Check vs Justworks (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Check if

• Fits if you run a software platform and want to offer US payroll inside it
• Works for engineering teams that want payroll as an API

Look elsewhere if

• Not for you if you only want to run payroll for your own staff
• Skip it if you are outside the US, as its pages describe US payroll terms only
• Skip it if you want to see a price, as none is published and /pricing is a dead page
• Skip it if you want a free plan or trial, as none is listed

Pick Justworks if

• Fits if you want health plans and 401(k) through a PEO and accept co-employment
• Works for a team that clocks in on a shared iPad and sends expenses from phones

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you need time tracking, at $8 a person on top of every plan
• Skip it if your overseas people are employees, since they go on the $599-a-person EOR plan
• Not for you if you want to try it first, as there's no trial on record
• Watch out: on the Payroll plan, health insurance is an $8-a-month add-on per eligible employee, and HR consulting $30 a person
• Tight if you want links to other software, as the listing names no integrations

Check

• No pricing is published; the site directs visitors to contact the team, and /pricing returns a not-found page.
• Check sells to platforms, so a business that only needs payroll for its own staff would use a product built on Check, not Check itself.
• The pages read describe US payroll terms such as tax filing and 401(k); other countries are not mentioned.
• Payments are handled by Check Payments LLC, shown in the site footer with an NMLS number.

Justworks

• Payroll and the PEO plans are for US teams. Staff abroad go on the $599 employer-of-record plan, or are paid as contractors in 60+ countries at $39 each a month.
• Health insurance through the PEO plans needs the co-employer arrangement; on the Payroll plan it is an $8-a-month add-on per benefits-eligible employee.
• Time tracking is $8 a month per employee on every plan, and dedicated HR consulting is $30 per employee.
• The employee app needs an account set up through an employer that uses Justworks.

Check

Embedded payroll

Software companies build a native payroll product on Check's infrastructure instead of writing payroll themselves.

Tax calculation and filing

Handles tax calculation, tax filing and tax notices, according to the product pages.

Money movement

Includes real-time payments, voids, deductions and garnishments, plus custom pay rates.

Configurable experience

Partners can configure the payroll experience and choose how much of the onboarding and support Check handles.

Benefits and extras

Health benefits, 401(k), workers' comp and accounting connections can be added beside payroll.

Credit, risk and fraud tools

The platform menu lists credit, risk and fraud protection among the services it provides to partners.

Justworks

Pay stubs and earnings

Employees review payments, share pay stubs and see year-to-date earnings in the app.

Benefits at hand

Insurance details are available and shareable from the app, so staff do not need to carry a card.

Time off requests

Employees request time off in the app, and managers review and approve requests there.

Expense reimbursements

Staff upload receipts when they spend and submit reimbursement requests under the company's rules.

Time tracking and Terminal Mode

Clock in and out, manage breaks and shifts and submit timecards; Terminal Mode turns a shared iPad into a PIN-based time clock.

Company calendar and directory

A shared calendar of pay dates, holidays, time off and birthdays, and a directory of colleagues grouped by department.

Check

Pricing could not be confirmed. See checkhq.com.

Justworks

• Payroll$50

  per month, plus $8 per employee

  Payroll for US employees with HR tools, expert support and access to time tracking. US-based contractors are $8 a month each.

• PEO Basic$79

  per employee / month

  Justworks becomes the co-employer: payroll, compliance, HR consulting, 24/7 support and 401(k). No base fee.

• PEO Plus$124

  per employee / month

  Everything in PEO Basic plus medical, dental and vision administration, HSA and FSA accounts. Marked popular. No base fee.

• EOR$599

  per employee / month

  Employer of record for hiring full-time staff abroad, with global HR and compliance support. No base fee.