In this article, I’ll discuss the Top Gusto Alternatives for Small Business HR to help companies find the right solution for managing payroll, employee records, benefits, and HR operations.
We’ll review popular platforms like Rippling, OnPay, Patriot Payroll, and BambooHR, and talk about their main features, pricing, compliance support, and how they work for small businesses and expanding teams.
Key Points & Top Gusto Alternatives for Small Business HR
| Top Gusto Alternatives | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Rippling | Combines payroll, HR, benefits, and IT management within one unified platform. |
| OnPay | Simplifies payroll processing, tax filing, benefits administration, and employee management for small businesses. |
| Patriot Payroll | Offers affordable payroll processing, tax calculations, and employee payment management for small businesses. |
| BambooHR | Streamlines employee records, onboarding, performance management, and HR reporting for growing businesses. |
| Thrivea | Supports employee management and HR workflows, helping businesses organize everyday workforce operations efficiently. |
| Zoho People | Provides employee databases, attendance tracking, leave management, and customizable HR workflows for businesses. |
| Tiny Team | Helps small teams manage employee information, HR tasks, and essential workforce processes efficiently. |
| Justworks | Combines payroll, employee benefits, compliance support, and HR services for growing small businesses. |
| TriNet | Delivers payroll, benefits administration, risk management, and HR expertise to growing businesses. |
| Paychex Flex | Provides payroll processing, tax administration, HR tools, and employee benefits through scalable services. |
10 Top Gusto Alternatives for Small Business HR
1. Rippling
Rippling is an all-in-one HR & payroll platform that combines employee management, payroll, benefits, onboarding and IT management. Its automated workflows help small businesses reduce manual administrative tasks and keep employee information organized.
Pricing: Payroll pricing begins at a published base price plus a per-user fee, plus additional costs depending on the modules selected. Compliance: Offers tools for monitoring employment requirements and managing HR compliance processes.
Tax Support: Automate payroll tax calculations and filings to reduce payroll administration. Remote teams: Digital onboarding and centralized employee records support distributed workforces. Growing businesses – You can add additional HR, benefits and IT capabilities as your business needs grow.
Rippling Feature
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Payroll Automation | Automates payroll calculations, employee payments, and payroll tax processing. |
| Employee Onboarding | Streamlines new-hire paperwork, onboarding tasks, and employee record creation. |
| Benefits Administration | Connects employee benefits with payroll to simplify deductions and administration. |
| HR and IT Integration | Combines workforce management with app access, device management, and automated workflows. |
2. OnPay
OnPay is a payroll and HR solution designed for small business owners who want to process employee payments, payroll taxes, benefits, and core HR functions all in one platform. Its simple interface allows employers to do payroll and keep employee records without the complex administrative process.
Pricing: Their advertized pricing typically starts at around $49/month + $6/employee, but check current prices before buying. Compliance helps with payroll reporting and administrative tasks associated with taxes.
Tax support Payroll tax calculations, filings and year-end forms reduce manual work. Remote teams: Access to payroll online helps employees and administrators working remotely. Growing businesses: Ideal for organizations needing basic payroll and HR features.
OnPay Feature
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Payroll Processing | Manages employee wages, deductions, pay schedules, and payroll calculations. |
| Tax Administration | Supports payroll tax calculations, filings, and year-end tax documentation. |
| Employee Benefits | Helps businesses administer eligible employee benefits through supported services. |
| HR Management | Provides employee information management and essential HR administration tools. |
3. Patriot Payroll
If you are a small business looking for an affordable payroll processor, employee pay and payroll reports, Patriot Payroll is a viable option. It lets businesses compute wages, handle deductions and sort out payroll details without needing a complicated human resources platform.
Pricing: Published pricing for the basic payroll plan begins at around $17 per month, plus $4 per worker. Full-service payroll is more. Compliance: Payroll reporting tools assist with recordkeeping, but employers should verify which filing responsibilities are covered by their plan of choice.
Tax help: In addition to filing your taxes, full-service plans provide help with taxes. Distributed teams: Online payroll control for distributed employees. Growing Businesses: This is a good fit for companies that are more concerned with the affordability of payroll than they are with advanced HR automation.
