Recommended Payroll Services Reviews

Paychex was founded in 1971 by Tom Golisano and is one of the oldest companies of its type in the country. It’s a modern payroll and HR solution that works with over 740,000 small and medium business clients to help them stay compliant with the law while ensuring all of their staff get paid on time.

SurePayroll, an online payroll and tax-filing tool established in 2000, is designed for small businesses and has been a subsidiary of Paychex, Inc. since 2011. It includes unlimited payroll runs and payroll tax calculations to streamline business operations. While SurePayroll ensures timely payments and offers HR-targeted features mainly geared toward HR professionals.

Founded in 2011 as ZenPayRoll by Edward Kim, Joshua Reeves, and Tomer London, Gusto is a complete human resource management platform for small and medium businesses. It’s an end-to-end ecosystem that takes care of payroll and compliance, benefits administration, time tracking, and even onboarding. Together, these tools save businesses countless hours and money through automation and easier regulatory compliance. Gusto has also earned recognition as a TrustRadius inaugural Buyer’s Choice Award Winner, demonstrating its popularity and trust among real customers. In addition to its core offerings, Gusto recently launched Gusto Global, enabling SMBs to hire, onboard, pay, and support international employees, expanding their reach and capabilities.

Paycor was founded back in 1990 when the internet was still in the nascent stages. Its mission since inception has been to help small and medium businesses manage payroll and human resources tasks in house. Today, 30 years on, it has developed an end-to-end solution to help businesses spend less time on payroll and more time growing. 

Patriot Software is a US-based provider of online accounting and payroll solutions designed specifically for American small business owners and their accountants. The company’s founder, Mike Kappel, started in 1986 with other startups, with Patriot being his fifth. The brand has since remained privately owned and served over 60,000 customers in the US, particularly small business owners. It has over 180 workers across 30 states. Patriot offers two main cloud-based products: Patriot Accounting and Patriot Payroll. Both are standalone products. The Payroll solution handles basic payroll tasks as well as tax filing (with higher-tier plan). The software is engineered for speed, with the company boasting that customers can run payroll in under three minutes. Key features include unlimited payroll runs, free direct deposit, and a mobile-friendly employee portal that lets workers access pay stubs and W-2s. Businesses can also customize the platform with add-ons for Time & Attendance and HR management, or integrate it with other tools they use.

If you’re running a small business, freelancing, or hiring contractors, you know payroll paperwork can easily become one of the most time‑consuming tasks of your month. The Wix Paystub Generator gives you a fast, user‑friendly, and completely free way to generate professional paystubs in minutes. You simply enter your business details, add employee or contractor info, complete salary details, preview, and download. No fees, no subscriptions, and no software installation required. This tool works especially well for small businesses, freelancers, and self‑employed individuals who need clean, accurate paystubs without committing to a full payroll system. Since it’s built by Wix, you also benefit from the larger Wix ecosystem if you ever want to expand your business tools.

With over 7 million users, QuickBooks is one of the most popular accounting platforms for small and mid-sized businesses. Although it still offers a desktop version, the majority of business owners favor the cloud-based QuickBooks platform, which can be accessed on practically every device. Coupled with easy accessibility, this accounting platform also has various plans available, depending on the size and needs of your business.

Sage Intacct is a cloud-based accounting platform developed by Sage, a trusted name in accounting and business management software since 1981. Starting out in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, it has grown to support over 6 million businesses across 23 countries, becoming one of the largest providers of accounting, payroll, and payment solutions for small and medium-sized businesses. This accounting software offers tools like accounts receivable and accounts payable automation, intelligent cash management, and AI-powered features to streamline processes and reduce manual effort. Dashboards and customizable reports provide real-time insights, helping users analyze financial performance and track key metrics effectively. Endorsed by the AICPA, Sage Intacct is particularly suited for organizations requiring advanced features like subscription billing and revenue recognition. Its flexibility and ability to integrate with other solutions make it a practical choice for professional finance teams across various industries.

Homebase Payroll offers a user-friendly solution for small and medium-sized businesses to manage employee compensation. Equipped with comprehensive tools for managing payments, taxes, benefits, and compliance, it ensures timely employee payments while simplifying administrative tasks for employers.