SaaS directory
8 Gusto alternatives for 2026
The tools buyers compare with Gusto, side by side on price, pricing model and what each one is built for.
Why teams look beyond Gusto
- Support rated slightly behind some competitors.
- Large enterprises needing SCIM or deep identity controls.
- Companies that need global payroll.
From Gusto's published plan limits and recurring themes in public reviews. See the Gusto review for sources.
Gusto vs. its alternatives
| Tool | Pricing model | Starting price | G2 rating | Core HR and employee records | Payroll integration or built-in payroll | Time off and attendance | Benefits administration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Gusto Current | base fee plus per person | $49/month plus $6 per person (Simple) | 4.6 (9,000 reviews) | Employee records and self-onboarding on all plans (basic) | Built-in payroll is the core product. | Basic PTO on Simple; time and PTO tracking on Plus. | |
 Rippling | per employee | $8 per employee per month plus monthly base fee | 4.7 (1,116 reviews) | Payroll, Contractors, Global Payroll, EOR listed as products on pricing page. | Benefits Administration and PEO listed as products. | ||
 Paycor | custom | Contact sales | 3.9 (1,363 reviews) | Employee database, org charts and documents in Paycor HCM (vendor product pages not individually verified) | Built-in payroll with tax filing in the same suite. | Time and attendance module sold in tiers (details not verified) | |
 Justworks | per user | $50/month base plus $8 per employee (Payroll plan) | 4.6 (1,126 reviews) | HR records included in PEO plans. | Built-in payroll on all plans. | Time Tracking add-on at $8 per employee per month. | Benefits included via PEO co-employment. |
 OnPay | base fee plus per worker | $49/month + $6 per worker | 4.8 (406 reviews) | Health, workers comp and 401(k) as add-ons, pay only premiums. | |||
 BambooHR | per employee | $250/mo flat (Core, 25 or fewer employees); $10 to $10.25 per employee per month above that | 4.4 (5,796 reviews) | HR data and reporting in Core; custom dashboards and analytics in Elite. | Payroll add-on, US employees only. | Time-off tracking in Core; Time & Attendance is a paid add-on. | Benefits tracking in Core; full Benefits Administration is a paid add-on (US only) |
 QuickBooks Payroll | base fee plus per employee | $44/month + $6.50 per employee (Payroll + Simple Start, 50% promo for 3 months shown; list $88) | 4.4 (501 reviews) | Access to Allstate health, Vestwell 401(k), Next workers' comp, Mineral HR advisor; limited availability, extra fees. | |||
 Paycom | custom | Contact sales | 4.5 (6,244 reviews) | Single database for HR and payroll. | Built-in payroll, tax and time. | Time and attendance included in suite. | Benefits module. |
 Paylocity | custom | Contact sales | 4.4 (6,080 reviews) | Core HR (G2 files Paylocity under Core HR) | Built-in payroll. | Time and labor module. | Benefits administration module. |
The alternatives in detail
Rippling
HR, payroll, IT and spend suite whose app management handles SSO, provisioning and offboarding for employee apps.
- Starting price
- $8 per employee per month plus monthly base fee
- Pricing model
- per employee
- G2 rating
- 4.7 (1,116 reviews)
- Payroll integration or built-in payroll
- Payroll, Contractors, Global Payroll, EOR listed as products on pricing page.
- Benefits administration
- Benefits Administration and PEO listed as products.
- Performance and engagement
- Performance, Surveys, Learning listed as products.
- Integrations
- App catalog for SSO and provisioning (count not verified)
Choose it if
- Companies already running payroll and HR on Rippling that want app access tied to employee records.
- Teams wanting automatic account provisioning and offboarding.
Skip it if
- Teams needing discovery of unmanaged or shadow SaaS.
- Buyers who want standalone SaaS spend or license optimization.
Worth knowing
- The $8 per employee price is the suite entry point, not a SaaS management price; IT and spend modules are quoted separately.