Patriot Payroll Feature
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Payroll Calculations | Calculates employee wages, overtime, deductions, and net pay. |
| Direct Deposits | Supports electronic employee payments through eligible payroll plans. |
| Tax Filing Options | Offers full-service payroll options with payroll tax filing assistance. |
| Accounting Integration | Helps organize payroll records and connect payroll data with accounting workflows. |
4. BambooHR
BambooHR is all about employee records, onboarding, time-off management, performance reviews, and HR reporting. It helps small businesses centralize workforce information and create consistent HR processes as teams grow.
Pricing: Core is priced at $10 per employee per month for larger teams, and smaller companies with 25 or fewer employees can choose flat monthly plans starting at $250. Payroll and benefits availability based on eligibility and add-ons Compliance: Organized HR administration support for document management and compliance training.
Tax support: Payroll tax filing is available through its US payroll offering rather than each HR plan. Remote teams Managing a distributed team is easier with cloud-based records. Growing businesses: Reporting and performance tools support structured growth.
BambooHR Feature
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Employee Database | Centralizes employee profiles, job details, and important HR records. |
| Onboarding Management | Organizes new-hire tasks, paperwork, and employee orientation processes. |
| Performance Management | Supports performance reviews, feedback, and employee development tracking. |
| HR Reporting | Provides workforce reports to help managers understand staffing and HR trends. |
5. Thrivea
The identity of Thrivea and its current feature set needs to be confirmed so that a reliable comparison can be made. Thrivea should be evaluated as per the exact product and services provided by the provider. For small businesses, the important factors are employee records, onboarding, leave management, payroll integrations and workforce reporting.
Pricing: See if the provider charges per employee, has fixed monthly plans or requires a custom quote. Compliance: Assistance with employment documentation, recordkeeping and associated labor regulations.
Tax assistance: Find out if payroll tax calculations and filings are covered or if a separate service is needed. Remote teams. Look at cloud access. Look at employee self-service. Scaling businesses: Focus on scalable features and integrations.
Thrivea Feature
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Employee Records | Stores employee information, contracts, documents, and job history centrally. |
| Leave Management | Manages leave requests, approvals, policies, and team absence calendars. |
| Performance Management | Supports goal-setting, performance reviews, feedback, and employee development. |
| Workflow Automation | Automates HR tasks, approval processes, reminders, and document workflows. |
6. Zoho People
Zoho People handles employee data, attendance, leave applications, onboarding, performance reviews, and HR workflows. The best part about this is that it is great for businesses that want to customize processes and integrations with other business applications.
Pricing: Zoho People offers tiered subscription plans, including an entry-level free plan in eligible markets, with paid pricing based on plan and billing region. Compliance: Employee documentation, attendance records and HR reports are used for administrative record keeping but do not provide legal compliance.
Tax Support: Payroll tax calculations and filing typically require a compatible payroll product (if available, like Zoho Payroll). Remote teams: Cloud access and self-service tools simplify managing a distributed workforce. Scaling business: Agile workflows to support evolving HR needs.
Zoho People Feature
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Employee Information | Maintains employee profiles, organizational details, and workforce records. |
| Attendance Tracking | Records working hours, attendance, and employee time-related information. |
| Leave Management | Simplifies leave applications, approvals, and leave balance tracking. |
| Performance Reviews | Helps managers evaluate employee performance, goals, and development progress. |
7. Tiny Team
The name Tiny Team should be checked against the intended software vendor to see how its exact capabilities compare to Gusto. Small businesses should consider whether this provides employee profiles, onboarding, document storage, leave requests and routine HR administration when considering this option. Cost: Check out the latest subscription costs, any employee caps, and whether payroll services come at an extra cost.
Compliance: Employment documentation management, audit trails and help with relevant labor legislation. Tax support: Determine if tax calculations and filings are included in the platform or through third-party integrations.
Remote teams: Review browser access and employee self-service functionality. Growing businesses: Select a solution that scales to accommodate more employees and workflows, without adding unnecessary complexity.
