OnPay vs Square Payroll
We give OnPay a 2.6 GPA and Square Payroll a 2.4, out of 4.0. OnPay grades higher on the free plan and features. Square Payroll grades higher on value for money and ease of use. They get the same grade on platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
OnPay
US payroll with published prices, plus HR and time add-ons
Square Payroll
Payroll for Square sellers, with timecards from Square POS
How we grade them
| 2.6GPAOnPayGood | 2.4GPASquare PayrollFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPayroll Essentials is $49 a month plus $6 a worker, $79 for five, the same as Gusto and just under the middle of this category. Benefits administration and onboarding are in that price rather than sold on top. | BFull-service payroll is $35 a month plus $6 a person, $65 for five, inside the cheapest quarter of this category. Paying only contractors is $6 a person, $30 for five, though that plan files no taxes. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe first month is free. There's no free plan, and the listing doesn't say whether you need a card to start. | FNo free plan or trial on record. There is no long-term contract, so you pay month by month, but you pay from the start. |
| Features | BPays employees and contractors in all 50 states, files taxes under an error-free guarantee, onboards new hires with e-signatures, syncs to QuickBooks Online or Xero and sets up health plans with in-house agents. Time and HR are add-ons. | CPayroll done fully, with tax filing for each state you pay in, tips and hours pulled from Square POS, overtime and scheduling. It's a smaller job, though: no HR tools, and health insurance and 401(k) are paid add-ons. |
| Ease of use | B4.83 from 689 App Store ratings, short of the 1,000 an A needs. New hires onboard themselves and sign their I-9s and W-4s online. | A4.7 from about 41,000 App Store ratings for the Square Team app, where owners run payroll and staff onboard themselves. If you're on Square already, the hours are already there. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with QuickBooks Online, Xero, Vestwell, JazzHR, NEXT Insurance and TurboTax. No desktop app. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Square Point of Sale, Cash App and QuickBooks Online. No desktop app, and it's sold on Square's US site only. |
| Best for | small US firms that want a clear price and benefits | shops and cafes already selling with Square |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: OnPay and Square Payroll. How we grade
Price against what you get
OnPay starts at $49 a month and scores 3.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Square Payroll starts at $6 a month for each person and scores 3.0.
They score the same, and Square Payroll starts $43 a month lower. Of the other payroll services on the chart, 1 scores higher than OnPay for less, and none scores higher than Square Payroll for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- OnPay starts at $49 per month, plus $6 per worker paid. Square Payroll starts at $6 per person paid / month, contractor-only payroll.
At a glance
| OnPay | Square Payroll | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Paid |
| Starts at | $49 per month, plus $6 per worker paid | $6 per person paid / month, contractor-only payroll |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | First month free | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | OnPay, LLC | Block, Inc. |
| Price read from | onpay.com | squareup.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
OnPay
- Small US businesses that want to know the price without a sales call
- Teams paying employees and contractors in several states
- Owners who want benefits handled in the same place as payroll
Square Payroll
- Restaurants, shops and salons already taking payments with Square
- Businesses with tipped hourly staff
- Owners who pay only contractors and want a per-person price
Worth knowing
OnPay
- Add-ons bought alone cost $15 plus $2 per worker (HR), $15 plus $4 per worker (Time Tracking), $10 (Compliance Resources) and $65 a month (Live HR Support).
- Runs payroll in all 50 US states at no extra charge per state; the pages read mention no other countries.
- Health insurance, workers' comp and 401(k) plans are paid at their premiums on top of the OnPay subscription.
Square Payroll
- Contractor-only payroll leaves out tax filings, auto payroll, off-cycle payments, multistate payroll and garnishments.
- Mailed paper W-2s and 1099s cost $3 per form a year; workers' comp, health insurance and 401(k) are paid add-ons.
- Scheduling, tip import, overtime and labor-cost reports come only with full-service payroll.
- It runs US payroll, filing federal and state taxes, and is sold on Square's US site.
Key features
OnPay
- Full-service payroll
- Pay W-2 employees and 1099 contractors by direct deposit, check or prepaid debit card, with unlimited pay runs and garnishment deductions.
- Taxes in all 50 states
- Files and pays federal, state and local taxes and year-end W-2s and 1099s, registers for state taxes, and backs its filings with an error-free guarantee.
- Hiring and onboarding
- Send offer letters for e-signature, have new hires sign I-9s and W-4s and onboard themselves, and file state new-hire reports automatically.
- Accounting sync
- Syncs the general ledger to QuickBooks Online or Xero after every pay run, with line items mapped to your chart of accounts.
- Benefits administration
- Health, dental and vision plans chosen with licensed in-house agents, with open enrollment and payroll deductions; you pay only the premiums.
- Time Tracking add-on
- Time clocks for each worksite, overtime and break rules, supervisor approval and approved hours sent straight to payroll.
Square Payroll
- Full-service payroll
- Unlimited pay runs, auto payroll, off-cycle payments and multiple pay rates, with no long-term contract.
- Payroll tax filing
- Calculates, withholds and files federal payroll taxes and state taxes, including state unemployment, for each state or locality you pay in.
- Timecards, tips and overtime
- Imports hours from Square POS or the Team App, tracks direct tips, calculates overtime and schedules staff up to 10 days out.
- Pay by deposit, check or Cash App
- Next-day or two-day direct deposit, paper checks, or Cash App, where team members can get paid instantly.
- Square Team App
- Owners run payroll and manage the team from a phone, and employees onboard themselves and see their pay stubs.
- Reports and QuickBooks
- Custom reports on paychecks, employee and company totals, labor-cost reports, and a QuickBooks Online integration.
Plans
OnPay
Payroll Essentials$49
per month, plus $6 per worker paid
Full-service payroll and tax filing in all 50 states, onboarding with e-signatures, accounting sync, reports and benefits administration.
Payroll, Time Tracking and HR$70
per month, plus $10 per worker paid
Bundle for hourly teams: Payroll Essentials with the Time Tracking and HR add-ons, against $79 plus $12 per worker bought separately.
Payroll, HR and HR Support$120
per month, plus $7 per worker paid
Bundle for salaried teams: Payroll Essentials, HR, Compliance Resources and Live HR Support.
Everything bundle$130
per month, plus $10 per worker paid
Payroll Essentials with Time Tracking, HR, Compliance Resources and Live HR Support.
Square Payroll
Contractor-only payroll$6
per person paid / month, contractors only
Pay contractors from the Square Dashboard by direct deposit, check or Cash App, with 1099s delivered digitally. No tax filings or auto payroll.
Full-service payroll$35
per month, plus $6 per person paid
Unlimited and auto payroll, federal and state tax filings, multistate payroll, scheduling, tip import, labor-cost reports and next-day deposit.
