Introduction
One of the most important yet difficult things for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to do is keep track of their payroll. Payroll software needs to do more than just pay employees. It also needs to keep track of hours, taxes, deductions, benefits, and more. Picking the appropriate payroll solution can help you save time, make fewer mistakes, stay within the law, and make your employees happier. We look at the top 5 payroll software products for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in this article. We look at their features, performance, prices, and user reviews.
Methodology
We evaluated the following criteria to find the best payroll software for small and medium-sized businesses:
- Ease of Use: How easy it is to use the UI and how easy it is to get new users started.
- Features: Key payroll tasks include paying taxes, making deductions, and providing benefits. Other features include time and attendance tracking, employee self-service, leave management, and more.
- Integration: Can work with HR systems, accounting tools, banks, and other things.
- Scalability: How well the software can handle more employees, more locations or states, or a more complicated payroll.
- Pricing: How affordable it is for small and medium-sized businesses, including how much it costs to get started and how costs go up as the number of employees goes up.
- Customer Reviews: Real users’ thoughts on support, reliability, and value.
Top 5 Payroll Software for SMBs
1. Gusto
Overview: Gusto is a full-service payroll platform that small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) use because it automates tax filings, benefits management, and easy-to-use workflows. It works with both workers and contractors and is easy to set up.
Key Features:
- Automated payroll, taxes, and filings at the federal, state, and local levels
- Onboarding processes, employee self-service, and managing time off and paid time off
- Multiple pay schedules, support for hourly and salaried workers, and payments to contractors
- Integration with accounting software like QuickBooks and Xero, managing benefits, and making reports and dashboards
Benchmark Performance:
- Ease of Use: Very easy to use, with simple payroll runs; suitable for people who aren’t experts.
- Feature Breadth: Good for small and medium-sized businesses that need full-service payroll, HR, and benefits. Some advanced HR functions are only available at higher levels.
- Integration: Great; works with a lot of programs for accounting, time, and benefits.
- Scalability: Works well for organizations that are getting bigger, even with payroll in more than one state in the U.S. There may be certain restrictions or extra costs for overseas shipping.
Pricing:
- Simple plan: ~$49/month + ~$6 per employee/month
- Plus plan: ~$80/month + ~$12 per employee/month
- Premium/custom: higher tiers with added features (e.g. advanced HR, benefits)
Customer Reviews:
- Rating: About 4.5 to 4.7 out of 5 on different review sites
- Pros: It handles a lot of payroll tasks that used to be done by hand, provides fantastic customer service, and is simple to use.
- Cons: The more staff and complex features you have, the more it costs; benefits features may only be available in certain areas.
- Quote: “Payroll, benefits, and HR work better together,” says the quote. Gusto makes it easy to do more for your team since it has everything you need in one place, like payroll, workers’ comp, benefits, and more. — a review from one of its users.
2. QuickBooks Payroll
Overview: QuickBooks Payroll (from Intuit) integrates tightly with QuickBooks accounting software, offering payroll processing, tax automation, and direct deposits. It’s a popular option for businesses already using QuickBooks for accounting.
Key Features:
- Full‑service payroll, automatic tax calculations & filings, direct deposits
- Employee self‑service portal, pay stubs, time‑tracking integrations, reporting tools
- Benefits contribution management, year‑end forms (W‑2, 1099)
Benchmark Performance:
- Ease of Use: Generally good for QuickBooks users; it’s easier to get started if you’re already in the Intuit ecosystem. Some features can be hard to understand.
- Integration: works very well with QuickBooks and okay with other programs.
- Visualization & Reporting: The built-in reports are good, and the dashboard tools are okay for payroll metrics.
- Scalability: Suits small to mid‑sized organizations; rising costs as personnel count increases.
Pricing:
- Starting at ~$22.50/month + ~$6 per employee/month for base plan
- Higher tiers add features like faster direct deposit, more compliance/benefits capabilities
Customer Reviews:
- Rating: In comparisons with ADP and others, the average rating is about 4.4–4.6 out of 5.
- Pros: Works well with accounting; can run payroll as many times as you want; has good deposit options; and good support for payroll in the US.
- Cons: Costs go up as the business grows; some payroll features don’t work across states or countries; advanced HR capabilities are frequently extra.
- Quote: “QuickBooks Payroll offers direct deposits on the same day and the next day, and it works perfectly with QuickBooks accounting, making payroll almost invisible for many small and medium-sized businesses.” — a review from one of its users
3. ADP RUN
Overview: ADP RUN is a tool for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to handle payroll, taxes, and HR tasks. It is known for being reliable and trustworthy, and it works with many states, is compliant, and has a lot of integration choices.
Key Features:
- Filing payroll taxes, reporting new hires, and addressing compliance
- Self-service for employees, access to pay stubs, and other ways to get paid (checks, direct deposit, etc.)
- Add-ons for HR tools, perks, and recording attendance and time
Benchmark Performance:
- Ease of Use: The interface is decent, but setting it up can be hard; good customer service helps.
- Integration: Many ways to integrate, and other tools are supported.
- Visualization & Reporting: Good payroll reports and dashboards.
- Scalability: Very good; can help small and medium-sized businesses grow in several states; in some circumstances, HR and benefits tools depend on tier.
Pricing:
- Prices vary, but some plans start at about $59 per month plus about $4 per employee for basic tiers in some cities.
- Higher tiers come with more functionality, like HR tools, benefits, and more compliance.
Customer Reviews:
- Rating: Mostly good; known for being reliable and helpful.
- Pros: High compliance, several options, and a source you can trust.
- Cons: The price can go up; some features need extra costs; and it’s not always the cheapest for extremely small teams.
