Task workflows were self-explanatory and required minimal effort on my part. It kept signing me out and requiring me to sign back in in the middle of tasks. This was a minimal disturbance but still a disturbance that cost me time and effort to handle.

Wave Payroll’s standout features include employee and contractor payroll tools, tax services, an employee self-service portal and invoicing tools. Employees access the mobile app to view their paychecks, review and manage their benefits and access their tax documents. In addition, they can track their vacation days and request time off using the mobile app. Finally, as an added perk, employees can use the app to access TriNet-offered discounts on technology, groceries and other products. To determine the best payroll services for small businesses, Forbes Advisor researched the industry and analyzed 23 different companies and their plans.

Best for Contractor Payroll

In addition, ADP RUN offers all the features you’d expect in a payroll service. It has tiered plans with payroll by direct deposit, a self-service employee platform, new hire onboarding and optional benefits administration for additional fees. More advanced plans include a robust HR platform, including bookkeeping firms an employee handbook, document management, training programs and employee toolkits. Paychex Flex offers bare-bones features to help you manage your payroll runs, such as automated tax filings, payments and calculations; a self-service mobile app for employees; and customizable payroll reporting.

I could click “resolve exceptions” to work out these issues before running payroll. Paychex Flex is made specifically for small businesses that need a quick and simple payroll system. It’s stripped down for businesses that just need easy payroll, with flexibility to add on services as you grow.

What Are Payroll Services?

ADP RUN is a good choice for businesses that need highly supported payroll tax compliance features in payroll software. It’s designed for companies with fewer than 50 employees, but is a good fit if you expect to grow beyond that because you could upgrade to ADP Workforce now or ADP’s enterprise platform. RUN by ADP has a 4.5 rating on Capterra and G2 with a total of 2,075 user reviews. Users love that the software has lots of self-service and automation features to save companies time and money. However, customer service is often unresponsive and they wish the time keeping app were included in RUN by ADP’s plans.