Best Payroll Software for Accountants in 2022

The best payroll software for accountants makes it easy to handle payroll for many clients. It should integrate with accounting software, include a dashboard to manage multiple clients, and offer benefits specific to the needs of CPAs. Below are the top eight payroll software for accountants.

• QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants: Best (overall) payroll software for accountants, especially those interested in or already using QuickBooks Accounting
• Gusto for Accountants: Best for small accounting businesses that want tools to help market their payroll add-on service
• OnPay for Accountants: Best for accounting companies with clients in unique industries like agriculture (it can handle Form 943 filings)
• Patriot Payroll for Accountants: Best for accounting firms servicing businesses with mostly hourly workers (it has a full-service payroll plan with HR and time tracking tools)
• Paychex for Accountants: Best payroll for accounting firms wanting to provide their clients with HR and payroll tools that come with continuing education perks for accountants
• Rippling for Accountants: Best for accountants with clients needing HR, payroll, and IT tools to manage remote employees
• ADP Accountant Connect: Best for bookkeeping and accounting firms that work with growing businesses or companies of different sizes
• SurePayroll for Accountants: Best for accountants looking for client billing tools that let you adjust fees on a per-customer basis

Best Payroll for Accountants Compared

*Access to the providers’ accounting software may require additional fees.

QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants: Best Overall Payroll Software for Accountants

QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants

Overall Score: 4.69 OUT OF 5

RATING CRITERIA	Accountant Tools	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Ease of Use	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Expert Review	3.75	OUT OF	5
	HR Features	4.50	OUT OF	5
	Payroll Features	4.75	OUT OF	5
	Popularity	4.38	OUT OF	5
	Pricing	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Reporting	5.00	OUT OF	5

What We Like

• Unlimited pay runs
• Fast direct deposits with next- and same-day options
• Robust tax penalty protection
• Discounted payroll plans for clients plus free payroll software access for accounting firms (requires signing up for its free QuickBooks Online Accountant tool)

What's Missing

• Must use QuickBooks for accounting
• Basic HR features only
• Tax penalty protection is available only in the Elite plan

Read QuickBooks Payroll Review

QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants Pricing

• Software fees: Three plans (Core, Premium, and Elite) with monthly base fees of $45–$125 plus $4–$10 per employee, per month
• Accountant perks: Free access to QuickBooks Payroll Elite if you get QuickBooks Online Accountant; its ProAdvisor discount program deducts 30% from the monthly software base fees and 15% from the per-employee fees—but your firm will be billed
• Client discounts: Its Direct Discount option offers 30% off the monthly software base fees and 15% off the per-employee fees for your clients’ first 12 months of service—but your clients will be billed

Read QuickBooks Payroll Review

Visit QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants

If you use QuickBooks for your clients, then we highly recommend QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants. It lets you set client permissions, guarantees tax accuracy, and includes 24/7 support—plus, its accounting and payroll modules sync seamlessly with each other. And, if you sign up for its free QuickBooks Online Accountant solution, you can easily access your clients’ QuickBooks accounts to check their books, edit transactions, and address issues. It even comes with free access to QuickBooks Payroll Elite (which you can use to pay your employees), discount pricing for your clients, and a partner ProAdvisor program with preferential rates for both you and your customers.

Scoring 4.69 out of 5 in our evaluation, QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants earned high marks (4 and above) in nearly all of our criteria given its solid accounting and payroll tools, ease of use, robust reporting, and transparent pricing. Users also appreciate its efficient payroll tools as it helps simplify employee pay processing. However, its limited HR tools prevented it from getting a perfect rating because, unlike ADP and Paychex, QuickBooks doesn’t have a suite of HR solutions for managing the entire employee lifecycle.

QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants Pricing

With QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants, your clients can choose from three QuickBooks Payroll plans (Core, Premium, and Elite) with monthly fees that start at $45 plus $4 per employee. The differences between these plans include access to time tracking, workers’ comp administration, one-on-one HR support, and a tax penalty guarantee. For your new clients, discounts are available but only for the first three months.

Accountants who are part of QuickBooks’ ProAdvisor program can also choose to pay the monthly fees on behalf of their clients. This allows them to enjoy an ongoing ProAdvisor discount. They can also pass the discount to new clients through a Direct Discount option, but this is only for the first 12 months, plus QuickBooks will send the billings directly to the clients.

*Your new clients get 50% off the software base fee for the first three months. Note that the discounted rates may change, so check QuickBooks Payroll’s website from time to time to view the latest promotions on offer.

QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants Features

• Payroll: Setting up QuickBooks Payroll is very easy, and you can pay contractors, hourly workers, and salaried employees with just a few clicks. It comes with automatic and unlimited pay runs, and salary payouts can be done through paychecks and via next-day and same-day direct deposits. Its mobile app (for iOS and Android devices)—which is our top-recommended payroll app for small businesses—lets you process payroll and even e-file taxes while on the go. While the other providers on this list (except Gusto, Rippling, OnPay, and Patriot Payroll) have mobile apps, it doesn’t offer electronic tax filings.
• Tax filing services: Apart from year-end tax report prep and delivery, federal and state tax filings are included in QuickBooks Payroll’s tax services. However, if you require local tax filings, you need to get either its Premium or Elite tier. Elite subscribers also get a tax penalty guarantee where QuickBooks will cover all penalties (up to $25,000 per year) in case of tax filing errors—regardless of who made a mistake. The other payroll software for accountants in this guide may offer a similar coverage but only for tax filing mistakes that their representatives will make.
• Accountant-specific tools: Access to client management solutions and the free QuickBooks Online Accountant tool, including the seamless integration between QuickBooks products, make managing both client payroll and bookkeeping easy for accountants. Its partner program that includes ProAdvisor and client discounts also offers resources to help improve your skills and grow your accounting business.
• HR features: Employee onboarding, paid-time-off (PTO) monitoring, and time tracking with QuickBooks Time (formerly TSheets) are just some of the HR features that QuickBooks Payroll offers. While it provides an HR adviser and HR support center via its third-party partner (Mineral) to help keep you compliant, these services are unavailable to accountants who are calling on behalf of their clients.
• Employee benefits: In addition to pay-as-you-go workers’ compensation (via AP Intego), you are granted access to 401(k) plans and health insurance that is available in all US states. This is unlike Gusto’s health benefits that only cover 39 states.

QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants Drawbacks

• Local tax filings included in higher tiers: You have to convince your clients to sign up for at least a Premium plan if they want full payroll tax filing services (federal, state, and local). While you get preferential pricing under the ProAdvisor program, QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants’ discounted Premium plan ($52.50 per month plus $6.80 per employee monthly) is still pricier than Patriot Payroll—which offers full-service payroll and automated tax filings for only $30 per month plus $4 per employee monthly.
• Basic HR features: QuickBooks Payroll is ideal for small businesses that only need simple HR tools. If your clients’ HR needs begin to grow and they require additional solutions like hiring and learning management, QuickBooks won’t be a good fit. You may want to consider ADP, Paychex, and Rippling since all three offer a wide range of HR solutions. And while these providers might not have an in-house accounting system as QuickBooks does, their platforms can integrate with several third-party accounting software.

Visit QuickBooks Payroll for Accountants

Gusto: Best Payroll for Accountants Who Want Help Marketing Their Payroll Services

Gusto

Overall Score: 4.39 OUT OF 5

RATING CRITERIA	Accountant Tools	3.75	OUT OF	5
	Ease of Use	4.00	OUT OF	5
	Expert Review	4.38	OUT OF	5
	HR Features	4.13	OUT OF	5
	Payroll Features	4.50	OUT OF	5
	Popularity	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Pricing	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Reporting	5.00	OUT OF	5

What We Like

• Integrates with several accounting programs
• Partner program for accountants has a revenue share option
• Access to free marketing collateral to advertise your payroll services

What's Missing

• Lacks an in-house accounting system
• Health insurance coverage limited to 39 states
• Time tracking and next-day direct deposits available only in higher tiers

Read Gusto Review

Gusto for Accountants Pricing

• Software fees: Three plans (Core, Complete, and Concierge) with monthly base fees of $39–$149 plus $6–$12 per employee, per month
• Accountant perks: Discounted pricing and revenue share options; free access to its Complete plan if you onboard one client with Gusto each year
• Client discounts: 10%–20% off the monthly software fees (doesn’t apply to paid add-ons)

Read Gusto Review

Visit Gusto for Accountants

Gusto is a highly-rated and popular payroll service that provides HR support. It offers an accountant partnership program that goes beyond supplying client payroll as it includes certification programs and marketing venues for getting more clients. And with Gusto Pro, you get a client dashboard and tools to help you serve your customers well.

In our evaluation, Gusto earned an overall rating of 4.39 out of 5 with perfect scores in pricing and reporting capabilities. It lost some points for not having as many HR features as others on our list and for not providing insurance in all 50 states, although it does offer online onboarding. However, users still love its efficient payroll and tax filing services, plus they find its features robust given its price.

Gusto for Accountants Pricing

With Gusto, you and your clients can choose from four reasonably priced plans (Core, Complete, Concierge, and Select) with monthly fees that start at $39 plus $6 per employee. The differences between these include access to additional solutions like time tracking, onboarding, workforce costing, and compliance alerts.

Gusto Plans

• Core: Priced at $39 per month + $6 per employee monthly, this plan includes full-service payroll with automated payroll tax filings, unlimited and automatic pay runs, multi-state payroll, two-day direct deposits, accounting and time tracking integrations, health insurance administration, and access to employee benefits
• Complete: At $39 per month + $12 per employee monthly, it has all of Core’s features plus next-day direct deposits, basic time tracking, PTO policy management, onboarding tools, project tracking and workforce costing, permission settings, staff directory, and employee surveys
• Concierge: Costing $149 per month + $12 per employee monthly, you get all of Complete’s functionalities plus compliance alerts, dedicated support, an HR resource center, and access to HR advisers

For accountants, you enjoy several perks as a Gusto partner. Aside from being featured in the Gusto Partner Directory, you get free payroll migration for your clients, free payroll software for your firm (provided you enroll one client with Gusto per year), and the chance to get People Advisory Certified.

When signing up for Gusto’s partner accountant program, you will be asked to choose one of its discount and incentive options:

• Gusto to bill your clients at discounted rates
• Gusto to bill your clients using advertised rates but you’ll receive revenue shares
• Gusto to bill you at a discounted rate

The percentage of the discount or revenue share varies, depending on the number of clients you have. Newly enrolled accountant partners are also required to run client payroll with Gusto within 30 days of signing up for the program to receive the resulting discount or revenue share.

