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When you outsource payroll, the tax liability stays with you, so choose the provider as an employer would

A payroll provider files and pays on your behalf, but the IRS still looks to the employer. Choose for accuracy, tax handling and support before features.

Published 29 October 2026; vendor pages read 29 October 2026.

Choose payroll software by how reliably it pays people correctly, withholds and deposits the right taxes in every jurisdiction where you employ, and files the returns on time, and by what happens when it does not. The IRS is plain about the risk: an employer who outsources payroll and related tax duties to a third-party payer will generally remain responsible for those duties, including liability for the taxes ¹.

This guide is for founders, controllers and HR leads choosing a payroll product, a professional employer organisation (PEO) or an employer of record for staff abroad. It does not rank providers. The vendors are listed alphabetically below with the same facts for each, from their own pages.

Who needs this, and when

You need a payroll provider from the first employee. The decision comes back when you hire in a new state, hire your first employee abroad, add benefits, reach a size where HR, time tracking and payroll should share one record, or find errors that the current provider is slow to fix.

There are three broad models. Payroll software runs payroll in your own name. A PEO becomes a co-employer for payroll, benefits and tax reporting; PEOs handle payroll administration and tax reporting for business clients and are typically paid a fee based on payroll costs, and the IRS runs a voluntary certification programme for them ². An employer of record employs staff on your behalf in countries where you have no entity.

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Requirements checklist

Payroll: requirements

Must have: every product on your shortlist should do it. Depends on you: test it if your situation calls for it.

Must have

Federal, state and local tax withholding, deposits and filings in every place you employ.
A clear statement of which filings and deposits the provider makes in your name, and on what schedule.
Year-end forms for employees, and corrections when they are wrong.
Payroll journal entries mapped to your ledger, by department and entity.
Access controls on pay changes, with an audit log of who changed whose pay.

Depends on you

Benefits administration and carrier feeds, if you offer benefits.
Time and attendance, if you pay hourly staff.
Global payroll or employer of record, if you hire abroad.
HR records, onboarding and device management in the same system.

Print this checklist to take into a demo.

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If your situation is this, look for that

If	Then
You are small and want benefits you cannot buy alone	Compare PEOs, and check whether a PEO is IRS-certified using the CPEO listings ².
You hire in countries where you have no entity	Look at employer of record services and the price per employee in each country.
Most staff are hourly	Weight time tracking, scheduling and overtime rules.
You have many states or entities	Ask for the list of jurisdictions the provider files in for you, by name.
You want HR, IT and payroll on one record	Look at platforms that combine them, and price each module you will use.

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What it costs: the components to ask about

Component	What to ask	Where to find it
Base fee	Monthly base fee per company or per entity.	Pricing page if published.
Per employee	Price per employee or worker per month, and who counts (contractors, terminated staff).	Pricing page.
Tax filing	Whether federal, state and local filings are included or extra.	Pricing page or order form.
Benefits and PEO	PEO fees per employee and how benefits premiums are billed.	PEO pricing page or proposal.
Off-cycle	Fees for off-cycle runs, corrections and amended returns.	Order form or fee schedule.
Year-end	Fees for year-end forms and reprints.	Fee schedule.
Exit	Export of payroll history and tax records.	Master agreement.

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Implementation timeline

Weeks 1 to 2: collect. Employee data, pay rates, deductions, tax registrations and prior filings.
Weeks 2 to 3: configure. Earnings, deductions, benefits, ledger mapping and approvals.
Weeks 3 to 4: parallel run. Run at least one payroll in both systems and reconcile every employee's net pay and taxes.
First live payroll. Choose a quarter start if you can, so quarterly filings come from one system.
Quarter-end and year-end. Check every filing the provider made and keep confirmations.

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Questions to ask in a demo

Which returns and deposits will you make in our name, in which jurisdictions, and how do we see confirmation of each?
If you make an error that causes a penalty, what does the contract say you pay?
Show a pay change, its approval and the audit log.
Show the journal entry for one payroll in our chart of accounts.
How do we confirm tax deposits independently, and how do your reports line up with EFTPS?
What does an off-cycle payroll cost, and how fast can you run one?