- Quote: “ADP RUN has a lot of the payroll and compliance functions you need, but the price goes up as you add HR and benefits options.” – SMB user comparison with QB Payroll.
4. Zoho Payroll (India)
Overview: Zoho Payroll is made for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in India. It helps with legal compliance (PF, ESI, TDS, etc.), makes payslips, lets you pay your salary directly through partner banks, and has self-service portals.
Key Features:
- Calculating payroll automatically, making payslips, and following Indian laws (such income tax, PF, ESI, state PT, etc.)
- Employee self-service portal with built-in connections to other Zoho products like Books, People, and Expense
- Custom salary parts and leave/attendance integration in upper levels
Benchmark Performance:
- Ease of Use: Works well for firms that already utilize the Zoho ecosystem; the interface is clean.
- Integration: Good, especially with other Zoho tools; not as many global/international options.
- Visualization & Reporting: There are a lot of built-in payroll reports that are good enough for most payroll purposes.
- Scalability: Works for small and medium-sized businesses; costs go up as the number of employees or the requirement for more features develops.
Pricing:
- Free plan: ₹0 (up to 10 employees)
- Standard: ₹1,000 per month for each firm (up to 25 employees) + around ₹40 for each extra employee
- Professional: For professionals, it’s ₹3,000 per organization each month (for 50 employees) plus further expenses for each employee.
- Premium: About ₹4,000 per organization per month, plus more per employee for additional features like attendance and leave, workflows, and so on.
Customer Reviews:
- Rating: Good for its price and compliance features in India. (Collected by users in Indian SMB comparisons)
- Pros: It’s quite cheap for small teams, it works well with other applications, and it follows the rules.
- Cons: Some complex capabilities are only available on higher levels; compliance with international payroll and non-India payroll is not as strong.
- Quote: “Zoho Payroll’s free tier is enough for new businesses,” says the quote. The paid versions include good features for businesses with 25 to 50 employees without costing too much. — Comment from an Indian SMB user in a comparison debate.
5. Zimyo Payroll
Overview: Zimyo is another cloud-based payroll and HR software in India. It has capabilities like managing salary, leave/attendance, compliance, and reimbursements.
Key Features:
- Modules for calculating salaries, managing attendance and vacation, and making sure rules are followed
- Management of reimbursements; employee self-service site
Benchmark Performance:
- Ease of Use: Moderately easy to use; reliable and focused on the Indian market.
- Integration: Works well with Indian payroll and HR systems, but not as well with systems from other countries.
- Visualization & Reporting: The built-in reports are good, and the dashboards are good enough for small and medium-sized businesses.
- Scalability: Good for small and medium-sized businesses; when more features are used, the cost goes up per user.
Pricing:
- Basic user‑based pricing: The basic plan costs about ₹60 per user each month.
- Standard and higher tiers: Standard and higher tiers cost about ₹120 per user per month or more, and the features get better as you move up.
Customer Reviews:
- Rating: Good value for money in the Indian market because of the features it has.
- Pros: Follows local laws, clear pricing, and features that fulfill most payroll needs.
- Cons: Some capabilities, such bespoke workflows and advanced HR modules, cost extra. Also, support or localization can occasionally be slow.
- Quote: “Zimyo gives the basics with good compliance at a price that works for many small and medium-sized businesses.” — Pazcare blog review for small and medium-sized businesses.
Comparative Analysis: Payroll Tools for SMBs
| Tool | Ease of Use | Integration | Features & Compliance | Scalability | Starting Price |
| Gusto | High | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | ~$49/month + ~$6/employee |
| QuickBooks Payroll | High‑Moderate | Excellent (esp. QuickBooks) | Very good for US payroll needs | Good‑Excellent | ~$22.50 + ~$6/employee |
| ADP RUN | Moderate | Very good | Strong | Very good | ~$59/month + ~$4/employee (base tiers) |
| Zoho Payroll (India) | High | Good (Zoho ecosystem) | Strong in Indian statutory compliance | Moderate‑Good | ₹0 up to 10 employees; ~₹1,000/month base plan |
| Zimyo Payroll | Moderate | Good | Good for payroll + local regulations | Moderate‑Good | ~₹60/user/month base |
Recommendations for SMBs
- Budget‑Conscious SMBs: Patriot Software, Zoho Payroll (free up to 10 employees), SumHR offer cost‑effective entry points.
- US/Multistate Payroll Needs: Gusto and QuickBooks Payroll are strong choices; ADP RUN if you need broad compliance, added HR/benefits.
- India‑Market and Local Compliance: Zoho Payroll, Zimyo Payroll, GreytHR are top choices for Indian SMBs due to statutory compliance and local features.
- Feature‑Rich Requirements: Gusto, ADP RUN, and QuickBooks Payroll offer more advanced HR, benefits, and integrations.
- Startups and Tech‑savvy Teams: RazorpayX, Pocket HRMS, SumHR may offer more modern UX and flexible pay runs.
Conclusion
Payroll software is more than simply a way to pay employees; it’s also about making sure everything is correct, following the rules, saving time, and letting small businesses focus on growth. The options we looked at here range from simple payroll that is free or cheap to full-service platforms that support operations around the world. One of these alternatives should work well for you, depending on the size of your firm, where it is located, how you expect to grow, and how much money you have.
References
- TechRadar.com, BusinessNewsDaily, Forbes Advisor (for reviews of Gusto, QuickBooks, ADP)
- Vendor websites (Zoho Payroll, Zimyo, etc.) for pricing and feature details
- Indian payroll/HR‑software blogs and comparison sites (Pazcare, DeskTrack, Pletox etc.)
