Affiliate disclosure: PayrollGrade earns a commission when readers sign up through some links (via Commission Junction), at no extra cost to you. Compensation never buys placement or changes our A–F grades, which are based on published pricing, features, and expert reviews — not hands-on payroll runs.
Payroll software, graded
Every major payroll platform, scored on a published rubric — tax filing, pricing, support, and workforce tools — with the real base-plus-per-employee cost on every card. Grades come before payouts, always.
- Plans graded
- 32+
- Buying angles
- 5
- Grading basis
- Published pricing & reviews
- Vendor A — payroll suiteA
- Vendor B — HR platformA-
- Vendor C — PEO serviceB+
- Vendor D — time & attendanceB
Sample gradesheet showing our format — not published grades. Assessments in reviews reflect published pricing, features, and expert sources, not hands-on payroll runs.
Per-employee cost estimator
Payroll software prices on a simple formula: base fee + (per-employee × headcount). Set your team and pay frequency to see an estimated monthly total per plan.
Estimated monthly cost
Bi-weekly · 26 runs/yr- QuickBooks Payroll CoreLowest est.Published pricing$110/mo~$1,320/yr
- ADP RUN EssentialQuote-only estimate$119/mo~$1,426/yr
- QuickBooks Payroll PremiumPublished pricing$175/mo~$2,100/yr
- ADP RUN CompleteQuote-only estimate$178/mo~$2,138/yr
Illustrative estimate, not a quote. Figures are reverse-engineered from published pricing and provider comparisons as of 2026 and change often — confirm current terms on each provider’s site. Quote-only vendors price your exact situation.
Browse by what you’re solving
Grades and head-to-head comparisons of small-business payroll software - base fees, per-employee costs, tax filing, and direct deposit speed, scored A-F for real teams.
OnPay Review (2026): Flat-Price Payroll for Small Businesses
OnPay review for 2026: one published price of $49 per month plus $6 per worker, what that includes, the optional HR add-ons, what it costs at 5 to 50 workers, and who should pick it over Gusto or a PEO.
5 min readPayroll SoftwareGusto vs Justworks vs OnPay (2026): Payroll for a 5–50 Person Business
Gusto vs Justworks vs OnPay for a 5–50 person business: published 2026 prices, what each costs at 10, 25 and 50 people, PEO versus payroll software, and who should pick what.
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HR Platforms8 minOnPay Review (2026): Flat-Price Payroll for Small Businesses
Payroll Software5 minJustworks Review (2026): PEO Pricing, Benefits and When Co-Employment Pays Off
HR Platforms6 min
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Compare graded payroll & HR plans, estimate your per-employee cost, and pick the one that fits your team — backed by published pricing and expert reviews.