Worried about payroll compliance?
Juggling payroll with countless other tasks makes mistakes almost inevitable. This can lead to serious headaches and expensive IRS penalties.
The fear of making costly payroll errors is real. It can disrupt your workflow and ultimately damage your business’s financial health.
This isn’t just an unfounded fear. A report from Yomly found that 42% of small businesses have made at least one tax filing mistake. That’s a significant risk for any growing company.
The right software eliminates these worries. It helps you automate your entire payroll process and ensures complete accuracy with every single pay run.
In this guide, I’ll show you my top picks. I’m breaking down the best payroll software for small businesses to help you finally simplify your operations.
You’ll find a solution that fits your budget and grows with you. This will save you countless hours and prevent future compliance headaches.
Let’s dive in.
Quick Summary:
# | Software | Rating | Best For |
---|---|---|---|
1 | HiBob → | Small growing businesses | |
2 | BambooHR → | Small to medium HR teams | |
3 | Personio → | Small businesses with compliance needs | |
4 | Rippling → | Small businesses with diverse workforce | |
5 | UKG → | Growing businesses with seasonal staff |
1. HiBob

Struggling with complex payroll and HR tasks?
HiBob offers an AI-powered platform to centralize data and automate your payroll, time tracking, and HR processes. This means you can simplify your workflow.
Your small business needs to ensure accuracy and compliance, and HiBob helps you achieve those critical outcomes.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While we’re discussing automating business processes, understanding automated grant management is equally important for some organizations.
Here’s how to ease your payroll pain.
HiBob streamlines your payroll operations, helping you run payroll without the usual headaches. It connects directly with HR changes, reducing costly errors.
You can leverage time-tracking, benefits management, and robust payroll integrations, including native UK payroll and tax compliance, all designed to ensure accuracy and compliance. Additionally, it automates onboarding workflows, saving you 2-4 hours per hire and contributing to significant overhead avoidance. The platform also offers real-time people analytics, allowing you to make data-backed workforce decisions.
The result is increased efficiency and reduced stress.
Key features:
- Automated payroll and tax compliance: Fast track payroll, ensure accuracy, and stay compliant with built-in tax compliance and native UK payroll capabilities.
- Integrated time and benefits management: Connect time-tracking and benefits directly to payroll, minimizing manual reconciliation and improving audit readiness for your team.
- AI-powered HR automation: Leverage AI to summarize reviews, draft feedback, and automate tasks, centralizing data and scaling your HR processes effortlessly.
HiBob features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: For small businesses seeking the best payroll software for small businesses, HiBob’s AI-powered platform offers comprehensive automation across payroll and HR. With reported average ROI of 254% and payback in under 9 months, it delivers tangible results by simplifying complex processes and boosting productivity.
2. BambooHR

Is manual payroll eating up your valuable time?
BambooHR offers a streamlined solution to manage your payroll, time, and benefits all from one platform. This means you can track hours, manage multi-rate pay, and simplify time-off requests effortlessly.
You can eliminate data double entry and manual approval processes, making payroll easy and accurate for your business and employees. Here’s how it works.
Your entire pay process, simplified.
BambooHR brings all your employee, payroll, time, and benefit information together in one place. This gives you data accuracy, security, and coordination, helping you sleep soundly at night.
You can run payroll with ease, ensuring comprehensive reporting and full-service tax filing. Payroll customers enjoy superior customer support and seamless data flow, significantly reducing the risk of errors and saving up to 20 hours a week for some users. This comprehensive approach also includes hiring, onboarding, HR data reporting, and performance management, all designed to make your HR processes more efficient and user-friendly, helping you save hundreds of hours annually and reduce HR costs by 40%.
Simplify your entire HR experience.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While streamlining HR processes, investing in employee development is key. My article on employee training platforms covers scaling engaging training for growing business demands.
Key features:
- Payroll & Time Management: Track hours, manage multi-rate pay, and simplify time off requests, all while running payroll effortlessly from a single, integrated platform.
- Automated Tax Filing & Reporting: Benefit from automatic data flow, comprehensive payroll reporting, and full-service tax filing to reduce errors and ensure compliance.
- Integrated HR Platform: Combine hiring, onboarding, benefits administration, and performance management into one user-friendly system, eliminating manual processes and double data entry.
BambooHR features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
If you’re looking to simplify and automate your human resources and payroll tasks, BambooHR is an excellent choice for the best payroll software for small businesses. It consolidates all HR functions into one platform, helping businesses like yours save thousands annually and dramatically reduce time spent on manual processes.
3. Personio

