Gusto Review

flag Unlimited payrolls. Clear pricing.
  • Run payroll in a few clicks

  • Payroll on Autopilot®

  • Automated tax filing

  • Self-onboarding system

User Reviews

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Overall gusto Rating

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0.3
(3 Reviews)
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ZAP

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ZAP

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Awful Customer Service

I have been trying for over two weeks now to get an answer from Gusto for one of my employees and I keep getting the run around. I cant seem to speak with a US rep that speaks fluent English. I keep getting routed to other countries when I call in to ask a question for my employee. I have called multiple times and emailed support with no response or help nor the answer to my employees question. AWFUL SERVICE will be changing payroll companies.

Pros & Cons

  • Large integration ecosystem
  • Employee document signing & onboarding without paying for an extra add-on
  • Access to HR professionals
  • Mobile app for employees
  • Only works in the United States
  • The contractor system only has basic features

Plans & Pricing

Gusto has three core pricing plans and multiple add-ons. The plans vary based on features you have access to and how quickly some operations, like direct deposit, are carried out.

Simple

The Simple plan is designed for small teams and costs $40/m +$6/m/person. It has basic payroll features such as payroll automation for single-state employers, benefits administration, basic support.

Plus

The Plus plan is designed for teams that are a bit larger and don’t have complex needs associated with payroll. It costs $80/m +$12/m/person. It builds on the Simple plan with Payroll automation for multi-state employers, benefits administration, team management tools, and full support; Add-on available for priority support and expert HR services

Premium (Exclusive pricing) 

The Premium plan offers more resources to ensure you’re compliant with regulations and taxes. Payroll automation for multi-state employers, benefits administration, team management tools, expert HR guidance and resources, R&D tax credit discount and other waived fees, priority support, and a dedicated customer success manager.

Simple
$40/m +
$6/m/person
Plus
$80/m +
$12/m/person
Premium
Exclusive Pricing

Overview

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.

Rating

  • "Price"
    9 /10
  • "Features"
    8 /10
  • "Ease of USe"
    9 /10
  • "Help and Support"
    8 /10

Features and Functionality

Gusto is a cloud-based application that can be accessed from any location as long as you have an internet connection. It also has a mobile application for employees with many useful features. Since it’s so popular, it has a large ecosystem of accountants that are familiar with the system. This makes generating important documentation even easier.

Benefits administration

As a business grows, it’s important to offer incentives to attract talent. Usually, it’s a pain to manage but Gusto allows you to handle everything from a single backend. Administer 401K, health insurance, dental insurance, and other financial benefits with the admin interface. You can even find providers and pay for them as an add-on.

Offer letters & onboarding

Gusto allows you to create and send customized offer letters for signing that match your branding. Create a master onboarding checklist that HR goes through to get new employees to speed and send other documents for electronic signing. It also allows you to create single sign on accounts for popular software like Slack and Google Suite.

Employee mobile wallet

Your staff can download a mobile app for iOS and Android that gives them control over how their paychecks are disbursed. It even lets them set up savings goals to put money away while earning them a small amount of interest.

Payday financing

When enrolled with Gusto, employees have access to emergency cash advances based on their accrued salary. It’s given to them instantly and is automatically withdrawn from their next paycheck. It’s free for you and interest-free for them.

Integrations & Add-ons

Gusto has a large collection of add-ons and integrations. Some of them are premium add-ons while others are free to access. In addition to popular integrations like QuickBooks and FreshBooks, there are niche integrations like allGeo.

Brex

Brex is a corporate credit card solution for businesses of all sizes. When you register a Brex account and connect it to Gusto for Payroll, you automatically earn 40,000 points. The more you use Brex together with Gusto, the more points you earn.

Shopify

The Gusto and Shopify POS make it possible to sync users from your Shopify store with Gusto and save chunks of time in the process. It syncs daily so new Shopify users will be added on a rolling basis.

401k & Health insurance

Gusto has partnerships with many providers and is able to get much lower rates for things like health and dental insurance and 401Ks. 401K administration starts as low as $47/m and health insurance is administered directly through the platform.

Ease of Use

Payroll software is notoriously difficult to use but Gusto is surprisingly refreshing. It starts with an onboarding questionnaire to better understand your needs then you land on the home screen of the application and have access to the most important thing – running payroll.

It doesn’t need much configuration beyond adding your business details and employees. You’ll also need to set up your bank accounts. It has a soft learning curve and once done, you can set payroll to run automatically every pay period. If you do run into trouble, there are many help documents you can use.

Customer Support

With this type of system, errors can cost many times more because of noncompliance fees. The Gusto support team is knowledgeable and works quickly to rectify any errors that may arise and are available via multiple channels. You can expect responses within a few hours after sending an email and a few moments when calling.

  • Phone Support
    Phone support is available to all customers between 8AM and 3PM PST.
  • Live Online Chat
    Live chat is also available during the same hours as phone support.
  • Email
    Email support is available to all customers and you can expect a reply within a few hours.
  • Video Tutorials
    There are video tutorials and walkthroughs available on the official YouTube channel.
  • FAQ
    It has multiple FAQs and a robust knowledge base.
  • Blog
    There are multiple blogs aimed at different groups. There is one for employers and one for accountants. Both deliver relevant tips and company updates.

Final Word

Gusto is a full-service payroll and HR solution that small and medium businesses can take advantage of to effectively manage their human capital. It offers an easy-to-use interface that lets you run payroll in minutes instead of hours. In addition to the core payroll services, there are multiple add-ons and features that enhance its utility.

Those features include benefits administration, employee onboarding, a mobile app for employees, a large number of integrations, employee time tracking, and much more. It’s reasonably priced for what it offers but add-ons can get pricey if you don’t take care. All things considered, it’s a powerful payroll service that is reliable and easy enough for almost any employee to manage.

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Andrew Omalley>
Andrew Omalley
author

Andrew is a freelance writer who has been crafting valuable pieces of content relating to personal finance for more than five years. Previously, he studied Economics & Finance at university and he has professional qualifications relating to financial advice.

We make the best effort to present up-to-date information; however, the terms of each offer can be revised according to the service provider’s discretion. The above shall not be considered as an expert or professional advice for any matter.

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