The IRS runs EFTPS, a free federal tax payment system ⁴.

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Red flags in a contract

No penalty responsibility clause. You remain responsible if the third party fails to perform any required action ¹; the contract should say what the provider covers.
History you cannot export. Employment tax records should be kept for at least four years after the tax becomes due or is paid, whichever is later ³.
Unclear co-employment terms in a PEO agreement: who is the employer for which purpose.
No SOC 1 report. Payroll is likely relevant to your internal control over financial reporting ⁵.
Per-employee fees on inactive employees or contractors you did not expect to be counted.

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The vendors, A to Z

These 10 vendors offer products for this job, going by their own sites. Each is listed in alphabetical order with the same fields, every one taken from the vendor's own pages or from the SEC on the date shown. Inclusion is not a recommendation, and a vendor whose pages we could not read is left out until we can; the method page explains how vendors are included.

ADP

Payroll, HR, tax and benefits services for businesses from one employee to large enterprises. Products include RUN, Workforce Now and global payroll.

In its own words: Experience better HR and payroll (adp.com, read 29 October 2026)
Lists on its site: RUN Powered by ADP®; ADP TotalSource®; ADP Workforce Now®; ADP® Global Payroll; Payroll Taxes (adp.com)
Pricing: Not published on the pages we read, 29 October 2026. Ask for a quote.
Integrations it names: No integrations taken from the pages we read.
Public company: SEC registrant: AUTOMATIC DATA PROCESSING INC, ticker ADP (EDGAR filings, CIK 8670).

Dayforce

Human capital management software covering payroll, HR, benefits, talent and workforce management. No price list was found on the pages read.

In its own words: Dayforce cuts through the noise with a single agentic HCM platform for all your people operations (dayforce.com, read 29 October 2026)
Lists on its site: No module list taken from the pages we read.
Pricing: Not published on the pages we read, 29 October 2026. Ask for a quote.
Integrations it names: No integrations taken from the pages we read.
Public company: No company named “Dayforce” in the SEC's list of companies with tickers, read 29 October 2026. A listing elsewhere, or a parent company, is not checked here.

Deel

Global payroll, employer of record, contractor and HR services. Prices are published per worker per month.

In its own words: Hire, pay, and manage teams in 150+ countries with Deel. (deel.com, read 29 October 2026)
Lists on its site: Deel Payroll; Deel HR; Deel IT; Deel Benefits; EOR; PEO (deel.com)
Pricing: The pricing page states Starting at $49 per contractor per month (deel.com pricing, read 29 October 2026)
Integrations it names: Slack; NetSuite; QuickBooks; Xero; BambooHR; HiBob; Greenhouse (marketplace.deel.com home page)
Public company: No company named “Deel” in the SEC's list of companies with tickers, read 29 October 2026. A listing elsewhere, or a parent company, is not checked here.

Justworks

Payroll and a professional employer organisation (PEO) for small businesses. Plans are published per employee per month.

In its own words: A Platform Flexible Enough for the Small Business Journey (justworks.com, read 29 October 2026)
Lists on its site: No module list taken from the pages we read.
Pricing: The pricing page states $8 /month/employee + $50/month base fee (justworks.com pricing, read 29 October 2026)
Integrations it names: Greenhouse Software; Ramp; Lever; Brex; Xero (justworks.com integrations)
Public company: No company named “Justworks” in the SEC's list of companies with tickers, read 29 October 2026. A listing elsewhere, or a parent company, is not checked here.

Paychex

Payroll, HR, benefits and compliance services for businesses of all sizes. Its integrations page lists accounting and time tools.

In its own words: Paychex has HR and Payroll solutions to fit the needs of any size business. (paychex.com, read 29 October 2026)
Lists on its site: No module list taken from the pages we read.
Pricing: Not published on the pages we read, 29 October 2026. Ask for a quote.
Integrations it names: Intuit Quickbooks; Sage Intacct; Xero; Oracle Netsuite; When I Work; 7shifts (paychex.com integrations)
Public company: SEC registrant: PAYCHEX INC, ticker PAYX (EDGAR filings, CIK 723531).