Struggling with complex payroll and HR tasks?
Personio’s Intelligent HR Platform offers Core HR, Payroll, Recruiting, and more, all integrated into one system. This helps you simplify HR and focus on your people.
Small business owners often feel overwhelmed by manual processes and compliance. Personio helps you spend a minimum amount of time on rules and compliance, letting you focus on what truly matters for your team.
This means more time for strategic growth.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: Before diving deeper, you might find my analysis of Automate Your Financial Operations helpful.
Personio tackles this by offering Preliminary Payroll features and integrations with systems like Xero and Sage 50. This means you can manage your payroll processes more efficiently and accurately.
It also includes Workflow Automation, utilizing best-practice templates to streamline repetitive tasks. This automation capability can save you valuable time, as seen in cases like Deliciously Ella, who saved 15 minutes on every HR task. Additionally, features like Time Tracking and Absence Management feed directly into payroll processes more efficiently and accurately.
Plus, you get instant insights from People Analytics reports.
Finally, empower your business with intelligent HR.
Key features:
- Preliminary Payroll and Integrations: Streamlines payroll processes by offering preliminary calculations and seamless connections with accounting software like Xero and Sage 50.
- Workflow Automation: Automates repetitive HR tasks using best-practice templates, freeing up valuable time for small business owners and HR managers.
- People Analytics: Provides ready-made or customizable reports for instant insights into people data, helping you make informed decisions proactively.
Personio features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
Personio is an excellent choice for businesses seeking the best payroll software for small businesses because it integrates critical HR and payroll functions, providing automated workflows and crucial compliance support. It ensures accurate calculations and helps reduce manual errors, a common pain point for small businesses.
4. Rippling

Struggling with complex payroll and HR for your small business?
You’re not alone. Rippling’s payroll solution helps you automate and run payroll quickly, regardless of your workforce’s complexity.
This means you can say goodbye to manual errors and compliance worries, ensuring your employees and contractors are paid accurately every time. It completely simplifies managing employee data and compliance.
How can you streamline these tasks?
Rippling helps you manage payroll, benefits, devices, and apps all in one place, allowing you to pay employees and contractors your way. This integrated platform is built to increase your savings and automate busywork.
Its global payroll capability lets you pay employees anywhere, and even hire globally without needing local entities through its Employer of Record service. Plus, you can mitigate contractor risks using their Contractor of Record features. This unified approach gives your team the power to manage everything 10x faster, ensuring easy and accurate payroll.
You will make better business decisions.
Key features:
- Easy, accurate payroll: Automate and run payroll in minutes for any workforce, simplifying global and domestic payments for employees and contractors.
- Comprehensive workforce management: Manage HR, IT, and spend in a single platform, centralizing employee data, benefits, and device management.
- Global hiring and compliance: Onboard, pay, and manage employees and contractors compliantly across 185+ countries, eliminating manual work and complexity.
Rippling features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
Rippling is an excellent choice for small businesses seeking the best payroll software for small businesses because it offers a unified platform for payroll, HR, IT, and spend. This allows you to automate busywork, strengthen security, and gain granular control over your operations, enabling significant time and cost savings.
5. UKG

