Payroll systems should be able to facilitate the onboarding and termination of employees, monthly payments, off-cycle disbursement and taxation compliance. The best payroll platforms also support benefits administration and provide new hire reports when needed. They also make it easy for managers to generate reports showing payroll trends and supporting their workforce planning. Not all types of payroll software can meet the complex needs of international businesses. Employers that pay employees in multiple countries generally require a payroll service provider that offers worldwide compliance expertise, on-demand analytics and reporting, and first-rate security measures. Some, like ADP, are also capable of unifying data into a single system of record, which helps make managing global payroll easier.

• Paycor offers a testing account with sandbox data, and I found the system interface to be clean and intuitive to navigate.
• Paycor offers plans for businesses of all sizes, but the software is best for medium and large businesses with more complex HR needs than smaller companies.
• Specifically, look out for the following features to see if your bookkeeping services needs will be met.
• Pricing on packages is on a business-by-business basis and is billed as a percentage of your annual revenue.
• We specialize in providing both payroll and bookkeeping for non profits to comply with strict compliance laws.

Customer Service

Organizations of all sizes use payroll software, but what works for one may not be suitable for another. A small business may only need basic features that save time and help them with tax compliance. Larger corporations, on the other hand, tend to look for more advanced solutions that can integrate payroll with other HR systems or have advanced reporting capabilities. While major review sites don’t often mention QuickBooks, a quick scan of forums dedicated to accounting and QuickBooks usage reveal frequent frustration from customers. Based on customer testimony, working with QuickBooks Live is hit or miss, which reflects both their budget price and their single-bookkeeper approach.

World-Class Payroll Support

Gusto offers automated payroll and tax filing for employees and contractors, as well as the Gusto Wallet app to facilitate time tracking for remote, on-premises and field employees. To compile our list of the best cheap payroll services, we looked at a variety of factors, including price, features, ease of use, customer service and reviews. We then scored these providers across five categories of features with 17 different metrics. Finally, we assigned weighted scores to these factors to narrow down the best cheap payroll services. Square Payroll for contractors is priced at $6 a month for each person paid. Both Square Payroll plans require no long-term contracts and support payments by check, direct deposit or Cash App.

The platform received higher-than-average marks in the other criteria and provides basic bookkeeping services, like account reconciliation and financial statements, but not invoicing or bill pay. In terms of tax and consulting, it will file your income tax return but doesn’t offer CFO advisory services. Bookkeeper360 is a good solution if invoicing, bill pay, customized services, and CFO advisory services are what you’re seeking. We selected Merritt Bookkeeping as one of the best online bookkeeping services because it ranked high among users, with the best user review scores of all providers listed here. What’s more, it is praised for its ease of use and accessible customer service.

Essential Features

It’s important to note that when we interacted with Bench’s customer service, they offered us a free month’s trial, in addition to reminding us about their discount if we already used FreshBooks. While we appreciate the timely support, and have taken that into account in our review, we think that a responsive sales team doesn’t necessarily make up for a less-than-optimal product. Bank and credit card account reconciliations are typically done monthly, but more frequent reconciliation might be needed for high-volume businesses or those prone to cash flow issues.

Its main flaw is the cost of its services, which starts at $399 monthly for cash-based bookkeeping and payroll services accounting and $549 a month for accrual-based accounting and increases quickly for firms with over $20,000 in monthly expenses. If you’re seeking more affordable pricing, then Bench is a good option, although it has its own proprietary accounting software. After looking at real-world user reviews, it’s clear that numerous users are unsatisfied with the Wave Payroll experience.

With FreshBooks Payroll, you can confidently pay your W-2 employees and 1099 contractors in minutes. Access unlimited payroll runs, automatic payroll tax filing and payments, direct deposit, and tax forms like W-2s and 1099s. Plus, transactions for every pay period will be automatically tracked so your reports and books stay accurate and organized. Keep in mind, however, that many services included in lower cost plans for other companies come at a hefty premium with Bookkeeper360. So, for example, if you have a small business with $50,000 of weekly expenses, looking for a monthly meeting, payroll back office, and CFO advisory, you’d be looking at $1,795 per month. Online bookkeeping companies will often specialize in services for a particular type of company.

Read our review of Bookkeeper.com if sales tax return filing is important to your business. For tax and consulting, Wave Advisors took a hit because it only offers tax advice but not income or sales tax return filing. While you can sign up for one-time accounting, payroll, or tax coaching, CFO advice is unavailable.

Many online services use machine learning algorithms to automatically categorize transactions based on past data and recognized patterns. Bookkeepers often review and adjust automated categorizations to ensure accuracy, especially for unusual or complex transactions. You can usually create custom categories or rules to ensure that the classification is consistently correct. The best online bookkeeping service should offer a wide range of bookkeeping solutions, including catch-up bookkeeping, invoicing, bill pay, bank reconciliation, payroll, and tax filing.