The Ultimate Guide to the Best HR and Payroll Software for Your Business

Insights

Tired of running payroll by hand, drowning in spreadsheets, or struggling to hire overseas? 

It doesn’t have to be this hard.

The right platform slashes admin, eliminates errors, and elevates the employee experience, whether you’re a startup going global or already managing a remote team.

In this article, you’ll find honest reviews of the top HR and payroll tools, why they’re worth your time, and real user feedback to help you pick wisely. 

Already got a shortlist? We’ll also highlight what to compare before you commit. 

A quick look at the best HR and payroll software

Here’s a summary of the best HR and payroll platforms on the market, their key features, USPs and pricing:

Tool Key features Why it stands out Pricing
Teamed
  • Automated global compliance in 180+ countries
  • Unified HR: EOR, contractors, entities and global payroll
  • Document and contract automation
  • 24/5 expert HR and legal support with a named specialist
  • AI + experts: automation for speed, humans for edge cases
  • Seamless graduation: contractor → EOR → entity, no re-onboarding
  • Works for every type of employment, including contractors, Employer of Record (EOR), and entity management
  • Fair pricing: AI-native to keep pricing competitive
  • From £39 ($49) per contractor per month
Gusto
  • Automated payroll system for US employees
  • Automated calculation, filing, and payment of federal, state, and local payroll taxes
  • Benefits tracking for healthcare, 401(k), PTO, and time-off policies
  • Easy to navigate, user-friendly interface
  • Straightforward onboarding and seamless accounting integrations
  • Built-in reporting to benchmark compensation and measure compliance
  • From $49 (£36) per month + $6 (£4) per employee
Deel
  • EOR functionality
  • Ready-made contracts
  • From $49 (£39) per contractor per month
Rippling
  • Payroll and compliance
  • Spend analysis and management
  • Workflow automation
  • Modular platform to tailor functionalities
  • Advanced payroll reporting
  • Large number of integrations
  • Available on request
Justworks
  • Payroll and tax management
  • Employee benefits administration
  • Professional Employer Organisation (PEO) and EOR services
  • Integrated time tracking
  • Employee self-service portals
  • Ease of use
  • From $8 (£6) per employee per month + $50 (£36) base fee
Remote.com
  • Global HR and payroll
  • Employee lifecycle management
  • Employee cost calculator
  • Streamlined dashboard integrates payroll, benefits, and HR data
  • AI-driven features
  • Range of employment options
  • From $29 (£21) per employee per month
BambooHR
  • Centralised employee information
  • Compensation management
  • Performance management
  • Customisable reporting and analytics tools
  • Strong customer support
  • User-friendly interface
  • From $10 (£7) per employee per month
ADP
  • PEO
  • Global tax expertise
  • AI-powered HR and recruiting tools
  • Scalable options for businesses of all sizes
  • Multi-channel payroll processing
  • Integration with thousands of insurers
  • Available on request
HiBob
  • Onboarding and offboarding workflows
  • Time and attendance tracking
  • People analytics and workforce planning
  • Integrated payroll and HR
  • Compensation benchmarking with Mercier data
  • Community-building functionality
  • Available on request
Paylocity
  • Global workforce management with support for 100+ countries
  • Talent management and applicant tracking system
  • Employee self-service portal
  • AI-powered expense management and automated payroll processing
  • Modern interface with employee engagement features
  • Strong mobile-first experience
  • Available on request

You’ll find more details on each tool in our detailed roundup below.

What is the best HR and payroll software?

There’s no single best HR and payroll software. The right platform for your company is the one that fits your specific business needs, budget, and growth plans. 

While tools vary in features, focus, and geographic coverage, you’ll want one that automates payroll processing, regulatory compliance, and document management. 

Finding the right tool makes a big difference as it means:

  • Paying employees accurately and on time
  • Staying compliant with local tax laws and avoiding fines
  • Reducing administrative work and saving hours each week
  • Rapidly onboarding new international hires and delivering a high-quality employee experience

Choose the wrong tool, and you might miss out on the perfect hire, incur penalties, and expose your company to legal risks. 

So, which tool should you choose? Let’s consider a few top options.

10 of the best HR and payroll software providers

Here’s our list of the best HR and payroll solutions, complete with details of pros and cons and what real users think, to help you evaluate fairly.

1. Teamed — best for global teams looking to grow

Teamed is a unified global employment platform built for mid-market and rapidly scaling companies. We combine AI-powered automation with hands-on experts to handle contractors, EOR, payroll, and entities — so you can hire anywhere without compliance anxiety.

Teamed HR and Payroll dashboard

Finding the right talent locally can be hard. Going global adds layers of complexity around payroll, compliance, and local laws. That’s where Teamed steps in. We handle the risk and admin so you can focus on hiring the best people, wherever they are.

Teamed is more than a platform, we act as an extension of your team, with expert support and one-to-one guidance for cross-border HR challenges. And because we’ve been in the space long enough to know what matters, but are nimble enough to adopt the right technology, we’ve built in AI Agents to automate 70% of payroll and HR tasks. That means faster onboarding, fewer errors, and pricing that’s always fair and transparent.

Key features:

  • Compliance you can count on. We handle compliance in 180+ countries. Local laws and filings, automated. Real people when automation isn’t enough.
  • AI + experts, effortless documents. Automated workflows cut admin and errors, while our specialists handle complex HR forms, tax filings, and compliance paperwork.
  • All-in-one platform. Contractors, EOR, and entities managed in one place.
  • Entity-ready. Full support in 90+ countries, plus payroll in 180 countries and 50+ currencies.
  • Built-in hiring support. Elevate your HR operations by accessing essential tools — from employment contracts to payments — within our comprehensive EOR platform.

What we’re great at:

  • Seamless graduation. Move from contractor → EOR → entity without churn or re-onboarding. Our platform keeps employees in place while handling the compliance, contracts, and payroll changes in the background.
  • AI + expert advisory. Automated workflows for speed, backed by 24/5 specialists who handle complex HR, tax, and compliance — from works councils to collective agreements and other regulatory edge cases.
  • Same-day onboarding. Save up to 30 hours per hire with our rapid onboarding process, and get new team members up and running in less than 24 hours. Our team of experts can get your talent onboarded in 24 hours or less. Unique requests? No worries: we tailor your employee benefit packages to meet your needs.
  • Seamless migrations. Thinking of switching to Teamed? We’ve got you. Every team’s different, so we create a migration plan that fits just right. No extra charges, no complications. Just us, walking you through step by step.

