Gusto Payroll review: Pricing, features, pros and cons

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Nav’s verdict: Gusto Payroll

• Best for: SMBs with W-2 employees or contractors that want payroll, HR, and benefits all in one place; self-employed entrepreneurs who want help with tax filing and compliance
• Biggest strengths: Comprehensive cloud-based software solution that offers payroll management and HR features; user-friendly interface online and via mobile app; automated tax filing; unlimited payroll runs with every plan 
• Biggest limitations: Pricing is higher than some competitors; direct deposit may take up to four days on the Simple plan; you must upgrade to the Premium plan or purchase an add-on for priority support; some negative reviews on Gusto's customer service 
• Alternative picks: 
• • For larger businesses: Paychex 
  • For all-in-one payroll and accounting software: Quickbooks 
  • Budget option: Square Payroll

The #1 rated HR platform for payroll, benefits, and more

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Pricing

• Starts at $40/mo + $6/mo per person
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Payroll Run Limit & Frequency

Unlimited payroll runs for no extra charge

Key Features

• Automatic tax calculations
• Local, state, and federal payroll tax filing
• Set up 401(k), Workers’ Comp, and other health benefits through Gusto

Gusto payroll overview

Gusto is a robust but user-friendly software that helps growing businesses pay, hire, onboard, and insure their employees. It combines payroll processing with a slew of other features, including tax filing, employee onboarding, benefits administration, and other HR tools. 

It's built for solopreneurs, startups, and growing SMBs that are managing a team of W-2 employees, independent contractors, or a mix of both. Along with providing a full ecosystem of payroll, HR, and benefits administration, Gusto also stands out for its ease of use. 

Businesses can manage payroll from the back end, while employees can easily access their pay information, benefits, and tax forms by signing into their accounts online or via mobile app. Gusto also offers add-on features, such as Instant Pay and time-tracking, for an additional fee. 

You can integrate Gusto with nearly 150 third-party tools, including Asana, DocuSign, and Freshbooks. Here's a quick look at your options for Gusto plans, including a Gusto contractor-only plan. 

*All information about Gusto has been collected independently by Nav. Pricing current as of Feb. 13, 2026 and is subject to change.

Gusto pros and cons

Before you sign up for Gusto, it's useful to weigh the platform's pros and cons. 

How does Gusto payroll work?

You can follow a simple, step-by-step process to set up Gusto and run payroll.

Setup and onboarding

When you sign up as a new customer, you'll walk through onboarding tools to set up your business and process payroll. Some steps include: 

• Entering company and employee details 
• Reviewing and sending documents to employees to sign, such as Form W-4 and Form I-9 
• Adding federal tax details and your business's bank account 
• Setting up a pay schedule and signing final paperwork 

Running payroll and paying taxes

You can set up payroll to run on your chosen schedule, whether weekly, biweekly, semimonthly, monthly, or quarterly. You'll need to approve each payroll run unless you set up Payroll on Autopilot. You can also customize your workflow if you'd like multiple people to review and approve payroll before it runs. 

Gusto payroll includes tax filing, too — the software will automatically calculate, pay, and file taxes, but you'll need to review any unpaid tax liabilities. For instance, you might have outstanding taxes you'd like Gusto to pay if you're switching to the software in the middle of the year. 

Paying employees vs contractors

You can pay both employees and contractors through Gusto. You'll select a classification for each worker when onboarding them into the system. Gusto will generate and file W-2s for employees and 1099s for contractors at the end of the year. 

Relying on a contractor-only team may make sense for early-stage businesses that are not ready to offer salaried positions with benefits. 

Gusto plans and pricing

Gusto offers four plan levels for businesses, as well as a Solo plan for individual business owners.

What’s included in each plan

On every plan, Gusto payroll features include unlimited payroll runs per month and automatic tax filing. The Simple, Plus, and Premium plans let you provide benefits for your team, including health insurance, life and disability, and 401(k) plans. As you move up plan levels, you'll gain access to additional tools, such as time and project tracking and priority support. 

Add-ons and optional services

Gusto also offers various add-ons for payroll, HR tools, health benefits, tax-advantaged benefits, and money management. These optional services may be useful for businesses with specialized needs and include: 

Payroll features

All Gusto plans offer full-service payroll on a set schedule or on demand. The Plus plan has next-day direct deposit, multi-state payroll, and project- and time-tracking features. If you opt for the Premium plan, you'll get all those features plus a dedicated service advisor and priority support.

HR and benefits features

Along with managing payroll, Gusto also offers robust HR and benefits features. 

Hiring and onboarding

Gusto helps with hiring new employees by sharing job posts across multiple job boards and helping you create personalized offer letters. It provides custom onboarding checklists for new hires and integrates with applicant tracking software. 

This software offers a paperless onboarding process, letting employees e-sign documents and access them in the Gusto portal. Employees can sign into their Gusto accounts online or via mobile app and will retain access to their accounts even if they leave the company. 

Benefits administration

Through Gusto, you can offer health benefits for your team, administer workers' compensation, and integrate 401(k) plans. You can also take advantage of optional add-ons to offer HSAs, FSAs, and commuter benefits. Pricing for some of these benefits depends on the provider and plan. 

HR support and compliance help

While Gusto is known for its ease of use, you may want additional Gusto payroll support to make the most of its software. Gusto largely reserves this support from customers on the Premium plan, offering a dedicated service advisor, priority support, and access to HR experts and an HR resource center. 

You can also access these benefits on the Simple and Plus plans as add-ons for an additional fee. If you have complex HR or compliance needs, you may prefer an alternative, more specialized service. 