Tired of payroll headaches and compliance worries?
UKG offers all-in-one simple HR and payroll software for growing organizations. This means you can streamline HR, payroll, talent, and time management.
You’ll discover a solution designed to guide and empower your business, helping you manage the entire employee lifecycle with ease.
Here’s how UKG can help.
UKG Pro and UKG Ready solutions inspire your people by combining HR, payroll, and workforce management with AI-guided tools. This allows you to drive greatness in your organization.
You can automate administrative and HR tasks, freeing up time for your team to focus on customers and employee development. This ensures accuracy and saves you valuable time.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: Speaking of simplifying administrative tasks, my guide on global regulatory compliance for data integration might be helpful.
Additionally, UKG helps you build a culture of belonging and engagement. It scales to meet your employee needs, whether you’re managing seasonal staff or a growing permanent workforce, ensuring your business thrives.
It’s about empowering your people.
Key features:
- All-in-one HR & Payroll: Streamline human resources, payroll, talent, and time management within a single, intuitive platform for growing businesses.
- AI-Guided Solutions: Leverage AI-powered insights to enhance HR, payroll, and workforce management, fostering a positive workplace culture and driving business success.
- Scalable Workforce Management: Manage your entire employee lifecycle, from recruitment to retirement, with solutions designed to grow and adapt to your evolving business needs.
UKG features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
If you’re seeking the best payroll software for small businesses, UKG offers a comprehensive, AI-guided solution. It streamlines HR, payroll, and workforce management, enabling you to automate tasks and drive employee engagement, a powerful all-in-one solution that helps organizations manage the entire employee lifecycle.
6. Sage HR

Are payroll complexities draining your precious small business time?
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While focusing on streamlining operations, my guide on building brand trust explores customer reference management software.
Sage HR offers an intuitive platform designed to simplify payroll, directly addressing your challenges with manual processes. This means you can finally streamline tedious tasks and reclaim valuable hours for strategic growth. You’ll move beyond frustrating spreadsheets and outdated methods.
Sage HR simplifies your entire payroll workflow. Here’s how it ensures accuracy and compliance, automating what used to take hours. This means less stress and more confidence in your payroll operations.
Sage HR centralizes all your employee data, making it easy to manage everything from one place. You can automate calculations and tax filings to eliminate manual errors, ensuring your team is paid correctly and on time, every time. Plus, its robust reporting capabilities provide clear insights, helping you make informed decisions and maintain compliance with ease.
Finally, enjoy effortless payroll.
Key features:
- Automated payroll processing: Simplifies complex calculations and tax filings, eliminating manual errors and ensuring compliance for your small business.
- Centralized employee data: Manages all employee information in one secure location, improving data accuracy and streamlining administrative tasks efficiently.
- Comprehensive reporting tools: Provides detailed insights into payroll expenses and compliance, helping you make informed financial decisions.
Sage HR features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
Sage HR is an excellent contender for the best payroll software for small businesses, specifically designed to eliminate manual errors and streamline operations. Its user-friendly interface and robust automation capabilities address common pain points like compliance and time management, allowing you to focus on growing your business.
7. Gusto

Are you tired of payroll taking up all your time?
Managing payroll can be a huge burden, especially for small businesses. Gusto understands this challenge.
They offer a full-service payroll system designed to simplify everything from calculations to tax filing, so you can avoid costly errors and stay compliant. This means you’ll have more time to focus on your business.
So, how does it all work?
Gusto makes payroll surprisingly easy, automating tasks that typically consume hours. This means accurate tax calculations and filings are handled for you, removing a major headache.
You can set up and run payroll in minutes, ensuring your team is paid correctly and on time, without the usual complexity or manual data entry. Plus, it manages new hire reporting, year-end forms like W-2s and 1099s, and even handles direct deposit.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While automating payroll tasks helps, my article on endpoint automation solutions covers how to stop manual errors across all business operations.
Additionally, it integrates with time tracking, accounting, and HR software, creating a unified platform that simplifies your entire people management process from onboarding to benefits.
The result is peace of mind.
Key features:
- Automated payroll processing: Handles accurate tax calculations, filings, and direct deposits, simplifying payroll for small businesses.
- Comprehensive compliance: Manages new hire reporting, W-2s, and 1099s to ensure your business remains compliant with regulations.
- Integrated HR tools: Offers solutions for benefits administration, time tracking, and accounting integrations for a unified experience.
Gusto features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
If you’re searching for the best payroll software for small businesses, Gusto offers a comprehensive, user-friendly solution. Its automated tax filing, accurate calculations, and integrated HR tools can significantly reduce your administrative burden, making payroll stress-free.
8. OnPay

