Gusto is rated #1 in payroll | G2 Fall 2025
Gusto vs OnPay
HR software makes it easier to manage your team, simplify payroll, and stay compliant with federal and state regulations. But how do you decide which HR software is right for your business? Below, you can compare Gusto with OnPay and decide which platform is best for your payroll and HR needs.
Compare pricing and features: Gusto vs OnPay
What to consider when choosing a payroll provider?
What’s included in pricing?
Many platforms offer lots of bells and whistles—but all at additional cost that can quickly add up. Look for a payroll provider that doesn’t charge extra for every feature you want to add.
See if the provider has experience with businesses like yours.
Size is one of the most important factors to keep in mind. While some payroll solutions are great for large enterprises, they may not be able to cover the needs of small and midsize businesses. By choosing a payroll service that can serve you today and in the future, you can guarantee your needs will be met as your business grows.
Is it easy to switch?
Migrating your payroll data could be a daunting task, and one that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Ask about this process, and ask about what kind of onboarding support they offer for new customers.
How can I get help when I need it?
Getting in touch with customer support should be simple and easy, with ample resources at your fingertips to help you get the most of your new payroll software. Ask about online, email, chat, and phone support.
Switch to Gusto in less than seven days.
While other providers charge extra for setting up, filing W-2’s, and off-cycle payroll runs, it’s all included with Gusto. Switch to see why we’re voted #1 (over and over again).
Time to switch source: Techvalidate survey of 712 Gusto Customers, October 2023
Comparison details: Gusto vs OnPay
Pricing
Gusto offers straightforward monthly plans with options starting at a monthly base fee of $49, plus an additional $6per 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). There are no hidden fees, and our base price includes setup, tax filing, multiple payroll runs, reporting, and other essentials.
Onpay charges a base fee of $40 per month plus $6 per employee per month. There are no pricing tiers or premium options available.
Payroll
Running payroll
Both Gusto and OnPay can run your payroll in just a few clicks. Both platforms automatically calculate and file all federal, state, and local taxes every time you run payroll. Both platforms support multiple pay rates and schedules across multiple states, and both come with unlimited payroll runs each month.
However, OnPay doesn’t offer support for international payments or contractors, and their fastest direct deposit option is 4-days, as compared with Gusto’s same-day, next-day, and 2-day options.
Gusto | OnPay | |
Automated tax filing | ✔ | ✔ |
Multiple pay rates & schedules | ✔ | ✔ |
Unlimited payrolls | ✔ | ✔ |
W-2s and 1099s | ✔ | ✔ |
International contractors | ✔ | ✘ |
Direct deposit | Same-day, next-day, 2-day | 4-day only |
Reporting
Onpay does provide custom payroll reports, but lacks support for more robust reporting options to help you dig into the numbers and better understand your business. In addition to payroll reports, Gusto also offers custom reports on workforce and project costing, time-off balances, and even employee satisfaction over time.
Benefits
Employee Benefits
We know you want to give your employees the best. That’s why Gusto provides leading medical, dental, and vision benefits with all of our plans. Our team has licensed health insurance brokers in 37 U.S. states and counting offering more than 3,500 plans from top-tier networks like Humana, BlueCross BlueShield, United Healthcare, and more. Our licensed advisors will work with you to find affordable insurance options that keep your employees happy and healthy.
Both Gusto and Onpay offer benefits administration at no extra cost—you only pay the premiums for the plan you choose. But while Onpay offers traditional health benefits like medical, dental, and vision along 401(k)s and worker’s comp, what they don’t have is a wide range of flexible benefits like HSAs and FSAs. They also fall short in no-cost and low-cost benefits options such as commuter plans and the Gusto Wallet mobile app that lets employees manage their paychecks, save money, access emergency cash, and more.
HR tools
Hiring & team management
Both Gusto and Onpay offer a basic suite of tools to help you hire, onboard, and retain your team including org charts, e-signing, secure document vaults, custom offer letters, and custom hiring checklists. However, Gusto’s hiring and team management suite is far more robust with custom employee handbooks, access to certified HR pros, and built-in employee surveys to make sure your team stays happy and engaged.
PTO & time tracking
Gusto’s Plus and Premium plans include time tracking, so employees can track hours, request paid time off, and easily view PTO straight from their accounts. And any approved hours automatically sync to payroll. Onpay offers similar PTO capabilities, however they don’t offer any built-in time tracking options.
If you already have a favorite time-tracking software, Gusto offers dozens of integrations to seamlessly integrate with payroll. Onpay has just two: Quickbooks Time and When I Work.
Customer service
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.
Onpay also offers weekday email, phone, and chat support along with emergency email support on weekends.
Integrations
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.
Onpay integrates with just 6 different tools: Quickbooks and Quickbooks Time, Xero, Deputy, When I Work, and Poster Elite.
9 out of 10
customers would recommend Gusto*
152 hours
average time customers saved per year on tax and compliance work after switching to Gusto.
4.5/5 stars
average rating from Gusto customers.*
Gusto FAQs
Gusto helps businesses manage the incredible people that power their companies. Our payroll platform supports your employees from their first day all the way through retirement, and we don’t toss hidden fees at you in the process. Learn more about how we can help your business.
Gusto files your Forms W-2, W-4, 1099, and 944. We also file many state tax forms too, depending on where you’re filing. Use this list to see all the state tax forms we file.
Health benefits through Gusto (including medical, dental, vision, HSA and FSA health plans, life and disability) are available today in 37 states + DC (every state except Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, Wyoming). We’re working hard to expand coverage to other states soon. Learn more.
There’s never a wrong time to sign up for Gusto. If you have 10 or more employees, our dedicated team will transfer all of your data into Gusto with no errors. When you’re ready to make the switch, have your EIN and your employees’ addresses, salaries, and Social Security Numbers in hand. For a mid-year switch, you’ll need to provide documentation for all the payroll taxes you’ve paid so far.
Email our sales team at [email protected], call them at (855) 590-3993, or use our live chat function. We’re available Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT.
Best Payroll Software 2025 - Ranked #1
#1 Most Innovative Company in HR 2025
#1 Highest Satisfaction Software, G2 Review 2026
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