Integrations and ecosystem

Gusto integrates with nearly 150 other software products, so you can sync payroll with other platforms your company uses. Gusto integrations include software related to accounting, business operations, expense management, learning management, tax preparation, and time tracking, among others. 

Accounting integrations

Gusto can sync with your accounting software, helping you simplify reconciliation, ensure accurate journal entries, and give your accountant access to your company's financial records. When you choose an accounting software to integrate with Gusto, consider how often it syncs, its mapping options, and its ability to create exports. 

Time tracking and scheduling integrations

While Gusto offers time tracking on some of its plans, you can also integrate time tracking and scheduling software into the platform. These integrations may be especially valuable for companies with hourly workers or that manage overtime. They can help ensure your employees are paid accurately for the hours they work.  

Customer support and onboarding experience

Gusto offers customer support on all its plans, but you'll need the Premium plan for a dedicated customer advisor and priority support (or you can purchase priority support as an add-on). You can seek answers in Gusto's Help Center or contact customer support by signing into your account. If you're a new customer running payroll for the first time, you can get help by messaging support or calling (800) 936-0383.

Onboarding to Gusto is mostly self-guided and involves following step-by-step instructions for entering employee information, bank details, and pay schedules. Businesses on the Premium plan have dedicated support and access to HR experts.

Customer support may be a weak point for this payroll service, however. As of February 2026 ,both TrustPilot and the Better Business Bureau, some reviews express dissatisfaction with Gusto's customer service, with some customers calling it slow and unhelpful.

Common onboarding pain points and how to avoid them

Setting up a new payroll system can have some hiccups. Some common onboarding pain points include: 

• Not verifying the business's bank account ahead of running payroll
• Failing to register with the appropriate agencies for payroll taxes 
• Missing required documentation, such as IDs or tax documents 
• Other missing information that can cause delays 

To avoid these issues, make sure to follow Gusto's step-by-step onboarding process. Before running your first payroll, double check: 

• Payroll, team, and business details 
• Pay schedules and bank account verification 
• Employee classifications and tax information 
• Required documents, such as photo IDs and IRS forms 
• Gusto's compliance checklist to make sure you meet federal and state requirements

Gusto vs. alternatives

Before you pick a payroll software for your business, it's worth comparing a few options. Here's how Gusto stacks up to some of its competitors. 

Gusto vs. Quickbooks payroll

Quickbooks is another all-in-one payroll software that offers payroll, HR features, and tax filing all under one roof. If you already use Quickbooks as your accounting software, QuickBooks Payroll could be a natural choice. 

It offers even more integrations than Gusto (over 800) and same-day or next-day direct deposit on all plan levels. However, at the time of this writing, Quickbooks charges higher prices than Gusto on some of its plans after its introductory three-month promotion and doesn't come with as many team management or hiring tools. 

Gusto vs. Paychex

Paychexoffers payroll solutions for businesses that range anywhere from one employee to over 100 employees. It serves over 800,000 businesses and lets you compare plan options by business size or industry (you can also take a quiz to find the right plan for your business). 

With Paychex you can choose between a simple payroll platform or one that combines payroll and HR features. However, the platform isn't particularly transparent about its pricing; you'll need to contact them directly to request a quote for your business. 

All-in-one payroll and HR

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Paychex

Paychex makes it easy to pay and manage employees. Easily expand Paychex Flex beyond payroll by turning on HR modules — from recruiting and hiring to time and attendance and benefits — as your business needs change. You’ll have the option to work with a dedicated payroll specialist, plus 24/7 support from highly trained, U.S.-based specialists. Request a quote today and get three months of free payroll processing!

Pricing

• Starting at $39/month + $5 per employee
• Request pricing & get 3 months free

Payroll Run Limit & Frequency

Unlimited

Key Features

• All-in-one payroll and HR
• Dedicated, responsive service

Gusto vs. Square payroll

Square offers payroll services that integrate with the Square ecosystem, making it a potentially good fit if you rely on Square to process payments for your business. Its payroll software includes employee management tools, timecards, employee apps, and tax filings. Square's published pricing is lower than Gusto's, but you won't get as many HR features or third-party integrations. 

Who should use Gusto

Gusto is a strong choice for many small and midsized businesses, though it may not be the perfect fit for every company. 

Best for:

• SMBs looking for payroll software that's easy to use and offers a variety of features and integrations
• Solopreneurs who want help with payroll, taxes, and compliance 

Not best for:

• Large enterprises with highly complex payroll needs 
• Businesses that prioritize low costs or dedicated advisor services on every plan tier 

How to get started

You can sign up for Gusto on its website. Select a plan, enter your company details, and follow the onboarding process. This will include: 

• Providing your company name, address, employer identification number (EIN), and bank account details.
• Adding employees and/or contractors and inviting them to enter their information. 
• Inputting tax information and setting up a payroll schedule. 
• Running payroll once you've uploaded all the required documentation. 

The bottom line

Gusto says they serve over 400,000 small and midsized businesses, making it a popular choice for user-friendly payroll software. It provides payroll, automated tax-filing, and built-in HR features in a single platform. While it's not the most affordable software out there, its intuitive interface and range of features make it a solid investment for growing businesses.

Gusto is the best fit for SMBs and solopreneurs that want an easy payroll solution and HR features in one user-friendly platform.

If you're looking for lower costs, faster payroll, or dedicated advisors across all plan tiers, an alternative like Quickbooks, Paychex, or Square may be a better choice for your business. 

Frequently asked questions