Gusto Discounts for Accountants

Gusto for Accountants Features

• Payroll: Unlimited payroll, multiple pay rates and schedules, and automatic pay runs, are just some of Gusto’s pay processing features. Aside from hourly and salaried employees, it can handle payroll for contractors, hourly, and salaried employees. It supports pay cards, paychecks, and direct deposits with four- and two-day options, and if you sign up for its higher tiers, you get next-day direct deposits.
• Tax filing services: Unlike QuickBooks Payroll, all of Gusto’s plans include tax payment and filing services for federal, state, and local taxes. It also handles year-end tax reporting (W-2 and 1099) and—unlike SurePayroll, ADP, and Paychex—won’t charge you extra for this.
• Accountant-specific tools: Gusto may not have in-house accounting software like QuickBooks and Patriot, but it can integrate with accounting programs such as Xero, FreshBooks, and QuickBooks. Plus, with Gusto Pro, you get a client dashboard to help you manage your customers’ payroll needs, track pay run deadlines, and spot issues like missed and blocked payrolls. It also includes access to helpful resources on maintaining revenue and regulatory changes, enabling you to provide personalized guidance to your clients.
• Marketing collaterals: All accountant partners get free Gusto marketing collateral, co-branded dashboards, and referral tools to help advertise payroll services to clients. As your incentive level increases, you get additional marketing resources—like inclusion in Gusto’s partner directory, Gusto partner badges that you can add to your website, and a featured partner profile.
• HR features: Aside from online new hire forms and onboarding tools, Gusto lets you upload and store electronic documents (like e-signed offer letters) into its platform. If you subscribe to its higher tiers, you get basic time tracking, workforce costing, expert advisers, and an HR library that contains job description templates, sample policies, and HR guides.
• Employee benefits: While its health insurance is available only in 39 states, Gusto offers a wide range of benefits options like commuter benefits, pay-as-you-go workers’ comp, health savings accounts (HSAs), flexible spending accounts (FSAs), health reimbursement, and 401(k) plans. Your clients and their employees can also download the Gusto Wallet, Gusto’s free financial management app that has time tracking capabilities and a “Cashout” feature in case your client’s staff need early access to earned wages.

Gusto for Accountants Drawbacks

• Discount perks require at least three clients: If you want to get discounted rates or plan to pass your discount perk to customers, you need to have at least three clients with Gusto. For those who are just starting their payroll accountant services, we recommend QuickBooks Payroll since its accountant partner program doesn’t have client limits and offer higher discounts (30% and 15% off the monthly base and per-employee fees, respectively) compared to Gusto (10%–20% only).
• Health insurance only in 39 states: Gusto may have solid payroll tools, but your clients won’t be able to maximize all of its benefits offerings if their business is located in a state that’s not covered by its health insurance. For health plans available across the US, consider any of the other providers on this list (except Patriot Payroll).

Visit Gusto for Accountants

OnPay: Best Payroll Software for Accountants With Clients in Agriculture & Farming Industries

OnPay

Overall Score: 4.38 OUT OF 5

RATING CRITERIA	Accountant Tools	3.25	OUT OF	5
	Ease of Use	3.50	OUT OF	5
	Expert Review	4.38	OUT OF	5
	HR Features	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Payroll Features	4.25	OUT OF	5
	Popularity	3.75	OUT OF	5
	Pricing	4.50	OUT OF	5
	Reporting	5.00	OUT OF	5

What We Like

• User-friendly interface
• Free payroll for your firm with no client minimums
• Partner program for accountants include discounts and revenue sharing options

What's Missing

• Access to two- or four-day direct deposits depends on OnPay’s risk assessment
• Limited third-party software integrations
• Year-end tax report printing and mailing services cost extra

Read OnPay Review

OnPay for Accountants Pricing

• Software fee: $36 per month plus $4 per employee monthly
• Accountant perks: Free payroll for your firm (no client minimums required); discounted pricing and revenue share options
• Client discounts: 10%–20% off the monthly software fees

Read OnPay Review

Visit OnPay for Accountants

OnPay lets you provide clients with payroll, essential HR tools, and benefits options available in all 50 states. Its software is flexible enough to handle pay processing and tax filings for businesses in unique industries, like agriculture and farming, as it can file Form 943 taxes, including taxes of workers on H-2A visas.

Similar to Gusto, its partner program for accountants comes with a client dashboard and an incentive scheme that lets you choose between revenue sharing and discounted pricing. You can even pass the discount to your clients and have OnPay send billing statements to their offices. What we like best about OnPay for Accountants is that you get free payroll software for your firm without having to meet client limits or adding a customer to your client base every year (like QuickBooks Payroll).

Following closely behind Gusto, OnPay earned a 4.38 out of 5 in our evaluation. It received scores of 4 and above in nearly all of our criteria given its HR functionalities, reporting capabilities, efficient payroll tools, and affordably-priced plan that many users appreciate. It would have ranked higher on our list had it offered an in-house accounting software (QuickBooks and Patriot does).

OnPay for Accountants Pricing

OnPay charges $36 per month plus $4 per employee monthly. Unlike ADP and Paychex, it doesn’t charge setup fees—new users even get the first month free.

OnPay Discounts for Accountants

OnPay’s partner accountant perks include free account setup, free data migration, marketing resources, free payroll for your firm, and options for either discount or revenue sharing. You can also pass the discount to your clients. The incentives are based on the number of clients you have.

