ToolScout
Gusto
US-based small businesses with 1-100 employees that need full-service payroll, tax filing, and benefits administration without an in-house HR department
Pros
- Payroll runs in 3 clicks: review hours, confirm totals, submit; Gusto calculates federal, state, and local taxes, files quarterly and annual returns, and issues W-2s and 1099s automatically
- Health insurance brokerage offers plans from Aetna, Blue Cross, Humana, Kaiser, and UnitedHealthcare; Gusto handles enrollment, COBRA, and qualifying life event changes
- New employee onboarding sends offer letters with e-signatures, collects I-9/W-4 forms digitally, and sets up direct deposit before day one
- 401(k) administration through Guideline integration includes automatic payroll deductions, employer matching calculations, and compliance testing
- Integrates natively with QuickBooks, Xero, FreshBooks, TSheets, Clover, Homebase, and 100+ apps to sync payroll journal entries and time data
Cons
- Only available for US-based businesses with US employees and contractors; no support for international payroll, EOR, or multi-country compliance
- Simple plan at $40 base + $6/person for a 20-person team costs $160/month; scaling to 50 people reaches $340/month before add-ons
- HR resource center, org charts, and custom employee surveys require the Plus plan at $80 base + $12/person; Simple plan covers only payroll and basic onboarding
- Two-day direct deposit is standard; next-day deposit requires the Plus plan or higher
Key Features
- Full-service payroll for salaried and hourly employees with unlimited pay runs, direct deposit, and pay stubs
- Automatic tax calculation and filing for federal, state, and local payroll taxes with year-end W-2 and 1099 generation
- Health insurance, dental, vision, and life insurance brokerage with open enrollment management and COBRA administration
- Employee onboarding with offer letters, e-signatures, I-9/W-4 collection, and direct deposit setup
- Time tracking and PTO management with accrual policies, request/approval workflows, and calendar sync
- Workers' compensation insurance with pay-as-you-go billing integrated into each payroll run
- Employee self-service portal for viewing pay stubs, tax documents, benefits elections, and PTO balances