Price against what you get

Best-value payroll services

Going by our grades, Deel and Square Payroll give the most for the money among payroll services: no tool on this chart scores higher without costing more.

Paid plans start at a middle price of $29 a month across the 14 that charge, from $6 (Square Payroll) to $99 (Paycor). 4 of the 14 score above the category's average while starting at or below its middle price. 0 cost more than the middle price and score below the average.

Set price against

Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged

What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →

Nothing scores higher without costing more
The best score at each price
Has a free plan
No free plan

14 of the 19 payroll services in this directory. Scores are ToolGPA’s own grades; prices are each vendor’s own, read up to Oct 17, 2026. The lines cross at the middle starting price ($29) and the average score (2.9). The data as JSON · The chart as a picture

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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/charts/payroll"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/charts/payroll/chart.svg" alt="14 payroll services by starting price and by ToolGPA score" width="1200" height="675" style="max-width:100%;height:auto"></a>

The best at every price

Each step is the highest score payroll services reach at that price or below. Nothing on the chart beats these without costing more.

$6
a month to start · scores 3.0 of 4
- Square Payroll$6 per person paid / month, contractor-only payrollCAB
$29
a month to start · scores 3.3 of 4
- Deel$29 per employee / month for self-service US payrollBAB

Paying more for less

The payroll services that the most others beat on both counts: a higher score and a lower starting price.

PaycorStarts at $99 a month and scores 3.0 of 4.3 of 13 score higher for lessBBB
QuickBooks WorkforceStarts at $50 a month and scores 3.0 of 4.2 of 13 score higher for lessBBB
NiuralStarts at $29 a month for each person and scores 2.3 of 4.2 of 13 score higher for lessBCC
OysterStarts at $29 a month for each person and scores 2.3 of 4.2 of 13 score higher for lessCCB
RemotePeopleStarts at $25 a month for each person and scores 2.3 of 4.2 of 13 score higher for lessBCC

A high starting price often means a product is sold to companies and has no small plan, and a score is three letters, not the whole product. Read a tool’s own page before ruling it out.

The four quarters

Where the tools fall when the chart is cut at the middle price and the average score.

More for less4

Each scores above the category's average and starts at or below its middle price.

Deel, Square Payroll, SurePayroll, Remote

Costs more, scores more6

Each scores above the average and starts above the middle price.

Gusto, Justworks, Roll by ADP, OnPay, QuickBooks Workforce, Paycor

Costs less, scores less4

Each scores below the average and starts at or below the middle price.

Patriot Payroll, RemotePeople, Niural, Oyster

Costs more, scores less0

Each scores below the average and starts above the middle price.

None.

All 14 on the chart

Highest score first, then lowest price. The last column counts the tools that score higher and start lower.

#	Tool	Score	Features, ease, platforms	A month	As its listing states it	Score higher for less
1	Deel	3.3	BAB	$29	$29 per employee / month for self-service US payroll	None
2	Gusto	3.3	BAB	$49	$49 per month, plus $6 per person paid (Simple)	None
3	Justworks	3.3	BAB	$50	$50 per month, plus $8 per employee (Payroll)	None
4	Square Payroll	3.0	CAB	$6	$6 per person paid / month, contractor-only payroll	None
5	SurePayroll	3.0	CAB	$20	$20 per month, plus $4 per employee	None
6	Remote	3.0	BBB	$29	$29 per employee / month and up, Global Payroll	None
7	Roll by ADP	3.0	CAB	$39	$39 per month, plus $5 per worker paid	1
8	OnPay	3.0	BBB	$49	$49 per month, plus $6 per worker paid	1
9	QuickBooks Workforce	3.0	BBB	$50	$50 per month, plus $7 per employee, billed monthly	2
10	Paycor	3.0	BBB	$99	$99 per month, plus $5 per employee	3
11	Patriot Payroll	2.3	CCB	$17	$17 per month, plus $4 per worker paid (half price for the first 3 months)	1
12	RemotePeople	2.3	BCC	$25	$25 per employee / month and up, for Global Payroll through your own entity	2
13	Niural	2.3	BCC	$29	$29 per employee / month and up, for Global Payroll through your own entities	2
14	Oyster	2.3	CCB	$29	$29 per contractor / month, after 30 days free	2

How payroll services grade

Every bar is all the payroll services we grade, cut by the letter each got on that count.

Value for money
average 2.4
Free plan and trial
average 0.5
Features
average 2.7
Ease of use
average 3.3
Platforms and integrations
average 2.9

An A is worth 4 and an F nothing. C is the ordinary grade. Every payroll grade in one table

Not on the chart

Sold for a single payment, or with no public price that can be put as dollars a month. They are graded like the rest.

Employment HeroA$10 per user / month for payroll, minimum 10 users (Australian dollars)
Paychex FlexNo public price
PaylocityNo public price
RipplingNo public price
RUN Powered by ADPNo public price

Common questions

Which payroll services give the most for the money?

Deel and Square Payroll. Each is the highest-scoring tool at its price or below: Square Payroll scores 3.0 out of 4 and starts at $6 a month for each person; Deel scores 3.3 out of 4 and starts at $29 a month for each person. This goes by ToolGPA's own grades for features, ease of use and platforms, averaged out of 4, set against the price each tool's paid plans start at.

Which payroll services are best for under $20 a month?

Square Payroll and SurePayroll, with a score of 3.0 out of 4: the highest among the 3 that start at $20 a month or less. Square Payroll starts at $6 a month for each person; SurePayroll starts at $20 a month.

Which payroll services cost the most for what they offer?

On this chart, Paycor (starts at $99 a month, scores 3.0 out of 4, and 3 tools score higher for less), QuickBooks Workforce (starts at $50 a month, scores 3.0 out of 4, and 2 tools score higher for less) and Niural (starts at $29 a month for each person, scores 2.3 out of 4, and 2 tools score higher for less). A high starting price often means a product is sold to companies and has no small plan, so check what the price includes before ruling one out.

How much do payroll services cost?

The middle starting price is $29 a month: half of the 14 payroll services with a recurring price start below that and half above. 0 of the 19 in this directory have no paid plan, and 0 of those that charge also have a free plan.

How is the score on this chart worked out?

It is the average of three of the five grades ToolGPA gives every tool: features, ease of use, and platforms and integrations, with an A worth 4 and an F worth 0. The other two grades, value for money and the free plan, are about price, so they are left out and price gets an axis of its own. 14 of the 19 payroll services are on the chart; 5 are left off because they are sold for a single payment or publish no price that can be put as dollars a month.

How this chart is made

The score is the average of three of a tool’s five grades: features, ease of use, and platforms and integrations. An A is 4 points and an F none. Value for money and the free plan are left out because they are about price, and price has an axis of its own.
The price is what paid plans start at, in dollars a month, on the cheapest way of paying the listing names. A yearly price is divided by twelve, and a price in another currency is converted. A price for each person is shown for one person.
A tool with no paid plan sits in the band marked Free. A tool with a free plan beside paid ones is placed at its paid price and drawn as a filled dot.
The grades are ToolGPA’s own judgement from each vendor’s pages and from public reviews, not from testing, and no vendor can pay for one. How we grade