Why we might not be for everyone:

  • Our global reach. Small US-based companies that only want to pay contractors in different states may not need our advanced payroll functions.

  • Our hands-on approach. Companies that are after a set-it-and-forget-it solution won’t like our staff’s attentiveness. We know global hiring is complex, and our team wants to help you get it right.

  • Not the cheapest — by design. We charge what’s needed to give you confidence in compliance across your global footprint. AI keeps costs lean, but it’s backed by real experts on the ground.

Not a do-everything HR suite. We focus on being the leading global employment platform — covering contractors, EOR, payroll, and entities — not every HR feature under the sun.


Pricing: 

  • Contractor management — £39 ($49) per contractor per month
  • EOR — £400 ($450) per employee per month
  • Global entity and employment operations — POA

User feedback: 


Here’s what Teamed reviewers on G2 had to say about us.

“The best thing about Teamed is their outstanding support and personalised approach — they truly make you feel valued and understood.”
“Our international employment requirements are taken care of in no time at all, and the support provided is exceptional.”
“The people at Teamed understand that setting up payroll for remote team members is not always a copy-and-paste job, and that unforeseen issues may arise. Thankfully, they have some very nice, helpful humans who go above and beyond to help you navigate those issues in a timely fashion.”

👉Tip: Learn what an EOR solution covers in our comprehensive EOR vs. legal entity guide.

2. Gusto — best for small businesses

Gusto is a full-service payroll provider that helps small and medium-sized businesses run payroll, administer employee benefits, and manage tax compliance.

Gusto payroll dashboard
Source: https://www.g2.com/products/gusto/reviews

It’s a smart choice for startups and other companies that want to streamline HR management by integrating key functions into one platform. 

Think payroll, employee benefits, hiring and onboarding, attendance tracking, and talent management.


This way, small businesses stay on top of payroll and HR tasks with automated compliance tools and minimal setup.

Key features:

  • Automated payroll. Gusto automates all payroll calculations for US employees, including salaries, bonuses, commissions, and deductions. Business owners and HR teams can run payroll quickly with just a few clicks.
  • Tax calculations. The platform automatically calculates, files, and pays federal, state, and local payroll taxes, including year-end forms like W-2s and 1099s.
  • AI assistant. Gus, Gusto’s AI tool, answers simple questions about compliance requirements and automates routine tasks.
  • Benefits tracking. Centralise and streamline documentation for healthcare, 401(k), PTO, and time-off policies.

What we like:

  • Built-in reporting. Reporting tools let you benchmark compensation, measure employee satisfaction, and track compliance.
  • User-friendly interface. Gusto’s intuitive interface is easy to navigate, which can reduce onboarding times.
  • Efficient onboarding and integrations. New hires find the tool easily accessible, and integration with accounting software is straightforward.

What we dislike:

  • Too much focus on the US. Because Gusto is geared towards US-based small businesses, it doesn’t have all of the features UK or European companies need when operating in foreign markets — like compliance with HMRC and GDPR laws.
  • Poor-quality customer service. Customer support appears to be diminishing as the platform grows in popularity. This could mean long wait times and unresolved issues.
  • Pricing not ideal for small teams. Deel can be expensive for very small companies looking for additional automation and capabilities to support their limited workforce and budget.

Pricing:

  • $49 (£39) per month + $6 (£5) per employee for small businesses needing single-state payroll
  • $80 (£64) per month + $12 (£10) per employee for businesses needing multi-state payroll, next-day direct deposit and time tracking

User feedback:

Here’s what reviewers on G2 have to say about Gusto.

“As an employee, I find Gusto easy to use for tracking daily hours, planning time off, and budgeting. Correcting mistakes is straightforward, and the user interface is intuitive.”
“Gusto has a pretty clean and modern UI, making it easy to navigate. Clocking in and out is very simple, which is great for both employees and managers.”
“Customer support can be slow to respond during busy times like year-end or tax season. Reporting features could also be more customisable for businesses that want deeper insights. Pricing feels a little high for very small teams, and it would be nice if the platform had stronger international payroll support.”

3. Deel — best for global IT management

Deel is an all-in-one global HR solution that helps remote companies manage payroll, HR, and IT.

Deel dashboard
Source: https://www.g2.com/products/deel/reviews

If you’re expanding across borders, Deel streamlines the hiring process so you won’t have to worry about local tax systems or banking complications.

The tool simplifies global hiring with flexible EOR services and fully compliant multi-country payroll.

Key features:

  • Global payroll management. Deel helps HR teams pay contractors and full-time employees in over 150 countries, handling multi-currency payments and local compliance.
  • Device lifecycle management. Track, deploy, configure, and recover IT equipment from remote workers at an additional cost.
  • Extensive integrations. Deel integrates with accounting and HR tools like BambooHR, Expensify, Greenhouse, QuickBooks, and Xero.
  • Supports multiple currencies. Accepting over 120 currencies to date, Deel enables easy and efficient cross-border payroll transactions. 

What we like:

  • EOR service. Deel acts as an EOR, meaning there’s no need to set up a legal entity. It can onboard, pay, and tax employees on your behalf.
  • Ready-made contracts. Readily available templated contracts can save businesses time and streamline regulatory compliance across different jurisdictions. 

What we dislike:

  • Inflexible support. Users often complain about ineffective and heavy-handed approaches to resolving issues that make matters worse.
  • Expensive at scale. The software can become very expensive for global teams with many employees, especially when you include add-ons.
  • UX and usability. Deel’s desktop-first design may not be ideal for teams with mobile-heavy users.