Paycom

HR and payroll software built on one database. No price list was found on the pages read.

In its own words: Full-Solution Automation and Auto-Decisioning Powered By a Single Database (paycom.com, read 29 October 2026)
Lists on its site: No module list taken from the pages we read.
Pricing: Not published on the pages we read, 29 October 2026. Ask for a quote.
Integrations it names: No integrations taken from the pages we read.
Public company: SEC registrant: Paycom Software, Inc., ticker PAYC (EDGAR filings, CIK 1590955).

Paycor

HR and payroll software for midsize and enterprise employers. Its plans page asks buyers to contact sales.

In its own words: HR & Payroll Solutions (paycor.com, read 29 October 2026)
Lists on its site: No module list taken from the pages we read.
Pricing: Quoted on request. The pricing page says Contact us today so we can learn more about your business (paycor.com pricing, read 29 October 2026)
Integrations it names: No integrations taken from the pages we read.
Public company: No company named “Paycor” in the SEC's list of companies with tickers, read 29 October 2026. A listing elsewhere, or a parent company, is not checked here.

Rippling

HR, payroll, IT and finance applications on one employee record. Pricing is published as a starting figure per employee.

In its own words: Rippling eliminates the friction from running a business, combining HR, IT, and Finance apps on a unified data platform. (rippling.com, read 29 October 2026)
Lists on its site: HRIS; Benefits Administration; PEO; Time & Attendance; Payroll; Global Payroll; Employer of Record (rippling.com)
Pricing: The pricing page states Rippling plans start at $8 per employee per month, with a monthly base fee (rippling.com pricing, read 29 October 2026)
Integrations it names: No integrations taken from the pages we read.
Public company: No company named “Rippling” in the SEC's list of companies with tickers, read 29 October 2026. A listing elsewhere, or a parent company, is not checked here.

UKG

HR, payroll and workforce management software, sold as UKG Pro and UKG Ready. The menu lists scheduling, time and payroll products.

In its own words: Simplify HR, payroll, and workforce management with the workforce intelligence platform built for modern operations. (ukg.com, read 29 October 2026)
Lists on its site: Human Resources; Scheduling; Payroll; Global Payroll; Time & Attendance (ukg.com)
Pricing: Not published on the pages we read (including ukg.com pricing), 29 October 2026. Ask for a quote.
Integrations it names: No integrations taken from the pages we read.
Public company: No company named “UKG” in the SEC's list of companies with tickers, read 29 October 2026. A listing elsewhere, or a parent company, is not checked here.

Workday

Enterprise finance, HR, payroll and planning applications on one platform. The finance menu lists accounting, close, revenue, spend and planning modules.

In its own words: Workday Financial Management gives you unparalleled insight and an innovative foundation for transactional efficiency and control. (workday.com, read 29 October 2026)
Lists on its site: Accounting Center; Close & Consolidate; Revenue Management; Spend Management; Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A); Payroll (workday.com)
Pricing: Not published on the pages we read, 29 October 2026. Ask for a quote.
Integrations it names: No integrations taken from the pages we read.
Public company: SEC registrant: Workday, Inc., ticker WDAY (EDGAR filings, CIK 1327811).

Side-by-side tables from this guide

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Sources

Internal Revenue Service, Publication 15 (Circular E), Employer's Tax Guide. irs.gov/publications/p15, read 29 October 2026.
Internal Revenue Service, Certified professional employer organization. irs.gov/tax-professionals/certified-professional-employer-organization, read 29 October 2026.
Internal Revenue Service, How long should I keep records?. irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/how-long-should-i-keep-records, read 29 October 2026.
Internal Revenue Service, EFTPS, the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System. irs.gov/payments/eftps-the-electronic-federal-tax-payment-system, read 29 October 2026.
AICPA & CIMA, SOC 1, SOC for Service Organizations, ICFR. aicpa-cima.com/topic/audit-assurance/audit-and-assurance-greater-than-soc-1, read 29 October 2026.

Spotted an error? Write to corrections@bestfinancesoftware.com; corrections are made on the page with a dated note. Vendor facts carry their own links above and on each vendor's page.