Tired of payroll headaches and HR complexities?
- 🎯 **Bonus Resource:** While discussing efficiency, it’s also worth considering how customer self-service software can resolve issues and integrate easily.
OnPay simplifies paying your team with direct deposit, automating calculations and taxes, and handling deductions seamlessly.
This means you can easily pay W-2 employees, contractors, and remote workers, ensuring accurate payments and compliance for your small business.
Here’s how to simplify things.
OnPay introduces smart, streamlined payroll that lets you pay employees and contractors quickly, leaving calculations, deductions, and taxes to them. This robust platform also includes built-in HR features to automate hiring, onboarding, PTO management, and organizational charts.
Additionally, OnPay integrates seamlessly with accounting software and offers integrated benefits like health insurance, workers’ comp, and 401(k) retirement plans. Plus, our licensed experts can help you choose the best plans from popular carriers, then automate administration. The result is more time to focus on your core business goals.
This comprehensive approach helps you stay organized and compliant as your team grows, making it easier to manage everything from new hires to benefits administration with confidence. It’s also mobile-friendly and includes employee self-service.
Simplify payroll and HR today.
Key features:
- Automated Payroll and Taxes: Efficiently handles all calculations, deductions, and tax filings for W-2 employees and contractors, ensuring compliance and accuracy.
- Comprehensive HR Tools: Automates hiring, onboarding, PTO tracking, and includes features like built-in reporting and organizational charts for streamlined team management.
- Integrated Employee Benefits: Facilitates offering and administering health insurance, workers’ compensation, and 401(k) retirement plans with expert guidance.
OnPay features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
OnPay is an excellent choice for businesses seeking the best payroll software for small businesses because it simplifies payroll, HR, and benefits administration, saving you time and ensuring compliance. With transparent pricing starting at $49/month plus $6/person, it offers powerful features and expert support.
9. QuickBooks

Struggling with complex payroll and compliance for your small business? QuickBooks acts as a comprehensive platform to run and grow your business. This means you can manage everything in one integrated place.
QuickBooks simplifies your payroll with features like tracking time, managing HR, and offering team benefits, streamlining payday processes. This capability helps small businesses manage their teams effectively, ensuring timely and accurate wage calculations without the usual headaches. Here’s how it ensures you avoid common payroll pitfalls.
Additionally, it automates tasks, freeing up valuable time.
QuickBooks streamlines your entire financial workflow, from tracking income and expenses to managing cash flow and automating bookkeeping. You can securely import transactions, organize finances automatically, and even accept credit cards and bank transfers through QuickBooks Payments. This robust system helps you stay organized and make confident financial decisions, all while providing the ability to connect up to three online sales channels. Plus, with AI-powered invoicing, you can send automated reminders, potentially getting paid 45% or an average of 5 days faster. It also supports managing contractors by assigning vendor payments to 1099 categories and preparing annual 1099s directly from the platform. The result is a unified approach to your business finances.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While we’re discussing financial workflows, my guide on best accounts receivable software can help improve your cash flow accuracy.
Pay your team with confidence.
Key features:
- Time Tracking and HR Management: Streamline payday by tracking employee time, managing HR functions, and offering team benefits, simplifying your payroll processes.
- Automated Bookkeeping & Invoicing: Automate your bookkeeping, securely import transactions, and send AI-powered invoices with reminders to get paid faster.
- Contractor Payments & Tax Filing: Assign vendor payments to 1099 categories, track payment history, and easily prepare and file 1099s directly from QuickBooks.
QuickBooks features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
For small business owners seeking the best payroll software for small businesses, QuickBooks offers a strong, integrated solution. It simplifies complex tasks like automated tax filing, accurate calculations, and contractor management, allowing you to streamline operations and ensure compliance with ease.
10. ADP