Pricing:

  • Deel Contractor Management — from $49 (£39) per contractor per month (for global contractor hiring)
  • Deel EOR — $599 (£479) per employee per month (for hiring global employees without setting up local entities)
  • Deel Engage — from $20 (£16) per employee per month (for HR functions, including performance management and employee surveys)
  • Deel IT — from $10 (£8) per employee per month (for real-time asset tracking and global equipment catalogue)

User feedback:


Here’s what users have to say about Deel.

“I find the multinational capabilities of Deel incredibly useful. It greatly assists in managing payments for a diverse team, including paying contractors in different countries.”
“Deel offers an incredibly efficient and user-friendly platform for managing international payroll, contracts, and compliance. I appreciate how easy it is to onboard contractors and employees across various countries without dealing with the complex legalities of global hiring.”
“High costs for smaller teams. While Deel offers great value for scaling companies, the flat per-contractor/employee fee may be costly for startups or small businesses. [...] Reporting features are somewhat basic. More advanced reporting or export customisation would be helpful for larger HR teams.”

👉Tip: Identify the right tool for your business’s HR and payroll needs with our detailed guide to the best Deel alternatives.

4. Rippling — best for spend management

Rippling is an advanced all-in-one platform for HR, IT, payroll, and spend management. It combines the tools for managing and automating the employee lifecycle, from hiring to retiring.

Rippling dashboard
Source: https://www.g2.com/products/rippling/reviews

Finance teams will appreciate the spend management tools, which offer granular analysis of company-wide employee spending.


This single platform with a suite of tools for multiple operations gives companies peace of mind that nothing will slip through the cracks.

Key features:

  • Payroll and compliance. You get automated payroll processing for employees and contractors in 100+ countries.
  • Spend analysis and management. Rippling supports employee expense submissions and approval processes with spend controls and virtual card integrations.
  • Workflow automation. Create no-code automation workflows to route approvals for expenses, contracts, and timecards.
  • Modular platform. The flexible interface allows businesses to tailor functionalities to their needs.

What we like:

  • Advanced reporting. Customisable reports and dashboards offer insights into costs, headcount, diversity, compensation, and turnover.
  • Huge number of integrations. Rippling integrates with over 500 other software tools to enhance payroll and HR processes.
  • Seamless functionality. HR, IT, and finance tools are centralised to help streamline and speed up all administrative tasks.

What we dislike:

  • Steep learning curve. The complex platform can lead to slow onboarding times and require additional tech support.
  • Too complex for small businesses. The feature-rich tool may be more than smaller organisations can handle.
  • Pricing is not transparent. As the pricing isn’t disclosed and requires personalised consultation, Rippling (and other tools in this list) may not be a straightforward option to commit to.

Pricing:

  • Available on request

User feedback:

Check out what users have to say about Rippling.

“Rippling is an incredibly convenient, all-in-one HR platform that makes managing people operations simple and seamless.”
“I really appreciate how Rippling brings everything — HR, IT, payroll, benefits — into one clean, intuitive dashboard. Reviewers consistently note its ‘sleek, modern UI’ and praise features like single sign-on and automated onboarding, which save hours each week.”
“Because Rippling does so much, the platform can feel a bit overwhelming at first — there’s a learning curve if you’re new to it. Some of the advanced reporting and customisation requires more setup than expected, and occasionally I need to lean on support or documentation to get it right. The product is evolving quickly (which is mostly a positive), but it means features sometimes feel a step ahead of the documentation.”

5. Justworks — best for employee benefits

Justworks is a simple integrated payroll and HR solution designed for small businesses. It has most of the features these companies need without overwhelming HR teams with irrelevant features.

Justworks dashboard
Source: https://help.justworks.com/hc/en-us/articles/27743437467675-Justworks-Payroll-Scheduling-One-Time-Payments

The platform also helps businesses expand internationally by acting as an EOR (which takes on full legal responsibility for your employees) or a PEO (which partners with companies to provide HR services).

In short, it’s an accessible solution for small businesses looking to manage payroll and benefits in one place.

Key features:

  • Payroll and tax management. Process payroll for full-time, part-time, hourly employees, contractors, and vendors — with support for automated W-2 and 1099 tax filings.
  • Employee benefits administration. Get access and enrolment to medical, dental, vision insurance, life and disability coverage, as well as 401(k) plans and other benefits.
  • PEO and EOR services. Choose whether you want Justworks to be an EOR or PEO for cross-border hiring. 
  • Integrated time tracking. Along with centralised benefits administration, this feature greatly simplifies payroll processes for small businesses.

What we like:

  • Employee self-service portals. It’s easy for employees to manage profiles, access payslips, claim benefits, and book time off.
  • Ease of use. A clean UI simplifies payroll runs, onboarding, and benefits management, even if you’ve got minimal experience.

What we dislike:

  • Some features are paid add-ons. You’ll need to pay extra to access time and attendance features.
  • Limited reporting. Reporting options can feel restricted, especially if you’re trying to drill down into employee characteristics like benefits contributions and usage. 
  • Limited advanced HR functionalities. Justworks’ small business focus means it’s unlikely to meet the needs of larger organisations.

Pricing:

  • $8 (£6) per employee per month for payroll + $50 (£36) per month base fee
  • $79 (£58) per employee, per month for basic PEO
  • $109 (£80) per employee, per month for PEO + healthcare coverage

User feedback:

Here’s how users reviewed Justworks on G2.

“I appreciate the ability for my employees to control their time tracking, PTO requests, benefits, etc. It's easy for me to approve hours and PTO. I also like having it all under one site that's easy to access.”
“Justworks is a streamlined, user-friendly platform that makes managing payroll, benefits, and compliance surprisingly accessible for small teams.”
“There is a lack of flexibility in customising features to fit our organisation’s needs. For example, we operate on a 35-hour work week, but the platform is built around a 40-hour model, which creates challenges with time-off tracking. The reporting tools also need improvement, and our experience with the Account Manager has not met expectations.”

6. Remote — best for advanced remuneration packages

Remote is an all-in-one platform that simplifies the international recruitment process.

Source: https://remote.com/global-hr/run-payroll

It comes with various tools to help you find the best candidate. Plus inventive compensation and payment features — like the ability to offer company equity — to build an enticing package.

Remote supports efficient hiring and payroll management so teams can coordinate across borders.

