexPayroll by Wave
Editions & Modules
Paychex Go
$59
per month/+$4 per employee
Paychex Flex Service
Contact sales team
Paychex Flex Enterprise
Contact sales team
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Paychex FlexPayroll by Wave
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeRequiredNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Paychex FlexPayroll by Wave
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
Paychex FlexPayroll by Wave
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
Paychex Flex
6.7
247 Ratings
16% below category average
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Employee demographic data8.0197 Ratings00 Ratings
Employment history8.1220 Ratings00 Ratings
Job profiles and administration6.8155 Ratings00 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.7.3154 Ratings00 Ratings
Organizational charting1.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Organization and location management7.9138 Ratings00 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)7.5132 Ratings00 Ratings
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
Paychex Flex
8.5
288 Ratings
6% above category average
Payroll by Wave
9.4
3 Ratings
13% above category average
Pay calculation9.0271 Ratings10.03 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment9.1136 Ratings9.02 Ratings
Benefit plan administration7.2156 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Direct deposit files9.2270 Ratings10.03 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management8.5193 Ratings9.03 Ratings
Reimbursement management7.9105 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors00 Ratings9.02 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
Paychex Flex
7.0
144 Ratings
14% below category average
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Approval workflow6.3102 Ratings00 Ratings
Balance details7.5136 Ratings00 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment7.3110 Ratings00 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
Paychex Flex
8.5
249 Ratings
5% above category average
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
View and generate pay and benefit information8.6228 Ratings00 Ratings
Update personal information9.0239 Ratings00 Ratings
View company policy documentation7.7111 Ratings00 Ratings
View job history8.7168 Ratings00 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
Paychex Flex
7.8
40 Ratings
1% above category average
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Tracking of all physical assets7.840 Ratings00 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
Paychex Flex
6.1
164 Ratings
22% below category average
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Report builder5.8134 Ratings00 Ratings
Pre-built reports6.8154 Ratings00 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data5.783 Ratings00 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
Paychex Flex
8.0
158 Ratings
0% below category average
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
New hire portal8.1151 Ratings00 Ratings
Manager tracking tools7.9100 Ratings00 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
Paychex Flex
8.5
59 Ratings
9% above category average
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Job Requisition Management9.732 Ratings00 Ratings
Company Website Posting9.730 Ratings00 Ratings
Publish to Social Media6.823 Ratings00 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting6.730 Ratings00 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention6.828 Ratings00 Ratings
Applicant Tracking9.633 Ratings00 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts9.853 Ratings00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Paychex FlexPayroll by Wave
Small Businesses
Patriot Software
Patriot Software
Score 9.0 out of 10
Patriot Software
Patriot Software
Score 9.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.5 out of 10
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.5 out of 10
Enterprises
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.3 out of 10
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.3 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Paychex FlexPayroll by Wave
Likelihood to Recommend
7.7
(298 ratings)
10.0
(4 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.9
(42 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
8.0
(240 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Availability
9.3
(10 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
9.1
(10 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
7.7
(245 ratings)
8.9
(2 ratings)
In-Person Training
4.5
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Online Training
7.0
(4 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
9.4
(11 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Configurability
7.6
(8 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
9.1
(3 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
9.3
(10 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
8.9
(31 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
9.2
(32 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Paychex FlexPayroll by Wave
Likelihood to Recommend
Paychex, Inc.
In my experience, Paychex Flex is well suited for small to medium sized businesses. It has been helpful in streamlining the onboarding process and it is easy to update and maintain employee profiles and records. It has worked will in a non-profit environment where there is clergy pay and housing, which can get quite complicated. I cannot think of a scenario where it would be less appropriate.
Read full review
Wave
Great for small business payroll needs. Reports and taxes are taken care of, everything is automated and once you're set up it's literally just a matter of minutes to run payroll each time. You also get email reminders which is helpful. There are premium features available for companies with larger/more robust needs, and I would definitely recommend looking into this software if you are searching for a user friendly payroll solution
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Pros
Paychex, Inc.
  • I like I can enter payroll and if I need to leave the program, I can resume at a later time and my information is saved.
  • I like the analytics & reports features.
  • I like how all my employees have easy access to their portal.
Read full review
Wave
  • An intuitive, clear UI helps you know where everything is, what options are at your disposal. Calendars and timelines show that Wave really thought out how to provide you with useful tool.
  • Pay day can be automated and straightforward.
