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You’re a small business owner and you have a couple employees working for you. Chances are, you’re in the market for a payroll provider, and if you are then you are most likely familiar with either Gusto or Quickbooks or even both! With the big name like Quickbooks, it’s hard to go wrong with either option but let’s break down Gusto vs Quickbooks based off services offered, quality, and price points and see which comes out on top.
What Is Gusto?
The first payroll provider is Gusto: but it’s actually much more than just a payroll provider. It’s a human resource management software that prioritizes small businesses, serving over 200,000 of them in fact. I might be a bit biased towards Gusto because it’s the same platform I use myself to run payroll, pay myself a salary, and save me the big bucks come tax time!
Beyond running payroll, Gusto offers a number of other features and services in their subscription including:
- Benefits. Gusto offers a full range of benefits including retirement planning like 401ks, HSAs, FSAs and comprehensive insurances from medical to dental to vision.
- Onboarding and hiring. Tools like checklists and offer letters are just a couple of the features offered.
- Time tracking. Simple time tracking tools and even PTO policies and time-off requests are offered.
- Tax assistance. What I use to save money come tax time, Gusto offers automated tax withholdings and statements.
What Is Quickbooks?
More than likely you’ve already heard of Quickbooks. It’s a big name and a big player in the payroll and accounting field. In fact, it’s probably one of the most popular accounting softwares amongst small businesses.
Quickbooks, like Gusto, is geared towards small business owners. Quickbooks really shines if you’re already familiar with it as a platform, which chances are, you may be if you’re looking for a payroll provider as they’re one of the largest players in the game.
To see the full comparison of Gusto vs Quickbooks, watch my in depth video right here!
Gusto: Pros and Cons
Pros
Pricing is definitely an upside of Gusto. Clocking in at $40 per month with an extra $6 per employee, for online entrepreneurs like myself, we end up paying $46 a month for Gusto. Not to mention the $100 Visa gift card you get when you sign up, basically get 2 months free right off the bat! Feel free to get it right here if you’re ready!
Features and quality is another upside. Gusto offers not just payroll services, but like shown above, a number of other features from onboarding to taxes to time tracking. Not to mention, it’s all under the cost rather than a ‘pay as you go’ for every single feature.
Cons
There has been a history of complaints about Gusto’s customer service. For the limited times I’ve used it, I haven’t had any issues when I was trying to move my business across states and even around tax time and trying to get some assistance.
Now Gusto’s customer service is closed on weekends, they are not open 24/7. This is important to keep in mind while you shop for a payroll provider especially if your business needs don’t align with the customer support schedule.
Another con or I guess ‘other issue’ is it’s not free. Of course it’s not free: none of the competing services are free. The only way you’d get a free payroll service is if a family member wanted some free experience or you did all the payroll manually: and at that point, just how ‘free’ would that feel, right?
Quickbooks: Pros and Cons
Pros
If you’re using Quickbooks for the accounting software, it would be a more seamless integration to the payroll side of things rather than having to go 3rd party and integrating. I, personally, haven’t found this to be true but I imagine it’d be more efficient using one platform for all.
Customer service may be a bit more supportive and offers 24/7 support, so for those businesses that require that, that can definitely be a pro. However, you are paying for it regardless.
Cons
The first and most obvious con is pricing. It is a bit more expensive than Gusto sitting at $45 per month plus $5 per employee thereafter. However, they run an intro promotion for the first 3 months of 50% off. So at least for 3 months, you may be getting a solid deal!
Another con is the limited features. Not to say it doesn’t offer a lot, but if you’re wanting to expand your services, you’ll be up-charged for everything you add on, which can get kind of annoying and bit pricy very quickly.
Gusto vs Quickbooks: The Verdict
With the dozens of hours I’ve spent researching both options, it’s safe to say both are solid platforms. Gusto is a great option for an all-encompassing price point for numerous services from benefits, to taxes, and even to payroll at the click of a button. Quickbooks is a very popular choice amongst small businesses and can easily integrate with the payroll and accounting sides.
The Verdict
Another preamble saying yes, of course, I’m biased. I haven’t regretted my decision of going with Gusto a couple of years back. With the price points that align with my business needs, and the encompassing features while being extremely streamlined and easy to use, Gusto was an easy choice for me. Quickbooks does have a good offer, but with all of the add-ons and price hikes for each feature, I was drawn away and that’s why Gusto takes the cake.
So if you’re in the market for a payroll provider, I really do recommend Gusto as a tried and true option that I personally use myself. If you’re ready to sign up, do so here and make sure you get that $100 Visa gift card!
