ADP is one of the best choices for businesses that will expand operations and hire more employees. It has advanced HR features like new hire onboarding and background checks on top of its full-service payroll and tax services. However, ADP is not ideal for small businesses with a tight monthly budget, because it charges per payroll run and for year-end reporting. If you don’t need robust HR features, a top ADP competitor may work better for your business
ADP Alternatives for Small Businesses
Payroll Provider | Best for |
|---|---|
(Best Overall) For small and expanding businesses | |
Small business owners who want to customize their payroll plans | |
Companies that are searching for affordable full-service payroll and free, year-end reporting | |
Businesses needing an affordable but popular payroll and accounting option to pay employees | |
Best for companies in heavily regulated industries that need top-notch HR support; also great at supporting hourly workforce that needs to track work hours | |
Companies that primarily need strong onboarding and offboarding support along with an integrated way to pay its workers |
How We Chose the Best 6 ADP Alternatives
We considered a dozen payroll services and looked into how closely they compare with ADP. We then evaluated their best features for running payroll and HR services that are most important to small businesses, scoring them according to the criteria below. Finally, we chose the top six software most similar to ADP yet better in some aspect to help you decide which ADP alternative is best for your business. Overall, for features and customer satisfaction, Paychex is the best ADP alternative.
RUBRIC SCORECARD CRITERIA:
30% of Overall Score
We looked for convenience features like automatic pay runs, tax filing, and the ability to pay contractors and employees. We also considered specific needs such as a live check option and if they offer a penalty-free guarantee.
25% of Overall Score
The best payroll software includes at least simple HR features, such as onboarding, self-service portals, and benefits. We also favored companies with advisors on hand to help with legal compliance issues.
15% of Overall Score
Payroll software should be easy to use. We looked for features and support, plus considered user comments on the learning curve and day-to-day operations.
15% of Overall Score
In addition to the price per employee and setup fees, we also determined their available plans or if they offer customized pricing. We also looked for free trials.
10% of Overall Score
Software reviews show reviews from real users and can be a maximum of 5 stars. We average review ratings from G2, Capterra, and Software Advice that are also based on a 5-star scale; any option with an average of 4+ stars is ideal. We favored software with 1,000+ reviews on any third-party site.
5% of Overall Score
In addition to the number of payroll reports, we considered whether they are customizable or if you could create special reports to your specific needs.
Paychex
PROS
- New hire reporting
- Two-day direct deposit
- 24/7 customer support
CONS
- Must contact sales for pricing; it can increase from year to year
- Garnishment payment services are available for the premium plan
- Expert advisers cost extra
| RATING CRITERIA | Payroll Features | 5 | OUT OF | 5 |
| HR Features | 5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 4.63 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Pricing | 3.5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Popularity | 5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Reporting | 5 | OUT OF | 5 |
Like ADP, Paychex is a full-featured payroll system that has different packages for small to enterprise-level businesses. It is capable of handling payroll and tax administration, onboarding, and workers’ compensation for you from anywhere. It also assigns a dedicated specialist for your payroll and tax requirements in addition to 24/7 client support. It’s best for businesses that plan to expand operations and increase manpower. You can speak to a member of the sales team to customize a package based on your needs.
Paychex Pricing
- Call for pricing. We were quoted approximately $15-$16 per employee monthly when factoring in all payroll fees, including year-end reporting, excluding benefits and other products.
Other Paychex Features
- Online and mobile app payroll processing via check or direct deposit
- Self-service portal for employees
- Online onboarding
- In-house insurance options plus a range of other benefits
- Files and pays federal, state, and local taxes
- Add-on options, like hiring services, liability insurance options, time and attendance, etc.
Inova Payroll
PROS
- Self-service portal
- Quality customer service
- Professional tax team support
CONS
- Pricing is not transparent
- Steep learning curve
- Limited third-party integration
| RATING CRITERIA | Payroll Features | 4.5 | OUT OF | 5 |
| HR Features | 5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 3.75 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Pricing | 3.5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Popularity | 5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Reporting | 5 | OUT OF | 5 |
Inova may not be as popular as ADP but it offers integration of full-service payroll and HR solutions for businesses of all sizes. It handles payroll for both contractors and employees, calculates taxes, and manages benefits. Inova’s payroll team specializes in information technology and can customize its software and features to meet your needs—although it will cost extra.