Key features:

  • Global HR and payroll. Get support for multi-currency payroll and compliance with local tax laws, social security, and statutory contributions.
  • Streamlined dashboard. Remote integrates payroll, benefits, and HR data in one place for instant access to the right information.
  • Employee lifecycle management. Automate hiring, onboarding, payroll, benefits administration, compliance, and offboarding.
  • Employee cost calculator. Comprehensive country-specific hiring cost estimates, including salary, taxes, and benefits, will aid budget planning.

What we like:

  • AI-driven features. Remote has several AI tools, including a hiring assistant that finds the best global talent. 
  • Range of employment options. Like Teamed, Remote offers contractor management, EOR, and PEO services.

What we dislike:

  • Steep learning curve. The platform’s comprehensiveness means it can take time to become fluent with the tool. 
  • Poor customer service. Clients report a lack of support during onboarding and difficulty reaching agents on the phone. 

Pricing:

  • $29 (£21) per employee per month for payroll
  • $699 (£514) per employee per month for EOR

User feedback:

Find out what G2 reviews say about Remote below.

“I appreciate the ability to submit days off, view payslips, and add expenses easily. Remote facilitates my working relationship with the company by enabling us to maintain necessary legal contracts and employment records.”

“Remote makes it easy to hire and pay people in different countries. Everything is in one place, like contracts, documents, and payroll. We use it regularly to manage our international team.”
“The initial learning curve with Remote was slightly challenging for me due to not knowing how to use it initially. However, I managed to overcome this by learning on my own.”

7. BambooHR — best for employee management

BambooHR’s cloud-based HR management system simplifies people management by bringing employee data, benefits, timesheets and payroll in one space. 

BambooHR dashboard
Source: https://www.business.com/hr-software/bamboohr/review/

On this broad platform, HR professionals can manage processes from hiring and onboarding staff to improving the employee experience and managing performance.

BambooHR’s centralisation makes employee information easily accessible and trackable alongside workflow management.

Key features:

  • Centralised employee information. Build a secure, cloud-based employee database giving you access to all data.
  • Compensation management. Create salary bands, communicate total rewards, monitor pay equity, and plan future compensation increases.
  • Performance management. Use dedicated tools for goal setting, performance reviews, feedback collection, and 360-degree assessments.

What we like:

  • Strong customer support. Get in-depth assistance with a dedicated implementation project manager.
  • User-friendly interface. The intuitive and clean user experience allows quicker training times and more frequent use.

What we dislike:

  • Poor mobile experience. A lack of mobile-first design means the mobile app is only suitable for simple tasks.
  • Lacklustre employee engagement. Community-building features are limited, forcing companies to use additional software. 

Pricing:

  • Plans start from $10 (£7) per employee per month. Detailed pricing available on request.

User feedback:

This is what BambooHR users have to say on G2:

“BambooHR has remained true to a lot of its claims of providing a clean interface and intuitive system with resources to help empower employee files, payroll, documents, etc., with ease.”
“Bamboo is easy to navigate for both administrators and employees. We've had great luck so far with calling the Bamboo help desk to answer any of our how-to questions.”
“We’ve [...] found that some features are not yet available in the mobile app, which presents a challenge for our field-based employees who don’t have regular access to a desktop. Expanding mobile functionality and enhancing benefits integrations would take BambooHR from great to exceptional.”

8. ADP — best for AI tools

ADP Workforce Now’s HR management tool centralises payroll, benefits, talent management and analytics in a single platform. 

ADP dashboard
Source: https://www.g2.com/products/adp-workforce-now/reviews?source=search

Despite its size, ADP does a reasonable job serving all kinds of businesses. You can even get custom packages so you only pay for the features you need.

Plus, its payroll and HR services come with extensive reporting and compliance capabilities.

Key features:

  • PEO service. The platform handles the most complex and time-consuming core HR tasks for clients.
  • Global tax expertise. ADP experts stay on top of filing rules and regulations to keep your business compliant.
  • AI-powered HR and recruiting tools. Candidate Relevancy, ADP’s AI-enabled recruiting assistant, identifies the best candidates for every role.
  • Scalable options. ADP’s comprehensive payroll and HR services adapt to your company’s growing needs without requiring you to switch platforms. And no upfront cost.

What we like:

  • Multi-channel payroll services. Run payroll on desktops, smartphones, and other mobile devices. 
  • Benefits administration. Integrate with thousands of insurers and providers to offer workers a wide range of benefits.

What we dislike:

  • Plug-and-play nature. Because of the size of ADP’s customer base, the platform feels like it’s missing a personalised service. 
  • Overwhelming interface. The wide range of tools can make the user experience feel clunky and confusing.
  • Allegedly buggy updates. Some users have reported issues with server connections and login during updates.

Pricing:

  • Available on request.

User feedback:

Here are some G2 reviews from ADP users.

“ADP Workforce Now offers a reliable and centralised solution for payroll, benefits, and employee record management. The reporting tools are powerful, and the integration with other HR systems streamlines administrative tasks.”
“The analytics that ADP provides is comparable to the best in the industry. I have been tracking the complete end-to-payment status for quite some time now, and the interface has only become better.”
“The system is not intuitive and requires navigating multiple disconnected areas to complete even basic tasks. It can feel overwhelming and inefficient — especially for managers and employees without system training.”

9. HiBob — best for workforce planning

HiBob is a comprehensive human capital management platform emphasising reporting, forecasting, and analytics.

HiBob dashboard
Source: https://www.hibob.com/blog/hr-dashboard-examples/

You can automate many day-to-day HR tasks, like onboarding and attendance tracking. It’s also pretty good at giving HR managers the information they need to make long-term decisions.

HiBob focuses on workforce planning and engagement, offering analytics to support HR decision-making.

Key features:

  • Onboarding and offboarding workflows. Create onboarding and onboarding workflows in advance to streamline the hiring process.
  • Time and attendance tracking. The platform tracks time using web and mobile-based clocks. It automatically calculates overtime and lets you implement customisable PTO policies.
  • People analytics and workforce planning. Monitor KPIs like headcount and retention using AI-powered dashboards, forecast workforce needs, and sandbox new HR policies.
  • Integrated payroll and HR. Streamlined functionalities within HiBob reduce manual data entry and human error to boost accuracy.

