When you’re busy running a business, payroll and HR duties shouldn’t keep you from doing what’s most important. Choosing the right provider should help you pay everyone on time, automate taxes accurately, and take good care of your team.
ADP and Paychex are both household names when it comes to payroll software. We’ve pulled together everything you need to know to compare the two — and to know what to expect from all of the fine print when it comes to cost.
Jump to compare ADP and Paychex by:
Ratings from other small business owners and finance experts can help you learn a lot more when you compare ADP and Paychex payroll services. Interestingly, the top marks in the category (from both users and experts) actually went to a different provider.
Run by ADP
Ease of Setup
Ease of Admin
Quality of Support
Performance
Reliability
Customization
Reporting
Paychex Flex
Ease of Setup
Ease of Admin
Quality of Support
Performance
Reliability
Customization
Reporting
A great payroll provider will give you everything you need, without any hidden fees. See the breakdown of payroll costs you can expect from Run by ADP vs Paychex Flex to get a clearer picture of which features are included — and what comes at an extra cost.
| Run by ADP | Paychex Flex | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||
| Base price | No published price. Negotiate with sales. Price is per pay run, not monthly. | No published price. Negotiate with sales. Price is per pay run, not monthly. |
| Per worker cost | No published price. Negotiate with sales. Price is per pay run, not monthly. | No published price. Negotiate with sales. Price is per pay run, not monthly. |
| Full-service payroll | ||
| Automated federal, state, and local tax filings and payments | Included | Included |
| Unlimited pay runs | Additional fees | Additional fees |
| Multi-state payroll | Additional fees | Additional fees |
| Edit or cancel a pay run | Additional fees | Additional fees |
| Multiple pay rates and schedules | Included | Included |
| Garnishments | Included | Included |
| Accounting and time tracking integrations | Included | Time tracking integration: Included Accounting integration: Additional fees for some providers |
| New hire reporting | Additional fees | Included |
| Year-end filings, W-2s, and 1099s | Additional fees | Additional fees |
| Onboarding and Employee Self-Service | ||
| Employee self-onboarding | Included | Additional fees |
| Employee self-service portal | Included | Included |
| Document e-sign for I-9s and W-4s | Included | Additional fees |
| Send and sign offer letters electronically | Additional fees | Not available |
| Employee lifetime account access | Not available | Not available |
| HR and Team Management | ||
| Manage and track time off | Additional fees | Included |
| Org charts | Additional fees | Additional fees |
| Document storage and audits | Additional fees | Additional fees |
| Custom onboarding workflows | Not available | Additional fees |
| Benefits and Compliance | ||
| Medical, dental, and vision plans | Additional fees | Additional fees |
| Integrated workers’ comp plans | Additional fees | Additional fees |
| Integrated 401(k) plan | Additional fees | Additional fees |
| Reporting and Usability | ||
| Payroll and employee reports | Included | Included |
| Real-time reporting filters | Not available | Not available |
| Custom report designer | Not available | Additional fees |
Your payroll provider’s software should be backed by a reliable, easy-to-reach team of experts. We break down the level of support you can expect from ADP and Paychex.
| Run by ADP | Paychex Flex | |
| Setup and data migration | Additional fees | Additional fees |
| Expert phone support | Included | Included |
| Chat support | Not available | Included |
| Accuracy guarantee | Not available | Not available |
Bottom line, payroll and HR software should simplify your business operations so you can focus on what you do best. Every business has unique needs, so choosing the right provider will make all the difference in how much time — and money — you can save. As you’re considering ADP and Paychex, here are a few areas to explore to make sure you get everything you need.
Full-service payroll: Any good payroll provider should handle the essentials, like automating payroll taxes and letting you pay workers by direct deposit or check. A great service will go even further by giving you unlimited monthly pay runs, multi-state payroll, and year-end filings, W-2s, and 1099s — at no additional cost.
Depending on how often you’re running payroll, Paychex and ADP can rack up additional costs with fees for each pay run. They will also charge additional fees for handling some year-end tax forms, whereas some providers include W-2s and 1099s at no extra cost.
HR and compliance: Your payroll provider should help you simplify hiring and people management with employee self-service and onboarding, e-signing of documents like the W-4, and by taking care of state new hire reporting on your behalf. They should also be able to handle integrated workers’ comp to help you stay compliant with local regulations.
ADP Run and Paychex Flex can support most of these requirements, but it will come at a premium. With some other providers, all of this is included at no additional cost.
In-app reporting: Check to see if available payroll reports will give you easy visibility into all of the details of your employment expenses. Dynamic in-app reporting (with no exports required) can really help speed things up — but not all payroll services offer this.
Providers like ADP and Paychex offer payroll reports, but the functionality is limited. To really see information your way, you’ll have to spend extra time exporting the data. There are some providers that offer built-in report designers that let you customize and filter the data in real time, right in the app.
Data migration and support: If you’ve paid workers before, you likely have some employee and prior wage data that you’ll need moved over when you switch payroll providers. See if the provider you’re considering will simplify the process by taking care of data migration for you. You should also be able to reach a real expert if you ever have questions or need help.
Both Paychex Flex and ADP Run will charge an additional fee if you want them to handle the setup for you — whereas some providers take care of this for no extra cost. You also may have to pay extra if you want extended support hours.
ADP Run and Paychex Flex offer similar feature sets and pricing. They also offer other payroll products for larger small businesses and enterprises. But another provider stood out for better ratings, its ability to grow with a business over time, and being a better value. Take a look to see who else you should consider:
Or compare ADP Run and Paychex Flex head-to-head with the other top payroll companies:
We’ll even migrate all your employee info and prior wages for you.