Paycor vs Workday (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Paycor if

• Fits if you have under 50 employees and want to see a price before calling sales
• Works for hourly staff who want to draw some of their pay before payday

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you're small, at $124 a month for five against $79 at Gusto or OnPay
• Skip it if you need onboarding on the lowest plan, as it starts on Essential
• Not for you if you have 50 or more staff and want a published price, as those go to sales
• Watch out: time tracking, scheduling, benefits administration and recruiting cost extra on every bundle
• Watch out: setup fees of $59 to $199 are shown as waived, and the sign-up step shows lower per-employee charges than the table

Pick Workday if

• Fits if you are a large employer wanting HR, payroll and finance together
• Works for organizations with payroll in many countries that need one view

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you are a small business, as it is aimed at enterprise buyers
• Not for you if you want a price before talking to sales, because none is published
• Watch out: outside the US, payroll is partner systems connected by API, so coverage differs by country
• Watch out: the mobile app is only useful if your employer already runs Workday

Paycor

• Runs US payroll across all 50 states; payroll in other countries comes through partner apps in Paycor's marketplace.
• Prices are published only for businesses under 50 employees; larger ones get a quote from sales.
• The same page lists setup fees of $59 to $199, shown as waived, and a sign-up step with lower per-employee charges than the main table.
• Time tracking, scheduling, benefits administration and recruiting cost extra on top of the bundles.

Workday

• No prices are published; the payroll page points to Contact Sales and Request a Demo, so cost is by quote.
• Aimed at enterprise buyers rather than small businesses.
• Its payroll page lists a U.S. payroll datasheet and describes global payroll as native and partner systems connected through APIs, so coverage varies by country.
• The Workday mobile app is a free App Store download for people whose employer uses Workday.

Paycor

Payroll and tax filing

Paycor calculates pay, files federal and state payroll taxes and handles W-2 and 1099 processing, with no limit on payroll runs a month.

Compliance alerts

A compliance dashboard flags missing or invalid tax IDs, address problems and direct deposit discrepancies before payroll runs.

OnDemand Pay

Employees can draw up to 50% of the wages they have earned before payday, or be paid onto the Paycor Visa card.

Onboarding and E-Verify

From Essential, new hires fill in forms, I-9s and tax documents online before their first day and sign documents electronically.

Paycor Mobile

Employees view pay stubs and tax forms, request time off, check schedules and enroll in benefits from the iPhone and Android app.

Add-on modules

Time and scheduling, benefits administration, recruiting and workers' compensation can be added to any small business bundle.

Workday

Payroll management

A continuous calculation engine and audit trails run payroll inside the same data model as HR, time and absence.

Payroll reporting and analytics

Reports on live workforce costs, with support for audits.

Global payroll connections

Connects native and partner payroll systems across more than 180 countries through live APIs.

Employee self-service

A mobile pay hub with an AI self-service agent for pay questions.

Payroll Agent

An AI agent that handles payroll steps from inputs to pay, with a person overseeing the run.

Paycor

• Basic$99

  per month, plus $5 per employee

  Payroll with federal and state tax filing, direct deposit, new hire filing, employee self-service, standard reports and OnDemand Pay.

• Essential$149

  per month, plus $7 per employee

  Adds onboarding and E-Verify, the HR Support Center, time-off tracking and labor law posters. The page's sign-up step shows $6 per employee.

• Core$199

  per month, plus $8 per employee

  Shown as COR. Adds on-demand HR advice, Paycor Analytics, 401(k) integrations and wage garnishment payments. The sign-up step shows $7 per employee.

• CompleteCustom

  Adds Paycor HR, career management, compensation planning and talent development. No price in the main table; the sign-up step shows $199 plus $12 per employee.

Workday

Pricing could not be confirmed. See workday.com.

Paycor

• Other savings

  50% off for the first 6 months

  Paycor's small business pricing page offers new customers 50% off for 6 months as a limited-time offer, with some restrictions. Other parts of the page advertise free months of payroll instead.

Workday

No public discounts listed.