Struggling to manage payroll and HR effectively?
ADP offers fast, easy, and accurate payroll and tax solutions, saving you valuable time and money.
This means you can streamline your operations and ensure compliance, freeing you to focus on growing your small business.
Here’s how.
ADP simplifies managing and paying your people, serving over 1.1 million clients and processing pay for 1 in 6 U.S. workers. This extensive experience means you get robust technology designed for businesses with 1-49 employees.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While we’re discussing compliance and streamlining operations, understanding billing and compliance for long-term care is equally important if that applies to your business.
For instance, their small business payroll offers solutions like time and attendance, retirement plans, and health and benefits, all tailored to your specific needs. Additionally, you can access workers’ compensation, business tax credits, and general business insurance. These comprehensive offerings help you manage your entire workforce with ease. Plus, ADP provides PEO and HR outsourcing to support ongoing HR and payroll challenges.
The result is a streamlined process for all your essential HR functions.
Key features:
- Fast, accurate payroll and tax: Ensures your employees are paid correctly and on time, while also handling all necessary tax filings automatically to save you time.
- Comprehensive HR solutions for small businesses: Includes tools for time and attendance, retirement, and benefits, empowering you to manage your workforce holistically.
- Integrated compliance services: Simplifies and unifies your Human Capital Management (HCM) compliance processes across various functions, reducing your regulatory burden.
ADP features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
ADP stands out as an excellent choice for the best payroll software for small businesses, especially with RUN Powered by ADP® being recognized as #1 on G2’s Best Software Products for Small Business in 2025. Their solutions combine fast, accurate payroll with comprehensive HR and compliance services, making payroll headaches a thing of the past.
11. Paychex
Tired of payroll, taxes, and HR eating up your day?
Paychex offers efficient payroll services and HR guidance, crucial for small business owners managing multiple responsibilities.
Their platform is designed to automate taxes, simplify HR, and manage benefits, helping you focus on business growth instead of administrative burdens.
This means more time for what truly matters.
You can confidently manage HR, payroll, and benefits, all from a single platform, freeing up valuable time.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While ensuring operational efficiency, understanding quality management software is equally important for maintaining high standards and avoiding errors.
Paychex Flex provides automated tax administration, employee self-service, and flexible payment methods, ensuring accuracy and compliance for your business.
Additionally, their PEO services offer an all-in-one HR solution, managing employee benefits, HR, payroll, and compliance, while solutions for various business sizes, from self-employed to 100+ employees, provide customized support.
The result is increased productivity and peace of mind.
Key features:
- Comprehensive Payroll Services: Efficiently pays employees with automated tax administration and flexible payment methods for businesses of all sizes.
- Integrated HR Solutions: Simplifies hiring, onboarding, and employee management with compliance guidance and HR consulting.
- Time & Attendance Tracking: Maximizes payroll accuracy by tracking employee hours and preventing errors with intuitive time-keeping tools.
Paychex features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
Paychex Flex is an excellent option for any small business owner seeking the best payroll software for small businesses, combining comprehensive HR, payroll, and benefits into one user-friendly platform. It helps streamline operations, automates taxes, and ensures compliance, as highlighted by nearly 800,000 satisfied businesses who report improved payroll accuracy and increased HR compliance.
12. Patriot Software

