Paylocity vs. ADP 2022 Comparison Review

Here's what you should know about the plans, features and pricing for Paylocity and ADP.
Lisa Anthony
Nina Godlewski
By Nina Godlewski and  Lisa Anthony 
Updated
Edited by Sally Lauckner

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Both Paylocity and ADP are cloud-based payroll systems, meaning you can access your account anywhere you have an internet connection. Where ADP offers several different plans based on the number of employees and features you’re looking for, Paylocity doesn’t have plans per se; rather you can choose from a variety of features and work with the Paylocity team to create a custom plan for your business.

Paylocity

ADP Payroll

Plans

Custom payroll and HR packages.

Do It Yourself, RUN, Workforce Now.

Price

Quote-based.

Starting at $63 monthly for Do It Yourself. Quote-based for RUN and Workforce Now.

Features

  • Payroll.

  • Work management.

  • Human resources.

  • Talent management.

  • Benefits administration.

  • Insights and analytics.

  • Payroll.

  • Tax filing.

  • Human resources.

  • Benefits administration.

  • Marketing and consulting services.

Mobile app

Yes; Android and iOS.

Yes; Android and iOS.

Free trial

No.

Three months with a Do It Yourself plan.

Integrations

Yes, over 300, including Bank of America, UnitedHealthcare and Vanguard.

Yes, including QuickBooks, Xero and Workday.

Paylocity features and pricing

Paylocity offers a variety of features that you can choose from, but it doesn’t provide upfront pricing for its services, which makes it more difficult to compare options. After you request a demo of the product, Paylocity will provide you with a proposal based on the size of your business, payroll frequency and the number of services you need.

Some of the main features offered by Paylocity include payroll, benefits, human resources and talent management.

The all-in-one payroll software offered by Paylocity includes the following payroll features:

  • Preview, correct and verify your payroll data prior to processing.

  • Tax experts who prepare and file tax forms and resolve tax notices on your behalf.

  • Option for employees to access a portion of their paychecks before payday.

  • Built-in expense reimbursement tool to automatically pull in approved expenses and add reimbursements to employees’ paychecks.

  • Wage garnishment handled by the Paylocity team.

  • Experts to help you create custom general ledgers and reports.

  • Automatic data integration with third-party benefits providers.

Paylocity also offers HR resources that include:

  • New hire templates to simplify onboarding.

  • Employee action forms for changes in compensation or position.

  • Access to a dedicated team for any questions or updates.

  • Employee self-service HR portal.

  • Library for centralized document management.

Paylocity offers software features to help automate benefits administration that include:

  • A platform that allows employees to enroll and manage their benefits.

  • A mobile app to access benefits credentials, account balances and other information.

  • Administration of third-party benefit services like FSAs, HSAs and COBRA, as well as other supplemental programs.

  • Reports to view benefit participation, contribution amounts and other data.

Paylocity offers a talent management system with features that include:

  • Recruiting tools and background checks.

  • Automated onboarding.

  • Performance management software that can track employee performance.

  • Compensation data to ensure competitive pay.

ADP Payroll plans and pricing

ADP offers separate plans based on the number of employees you have and the features you need. Let's take a closer look at ADP’s solutions for small and midsize businesses: Do It Yourself, RUN and Workforce Now, as well as the packages within each of these.

Do It Yourself

The Do It Yourself plan from ADP was made for businesses with fewer than 10 employees on payroll. Unlike other ADP plans, Do It Yourself has upfront pricing of $79 per month plus an additional $4 per employee per month. ADP offers the first three months for free. Features of this plan include:

  • Unlimited payroll runs.

  • Calculation, filing and payment of state and federal payroll taxes.

  • W-2 and 1099 management.

  • Direct deposit.

  • Data export to QuickBooks, Xero, Creative Solutions or a generic data file.

  • Phone, email and chat support, 8 a.m.- 8 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday.

  • Employee access.

  • New hire reporting.

  • 24/7 access for your accountant.

RUN Powered by ADP

RUN is designed for businesses with one to 49 employees who want payroll and HR features. Within the RUN program, there are four plans for you to choose from. Each RUN plan increases in features, building on the previous ones and adding more functionality. The Essential and Enhanced plans are limited to mainly payroll, while the Complete and HR Pro plans also include HR features. Here’s a rundown of the features you can expect with each of the four ADP RUN plans.

  • Direct deposit.

  • Payroll check delivery.

  • Payroll and HR reports.

  • General ledger interface with QuickBooks, Xero and other software.

  • New-hire reporting.

  • W-2s and 1099s.

  • Payroll tax filing: calculate, file and deposit taxes.

  • Mobile app.

  • ADP employee access.

  • New hire onboarding option.

  • Employee discount program.