What we like:

  • Compensation benchmarking. Manage salary reviews, bonuses, equity, and pay equity using pre-defined salary bands and benchmarking data from Mercer.
  • Community building. Shoutouts, birthday celebrations, employee feedback polls, and a company-wide social media page help foster a welcoming culture.

What we dislike:

  • No expert support. Customers often lack the dedicated support they need to make the most of the platform.
  • Lack of customisation. The off-the-shelf nature of the platform means it’s difficult to customise it to your needs.
  • Solutions not fit for all. Businesses with unique payroll needs may not find easily available solutions. Additional adjustments or workarounds may be necessary to customise tool processes.

Pricing:

  • Available on request

User feedback:

Find out what HiBob users have to say below.

“A simple but accurate and professional tool. Makes the recruitment process be more efficient and professional.”
“Being a new member to the company, HiBob made it really easy for me to know people and understand the org chart, so I can know who to reach out to when needed.”
“The admin reporting tools are great for producing simple, straightforward reports and work really well for day-to-day needs. However, creating more bespoke reports — for example, around absence data — can be a bit more challenging. The platform is also less flexible when working within matrix management structures.”

10. Paylocity — best for medium-sized businesses

Paylocity is an all-in-one HR and payroll platform that small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) use to manage every part of the employment process. 

Paylocity dashbaord
Source: https://www.b2breviews.com/reviews/paylocity/

It offers solutions for every department: HR can run payroll, finance teams can manage employee expenses, and IT can centralise asset management. 

The combination of HR, payroll, and employee engagement tools in a mobile-friendly platform suits flexible and remote teams looking to scale.

Key features:

  • Global workforce management. Paylocity supports international payroll in 100+ countries.
  • Talent management. Paylocity’s applicant tracking system makes it easy to recruit workers, manage resumes, and schedule interviews.
  • Employee self-service portal. Remote workers can easily update personal data, view payslips, request PTO, and manage tax forms.
  • Smart functionality. Teams can leverage AI-powered expense management and automated payroll processing to speed up tasks.

What we like:

  • Employee engagement features. The platform offers social recognition badges, surveys, and other tools to build a strong culture and better communication.
  • Strong mobile experience. The mobile-first design makes it easy for employees and managers to access data on the go.
  • User-friendly interface. Robust HR tools include benefits administration and time tracking for easy access.

What we dislike:

  • Poor one-to-one support. While Paylocity has an extensive knowledge base, support teams are not always responsive.
  • Too complex. The sheer breadth of the platform can make onboarding slow and complicated, unless you have a tech mindset.
  • Inconsistent customer support and technical performance. Both have received mixed reviews, with some users reporting slow response times and occasional glitches.

Pricing:

  • Available on request


User feedback:

Find out what reviewers think of Paylocity.

“There are a lot of features for both employee and employer. When you hit a wall within the system, there are often quick workarounds to still get what is needed. Pretty easy to use across the board.”
“Paylocity is always updating itself, keeping ahead of requirements at the state and local level. The reporting functions are robust enough while not being too difficult to learn.”
“The customer service has declined over the past few years. Sometimes it may be a while before you get an answer or what you need.”

You’ve got a shortlist of tools, but how do you pick the right one for your brand? We cover the features you need to look for next.

How to find the best HR software and payroll provider

You’ll want an HR and payroll provider that is competitively priced and scales with your business. It should be easy to use, with support available if anything goes wrong. 

Here’s a quick checklist you can use when choosing between different options:

Vendor evaluation checklist

Below, you’ll find more information on each factor and why it’s essential, including specific features to look for.

Exceptional support

Payroll and HR software are mission-critical systems. Even a minor issue can stop pay cheques or cause compliance issues.

Look for a provider that resolves issues quickly without disrupting business:

  • 24-hour support that spans time zones
  • Multiple support channels, including phone, live chat, and email
  • Dedicated account managers who know your business and the local market
  • Online knowledge bases, video tutorials, and additional digital resources
  • Rapid onboarding with a dedicated success manager to get you started faster 

👉Example in action: See how property management company City Relay can onboard new hires within 24 hours thanks to Teamed’s in-country experts. 

Unmatched flexibility

Your HR and payroll platform must grow with your business’s needs, employment strategy, and geographic expansion. 

A rigid system that only works in a handful of countries will hinder your growth and operational efficiency.

Find a flexible platform by looking for the following features:

  • An all-in-one solution to manage contractors, freelancers and full-time employees
  • The option to seamlessly move from contract management to EOR to entity management for a number of employees at once
  • Fair, transparent pricing that doesn’t become affordable as you scale

👉Example in action: Discover how Teamed has helped accountancy firm CT hire new employees in multiple countries and assist with a sensitive offboarding process. 

Competitive pricing

Payroll and HR software is an ongoing investment that should generate a positive return. 

Overpaying for unnecessary modules or hidden fees will strain budgets, especially for startups and small-to-medium-sized businesses. 

Here’s how to find a platform that offers fair pricing now and in the future:

  • Clear publicly available pricing
  • Modular pricing that lets you add or remove features without penalties
  • No surprise fees for additional services like filings
  • Scalable plans that incentivise growth 
  • Flexible contract terms without long lock-in periods

👉Example in action: See why affordability made Teamed the standout choice for blockchain infrastructure service provider Luganodes.

Compliance you can count on

Employment law can change in a moment. Fail to keep up, and you could face financial penalties, audits, and lawsuits.

Find a provider that stays current with tax laws, labour regulations, and statutory requirements in every country you operate by looking for the following:

  • Regular software updates to reflect new tax rates and labour laws
  • Automated tax filings that avoid late-payment fees 
  • Detailed compliance reporting and document storage for audits
  • Constant monitoring of your team members' EOR status
  • Constant access to employment details and benefits

👉Example in action: Learn how Teamed has helped Data Science Talent fully comply with South African labour laws without lifting a finger.

Works where you work

Remote work and global hiring are becoming the norm. You need software that not only accommodates your current workforce but also paves the way for future expansion. 