OnPay for Accountants Features

• Payroll: OnPay can handle payroll for employees and contractors from various business types (like startups and SMBs), organizations (nonprofits and religious), and industries (such as restaurant, healthcare, dental, fitness, and agriculture). It offers unlimited pay runs, multiple pay rates and schedules, and multi-state payrolls. You can pay employees through pay check, debit card, and direct deposits. Note that you have to undergo OnPay’s risk assessment to identify whether or not you’re eligible for two- or four-day direct deposits.
• Tax filing services: OnPay will handle all payroll tax calculations, payments, and filings for you. It also offers year-end reporting and—similar to ADP, SurePayroll, and Paychex—you have to pay extra if you want OnPay to print and mail the W-2s and 1099s to your employees and contractors.
• Accountant-specific tools: You get access to a client dashboard, expert support from payroll professionals, and free client migration services.
• HR features: Employee onboarding, PTO management with in-app requests and approvals, offer letters, and state new hire reporting are some of OnPay’s HR functionalities. It even has built-in document templates, compliance alerts, an online document storage, and an HR resource library. For HR tools that include background checks and online training courses, consider Paychex, ADP, or Rippling.
• Employee benefits: OnPay provides your clients employee benefits options like health insurance available in 50 states (unlike Gusto’s, which is limited to 39 states). Other benefits include disability, life, and retirement plans.

OnPay for Accountants Drawbacks

• Risk assessment to determine direct deposit timelines: While this is a safety precaution that OnPay has put in place, you may not be able to offer two-day direct deposits to your clients if they don’t meet OnPay’s requirements for it. Some of your clients with large payroll amounts may even be approved for a “wire only” option in which your clients will handle the direct deposit transfers themselves. For fast direct deposits options, we recommend QuickBooks Payroll—it has next-day and same-day direct deposits.
• Limited third-party software integrations: While OnPay integrates with popular accounting and time tracking software (Xero, QuickBooks, Deputy, and When I Work), its partner network is very limited and doesn’t even connect with other HR-related solutions like hiring, applicant tracking, and learning management. If your client requires robust integrations, Rippling is a great choice as it connects with 400 business apps.

Visit OnPay for Accountants

Patriot Payroll for Accountants: Best for Accounting Firms Servicing Clients With Mostly Hourly Staff

Patriot Payroll for Accountants

Overall Score: 4.04 OUT OF 5

RATING CRITERIA	Accountant Tools	4.25	OUT OF	5
	Ease of Use	3.25	OUT OF	5
	Expert Review	3.75	OUT OF	5
	HR Features	2.25	OUT OF	5
	Payroll Features	3.88	OUT OF	5
	Popularity	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Pricing	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Reporting	5.00	OUT OF	5

What We Like

• Affordably-priced plans
• Wholesale pricing with up to 50% discount
• Free access to its payroll solution if you have 6+ clients
• Co-branding throughout its software

What's Missing

• Limited HR tools
• Interface is not customizable
• Multi-state filings cost extra

Read Patriot Payroll Review

Patriot Payroll for Accountants Pricing

• Software fees: Three full-service payroll options with monthly base fees of $30–$42 plus $4–$8 per employee
• Accountant perks: Wholesale pricing with discounts of 20%–50%; free payroll software for your firm if you have at least six clients; preferential pricing for its accounting tool
• Client discounts: N/A

Read Patriot Payroll Review

Visit Patriot Payroll for Accountants

Patriot Payroll not only lets you handle client payroll efficiently, but it comes with integrated time tracking and basic HR solutions—provided you sign up for its highest tier. This makes it ideal for your clients who employ mostly hourly workers as they can easily monitor their staff’s work hours, create custom overtime rules, and maintain an online employee database.

In our evaluation, Patriot Payroll earned 4.04 out of 5 with perfect marks with reporting, pricing, and popularity among users. It also received high scores in accountant-specific and pay processing tools given its helpful client dashboard, seamless integration with its accounting software (including QuickBooks), and the ease of running payroll with Patriot. It scored the lowest in HR features because it lacks onboarding, state new hire reporting, and benefits options.

Patriot Payroll for Accountant Pricing

Patriot Payroll offers three full-service payroll options, wherein one comes with a basic HR/employee information software and another with both HR and time tracking solutions. Retail pricing starts at $30 per month plus $4 per employee, and you have to pay extra for multi-state filings ($12 monthly for each additional state). Its accounting and time and attendance solutions are also available as paid add-ons, costing $25 per month and $6 plus $2 per employee monthly, respectively.

Patriot Payroll Plans

• Full Service Payroll: $30 per month + $4 per employee
• Full Service Payroll + HR Software: $36 per month + $6 per employee
• Full Service Payroll + HR + Time and Attendance: $42 per month + $8 per employee
• Add-ons: Multi-state filings ($12 monthly for each additional state); accounting ($25 per month), and time and attendance ($6 plus $2 per employee monthly)

Accounting firms that join Patriot Payroll’s partner program enjoy discounted rates based on the number of clients they have. What makes this program stand out from the rest of the providers in this guide is its wholesale pricing that includes discounts of up to 50% for its payroll product and preferential rates for its accounting software. While you can’t pass the discount to your customers, paying Patriot Payroll’s subscription fees on behalf of your clients lets you set your own price for your services—regardless of the discount you enjoy.