Includes all of the Essential features plus:

  • Secure check signing and stuffing.

  • Labor law posters.

  • State unemployment insurance management.

  • Access to ZipRecruiter.

  • Background checks.

Includes all of the Enhanced features plus:

  • Employee handbook wizard.

  • HR help desk support from HR professionals.

  • HR forms, documents, training, toolkits and tracking.

Includes all of the Complete features plus:

  • Enhanced employee handbook and HR help desk support.

  • Training for employers and employees.

  • Marketing tools.

  • Legal assistance from Upnetic Legal Services.

Add-on features are also available and include the following:

  • Time and attendance.

  • Retirement plans.

  • Workers' compensation.

  • Health insurance.

  • Marketing Toolkit from Upnetic.

Workforce Now

ADP’s midsize solution is Workforce Now, which is designed for businesses with 50 to 999 employees. It can help you with payroll, HR management, recruiting and employee performance and talent management. Here’s a rundown of the plans within Workforce Now and the features you’ll receive.

  • Payroll processing.

  • Error detection alerts.

  • Prorated and retroactive pay adjustments.

  • Tax-filing services.

  • Library of built-in reports and custom report builder.

  • General ledger interface.

  • Do-it-yourself hours, earnings and deductions.

  • Batch capability for data imports.

Includes all of the Payroll Essentials features plus:

  • Compliance reporting, new hire and termination workflows and HR recordkeeping.

  • Employee development tracking.

  • Employee portal and self-service tools.

  • Onboarding workflows with fillable forms, electronic signature options and digital I-9 processing.

  • Streamlined administrative tasks.

  • Meet-the-team experience and office area maps.

  • Unlimited cloud-based document storage and single or batch upload.

Includes all of the HR Plus features plus:

  • Access to over 25,000 job boards with ZipRecruiter smart-matching technology.

  • Talent nurturing mobile and text communication.

  • Mobile career site and talent communities.

  • Compensation benchmark information.

  • Interview scheduling, offer letter management and onboarding integration.

  • Analytics and reporting.

Includes all of the Hiring Advantage features plus:

  • Goal assignment and tracking.

  • Review templates, dashboards and deadline notifications.

  • Support for employee self-evaluations.

  • Performance and compensation tracking.

  • Configurable merit and budget guidelines.

  • Payroll integrations and budgetary dashboard.

Add-on features for Workforce Now are also available and include the following:

  • Workforce management.

  • HR assistance.

  • StandOut, ADP’s performance program.

  • Learning management tools.

  • Benefits administration.

  • Enhanced analytics.

Paylocity pros and cons

Here are some strengths and weaknesses of Paylocity to consider.

Paylocity pros

  • Integrations: Paylocity offers over 300 integrations across 20 product categories, including benefits administration, time and attendance. This means you’ll likely be able to link any other business management systems you use to share data between platforms and reduce the need to manually import anything. This also allows you to further customize your software to get the most out of it.

  • Streamlined processes: Beyond its standard offerings and integrations, Paylocity has a push notification feature that allows you to create a custom notification system triggered by certain events, including new hires, termination, time-off approvals or other changes. This means less manual work for your team, as well as less of a chance that something falls through the cracks.

Paylocity cons

  • Pricing: Quote-based pricing makes it difficult to know whether you’re getting the same price as a similar-sized business with the same HR needs. We recommend getting quotes from several sources before you decide on one to ensure that you are getting a competitive price.

  • Feature details: While Paylocity provides an overview of payroll, HR and benefit services offered, you won't find a detailed list of its features and add-on options like the one available on ADP’s website. Specific information such as paycheck delivery options, W-2s and 1099 forms, payroll tax filing and other features aren’t easy to find on the Paylocity website and make it difficult to determine if the product will fit your needs.

ADP pros and cons

Now, let’s explore the pros and cons of using ADP.

ADP pros

  • Scalability: With three separate plans available for small and midsize businesses, you are able to scale up with ADP as your business grows. A business with fewer than 10 employees can start with the Do It Yourself plan for basic payroll features. As it grows, it can move up to ADP RUN and potentially Workforce Now. Because ADP’s products are designed with business growth in mind, the service can easily become a long-term payroll and HR partner.

  • Customer support: Unlike Paylocity, ADP offers phone and online payroll support 24/7 for its RUN and Workforce Now plans. A robust resource center is also available to all ADP customers regardless of the plan they select. The information provided is based on business size, and you’ll also find helpful tools such as calculators, tax guides and forms, as well as webinars and events.

ADP cons

  • Pricing: The lack of transparent pricing available from ADP is a drawback (unless you’re interested in the DIY plan, which does have upfront pricing). Again, we recommend getting quotes from several products to fully compare your options.

A version of this article was first published on Fundera, a subsidiary of NerdWallet.