Here’s what to look for:

  • Multi-currency payroll and accounting support
  • Localised payroll capabilities tailored to each country’s regulations
  • Entity management capabilities to handle legal entities in multiple jurisdictions
  • Integration with local tax authorities and benefits providers

👉Example in action: Discover how Teamed helps IT, aerospace, defence, and security technologies company Tekever hire from across Europe and beyond.

World-class employee experience

Empowered employees who manage their own information reduce HR overhead and increase satisfaction and transparency. 

Easy access to pay and benefits information also fosters trust and increases employee engagement. 

Here’s what it should look like:

  • Dedicated contact person for your key person, plus dedicated onboarding support for new employees
  • Mobile-friendly self-service apps or portals for employees and managers
  • Easy access to detailed pay stubs, tax documents, and benefit summaries
  • In-app management of contracts, holiday and bank details
  • Personalised dashboards with customised notifications and alerts
  • An EOR service that makes global employment easy

👉Decide if Teamed is right for you in our quick quiz

Best HR and payroll software FAQs

Q: What is HR and payroll software? 

HR and payroll software automates the management of human resources and payroll processes. It streamlines key tasks like payroll calculations, tax filings, and benefits administration, reduces manual errors, and ensures regulatory compliance.

Q: What is the best HR and payroll software for a small business?

For small businesses, the best HR and payroll software will balance usability, cost-efficiency, and core features. Teamed is ideal for small businesses with global ambitions thanks to our AI-native approach, rapid onboarding, and payroll compliance in 180+ countries.

Q: What is the best HR and payroll software for a medium-sized business?

Medium-sized businesses need scalable solutions with advanced features and dedicated support. Teamed is a solid choice due to our flexibility across contractor, EOR, and entity management. Plus, our exceptional on-hand support means an expert is always on hand to answer your questions.

Q: What is the most affordable HR and payroll software?

Teamed is one of the most affordable HR and payroll software solutions, costing just £39 ($49) per contractor per month and £400 ($450) per employee per month for EOR.

Why Teamed offers the best HR and payroll software

Teamed’s AI-powered global employment platform is more than just an HR and payroll provider. 

With multi-country and multi-modal payroll, entity setup and management, and effortless document management, global teams get everything they need to hire, manage, and pay employees — all in one place. 

When you throw in expert in-house support (available 24 hours a day, every working day) and fair, transparent pricing, choosing Teamed becomes a no-brainer.

It’s no wonder three in four customers who evaluate multiple providers pick us.

Book a call today and join 1,000+ growing teams like Eventbrite and Williams Racing who trust Teamed to pay employees, stay compliant, and scale with confidence.

Tired of running payroll by hand, drowning in spreadsheets, or struggling to hire overseas? 

It doesn’t have to be this hard.

The right platform slashes admin, eliminates errors, and elevates the employee experience, whether you’re a startup going global or already managing a remote team.

In this article, you’ll find honest reviews of the top HR and payroll tools, why they’re worth your time, and real user feedback to help you pick wisely. 

Already got a shortlist? We’ll also highlight what to compare before you commit. 

A quick look at the best HR and payroll software

Here’s a summary of the best HR and payroll platforms on the market, their key features, USPs and pricing:

Tool Key features Why it stands out Pricing
Teamed
  • Automated global compliance in 180+ countries
  • Unified HR: EOR, contractors, entities and global payroll
  • Document and contract automation
  • 24/5 expert HR and legal support with a named specialist
  • AI + experts: automation for speed, humans for edge cases
  • Seamless graduation: contractor → EOR → entity, no re-onboarding
  • Works for every type of employment, including contractors, Employer of Record (EOR), and entity management
  • Fair pricing: AI-native to keep pricing competitive
  • From £39 ($49) per contractor per month
Gusto
  • Automated payroll system for US employees
  • Automated calculation, filing, and payment of federal, state, and local payroll taxes
  • Benefits tracking for healthcare, 401(k), PTO, and time-off policies
  • Easy to navigate, user-friendly interface
  • Straightforward onboarding and seamless accounting integrations
  • Built-in reporting to benchmark compensation and measure compliance
  • From $49 (£36) per month + $6 (£4) per employee
Deel
  • EOR functionality
  • Ready-made contracts
  • From $49 (£39) per contractor per month
Rippling
  • Payroll and compliance
  • Spend analysis and management
  • Workflow automation
  • Modular platform to tailor functionalities
  • Advanced payroll reporting
  • Large number of integrations
  • Available on request
Justworks
  • Payroll and tax management
  • Employee benefits administration
  • Professional Employer Organisation (PEO) and EOR services
  • Integrated time tracking
  • Employee self-service portals
  • Ease of use
  • From $8 (£6) per employee per month + $50 (£36) base fee
Remote.com
  • Global HR and payroll
  • Employee lifecycle management
  • Employee cost calculator
  • Streamlined dashboard integrates payroll, benefits, and HR data
  • AI-driven features
  • Range of employment options
  • From $29 (£21) per employee per month
BambooHR
  • Centralised employee information
  • Compensation management
  • Performance management
  • Customisable reporting and analytics tools
  • Strong customer support
  • User-friendly interface
  • From $10 (£7) per employee per month
ADP
  • PEO
  • Global tax expertise
  • AI-powered HR and recruiting tools
  • Scalable options for businesses of all sizes
  • Multi-channel payroll processing
  • Integration with thousands of insurers
  • Available on request
HiBob
  • Onboarding and offboarding workflows
  • Time and attendance tracking
  • People analytics and workforce planning
  • Integrated payroll and HR
  • Compensation benchmarking with Mercier data
  • Community-building functionality
  • Available on request
Paylocity
  • Global workforce management with support for 100+ countries
  • Talent management and applicant tracking system
  • Employee self-service portal
  • AI-powered expense management and automated payroll processing
  • Modern interface with employee engagement features
  • Strong mobile-first experience
  • Available on request

You’ll find more details on each tool in our detailed roundup below.

What is the best HR and payroll software?

There’s no single best HR and payroll software. The right platform for your company is the one that fits your specific business needs, budget, and growth plans. 

