Gusto vs. OnPay: same entry price, different operating models
Gusto and OnPay now share the same published entry formula: $49 per month plus $6 per paid person. That makes the real decision more useful. Compare multistate coverage, HR and time packaging, accounting controls, support, benefits, industry requirements, and the work required to close payroll cleanly.
Start with workforce complexity—not the identical base price.
Evaluate OnPay first when you want one payroll tier with multistate payroll, unlimited runs, federal/state/local filings, W-2s and 1099s, configurable QuickBooks or Xero posting, six permission levels, and phone, chat, and email support included.
Evaluate Gusto first when payroll is one part of a broader people stack and you value tiered HR, benefits, time, compliance, faster-pay options, global contractor payments, or a larger ecosystem of employee tools.
Run both through two real pay cycles. The best choice is the one that calculates the difficult cases correctly, produces a controlled approval trail, posts a reconcilable journal entry, and resolves exceptions before the payroll deadline.
Gusto vs. OnPay at a glance
| Decision point | Gusto | OnPay |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | Simple: $49 monthly + $6 per person. | Payroll Essentials: $49 monthly + $6 per worker. |
| Pricing design | Three payroll plans plus separately priced add-ons. | One payroll base with optional HR, time, compliance, and support products; discounted bundles are published. |
| Payroll scope | Unlimited runs, tax filings and payments, PTO basics, employee and contractor payroll. | Unlimited runs, multistate payroll, federal/state/local filings, W-2 and 1099 forms, multiple schedules and rates. |
| Time and HR | Time and scheduling are included in Plus and Premium; HR depth expands by tier and add-on. | Native HR and time are separately priced or bundled; core payroll includes hiring basics and employee self-service. |
| Accounting | Integrations include QuickBooks, Xero, FreshBooks, and other systems. | Direct QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, and Xero integrations with customizable mapping. |
| Best first fit | Companies prioritizing a broader employee, benefits, and HR platform. | Companies prioritizing transparent payroll breadth, multistate coverage, accounting configuration, and included support. |
1. The entry price is a tie; the next layer is not
Gusto Simple and OnPay Payroll Essentials both publish a $49 monthly base plus $6 per paid person. At 10 people, either entry plan is $109 per month or $1,308 per year before optional services and benefit premiums.
Gusto Plus is $80 plus $12 per person, or $200 monthly for 10 people. It adds time tracking and scheduling, unlimited next-day pay, multistate payroll, and contractor invoice management. Gusto Premium is $180 plus $22 per person, or $400 for 10, with enhanced support, HR guidance, compliance tools, faster pay, and project-based rules and costing.
OnPay prices HR at $15 plus $2 per worker and Time Tracking at $15 plus $4 per worker. Its published bundle for payroll, HR, and time is $70 plus $10 per worker, or $170 for 10 people. Its broader growing-business bundle is $130 plus $10 per worker, or $230 for 10, and includes payroll, time, HR, compliance resources, and live HR support. These are not feature-equivalent to Gusto's tiers, but they give buyers a concrete normalization starting point.
| 10-person example | Monthly price | Scope note |
|---|---|---|
| Gusto Simple | $109 | Entry payroll; separately price time, priority support, and other add-ons. |
| OnPay Payroll Essentials | $109 | Includes multistate payroll, year-end forms, six permission levels, accounting integrations, and support. |
| Gusto Plus | $200 | Adds multistate payroll, time and scheduling, and unlimited next-day pay. |
| OnPay payroll + HR + time bundle | $170 | Published hourly-workforce bundle; verify exact HR and time requirements. |
| Gusto Premium | $400 | Higher-touch support, HR and compliance capabilities, and faster-pay options. |
| OnPay growing-business bundle | $230 | Payroll, time, HR, compliance resources, and live HR support. |
Model both the normal month and the expensive exception month.
2. Multistate payroll can decide the plan before HR does
OnPay includes multistate payroll and federal, state, and local tax filings in Payroll Essentials. Gusto's current pricing table highlights multistate payroll in Plus, while Gusto's payroll product is available across all 50 states. A company with employees in several states should compare the applicable Gusto plan to OnPay's base—not assume both entry tiers have identical jurisdiction scope.