Patriot Payroll Discounts for Accountants

Patriot Payroll for Accountants Features

• Payroll: Pay hourly and salaried employees with ease, including contractors. You can run payroll as many times as you want without having to pay extra, and you can set Patriot Payroll to run automatically—provided you have already processed a successful payroll and don’t expect any changes to it. In addition to pay checks and direct deposits, it supports PTO accrual tracking, multiple pay rates, and customizable hours, earnings, and deduction types.
• Tax filing services: Depositing and filing your federal, state, and local taxes are part of Patriot Payroll’s tax services. The provider will even submit your year-end payroll tax filings to the appropriate agencies at no cost (ADP, SurePayroll, and Paychex charge extra for this).
• Accountant-specific tools: With Patriot Payroll’s client dashboard, you can add and manage your customers’ payroll information with ease. If you enroll in its partner program, Patriot offers a co-branding service where your firm’s branding will appear throughout its software.
• HR features: Patriot offers a time tracking solution with customizable overtime rules and a basic HR software for managing employee information and documents online. However, both of these tools are available only in Patriot Payroll’s highest tier. If you want affordably-priced payroll software to help your clients onboard new hires, consider Gusto as it offers helpful checklists, offer letters, and payroll onboarding tools.

Patriot Payroll for Accountants Drawbacks

• Lacks employee benefits options: For your clients who only require payroll and automated tax filing solutions, Patriot Payroll is a great choice as it is affordably priced and offers full-payroll services. However, if you want to provide your clients access to employee benefits, the other providers on this list are better options since they have benefits offerings that include health, workers’ compensation, and retirement options—although Gusto’s health insurance coverage is limited to 39 states.
• Very basic HR features: Patriot Payroll has very limited HR features. Even if you sign up for its payroll plan that comes with HR software, you only get employee information and document management functionalities. And while its reporting tool can help you generate new hire reports, you have to file this to the state yourself. If you or your client require a robust suite of HR tools, consider ADP, Rippling, or Paychex.

Visit Patriot Payroll for Accountants

Paychex for Accountants: Best Payroll for Accountants Looking for Continuing Education Perks

Paychex for Accountants

Overall Score: 4.01 OUT OF 5

RATING CRITERIA	Accountant Tools	3.75	OUT OF	5
	Ease of Use	4.75	OUT OF	5
	Expert Review	3.75	OUT OF	5
	HR Features	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Payroll Features	4.13	OUT OF	5
	Popularity	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Pricing	3.00	OUT OF	5
	Reporting	5.00	OUT OF	5

What We Like

• Full suite of HR tools
• Full-featured payroll options
• Continuing education through Paychex’s online courses and Accountant Knowledge Center

What's Missing

• Pricing isn’t all transparent
• Charges by pay run
• Payroll tax administration and year-end reporting cost extra

Read Paychex Flex Review

Paychex for Accountants Pricing

• Software fees: Custom priced
• Accountant perks: Discounted rates based on the number of clients; accountants are granted access to online continuing professional education (CPE) courses and resources
• Client discounts: N/A

Read Paychex Flex Review

Visit Paychex for Accountants

Paychex’s payroll and HR software for accounting professionals offers technology and partnerships that help you provide excellent service for your clients. It starts with a client dashboard, called AccountantHQ, where you can work with clients to run payroll (through its Paychex Flex solution) or run it yourself. Next, it adds HR tools like onboarding, new hire reporting, background checks, and hiring services. Then, it includes access to CPE webinars, compliance support, resources and tools to help improve client relationships, and a dedicated account services team of accountant relationship managers.

We gave Paychex 4.01 out of 5 in our evaluation. Like ADP, its pricing took a hit, as most of its HR and payroll products require you to call Paychex for a quote. It also charges by pay run, making it more expensive for most clients. Nonetheless, it offers a terrific range of payroll and tax filing services, including a dedicated payroll specialist. With Paychex, you can offer clients HR support given its wide selection of online tools—from hiring and employee benefits to learning management and even PEO services.

Paychex for Accountants Pricing

Paychex provides custom quotes for plans for accountants. The quote we received indicates that pricing is based on client size, and monthly fees range from $6 to $12 per employee, per pay run. That makes Paychex expensive for clients who require more than one pay run each month. It also charges add-on fees for system setup (though sometimes it waives these) and other services like payroll tax administration and W-2/1099 tax filings.

Paychex for Accountants Features

• Payroll: With Paychex Flex, you can pay contractors and employees through direct deposits, pay cards, or pay checks. It even offers check logo and check signing services. Aside from customizable earning and deduction types, you can choose from three pay entry options that include a grid view for easy pay data entry.
• Tax filing services: Its payroll tax administration services cover the payment and filings of federal, state, and local taxes on your behalf. It also offers year-end tax report preparation and delivery. Note, however, that Paychex may charge extra for some of these services. For tax services that are included in your payroll plan, consider Gusto, Rippling, Patriot Payroll, and OnPay. QuickBooks Payroll also offers similar services, but you have to get its highest tier if you want automated local tax filings.
• Accountant-specific tools: In addition to its AccountantHQ client dashboard, Paychex’s partner program includes free access to CPE webinars made possible through its collaboration with CPA.com and Wolters Kluwer. Registering to its Accountant Knowledge Center also grants you more access to helpful resources, such as videos and latest industry updates. And while Paychex doesn’t have an in-house accounting software like QuickBooks and Patriot, its Paychex Flex solution can integrate with popular accounting tools like Xero, Sage Intacct, and QuickBooks.
• HR features: New hire reporting, an HR library with business forms, and a labor compliance kit with e-posters for federal and state updates are some HR tools that you can get with Paychex Flex. It also offers new hire onboarding, background checks, learning management, access to HR experts, and an online employee handbook—provided you sign up for one of its higher tiers.
• Employee benefits: With Paychex, you can provide your clients access to health, dental, and vision insurance in all 50 states. It also offers HSA, FSA, and 401(k) plans and a financial wellness program—a benefit that none of the providers on this list have.