While tools vary in features, focus, and geographic coverage, you’ll want one that automates payroll processing, regulatory compliance, and document management. 

Finding the right tool makes a big difference as it means:

  • Paying employees accurately and on time
  • Staying compliant with local tax laws and avoiding fines
  • Reducing administrative work and saving hours each week
  • Rapidly onboarding new international hires and delivering a high-quality employee experience

Choose the wrong tool, and you might miss out on the perfect hire, incur penalties, and expose your company to legal risks. 

So, which tool should you choose? Let’s consider a few top options.

10 of the best HR and payroll software providers

Here’s our list of the best HR and payroll solutions, complete with details of pros and cons and what real users think, to help you evaluate fairly.

1. Teamed — best for global teams looking to grow

Teamed is a unified global employment platform built for mid-market and rapidly scaling companies. We combine AI-powered automation with hands-on experts to handle contractors, EOR, payroll, and entities — so you can hire anywhere without compliance anxiety.

Teamed HR and Payroll dashboard

Finding the right talent locally can be hard. Going global adds layers of complexity around payroll, compliance, and local laws. That’s where Teamed steps in. We handle the risk and admin so you can focus on hiring the best people, wherever they are.

Teamed is more than a platform, we act as an extension of your team, with expert support and one-to-one guidance for cross-border HR challenges. And because we’ve been in the space long enough to know what matters, but are nimble enough to adopt the right technology, we’ve built in AI Agents to automate 70% of payroll and HR tasks. That means faster onboarding, fewer errors, and pricing that’s always fair and transparent.

Key features:

  • Compliance you can count on. We handle compliance in 180+ countries. Local laws and filings, automated. Real people when automation isn’t enough.
  • AI + experts, effortless documents. Automated workflows cut admin and errors, while our specialists handle complex HR forms, tax filings, and compliance paperwork.
  • All-in-one platform. Contractors, EOR, and entities managed in one place.
  • Entity-ready. Full support in 90+ countries, plus payroll in 180 countries and 50+ currencies.
  • Built-in hiring support. Elevate your HR operations by accessing essential tools — from employment contracts to payments — within our comprehensive EOR platform.

What we’re great at:

  • Seamless graduation. Move from contractor → EOR → entity without churn or re-onboarding. Our platform keeps employees in place while handling the compliance, contracts, and payroll changes in the background.
  • AI + expert advisory. Automated workflows for speed, backed by 24/5 specialists who handle complex HR, tax, and compliance — from works councils to collective agreements and other regulatory edge cases.
  • Same-day onboarding. Save up to 30 hours per hire with our rapid onboarding process, and get new team members up and running in less than 24 hours. Our team of experts can get your talent onboarded in 24 hours or less. Unique requests? No worries: we tailor your employee benefit packages to meet your needs.
  • Seamless migrations. Thinking of switching to Teamed? We’ve got you. Every team’s different, so we create a migration plan that fits just right. No extra charges, no complications. Just us, walking you through step by step.

Why we might not be for everyone:

  • Our global reach. Small US-based companies that only want to pay contractors in different states may not need our advanced payroll functions.

  • Our hands-on approach. Companies that are after a set-it-and-forget-it solution won’t like our staff’s attentiveness. We know global hiring is complex, and our team wants to help you get it right.

  • Not the cheapest — by design. We charge what’s needed to give you confidence in compliance across your global footprint. AI keeps costs lean, but it’s backed by real experts on the ground.

Not a do-everything HR suite. We focus on being the leading global employment platform — covering contractors, EOR, payroll, and entities — not every HR feature under the sun.


Pricing: 

  • Contractor management — £39 ($49) per contractor per month
  • EOR — £400 ($450) per employee per month
  • Global entity and employment operations — POA

User feedback: 


Here’s what Teamed reviewers on G2 had to say about us.

“The best thing about Teamed is their outstanding support and personalised approach — they truly make you feel valued and understood.”
“Our international employment requirements are taken care of in no time at all, and the support provided is exceptional.”
“The people at Teamed understand that setting up payroll for remote team members is not always a copy-and-paste job, and that unforeseen issues may arise. Thankfully, they have some very nice, helpful humans who go above and beyond to help you navigate those issues in a timely fashion.”

👉Tip: Learn what an EOR solution covers in our comprehensive EOR vs. legal entity guide.

2. Gusto — best for small businesses

Gusto is a full-service payroll provider that helps small and medium-sized businesses run payroll, administer employee benefits, and manage tax compliance.

Gusto payroll dashboard
Source: https://www.g2.com/products/gusto/reviews

It’s a smart choice for startups and other companies that want to streamline HR management by integrating key functions into one platform. 

Think payroll, employee benefits, hiring and onboarding, attendance tracking, and talent management.


This way, small businesses stay on top of payroll and HR tasks with automated compliance tools and minimal setup.

Key features:

  • Automated payroll. Gusto automates all payroll calculations for US employees, including salaries, bonuses, commissions, and deductions. Business owners and HR teams can run payroll quickly with just a few clicks.
  • Tax calculations. The platform automatically calculates, files, and pays federal, state, and local payroll taxes, including year-end forms like W-2s and 1099s.
  • AI assistant. Gus, Gusto’s AI tool, answers simple questions about compliance requirements and automates routine tasks.
  • Benefits tracking. Centralise and streamline documentation for healthcare, 401(k), PTO, and time-off policies.

What we like:

  • Built-in reporting. Reporting tools let you benchmark compensation, measure employee satisfaction, and track compliance.
  • User-friendly interface. Gusto’s intuitive interface is easy to navigate, which can reduce onboarding times.
  • Efficient onboarding and integrations. New hires find the tool easily accessible, and integration with accounting software is straightforward.

What we dislike:

  • Too much focus on the US. Because Gusto is geared towards US-based small businesses, it doesn’t have all of the features UK or European companies need when operating in foreign markets — like compliance with HMRC and GDPR laws.
  • Poor-quality customer service. Customer support appears to be diminishing as the platform grows in popularity. This could mean long wait times and unresolved issues.
  • Pricing not ideal for small teams. Deel can be expensive for very small companies looking for additional automation and capabilities to support their limited workforce and budget.

