Gusto vs Paylocity
Choose Gusto for transparent US SMB payroll (award). Choose Paylocity when mid-market payroll+HR with Community/Ignite AI is the job and you will take a quote. Compare published pricing, hiring, core HRIS, payroll, scheduling, training, time tracking, integrations, and mobile.
Gusto
US SMB payroll + benefits + light HR — Simple from $49/mo + $6/person; Plus $80 + $12; Premium $180 + $22.
Best for
- • Published SMB payroll
- • Month-to-month US pay runs
Starting from $49.00/user/mo
No free plan
VS
Our verdict
Choose Gusto for transparent US SMB payroll (award). Choose Paylocity when mid-market payroll+HR with Community/Ignite AI is the job and you will take a quote.
Paylocity is better for
- ✓ Hiring workflow
- ✓ Core HRIS depth
- ✓ Scheduling depth
- ✓ Training depth
Tie
- • Payroll processing
Choose Gusto if: Published SMB payroll
Choose Paylocity if: Mid-market HR + payroll
Paylocity
US mid-market HR + payroll (+ finance/IT) — custom quote (‘Explore Payroll Pricing’); Ignite AI. Landscape vs Gusto.
Best for
- • Mid-market HR + payroll
- • Employee Community / Ignite AI
No free plan
Comparison scorecard
Criterion-by-criterion results for Gusto and Paylocity. Numeric bars appear only when both products have approved scores.
- Depends
Starting pricing
Published floor price and what that floor actually includes.
Gusto Simple $49/mo + $6/person (first-party). Paylocity is a customized quote with no published PEPM.
GustoDependsPaylocityDepends - Depends
Free plan
Whether a usable free plan is published, and what it gates.
Neither publishes a free payroll plan. Gusto setup is free until first payroll.
GustoDependsPaylocityDepends - Depends
User / licence minimum
Seat floors, per-employee minimums, and small-team pricing traps.
Gusto is SMB. Paylocity markets 1–99 / 100–499 / 500+ bands without a public dollar floor.
GustoDependsPaylocityDepends - Paylocity
Hiring workflow
Applicant tracking, job posts, interviews, and offer workflow depth.
Paylocity is the stronger fit for hiring workflow (4/10 vs 6/10). Scores reflect job-cluster fit from vendor documentation, not a lab test of the UI.
GustoWeakerPaylocityStronger - Paylocity
Core HRIS depth
Employee records, PTO, onboarding, and people-admin as a system of record.
Paylocity is the stronger fit for core HRIS depth (5/10 vs 8/10). Scores reflect job-cluster fit from vendor documentation, not a lab test of the UI.
GustoWeakerPaylocityStronger - Tie
Payroll processing
Payroll depth, country coverage, and whether payroll is core or an add-on.
Gusto and Paylocity are close on payroll processing (9/10 vs 9/10). Scores reflect job-cluster fit from vendor documentation, not a lab test of the UI.
GustoTiePaylocityTie - Paylocity
Scheduling depth
Shift scheduling, availability, and frontline rostering.
Paylocity is the stronger fit for workforce scheduling (2/10 vs 6/10). Scores reflect job-cluster fit from vendor documentation, not a lab test of the UI.
GustoWeakerPaylocityStronger - Paylocity
Training depth
SOPs, onboarding paths, and employee training — not a full LMS by default.
Paylocity is the stronger fit for training and SOPs (2/10 vs 5/10). Scores reflect job-cluster fit from vendor documentation, not a lab test of the UI.
GustoWeakerPaylocityStronger - Paylocity
Time tracking depth
Clock-in, timesheets, geofencing, and attendance workflows.
Paylocity is the stronger fit for time tracking (5/10 vs 7/10). Scores reflect job-cluster fit from vendor documentation, not a lab test of the UI.
GustoWeakerPaylocityStronger - Paylocity
Integrations
Important third-party integrations.
Paylocity is the stronger fit for integrations (7/10 vs 8/10). Scores reflect job-cluster fit from vendor documentation, not a lab test of the UI.
Gusto7/10Paylocity8/10 - Paylocity
Mobile / frontline
Phone-first admin and hourly/frontline employee experience.
Paylocity is the stronger fit for mobile and frontline use (6/10 vs 8/10). Scores reflect job-cluster fit from vendor documentation, not a lab test of the UI.
GustoWeakerPaylocityStronger
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