- No evidence found that Rippling discovers unsanctioned apps; it manages apps routed through its own SSO.
- G2 reviews Rippling IT and Rippling Spend as separate products, so one rating does not cover both.
Paycor
HCM suite with payroll, HR, time and talent modules aimed at small and mid-size US employers, now owned by Paychex.
- Starting price
- Contact sales
- Pricing model
- custom
- G2 rating
- 3.9 (1,363 reviews)
- Core HR and employee records
- Employee database, org charts and documents in Paycor HCM (vendor product pages not individually verified)
- Payroll integration or built-in payroll
- Built-in payroll with tax filing in the same suite.
- Time off and attendance
- Time and attendance module sold in tiers (details not verified)
- Integrations
- Okta lists a Paycor integration with SSO.
Choose it if
- US employers with roughly 10 to 1,000 staff that want payroll and HR from one vendor.
- Teams that value a broad module list and will negotiate a quote.
Skip it if
- Buyers who need public list prices to compare before talking to sales.
- Teams that need guaranteed vendor independence, since the owner changed in 2025.
Worth knowing
- Paychex completed the Paycor acquisition on 2025-04-14 (all cash, $22.50 per share, about $4.1B enterprise value); expect roadmap and contract changes.
- Public pricing page was removed in 2025 per Pin; every deal is now quoted.
- New customers are reported to get about 50% off the first 6 months, so year-two cost is the number to negotiate.
Justworks
PEO and payroll platform for small US businesses that bundles HR, benefits and payroll under co-employment, or payroll only.
- Starting price
- $50/month base plus $8 per employee (Payroll plan)
- Pricing model
- per user
- G2 rating
- 4.6 (1,126 reviews)
- Core HR and employee records
- HR records included in PEO plans.
- Payroll integration or built-in payroll
- Built-in payroll on all plans.
- Time off and attendance
- Time Tracking add-on at $8 per employee per month.
- Benefits administration
- Benefits included via PEO co-employment.
Choose it if
- Small US companies that want a PEO with benefits and compliance handled for them.
- Startups needing a single per-employee price.
Skip it if
- Companies that want to keep their own benefits broker and plans.
- Teams outside the US.
Worth knowing
- PEO plans mean co-employment: Justworks becomes co-employer for payroll tax and benefits.
- Payroll plan starts at $58/month for one employee ($50 base + $8)
- Plus plan price reportedly rose from $99 to $109.
OnPay
Small-business payroll with one flat plan, unlimited pay runs and all-state tax filing included.
- Starting price
- $49/month + $6 per worker
- Pricing model
- base fee plus per worker
- G2 rating
- 4.8 (406 reviews)
- Pricing model
- Base plus per worker.
- Target company size
- Small business (97.7% of G2 reviews)
- Tax filing and compliance
- Federal, state and local filings included.
- Multi-state payroll
- Pay workers in any number of states, no extra fee.
Choose it if
- Small businesses and accounting-firm partners.
- Multi-state small teams needing included filings.
Skip it if
- Teams needing deep third-party integrations.
- Larger employers.
Worth knowing
- Single published price: $49 + $6 per worker with unlimited runs.
- Multi-state included at no extra fee.
- No implementation or integration fees.
BambooHR
Per-employee HRIS for small and mid-size US companies with a built-in ATS capped by job openings per tier.
- Starting price
- $250/mo flat (Core, 25 or fewer employees); $10 to $10.25 per employee per month above that
- Pricing model
- per employee
- G2 rating
- 4.4 (5,796 reviews)
- Core HR and employee records
- HR data and reporting in Core; custom dashboards and analytics in Elite.
- Payroll integration or built-in payroll
- Payroll add-on, US employees only.
- Onboarding and offboarding workflows
- Hiring and onboarding included in Core.
- Time off and attendance
- Time-off tracking in Core; Time & Attendance is a paid add-on.
Choose it if
- Small and mid-size US companies that want HRIS first and light recruiting in the same system.