Inova also offers full-service HR outsourcing, time and attendance, group health benefits, and retirement plan options. Professional tax teams help in monitoring federal, state, and local tax updates and resolutions. Just like ADP and Paychex, Inova does not publish its pricing online; expect to pay a base fee of around $24 for weekly payroll runs and $1.60 per paycheck processed. You will have to ask for a customized quote to conform to your specific needs.
Inova Payroll Pricing
- Call for pricing. We were quoted approximately $16-$17 per employee monthly when factoring in all payroll fees, including year-end reporting, excluding benefits and other products. Note that direct deposit costs around an extra $9 per employee, but is included in our quote.
Other Inova Payroll Features
- Processes payroll through mobile app or browser
- A self-service portal that allows employees to access pay stubs, W-2s, and additional salary information
- Easy-to-use and intuitive interface
- HR solution (applicant tracking, onboarding, time and labor management)
- Group health benefits
- Offers 401(k) plan
Gusto
PROS
- Easy to use
- Unlimited pay runs
- Affordable for small business owners plus free trial
CONS
- No dedicated payroll specialist
- Benefits aren’t available in all states
- No plan options that support small businesses growing into enterprises
| RATING CRITERIA | Payroll Features | 4.75 | OUT OF | 5 |
| HR Features | 4.25 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 4.5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Pricing | 3.25 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Popularity | 5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Reporting | 4 | OUT OF | 5 |
For small business owners with less than 100 employees and requiring monthly unlimited pay runs, Gusto is the best choice. The software is easy to use—no excess features you don’t need. It automatically files and pays federal, state, and local taxes. In addition, it automatically generates W-2s and 1099s and sends copies to employees and contractors at no extra cost, unlike ADP. Multiple pricing options are also available and set up and migration are free—you’ll pay a setup fee with both ADP and Paychex.
Gusto Pricing
- Core Plan: $39 monthly + $6 per employee/month
Other Gusto Features
- Runs payroll in all 50 states at the same rate
- Files and pays federal, state, and local taxes
- Direct deposit, physical check, and paycard payment options
- Penalty-free guarantee, if Gusto makes the mistake
- Accounting and time-tracking integration
- PTO management
- Benefits management, including health insurance in 39 states
- New hire reporting
QuickBooks Payroll
PROS
- Unlimited payroll runs
- Integrates with QuickBooks and QuickBooks Desktop
- Preps and files year-end reports
- Create and download reports for payroll history, paid time-off, and tax payments
CONS
- Few third-party integrations
- No new hire reporting
- Does not handle local taxes
| RATING CRITERIA | Payroll Features | 4 | OUT OF | 5 |
| HR Features | 3.88 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 4.63 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Pricing | 3.25 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Popularity | 5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Reporting | 4 | OUT OF | 5 |
QuickBooks Payroll is a cloud-based payroll software for small businesses. It can handle most payroll functions from onboarding to tax preparation, although it doesn’t report new hires to the state.
QuickBooks Payroll allows you to run auto payroll for salaried employees on same-day or next-day direct deposit, which would cost you extra under ADP. It also automatically calculates, files, and pays taxes and files year-end W2 Forms. And unlike ADP, QuickBooks Payroll has an internal accounting program specifically for small businesses, QuickBooks, that seamlessly integrates with its payroll system.
QuickBooks Payroll Pricing
- Core Plan: $45 monthly plus $4 monthly per person
- Premium Plan: $75 monthly plus $8 monthly per person
- Elite Plan: $125 monthly plus $10 monthly per person
Other QuickBooks Payroll Features
- Runs and processes payroll for you
- Direct deposit and manual check options
- Files and pays payroll taxes with all plans
- Penalty-free guarantee if a rep makes a mistake; guarantee covers your mistakes under premium plans
- Generates new hire reporting forms
- Health insurance options are available
- Time tracking is provided with premium plans
- Online employee portal
- Prepares year-end tax reports for free
- Offers health benefits, 401(k), and workers’ compensation
- No contract or startup fees
- Customizable and downloadable payroll reports
- Expert product support
Zenefits
PROS
- Unlimited pay runs
- Can pay with manual checks or direct deposit
- Employee mobile application
- Integrates with GSuite, Slack, Asana
CONS
- Payroll is an add-on cost
- HR and payroll expert advising costs extra
- Customer support is inconsistent
| RATING CRITERIA | Payroll Features | 4.25 | OUT OF | 5 |
| HR Features | 4.5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 4.5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Pricing | 1.75 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Popularity | 5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Reporting | 4 | OUT OF | 5 |
Zenefits is an end-to-end employee management solution that streamlines and automates HR, payroll, and benefits administration. It offers payroll as an add-on with unlimited pay runs, automatic federal and state tax filing, and new hire state filing. It allows you to pay your employees via direct deposit, and they will be able to access their pay stubs through a web portal.