Tired of payroll headaches and compliance worries?
Patriot Software offers a remarkably easy-to-use system to help you run unlimited payrolls and simplify your processes.
This means you can say goodbye to manual calculations and ensure accurate payments, freeing up your valuable time for core business activities.
It’s time to streamline your payroll.
Patriot Software addresses your payroll challenges by offering a comprehensive suite of tools. You can pay your team with free direct deposit, ensuring prompt and convenient payments.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While streamlining payroll, understanding how to automate time tracking and salary is a crucial next step for small businesses.
Additionally, their Full Service Payroll handles tax filings and deposits, removing the burden of compliance from your shoulders. This holistic approach allows you to confidently manage your team’s compensation. Plus, employees can use a free mobile app to view paychecks and edit tax withholding, further reducing administrative tasks for you.
The result is a simplified, accurate, and efficient payroll experience.
Key features:
- Run unlimited payrolls and pay your team with free direct deposit, ensuring flexibility and convenience for your small business.
- Automated tax filings and deposits with Full Service Payroll, alleviating compliance worries and reducing the risk of errors.
- Online accessibility and mobile app for employees, allowing you to run your business from anywhere and empowering your team with self-service options.
Patriot Software features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: For small businesses seeking the best payroll software for small businesses, Patriot Software stands out with its superior usability, affordable pricing starting at $17/month + $4 per worker, and robust features like unlimited payrolls and automated tax filings, saving customers an average of $228 per month.
13. Square

Tired of payroll complexity?
Square Payroll simplifies managing your team, scheduling shifts, and running payroll efficiently.
This means you can focus on your core business and your team’s performance.
Here’s how to simplify payroll.
Square offers integrated payroll and shift scheduling, allowing you to manage your team’s hours and pay from one convenient platform. This helps eliminate common errors and reduces the administrative burden of manual processes.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: Speaking of simplifying business processes, if you’re looking to streamline your small business sales pipeline, my review on Capsule CRM can help.
You can run payroll effortlessly, ensuring your team is paid accurately and on time. Additionally, Square enables you to manage cash flow by bringing your revenue under one roof, providing instant access to funds and quicker access to loans if needed. This comprehensive approach supports your overall business health. Plus, you can connect your favorite apps from their marketplace, so you avoid jumping between different systems to manage your entire business operations.
The result is streamlined operations and peace of mind.
Key features:
- Integrated Payroll and Shifts: Streamline staff management with tools for scheduling shifts and running payroll from a single platform, ensuring accuracy and saving valuable time.
- Cash Flow Management: Consolidate your business revenue, allowing for instant access to funds, savings for future expenses, and easier access to financial support like loans.
- App Marketplace Integration: Connect with hundreds of other business applications to manage all your operations without switching between different systems, enhancing overall efficiency.
Square features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: Square is a strong contender for the best payroll software for small businesses, offering robust features for team management, payroll, and cash flow control. Its integrated capabilities help streamline operations, reduce administrative tasks, and provide financial flexibility for growing businesses.
14. Wave

Are you tired of payroll headaches as a small business owner?
Wave offers a painless payroll solution designed to pay staff and yourself in minutes, ensuring reliability.
This means you can manage contractors and avoid worrying about complicated legal stuff, freeing up your valuable time.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While discussing comprehensive financial management, for businesses with specific needs, understanding Indian tax compliance software is equally important.
Here’s your seamless payroll solution.
Wave simplifies your financial life by putting essential money management tools in one place, making bookkeeping and tax time easy.
You can reliably pay employees and yourself, managing contractors without the usual legal complexities, which helps reduce errors and stress.
Additionally, Wave lets you track income and expenses, manage cash flow, and access reporting to make smart decisions, even on the go with their mobile app, allowing you to stay organized and informed wherever you are.
The result: more time for what you love.
Key features:
- Painless payroll: Reliably pay employees and yourself while managing contractors without the usual legal and technical complexities.
- Integrated accounting: Track income and expenses, manage cash flow, and access reporting for informed decision-making.
- Mobile app access: Manage your books and payroll on the go, ensuring you stay in control of your finances from anywhere.
Wave features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
Wave offers an intuitive, all-in-one solution for small business owners, simplifying payroll, invoicing, and accounting. Its focus on user-friendliness makes it a strong contender for the best payroll software for small businesses, helping over 350,000 businesses manage their finances with peace of mind.
15. SurePayroll