Build a jurisdiction matrix for every residence and work location. Include unemployment insurance, local withholding, paid-leave programs, disability programs, reciprocity, workers' compensation, tax registration, new-hire reporting, and agency notices. Confirm who opens accounts, enters rates, obtains authorization, amends filings, and owns penalties when source data or vendor processing is wrong.
Run one employee who changes work states during the period and one employee with a local tax. The marketing phrase “all 50 states” does not prove that your exact jurisdiction workflow is automated or included.
3. Time tracking should survive the difficult shift
Gusto Plus and Premium include time tracking and scheduling. OnPay sells native Time Tracking for $15 plus $4 per worker, with discounts when bundled. OnPay publishes browser and mobile clocks, geofencing, supervisor approvals, custom overtime and break rules, automatic payroll sync, PTO, and an edit audit log.
Test overnight shifts, multiple rates, overtime, double time, missed punches, paid and unpaid breaks, PTO, sick leave, jobs, locations, supervisor edits, retroactive changes, and payroll cutoff. Record whether the product warns about conflicts and preserves who changed each timecard.
Also test the fallback. OnPay documents integrations with QuickBooks Time, When I Work, and Deputy. A company already standardized on a scheduling system may prefer a reliable import over replacing a functioning workforce workflow.
4. Treat the general-ledger entry as a product requirement
OnPay publishes direct, fee-free accounting integrations with QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, and Xero. Its documentation describes chart-of-accounts mapping, pay-type mapping, class handling, summary or employee-level detail, and automatic Xero exports after each payroll. Gusto also supports accounting integrations, including QuickBooks and Xero.
Build a test payroll with salary, hourly wages, overtime, bonus, reimbursement, benefit deductions, retirement, garnishment, employer taxes, contractor pay, and a correction. Reconcile the register to cash withdrawals, tax payments, benefit invoices, payroll liabilities, and the journal entry.
Score both systems on mapping control, dimensions, posting timing, duplicates, clearing accounts, attachments, correction behavior, and the reviewer's ability to trace a general-ledger balance back to the employee-level source. “Integrates with QuickBooks” is not a control conclusion.
5. HR breadth and payroll control are separate questions
OnPay Payroll Essentials includes hiring and onboarding basics, worker profiles, document storage, employee self-service, six user-permission levels, and benefits administration. Its HR add-on adds customizable onboarding workflows, task delegation, employee directories, file requests, equipment tracking, forms, surveys, org charts, PTO workflows, templates, and document audits.
Gusto's platform extends beyond payroll into benefits, time, hiring, onboarding, talent, HR guidance, compliance tools, tax-advantaged benefits, and global contractor payments. The mix varies by plan and add-on. A broader catalog is valuable only when the company will actually consolidate those workflows and retire other systems.
Write down the owner for each process: offer, I-9, state registration, benefits enrollment, PTO, time approval, payroll review, termination, COBRA, agency notice, and accounting reconciliation. Then test role access using the actual owner, manager, bookkeeper, and outside accountant personas.
6. Support has financial value at the payroll deadline
OnPay includes expert support by phone, chat, and email and says migration of prior wage and employee data is included. Gusto lists human payroll support on weekdays, offers priority support for $30 plus $3 per person on Simple and Plus, and includes Premium Account Support in Premium.
Ask both vendors how they handle a failed debit, rejected direct deposit, tax notice, incorrect termination check, prior-quarter amendment, year-end form correction, and account takeover. Require escalation paths, operating hours, response expectations, fee responsibility, and evidence of resolution.
During evaluation, submit one integration question, one jurisdiction question, and one urgent payroll scenario through the channel you would really use. Score ownership, accuracy, time to resolution, and whether the final answer is documented for the payroll reviewer.
Run this two-pay-cycle payroll pilot
- Reconcile the roster. Validate legal names, tax elections, addresses, work locations, rates, bank data, deductions, leave, and prior wages.
