Gusto vs Homebase

Running payroll

With Gusto, you can complete payroll in just a few clicks whether you’re at your desk or on the go.

It takes our customers 8 minutes, on average, to process payroll†, and you can even set up AutoPilot to process your payroll automatically. You have the power to set up multiple pay rates and schedules, and we offer next-day pay at no extra cost.

As Homebase is primarily a scheduling and time tracking tool, payroll isn’t included in any of their plans. Their payroll add-on includes auto payroll for salaried employees, unlimited payroll runs, and next-day direct deposit. 

Tax filings

Gusto automatically calculates, files, and pays all federal, state, and local taxes every time you run payroll. Both W-2s for your employees and 1099s for your contractors can be created and sent out right from the platform, all at no extra cost.

Homebase’s payroll add-on also includes most federal, state, and local tax filings.

Run payroll in multiple states

We go wherever you go. With Gusto, you can run payroll in all 50 states. Got employees working in multiple locations across several states? Our Plus and Premium plans have got you covered.

Homebase also offers multi-state payroll for businesses with more than one location. You can access this with their Essentials, Plus, or All-in-One plans, in conjunction with their payroll add-on.

Gusto offers straightforward monthly plans, with options starting at a monthly base fee of $49, plus an additional $6 per employee per month. If you don’t have W-2 employees, you can use Gusto to pay your contractors for just $35/month plus $6/month per contractor (only in the months you pay them). 

Homebase offers four pricing tiers. Their Basic plan is free and includes basic scheduling and time tracking and POS integration for up to 20 employees at a single location. After that, their plans range from $24.95 to $99.95 per location per month (annual discounts available), but none of these include payroll. For the payroll add-on, it’s $39 a month + $6 per employee paid per month.

For just $1 more per month, Gusto offers full-service payroll with employee self-onboarding, basic hiring tools, benefits administration, and federal, state, and local taxes at no extra cost. You’ll need to pay extra to get any of these features with Homebase.

Employee benefits

We know you want to give your employees the best. That’s why Gusto provides leading medical, dental, and vision benefits in all 50 states. No matter where your employees call home, Gusto simplifies health benefits with nationwide coverage, competitive pricing, and expert support. Our licensed health insurance brokers can help you balance cost and coverage to find the best plan for your budget from top-tier networks like Humana, BlueCross BlueShield, United Healthcare, and more.

The only benefits Homebase offers are free financial benefits such as early access to paychecks and cashing out before payday. They also give you the ability to provide PTO. But if you want traditional health benefits, or unique low-cost options like commuter benefits or college savings, you’re better off going with Gusto. .  N.A., Member FDIC. The Sunrise Banks, N.A. Privacy Policy can be found here.

Employee self-service

Gusto’s employee self-service makes it easy to upload documents, e-sign contracts, and gives employees lifetime access to paystubs, W-2s, and more. Employees can view their paychecks, manage PTO, clock in and out, and access financial management tools right from the app. 

Homebase also offers a solid employee self-service experience including self-onboarding, clock ins, and shift swapping. But they don’t offer lifetime access once an employee leaves, leaving your team responsible for future paystub and tax document requests.    

Hiring & onboarding

Both Gusto and Homebase offer a full suite of tools to help you hire, onboard, and retain your team, including team directories, org charts, custom employee handbooks, and a secure document vault. 

But while Gusto offers an integrated ATS along with built-in background checks, Homebase only offers integrated job board posting and you’ll have to process background checks through a third-party provider.

Time & attendance

With Gusto’s Plus and Premium plans, you get our full suite of time and attendance tools including time tracking, custom PTO policies, and robust workforce and project costing reports. Employees can easily clock in and out via mobile app or time kiosk, and all hours, timesheets, and PTO automatically sync to payroll.

Since Homebase is more of a time-tracking tool with an HR add-on, they offer all of the time tracking tools you would expect including multiple clock-in options, automated scheduling, shift-swapping, and more. While basic time tracking and scheduling are available on all plans, PTO and time-off tracking only come with the Plus and All-in-One plans.

Compliance 

Gusto’s built-in compliance features will automatically calculate breaks, overtime, wages, and taxes based on your city, state, and federal labor laws.

Gusto also includes tipped minimum wage calculations (including cash tips), compliance checklists, and help with termination compliance including final paychecks and COBRA. You can set up custom PTO policies for different employees, and deductions and accruals happen automatically. 

All of Gusto’s products come with full access to our friendly sales and customer support teams via phone, email, and chat Monday through Friday. And our FAQ and Help Center are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Companies with more than 10 employees also benefit from our dedicated onboarding support team. 

While Homebase offers help center and email support on their free plan, only their paid plans offer chat and phone support.

Integration capabilities

Our payroll platform integrates with nearly 200 leading software tools for time tracking, expense management, point of sale (POS), accounting, and more. And we never charge extra for integrations. Check out our full list of integrations here.

Homebase integrates with a few payroll providers (including Gusto), as well as all of the most popular POS systems. But they don’t offer any accounting, HR, or performance management integrations.