Tired of payroll headaches consuming your time?
SurePayroll offers fast, easy online payroll designed specifically for small businesses, simplifying a complex task.
This means you can say goodbye to manual calculations and endless paperwork, giving you peace of mind with payroll tax filings and deposits handled automatically.
Focus on your business, not payroll.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: Speaking of optimizing service, if you’re looking to streamline customer interactions, my article on Cloud IVR solutions can help.
SurePayroll ensures you can run payroll in just three taps, making the process as simple as texting. This fast and easy system allows you to pay your employees from anywhere using their app, and you can even schedule payroll to run automatically.
You also get unlimited payroll runs and free 2-day direct deposit, ensuring your team gets paid without delays. Additionally, critical reports and paystubs are available online 24/7, keeping you organized and agile. Plus, with free onboarding assistance, setting up your business and employees is a breeze.
The result is stress-free payroll every time.
Key features:
- Automated Tax Filings: Handles payroll tax filings and deposits automatically, freeing you from compliance worries and saving valuable time for your business.
- Fast Online Payroll: Run payroll in minutes from anywhere using their app, with unlimited runs and free 2-day direct deposit, ensuring timely payments for your team.
- Comprehensive HR Support: Beyond payroll, SurePayroll offers HR tools, 401(k) plans, workers’ compensation, and health insurance to support your small team.
SurePayroll features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict:
SurePayroll stands out as a strong contender for the best payroll software for small businesses because it simplifies payroll with automated tax filings and a user-friendly interface. With options for household and one-employee payroll, it truly caters to diverse small business needs, allowing you to focus on growth.
16. Remote

Struggling with complex payroll and global hiring?
Remote provides an all-in-one platform for effortless payroll, benefits, and tax management, designed to simplify your international workforce.
This means you can streamline your payroll processes across different countries, ensuring compliance and accuracy without the usual headaches.
Ready to simplify your global operations?
Remote enables you to manage contractor and employee payroll from one intuitive dashboard, making global payments easy and efficient. This includes localized benefits, expat packages, and accurate tax withholdings for a seamless experience.
You’ll find compliant global payroll solutions, including managing tax filings and ensuring legal adherence in various regions, allowing you to focus on growing your business without compliance worries. Additionally, Remote handles global talent management, from hiring to onboarding, and offers comprehensive benefits, equity management, and expert guidance.
It’s truly a complete package for global teams.
- 🎯 Bonus Resource: While discussing managing global teams effectively, understanding secure remote support for global businesses is equally important.
Key features:
- Global Payroll Management: Streamline payroll for both employees and contractors across multiple countries, ensuring compliant payments and accurate tax withholdings.
- Localized Benefits & Compliance: Offer competitive, localized benefits and manage global compliance, including tax filings, expat packages, and legal adherence.
- All-in-One Platform: Consolidate hiring, onboarding, payroll, benefits, and equity management into a single, intuitive platform for simplified global operations.
Remote features, pricing, & alternatives →
Verdict: Remote excels as a strong contender for the best payroll software for small businesses, especially those with international aspirations. Its comprehensive global payroll, localized benefits, and compliant hiring capabilities remove common administrative burdens, allowing you to confidently expand your team worldwide.
Conclusion
Payroll shouldn’t be this complicated.
Choosing the right tool from so many options is overwhelming. Making the wrong choice can lead to serious compliance issues and wasted money.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics reports an average payroll error rate of 1.2% each pay period. Those small errors add up quickly, seriously impacting your bottom line and employee trust.
So, what’s the best fix?
From my experience, HiBob is the clear winner. Its AI-powered platform automates your most complex tasks, which helps reduce the risk of costly mistakes.
I was impressed by its reported average ROI of 254%. When you choose the best payroll software for small businesses like HiBob, you’re investing in efficiency and your company’s growth.
I strongly recommend you book a free demo of HiBob to see for yourself how its AI-driven automation can transform your entire payroll process.
You’ll save hours every week.