  • Wave onboarding provides guidance at what information to input next until you are all set up.
Read full review
Cons
Paychex, Inc.
  • Reporting writing is difficult to figure out
  • Employee turnover inside Paychex was a problem, until we were assigned to Neil Williams - since that time it has settled down
  • Pressure to convert personal connection with payroll advisor to using automated service
Read full review
Wave
  • Additional filings such as WorkSafe, etc.
  • More flexibility when it comes to paying a director.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Paychex, Inc.
Overall I like the features that Paychex Flex offers. I am sure that there are other features that I am unaware of, so I am excited to see if there is more that Flex is capable of to make my job easier. The basic features are really user friendly and easy to access. If there ever is an issue customer service is great
Read full review
Wave
No answers on this topic
Usability
Paychex, Inc.
Some things could be streamlined. For example, we could do custom options for the "add items" tab which has so many options that we never use. "Medical Pay" could be something that the system remembers for the applicable employees. Salaried employees' salaries should definitely be auto-filled. Overall the system works well but I think it could be improved to be easier to use and read.
Read full review
Wave
No answers on this topic
Reliability and Availability
Paychex, Inc.
We have not experienced any difficulties with unplanned outages. Notifications are always made for outages, and they do not effect normal business operations.
Read full review
Wave
No answers on this topic
Performance
Paychex, Inc.
Unless there is lag time within the internet, the Paychex Flex website loads exceptional fast, pages load quickly and reports that I need to print or download load quickly. If I need to create a specialized report, once I complete it I receive an e-mail telling me my report is ready to be downloaded. Changing between web pages is fast as well.
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Wave
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Paychex, Inc.
Our dedicated representative is one of the main reasons we are sticking with Paychex Flex. If it were not for this person, other platforms could provide the same/similar functionality. It is the ability to speak with someone that understands our business and is willing to get questions answered in a timely fashion that keeps us with Paychex Flex.
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Wave
Quick response times, personalized service. They offer in-depth videos and guides for helping to get set up. Any time I have a question about taxes or reporting, they answer quickly and give comprehensive answers. Members of the team with whom I've interacted have been courteous, friendly, and helpful. Overall, great support.
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In-Person Training
Paychex, Inc.
We did online training only
Read full review
Wave
No answers on this topic
Online Training
Paychex, Inc.
It was easy to understand and follow along. I do like the informational videos that we can utilize before we opt to call in for customer service support. It has made a difference since sometimes that resolves the issue I may have had and saved myself a phone call to Paychex support.
Read full review
Wave
No answers on this topic
Implementation Rating
Paychex, Inc.
Implementation was very smooth. The most cumbersome task was entering the current employees into the system during initial set up, but Paychex staff handled most of that and verified against prior system reports as well as internal reports provided to ensure 100% accuracy.
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Wave
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Paychex, Inc.
We still use QB Desktop Pro to maintain a Check Register / Overall Balance for the company, but once having tried QB Payroll Online for about 3 months prior to finding Paychex Flex I can tell you that there's just no comparison. QB online is VERY EXPENSIVE and not so user-friendly. I hated every minute of those 6 payrolls we ran through QB online.
Read full review
Wave
We moved away from Wave as most of our contractors are time-based, and Wave flat out refuses to provide time tracking features. We tried integrations, but the pricing/complexity goes up and reliability goes down when integrating systems which were not intended to communicate. We since moved to Avaza and sacrificed Payroll for more robust time tracking, project management, and a very open feature development process
Read full review
Scalability
Paychex, Inc.
Employees can log in at home and get up to date information on their FSA balance and any medical bill reimbursements they may have uploaded. At renewal time they have the ability to make changes to their FSA or for new employees star the enrollment.
Read full review
Wave
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Paychex, Inc.
  • I do not believe we have saved anything additionally. The time we've had to spend to get things to hopefully work is sad. This is the reason we've had to turn off all extra "products" of Paychex Flex. Time and Attendance is horrible. Benefits management is horrible. The user experience is horrible.
  • One thing I do not understand is why are updates for states, cities, counties, school districts, etc. not automatically updated? Should we not get a big red flag if we have an employee living/working, being paid in CA, but they aren't set up for CA sick time? If it is required to be on the paycheck stub to show the balance of the sick time, why would we not be notified that we are out of compliance?
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Wave
  • Ensuring that I am compliant with my payroll obligations.
  • Less time spent on managing employee payroll.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Paychex Flex Screenshots

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