Tiny Team Feature
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Leave Management | Manages leave policies, requests, approvals, and shared team calendars. |
| Hiring Pipeline | Tracks candidates through recruitment stages, interviews, and hiring decisions. |
| Team Communication | Supports company announcements, employee updates, comments, and recognition. |
| Employee Management | Helps organize team information, responsibilities, and everyday HR activities. |
8. Justworks
Justworks offers payroll, HR administration, employee benefits, and professional employer organization (PEO) services. It provides small businesses with access to HR expertise and benefits usually available only at larger employers.
Pricing: Plans published in the US include Payroll at $8/employee/month + $50 base fee, PEO Basic at $79/employee/month, and PEO Plus at $124/employee/month. Compliance: PEOs offer compliance resources and HR consulting.
Tax Support. Payroll services help manage payroll and related tax obligations. Remote teams: Online payroll and HR tools support dispersed employees. Benefits administration and expert guidance can help organizations scale their workforce as they grow.
Justworks Feature
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Payroll Processing | Helps businesses process payroll and manage employee compensation. |
| Benefits Administration | Provides access to supported employee health insurance and other benefits. |
| Compliance Support | Offers HR resources and assistance with employment-related requirements. |
| HR Support | Provides professional HR guidance and administrative services for businesses. |
9. TriNet
TriNet provides HR services, payroll administration, employee benefits and compliance support for small and midsize businesses. Its services can be valuable for employers that want professional help managing their workforce, but not to take on every HR function in-house.
Pricing: Pricing varies based on the service package selected, number of employees, types of benefits provided, and specific business needs, so please ask for a customized quote.
Compliance: Employment obligations can vary by arrangement, but HR resources and regulatory guidance are available to help employers navigate them. Tax Support. Payroll services help you administer payroll and related tax processes.
Remote teams: Centralized HR services can help employees in different locations, depending on coverage. Emerging Business: • Benefits & professional HR support that can flex to increasing organizational complexity.
TriNet Feature
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Payroll Management | Supports payroll processing, employee compensation, and payroll administration. |
| Benefits Management | Helps employers administer employee benefits through available service packages. |
| Risk Management | Provides resources to help businesses address workplace risks and employment requirements. |
| HR Expertise | Offers HR support for employee management, policies, and workforce administration. |
10. Paychex Flex
Paychex Flex is a payroll and HR solution that includes payroll processing, employee records, time and attendance, benefits administration, and other workforce management services. There are so many choices that small businesses can choose the service that best fits their operations.
Pricing: Monthly pricing depends on the package, size of the workforce and the features chosen, and businesses should request a quote to know the full monthly cost. Compliance: Tools and professional services that are available to employers to help them with payroll reporting and employment requirements.
Tax support: Payroll services offer tax administration options depending on the package. Remote teams. Managers and employees can handle payroll and HR tasks from anywhere with online access. Growing businesses: As your company grows, additional services can help support more complex workforce needs.
Paychex Flex Feature
| Feature | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Payroll Automation | Processes employee payments, wage calculations, and payroll-related transactions. |
| Tax Administration | Supports payroll tax calculations, reporting, and filing services depending on the plan. |
| Time and Attendance | Tracks employee work hours, attendance, and timekeeping information. |
| HR Management | Provides employee records, onboarding tools, benefits administration, and HR services. |
Conclusion
To summarize, choosing the top Gusto alternatives for small business HR depends on your budget, workforce size, and business needs. Platforms like Rippling, OnPay, Patriot Payroll and BambooHR offer payroll, employee management, benefits and HR automation, each with its own features.
Weigh the pricing, tax support, compliance features and scalability before making the decision to find the best solution for your business’s long-term growth.
FAQ
Which Gusto alternative is best for affordable payroll?
Patriot Payroll offers budget-friendly payroll options for small businesses seeking essential payment features.
Is Rippling better than Gusto for HR management?
Rippling combines payroll, HR, benefits, and IT management through automated workflows.
Which Gusto alternative offers the best HR features?
BambooHR provides employee records, onboarding, performance management, and workforce reporting tools.
Which Gusto alternative supports payroll tax filing?
OnPay, Patriot Payroll, and Paychex Flex offer payroll tax support options.