- Map jurisdictions. List every federal, state, and local account, registration, rate, filing frequency, and responsible owner.
- Import real time. Test hourly, salaried, overtime, PTO, multiple rates, bonuses, tips, reimbursements, missed punches, and approvals.
- Compare gross-to-net. Reconcile earnings, employee and employer taxes, deductions, benefits, garnishments, and net pay to the current provider.
- Force exceptions. Run an off-cycle payroll, void, correction, termination, contractor payment, bank change, and benefit change.
- Close the books. Post payroll, reconcile cash and liabilities, inspect dimensions and the audit trail, and correct a prior-period item.
- Test support. Submit tax-notice, failed-payment, and mapping scenarios; record ownership, accuracy, and elapsed time.
- Approve cutover. Reconcile year-to-date balances, document old-provider responsibilities, plan rollback, and compare three-year cost.
Recommendation by operating profile
Lean multistate payroll
You want broad payroll scope, accounting configuration, permissions, year-end forms, and included support without moving immediately to a higher plan.
Hourly 10–50 person team
Time, scheduling, overtime, PTO, HR, and accounting all matter. Run real shifts and compare the $170 OnPay bundle with Gusto Plus and any required add-ons.
Broader people platform
You expect payroll to connect with a wider set of benefits, HR, compliance, talent, faster-pay, or global-contractor workflows and accept tiered pricing.
Compare the wider payroll market.
Use the rules-based matcher or browse the Payroll directory if Gusto and OnPay are not the only reasonable candidates. Vendors cannot pay for a higher position.
Related payroll comparisons
Frequently asked questions
Is Gusto or OnPay better for a small business?
OnPay is usually the stronger first evaluation when the company wants one transparent payroll tier with multistate payroll, unlimited runs, included tax filings, accounting integrations, six permission levels, and phone, chat, and email support. Gusto is usually the stronger first evaluation when the company wants a broader people platform with tiered HR, benefits, time, compliance, faster-pay, and global-contractor options. Run parallel payrolls because the better product depends on workforce and control requirements.
How much do Gusto and OnPay cost for 10 workers?
At current regular prices, both Gusto Simple and OnPay Payroll Essentials cost $109 per month for 10 paid people: a $49 base plus $6 per person. Gusto Plus costs $200. OnPay's published payroll, HR, and time bundle costs $170. Those packages are not feature-equivalent, so compare included states, time rules, HR depth, payment speed, support, benefits, and implementation—not only the total.
Do Gusto and OnPay include unlimited payroll runs?
Yes. Both vendors currently advertise unlimited payroll runs. Test regular, bonus, correction, termination, and off-cycle runs, then confirm funding deadlines and whether faster payment methods or other services create separate charges.
Do Gusto and OnPay file payroll taxes?
Both advertise federal, state, and local payroll tax calculation, payment, and filing. OnPay includes W-2 and 1099 year-end filings in Payroll Essentials, and Gusto includes tax filings and payments in its payroll plans. Confirm registrations, local jurisdictions, prior-period amendments, notices, and responsibility for penalties in the final agreement.
Can Gusto and OnPay connect to QuickBooks or Xero?
Yes. OnPay publishes direct integrations for QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, and Xero, including configurable general-ledger mapping. Gusto also lists accounting integrations, including QuickBooks and Xero. Test the actual journal entry, dimensions, liabilities, reimbursements, corrections, and posting timing before choosing.
Sources and methodology
FinanceOps Atlas reviewed official Gusto and OnPay pricing, payroll, HR, time, accounting-integration, support, partner, and affiliate materials on October 13, 2026. Prices are regular public US prices before temporary offers. Calculations use 10 paid people and exclude benefit premiums, workers' compensation, retirement providers, state registrations, tax credits, and services not stated as included.
This guide does not rely on vendor payment, private demonstrations, customer-review averages, fabricated hands-on experience, or unsupported claims. Recommendations are based on workflow, control coverage, accounting effort, implementation risk, and total cost. Referral compensation, if activated later, cannot change the ordering or conclusions. Read how FinanceOps Atlas ranks software and the affiliate disclosure.