Paychex for Accountants Drawbacks

• Pricing isn’t all transparent: Paychex’s pricing scheme for most of its products follows a call-for-a-quote model. This can be a bit inconvenient for accountants and bookkeepers who want to do a quick comparison of features and costs between different payroll software.
• Charges extra for payroll tax administration: Unlike the other providers in this guide (except ADP), you have to pay extra for some of Paychex’s payroll tax services. This added cost, coupled with its per-pay run charges for payroll accountants, Paychex can get pricey for you and your clients. For reasonably-priced options with both client and accountant discounts, we recommend Gusto, OnPay, and QuickBooks Payroll. If you have a large clientele and are looking for a more significant discount, consider Patriot Payroll as it slashes 50% off its payroll software for accounting firms with 51 and more clients.

Visit Paychex for Accountants

Rippling for Accountants: Best Payroll for Accountants With Clients Looking for Payroll, HR & IT Tools

Rippling for Accountants

Overall Score: 3.87 OUT OF 5

RATING CRITERIA	Accountant Tools	3.75	OUT OF	5
	Ease of Use	4.00	OUT OF	5
	Expert Review	4.50	OUT OF	5
	HR Features	4.38	OUT OF	5
	Payroll Features	4.25	OUT OF	5
	Popularity	3.75	OUT OF	5
	Pricing	2.00	OUT OF	5
	Reporting	5.00	OUT OF	5

What We Like

• Payroll, IT, and HR tools are modular—you can select solutions that you need
• Robust integration options (over 400 apps)
• Partner program includes discounts for clients and accountants

What's Missing

• You need to get its core employee management platform before you can buy other solutions
• Pricing isn’t all transparent
• Purchasing all of its tools can get pricey

Read Rippling Review

Rippling for Accountants Pricing

• Software fees: Starts at $8 per employee monthly
• Accountant perks: Discounted rates; dedicated support team
• Client discounts: Discounts for Rippling’s HR and payroll products; special app discounts from some of its partner third-party software

Read Rippling Review

Visit Rippling for Accountants

Compared to all the providers in this guide, Rippling allows you to provide clients with a wider range of solutions given its modular HR, payroll, benefits, and IT tools. It even has efficient computer devices and apps provisioning and deprovisioning processes, plus Rippling can store your unused computers in its warehouse for safekeeping. However, its partner accountant program isn’t as robust as ADP with its benchmarking perks, Paychex with its CPE webinars, and Patriot Payroll with its wholesale pricing. Aside from a client dashboard, Rippling provides only discounts for you and your clients.

Scoring 3.87 out of 5 in our evaluation, Rippling received ratings of 4 and up in payroll and HR features, reporting capabilities, and ease of use. Many users even like its intuitive interface and the seamless integration between its products. It scored the lowest in pricing because details of its product suite’s monthly fees aren’t all posted on its website, plus it can get pricey if you purchase all of its HR, IT, benefits, and payroll modules.

Rippling for Accountants Pricing

Ripping requires you to purchase its employee management platform first and then add other paid HR, payroll, and IT modules that you want and need. Its pricing details aren’t all transparent—Rippling’s website only shows that monthly fees start at $8 per employee and doesn’t specify whether this is for its employee management platform or one of its modular solutions. However, you can contact Rippling to discuss your requirements and request a quote.

Based on the quote we received, monthly fees for Rippling’s HR, payroll, and IT tools are as follows:

• Core employee management platform: $10 per employee monthly
• Full-service payroll: $8 per employee monthly
• Employee benefits: $6 per employee monthly
• Flex HSA/FSA and commuter benefits: $6 per employee monthly
• HR help desk: $100 per month
• App management: $8 per employee monthly
• Device management: $8 per employee monthly

For Rippling’s partner program, accountants get discounted rates—and your clients can enjoy it too. Note that the client discounts are not only for Rippling’s HR, IT, and benefits administration modules; it also extends to some of the provider’s third-party software partners like Zoom, Expensify, Slack, and Salesforce Essentials.

Rippling for Accountants Features

• Payroll: Unlimited pay runs and auto-calculations of pay rates are just some of Rippling’s payroll features. You can pay both employees and contractors either through paychecks and direct deposits. Rippling even flags errors and pay data discrepancies between your draft pay runs and processed payrolls.
• Tax filing services: With Rippling, you don’t have to worry about filing payroll taxes yourself. Its tax services cover year-end reporting in addition to federal, state, and local tax payments and filings.
• Accountant-specific tools: Unlike QuickBooks and Patriot, it lacks an in-house accounting tool—although Rippling can integrate with QuickBooks, Sage Intacct, and Xero. Keeping track of all of your customers’ payroll needs and timelines is also made easy with Rippling’s client command center. In case you prefer a partner program with bigger discounts, consider Patriot Payroll as it can offer discounts of up to 50% off.
• HR features: Rippling’s suite of HR tools is designed to help you manage employees more efficiently. It has job posting, applicant tracking, time tracking, onboarding, and learning management solutions in addition to payroll and benefits options. If you need expert advice, sign up for its HR help desk add-on to get one-on-one support from an HR professional. However, if your clients prefer having access to a dedicated payroll specialist, then Paychex is an ideal tool for them.
• Employee benefits: You can choose to get one or all of its benefits modules that include ACA and COBRA administration, flex benefits (commuter benefits, FSA, and HSA), and benefits administration.
• IT tools: Rippling makes assigning and deploying computer devices to new hires easy. You can even install the necessary apps to computer devices and restrict access for resigning employees. Best of all, Rippling can connect with over 400 business apps. None of the providers on this list have a partner network this big.

