Payroll pricing has two parts: a monthly base fee and a fee for each person paid. With two employees the base fee is most of the bill; with ten, the per-person fee catches up. The cheapest service for a team of two is not always the cheapest for ten, and add-ons for things like a second state or faster direct deposit can change the order completely.
Monthly cost by team size
| Square Payroll | Wave Payroll | Gusto Simple | Gusto Plus | QuickBooks Workforce Payroll + Simple Start | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | $35 + $6 per person | $40 + $6 per active employee | $49 + $6 per person | $80 + $12 per person | $88 + $7 per employee |
| 2 employees | $47 | $52 | $61 | $104 | $102 |
| 5 employees | $65 | $70 | $79 | $140 | $123 |
| 10 employees | $95 | $100 | $109 | $200 | $158 |
| Files and pays payroll taxes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Notable limits or extras | Contractor-only plan $6 per contractor | Contractors $6 each paid | One state | Multi-state, time tracking | Includes basic accounting; 50% off for 3 months |
Checked October 4, 2026. Calculated from each company's own pricing page or help center on the check date (sources below), before sales tax and add-ons. Patriot Software's help center lists Full Service payroll at $37 a month plus $5 per worker paid, and OnPay's help center lists $49 a month plus $6 per person; they are not in the table. ADP prices by quote.
Over a year, five employees cost about $780 with Square, $840 with Wave and $948 with Gusto Simple. The gap between the cheapest and the dearest plan here is more than $1,000 a year at ten employees, so it's worth checking which features you actually use.
A free option, with conditions
Payroll4Free says its basic services are free as long as you pay 9 or fewer people no more than once a month. It is funded by ads inside the software. Payroll processing, tax calculations and direct deposit through your own bank are included; having Payroll4Free deposit and file your payroll taxes, or move direct deposits through its bank, are paid services. If you pay weekly or biweekly, the free tier does not fit.
The fees that make cheap payroll expensive
- A second state. Gusto's Simple plan runs payroll in one state; employees in two states mean moving to Plus.
- Faster pay. Gusto lists next-day pay as an add-on on Simple ($15 a month plus $3 per person), and same-day or instant pay per payroll.
- Contractors. Square and Wave charge $6 for each contractor paid; a team of five plus three contractors is billed for eight.
- Time tracking, HR tools and priority support, often sold per person per month.
- Introductory prices. QuickBooks' 50% off lasts three months; budget on the full price.
Ask one more question before signing: is the per-person fee charged for everyone on the books, or only for people paid that month? Wave, for example, bills each active employee even if they are not in a pay run, while Square bills per person paid.
Choosing the cheapest service that fits
| Your team | Usually cheapest fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 2 to 9 people, paid monthly, you're happy to file taxes yourself | Payroll4Free | Free tier covers it |
| 2 to 10 people, one state, paid weekly or biweekly | Square or Wave | Lowest base and per-person fees here |
| You want an established all-in-one with more HR tools | Gusto Simple | $14 a month more than Square, with one-state limit |
| Staff in more than one state | Gusto Plus or a provider whose base plan covers it | Single-state plans don't fit |
| You already pay for QuickBooks accounting | QuickBooks payroll bundle | Accounting is in the price |
When doing payroll yourself is cheaper
Doing payroll yourself avoids the fees but adds work: withholding from each employee's Form W-4 using IRS Publication 15-T, federal deposits by electronic funds transfer, Form 941 every quarter, Form 940 and W-2s after year end, and state returns. With two salaried employees in one state that is manageable. With ten hourly employees it is a part-time job, and a full-service plan at around $100 a month is usually money well spent.
Where PayDocs fits, honestly
PayDocs makes pay stubs and W-2 employee copies from your figures and has a free paycheck calculator. It does not run payroll, file returns or deposit tax, so it is not a cheaper payroll service; it is a document tool for people who run payroll themselves.
Price it out before choosing. A pay stub PDF is $4.99 once checkout opens, and less in a 12-pack. Five employees paid biweekly need 130 stubs a year, and you'd still do all the filing. At that size a full-service plan at $65 to $79 a month often makes more sense. PayDocs is the better deal for one or two people, or when your payroll software's stubs are the only thing you're unhappy with.
Questions
What is the cheapest payroll service for a small business?
On providers' own pages on 4 October 2026, Square Payroll was cheapest among the full-service plans we could check, at $35 a month plus $6 per person. Payroll4Free is free for 9 or fewer people paid no more than monthly, with tax filing as a paid extra.
How much does payroll cost for 5 employees?
On those pages: $65 a month with Square, $70 with Wave, $79 with Gusto Simple, $123 with the QuickBooks payroll and Simple Start bundle and $140 with Gusto Plus, before add-ons and sales tax.
Is cheap payroll software safe to use?
Price says little about accuracy. Check that the plan files and pays federal and state taxes for you, covers every state your staff work in, and what happens if the provider makes a filing error.
Is PayDocs a cheap payroll service?
No. PayDocs makes pay stubs and W-2 copies and does not file or pay taxes. For a team of several people paid often, a full-service payroll plan is usually better value.
Sources
- IRS, Publication 15 (2026), Employer's Tax Guide
- IRS, Publication 15-T (2026), Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods
- Square Payroll, pricing (checked 4 October 2026)
- Wave, full-access payroll subscription pricing (checked 4 October 2026)
- Gusto, pricing (checked 4 October 2026)
- QuickBooks, payroll pricing (checked 4 October 2026)
- Patriot Software help center: monthly cost of payroll services (checked 4 October 2026)
- OnPay help center: OnPay pricing (checked 4 October 2026)
- Payroll4Free, FAQ (checked 4 October 2026)
Sources checked October 4, 2026. This article explains how pay documents work; it is not tax or legal advice.