- Teams of 25 or fewer that benefit from the flat monthly rate.
Skip it if
- Companies that need a full-featured standalone ATS (openings capped 5, 25 or 50 by tier)
- Teams needing deep reporting or customization (common complaint)
Worth knowing
- Job openings are capped by tier: 5 (Core), 25 (Pro), 50 (Elite); the ATS is a feature, not a separate add-on.
- Companies with 25 or fewer employees pay flat $250, $425 or $650 per month.
- Payroll and Benefits Administration are US-only add-ons; bundling both saves 15% per the pricing page.
QuickBooks Payroll
Intuit's payroll sold as bundles with QuickBooks accounting, with tax filing and 1099 e-filing included.
Rebranded: Now marketed as QuickBooks Workforce (Payroll bundles); G2 page titled QuickBooks Workforce.
- Starting price
- $44/month + $6.50 per employee (Payroll + Simple Start, 50% promo for 3 months shown; list $88)
- Pricing model
- base fee plus per employee
- G2 rating
- 4.4 (501 reviews)
- Pricing model
- Base plus per employee, bundled with accounting.
- Target company size
- Small businesses.
- Tax filing and compliance
- Full-service payroll calculates, files and pays payroll taxes.
- Accounting integrations
- Native QuickBooks bookkeeping bundle.
Choose it if
- Businesses already on QuickBooks Online.
- Employers wanting payroll bundled with bookkeeping.
Skip it if
- Teams that need Elite pricing in public.
- Buyers wanting benefits admin included.
Worth knowing
- Pricing page now sells payroll+accounting bundles named Workforce, not the old Core/Premium/Elite lineup.
- Listed prices are 50% off for 3 months; list is double.
- Same-day direct deposit requires the Essentials bundle or above.
Paycom
Single-database HCM and payroll platform for mid-size US employers, quote-based and billed per payroll run.
- Starting price
- Contact sales
- Pricing model
- custom
- G2 rating
- 4.5 (6,244 reviews)
- Core HR and employee records
- Single database for HR and payroll.
- Payroll integration or built-in payroll
- Built-in payroll, tax and time.
- Time off and attendance
- Time and attendance included in suite.
- Benefits administration
- Benefits module.
Choose it if
- Mid-size US employers that want one database for payroll, HR, time and talent.
- IT teams that need SAML 2.0 and strong security attestations.
Skip it if
- Small teams that want public prices.
- Buyers who dislike per-payroll-run fee structures.
Worth knowing
- Paycom bills per payroll run plus per employee, so PEPM quotes understate or hide the structure.
- Implementation fees are generally 10 to 30% of annualized value (10-K)
- Revenue retention 91% in 2025.
Paylocity
Cloud HCM suite covering payroll, HR, time, benefits and talent for mid-size US employers, sold by quote only.
- Starting price
- Contact sales
- Pricing model
- custom
- G2 rating
- 4.4 (6,080 reviews)
- Core HR and employee records
- Core HR (G2 files Paylocity under Core HR)
- Payroll integration or built-in payroll
- Built-in payroll.
- Time off and attendance
- Time and labor module.
- Benefits administration
- Benefits administration module.
Choose it if
- Mid-size US employers that want payroll, HR, time and benefits in one platform.
- Teams that want a large pool of Okta/SSO-ready integrations.
Skip it if
- Small teams that need transparent per-employee pricing.
- Buyers who need responsive support, a top G2 complaint theme.
Worth knowing
- Fiscal 2026 (year to 2026-06-30): revenue $1.771B, about 44,400 clients, per the company's results release.
- Okta's Paylocity listing (updated 2026-07-02) shows SAML, OIDC and SCIM with group push and deactivation.
- Implementation fees reported at 10 to 20% of annual software fees (third party), so budget year one separately.
When to stay with Gusto
- Small US businesses of 1 to a few dozen people wanting simple setup.
- Companies that pay a mix of W-2 employees and 1099 contractors.