Rippling for Accountants Drawbacks

• Accountant perks aren’t robust: The incentives included in Rippling’s partner accountant program aren’t robust when compared to the other providers on this list. For those who prefer higher discounts, Patriot Payroll can offer up to 50% off if you have 51 and more clients.
• Expensive if you get all of its tools: Having a modular HR, IT, and payroll platform can be convenient for those who only need one or two solutions. However, if you get Rippling’s entire solution suite, the monthly fees can be a bit costly for some of your clients, specifically small business owners.

Visit Rippling for Accountants

ADP Accountant Connect: Best Accountant Payroll for Growing Businesses

ADP Accountant Connect

Overall Score: 3.62 OUT OF 5

RATING CRITERIA	Accountant Tools	3.75	OUT OF	5
	Ease of Use	4.38	OUT OF	5
	Expert Review	4.38	OUT OF	5
	HR Features	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Payroll Features	4.50	OUT OF	5
	Popularity	5.00	OUT OF	5
	Pricing	0.50	OUT OF	5
	Reporting	5.00	OUT OF	5

What We Like

• Has flexible plans that cater to different business sizes
• Partner accountant program has a revenue-sharing incentive
• Free access to ADP Connect Accountant client dashboard

What's Missing

• Non-transparent pricing
• Year-end tax reporting costs extra
• Charges setup fees

Read ADP Run Review

ADP Connect Accountant Pricing

• Software fees: Custom priced
• Accountant perks: Revenue share incentive; access to payroll and HR experts, marketing tools, and tax research and industry resources
• Client discounts: N/A

Read ADP Run Review

Visit ADP Accountant Connect

Many businesses turn to ADP because it provides a comprehensive set of payroll and HR tools with scalable plans and products that cater to startups, growing businesses, midsize companies, and large enterprises. Its small business payroll software for those with up to 49 employees, ADP Run, has payroll, basic HR, and job posting (via ZipRecruiter) functionalities. ADP also offers its Accountant Connect solution for free, which comes with a client dashboard, so you can easily access your customers’ data, tax forms, and other reports. It even grants you access to compensation benchmark data, help desk support, and marketing resources, in addition to a reward program that lets you earn revenue when your clients choose ADP for payroll.

ADP earned an overall score of 3.62 out of 5 in our evaluation. It received ratings of 4 and up in most of our criteria given its solid pay processing tools, wide range of HR solutions, reporting capabilities, and ease of use. It is also highly-rated by many reviewers because, apart from streamlining essential HR and payroll processes, its interface is generally easy to learn and use. Meanwhile, its non-transparent pricing pulled ADP’s score down significantly.

ADP Accountant Connect Pricing

ADP does not list pricing online, as it tailors a package to your needs. We received a quote of $9.95 per employee, per pay run, for basic payroll for 10 employees. And unlike many of the providers on this list, ADP has setup fees and charges for each year-end form you need prepared and distributed.

For accountants, if you sign up in the ADP Revenue Share Incentive Program, you can earn dividends whenever your clients use ADP’s suite of HR and payroll solutions. ADP’s other perks include access to marketing resources, compensation benchmark data, learning courses, and help desk support.

ADP Accountant Connect Features

• Payroll: Pay runs can be completed quickly and accurately given ADP’s helpful mobile apps (for iOS and Android devices) and automatic payroll feature. Salary payouts for contractors and employees can be done via direct deposits, paychecks, and the Wisely Direct debit card. ADP can even deliver paychecks to your clients’ offices for distribution to employees/contractors.
• Tax filing services: Federal, state, and local tax payments and filings, as well as W-2/1099 reporting, are included in ADP’s payroll tax services. However, year-end tax report printing and delivery cost extra.
• Accountant-specific tools: In addition to an online dashboard, you get compliance assistance, expert analysis, tax resources, and benchmarking tools to help you advise clients. ADP also integrates with popular accounting software like QuickBooks, Xero, and Wave.
• HR features: Similar to Paychex, ADP offers new hire onboarding, training courses, background checks, and expert support. One thing that sets ADP apart from the other providers on this list is the ZipRecruiter job postings included in its ADP Run product—provided you subscribe to its higher tiers.
• Employee benefits: ADP has a wide range of employee benefits options, such as health, dental, vision, and retirement plans. And unlike the other payroll software in this guide, it provides employee discounts with brand-name providers and local retailers. This allows you to offer clients a discount perk they can provide to their staff.

ADP Accountant Connect Drawback

• Pricing: Aside from non-transparent pricing, you and your clients may end up having to pay a large amount if you get all of ADP’s online tools. Many of its solutions, including some of its services, are either paid add-ons or available only in a product’s higher tiers. If you have clients who are small business owners, providers like Patriot Payroll, QuickBooks Payroll, Gusto, and OnPay are good options as all offer affordably priced payroll plans.