Zenefits is best for businesses with one to 200 employees, and all of its core products come with a time and attendance tool at no extra cost—under ADP, this is a separate product. Businesses with an hourly workforce find its direct integration to the payroll system very useful.
Zenefits Pricing
- Essentials: $8 monthly per employee
- Growth: $14 monthly per employee
- Zen: $21 monthly per employee
- Payroll Add-on: $6 per employee, per month
Other Zenefits Features
- Unlimited pay runs
- Files new hire reporting forms
- Automatic filing of federal, state, and local taxes; W2 and 1099 year-end forms are also included
- Direct deposit, manual check
- Hiring and onboarding features
- PTO management
- Employee mobile app
- Time and scheduling
- Integrations: 401(k) providers, GSuite, Slack, Asana, Salesforce, Xero, QuickBooks, JazzHR, etc.
Rippling
PROS
- Pricing is more transparent than ADP
- Handles federal, state, and local taxes
- Robust products can be purchased separately, as needed
CONS
- Limited payment options
- Live phone support costs
- Core Employee Management plan must be purchased before any other products
| RATING CRITERIA | Payroll Features | 4.25 | OUT OF | 5 |
| HR Features | 5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 3 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Pricing | 0 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Popularity | 5 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Reporting | 4 | OUT OF | 5 |
Similar to Zenefits, Rippling’s payroll product comes as an add-on to its HR platform. It offers an extensive payroll feature set, with automatic tax prep and filing, and direct deposit payment options. You can also print manual checks as well, but there’s no payroll card or on-demand pay options that you would get with ADP, Paychex, or Gusto. It does automatically sync your HR data with payroll though, which can be a time saver.
With Rippling, you can track PTO as well as pay employees and contractors anywhere in the world. It also has pre-built reporting templates and customizable options. There is no live payroll support like there is with ADP, but many users rate Rippling’s live chat, in-app, and email support as highly responsive.
Rippling Pricing
- Core Employee Management: $10 per employee, per month
- Payroll: $8 per employee, per month
- Employee benefits: $6 per employee, per month
- Flex HSA and FSA benefits: $6 per employee, per month
- HR Help Desk: $100 a month
- App management: $8 per employee, per month
- Device management: $8 per employee, per month
Other Rippling Features
- Processes payroll, files, and pays taxes
- Automated onboarding and offboarding
- Has a self-service portal for employees
- Files new hire reporting forms with state agencies
- Customizable reports
- Offers health insurance options plus small and large group benefits
- IT device management plan options
- Applicant tracking
- Employee benefits
For a wider range of payroll service options, check out our buyer’s guides on the best payroll services and best payroll software.
Bottom Line
ADP is an excellent payroll service, but depending on your requirements, there are several other great options to choose from. All the ADP payroll competitors included in this list offer paycheck and direct deposit services, onboarding and employee self-service, and tax and benefits calculations. Some primarily cater to small businesses while others are more suited to a range of business sizes. HR support is included with most options but is limited under the most affordable options.
Overall, we found Paychex to be the best ADP competitor for payroll services, with the right features that small businesses need, like two-day direct deposit and 24/7 quality payroll support. It’s very similar to ADP in the range of services it provides but has additional employee benefits you may want to offer. Sign up to get started.
Nicolas Daigle
I work as a small business consultant for ADP in the 1-49 employee range (dealing with the RUN account) and I can say most of this information on ADP is incorrect. Although I cannot speak on what our competitors offer, I can confidently say we offer anything a small business could need stemming from the obvious payroll and tax filings (HR, compliance on a state and federal level, workers compensation, health insurance, retirement plans, time clocks, human capital management solutions, hiring/legal/onboarding support, background screenings, etc).
I would encourage anyone shopping payroll platforms or starting their first payroll account to do more research on ADP – as this articles take on ADP seems lackluster.
Amanda Norman
Hi Nicolas,
Thanks for stopping by. This is just one of the many articles we have to help small business owners decide what payroll service is best for their needs. We agree that ADP can be a valuable software for small business; it’s included in our article on 8 Best Payroll Services and Payroll Companies of 2020!
Best wishes.
Mandy, Moderator