Visit ADP Accountant Connect

SurePayroll for Accountants: Best Payroll for Accountants Who Want Customizable Client Billing Tools

SurePayroll for Accountants

Overall Score: 3.59 OUT OF 5

RATING CRITERIA	Accountant Tools	3.75	OUT OF	5
	Ease of Use	3.25	OUT OF	5
	Expert Review	3.13	OUT OF	5
	HR Features	2.75	OUT OF	5
	Payroll Features	3.88	OUT OF	5
	Popularity	1.88	OUT OF	5
	Pricing	4.25	OUT OF	5
	Reporting	5.00	OUT OF	5

What We Like

• Payroll for accountants pricing includes two free employee seats
• Revenue share or direct billing options
• Offers an online branded client portal

What's Missing

• W-2/1099 reporting costs extra
• Doesn’t provide continuing education perks
• Revenue sharing has a monthly add-on fee
• Limited HR tools

Read SurePayroll Review

SurePayroll for Accountants Pricing

• Software fees: SurePayroll for Accountants’ pricing starts at $39.99 per month plus $3 per employee monthly—wherein fees decrease as the number of clients increases
• Accountant perks: Free payroll for your firm with 10+ clients; discounted pricing; branded client portal; revenue share or direct billing options
• Client discounts: N/A

Read SurePayroll Review

Visit SurePayroll for Accountants

SurePayroll is a Paychex company and offers many of the same services, but it’s a simpler and less expensive software. In addition to full-service payroll, tax filings, basic HR tools, and access to benefits options, it offers a partner program for accountants with a platform for managing clients, white-labeling, dedicated support, and wholesale pricing. For an additional fee, you can use its Revenue Share option to manage client billings via SurePayroll. This allows you to set specific markup fees for each client and send invoices to customers.

We rated SurePayroll 3.59 out of 5 in our evaluation, earning high marks of 4 and above in pricing and reporting. While it offers efficient payroll and accountant tools and received mostly positive feedback on online review sites, SurePayroll scored the lowest in popularity among users since its average number of reviews on third-party sites is below 500.

SurePayroll for Accountants Pricing

SurePayroll doesn’t publish its payroll accountant pricing on its website, but you can easily request a quote from the provider. The one that we received indicates that its pricing is based on the number of clients you have, wherein monthly base fees (start at $39.99) decrease as your client base increases. It also offers two free user seats, after which it charges $3 per employee monthly for each additional staff; W-2/1099 filings cost an extra $45 plus $4.50 per tax form.

SurePayroll’s partner accountant program also includes free account setup and free access to its payroll tool that you can use for your firm—provided you have 10 or more clients. Flexible billing options are also available:

• Direct billing: SurePayroll will bill you its software costs, allowing you to set a markup rate when invoicing clients for payroll services.
• Revenue share billing: For an additional fee, SurePayroll lets you handle all customer billing through its software. You can even specify markup rates for payroll services on a per-client basis.

SurePayroll for Accountants Features

• Payroll: You get unlimited pay runs each month with payout options that include paper checks and two-day direct deposits. Similar to many of the providers on this list, SurePayroll has an automatic pay run feature—which is optimal for client payrolls that don’t have any changes.
• Tax filing services: SurePayroll will handle federal, state, and local tax remittances and filings for you. And similar to ADP and Paychex, it handles year-end tax reporting for a fee ($45.00 per client plus $4.50 per W-2/1099).
• Accountant-specific tools: With SurePayroll, partner accountants get white-label branding so you can customize its client portal to match your company’s color scheme. It may not have an accounting solution that QuickBooks and Patriot, but its platform can connect with accounting software like Xero, Zoho Books, LessAccounting, Kashoo, QuickBooks, Sage 50, and AccountEdge.
• HR features: SurePayroll lacks the time tracking solutions that the other providers on this list offer (except OnPay). However, it provides robust new hire screening tools that include background checks, drug screening, behavioral assessments, and skills testing.
• Employee benefits: SurePayroll’s benefits offerings include health insurance, 401(k) plans, and workers’ compensation. For employee discount perks and a financial wellness program, consider ADP. If your clients are looking for a health reimbursement option, Gusto is a good option but its health insurance covers only 39 states.

SurePayroll for Accountants Drawbacks

• Year-end tax filings cost extra: If most of your clients are startups and small business owners with limited payroll budgets, SurePayroll add-on fees for W-2 and 1099 filings ($45.00 per client plus $4.50 per W-2/1099) may be too expensive for them. For year-end payroll tax reporting that doesn’t require extra costs, consider Gusto, Patriot Payroll, Rippling, and QuickBooks Payroll.
• Monthly add-on fee for its revenue-sharing billing option: SurePayroll is the only payroll software for accountants that we reviewed that charges extra for revenue sharing. With Gusto, OnPay, or ADP, you only have to sign up for its partner accountant program and either select revenue sharing as your incentive or earn dividends to enjoy this perk.

Visit SurePayroll for Accountants

If you just want to recommend payroll software for your clients to manage themselves, check out our guides on the best payroll software and best payroll services.

How We Evaluated the Best Payroll Software for Accountants

The first thing we looked for is payroll software with partner programs specific for accountants. It also needed to provide more than discounted pricing, so we checked whether it has client dashboards and benefits specific for accountants. Then, we compared the features it offered, such as pay runs, tax filings, and HR tools. Finally, we considered the price for clients and accountants.

Click through the tabs below for a more detailed breakdown of our evaluation criteria.

Bottom Line

Finding a payroll software that also offers an accounting solution is critical if you’re offering payroll accounting services. Not only does it make bookkeeping easy for users, but you don’t need to manually input payroll-related data into your books since its accounting and payroll tools integrate seamlessly with each other. If you have preferred accounting software, check if it offers payroll and vice versa. Then, consider the needs of your clients and add-on solutions that would be helpful to you and your customers—like basic HR and benefits options.

We find QuickBooks Payroll to be the best payroll software for accountants managing small businesses because you can use its integrated payroll and accounting platform to transfer payroll data to the general ledger, saving you time from doing it yourself. It also offers you free payroll for your company, a client dashboard, a free revenue share option, and discounted rates for you and your clients.

Visit QuickBooks Payroll