Pricing:

  • $49 (£39) per month + $6 (£5) per employee for small businesses needing single-state payroll
  • $80 (£64) per month + $12 (£10) per employee for businesses needing multi-state payroll, next-day direct deposit and time tracking

User feedback:

Here’s what reviewers on G2 have to say about Gusto.

“As an employee, I find Gusto easy to use for tracking daily hours, planning time off, and budgeting. Correcting mistakes is straightforward, and the user interface is intuitive.”
“Gusto has a pretty clean and modern UI, making it easy to navigate. Clocking in and out is very simple, which is great for both employees and managers.”
“Customer support can be slow to respond during busy times like year-end or tax season. Reporting features could also be more customisable for businesses that want deeper insights. Pricing feels a little high for very small teams, and it would be nice if the platform had stronger international payroll support.”

3. Deel — best for global IT management

Deel is an all-in-one global HR solution that helps remote companies manage payroll, HR, and IT.

Deel dashboard
Source: https://www.g2.com/products/deel/reviews

If you’re expanding across borders, Deel streamlines the hiring process so you won’t have to worry about local tax systems or banking complications.

The tool simplifies global hiring with flexible EOR services and fully compliant multi-country payroll.

Key features:

  • Global payroll management. Deel helps HR teams pay contractors and full-time employees in over 150 countries, handling multi-currency payments and local compliance.
  • Device lifecycle management. Track, deploy, configure, and recover IT equipment from remote workers at an additional cost.
  • Extensive integrations. Deel integrates with accounting and HR tools like BambooHR, Expensify, Greenhouse, QuickBooks, and Xero.
  • Supports multiple currencies. Accepting over 120 currencies to date, Deel enables easy and efficient cross-border payroll transactions. 

What we like:

  • EOR service. Deel acts as an EOR, meaning there’s no need to set up a legal entity. It can onboard, pay, and tax employees on your behalf.
  • Ready-made contracts. Readily available templated contracts can save businesses time and streamline regulatory compliance across different jurisdictions. 

What we dislike:

  • Inflexible support. Users often complain about ineffective and heavy-handed approaches to resolving issues that make matters worse.
  • Expensive at scale. The software can become very expensive for global teams with many employees, especially when you include add-ons.
  • UX and usability. Deel’s desktop-first design may not be ideal for teams with mobile-heavy users.

Pricing:

  • Deel Contractor Management — from $49 (£39) per contractor per month (for global contractor hiring)
  • Deel EOR — $599 (£479) per employee per month (for hiring global employees without setting up local entities)
  • Deel Engage — from $20 (£16) per employee per month (for HR functions, including performance management and employee surveys)
  • Deel IT — from $10 (£8) per employee per month (for real-time asset tracking and global equipment catalogue)

User feedback:


Here’s what users have to say about Deel.

“I find the multinational capabilities of Deel incredibly useful. It greatly assists in managing payments for a diverse team, including paying contractors in different countries.”
“Deel offers an incredibly efficient and user-friendly platform for managing international payroll, contracts, and compliance. I appreciate how easy it is to onboard contractors and employees across various countries without dealing with the complex legalities of global hiring.”
“High costs for smaller teams. While Deel offers great value for scaling companies, the flat per-contractor/employee fee may be costly for startups or small businesses. [...] Reporting features are somewhat basic. More advanced reporting or export customisation would be helpful for larger HR teams.”

👉Tip: Identify the right tool for your business’s HR and payroll needs with our detailed guide to the best Deel alternatives.

4. Rippling — best for spend management

Rippling is an advanced all-in-one platform for HR, IT, payroll, and spend management. It combines the tools for managing and automating the employee lifecycle, from hiring to retiring.

Rippling dashboard
Source: https://www.g2.com/products/rippling/reviews

Finance teams will appreciate the spend management tools, which offer granular analysis of company-wide employee spending.


This single platform with a suite of tools for multiple operations gives companies peace of mind that nothing will slip through the cracks.

Key features:

  • Payroll and compliance. You get automated payroll processing for employees and contractors in 100+ countries.
  • Spend analysis and management. Rippling supports employee expense submissions and approval processes with spend controls and virtual card integrations.
  • Workflow automation. Create no-code automation workflows to route approvals for expenses, contracts, and timecards.
  • Modular platform. The flexible interface allows businesses to tailor functionalities to their needs.

What we like:

  • Advanced reporting. Customisable reports and dashboards offer insights into costs, headcount, diversity, compensation, and turnover.
  • Huge number of integrations. Rippling integrates with over 500 other software tools to enhance payroll and HR processes.
  • Seamless functionality. HR, IT, and finance tools are centralised to help streamline and speed up all administrative tasks.

What we dislike:

  • Steep learning curve. The complex platform can lead to slow onboarding times and require additional tech support.
  • Too complex for small businesses. The feature-rich tool may be more than smaller organisations can handle.
  • Pricing is not transparent. As the pricing isn’t disclosed and requires personalised consultation, Rippling (and other tools in this list) may not be a straightforward option to commit to.

Pricing:

  • Available on request

User feedback:

Check out what users have to say about Rippling.

“Rippling is an incredibly convenient, all-in-one HR platform that makes managing people operations simple and seamless.”
“I really appreciate how Rippling brings everything — HR, IT, payroll, benefits — into one clean, intuitive dashboard. Reviewers consistently note its ‘sleek, modern UI’ and praise features like single sign-on and automated onboarding, which save hours each week.”
“Because Rippling does so much, the platform can feel a bit overwhelming at first — there’s a learning curve if you’re new to it. Some of the advanced reporting and customisation requires more setup than expected, and occasionally I need to lean on support or documentation to get it right. The product is evolving quickly (which is mostly a positive), but it means features sometimes feel a step ahead of the documentation.”

5. Justworks — best for employee benefits

Justworks is a simple integrated payroll and HR solution designed for small businesses. It has most of the features these companies need without overwhelming HR teams with irrelevant features.

Justworks dashboard
Source: https://help.justworks.com/hc/en-us/articles/27743437467675-Justworks-Payroll-Scheduling-One-Time-Payments

The platform also helps businesses expand internationally by acting as an EOR (which takes on full legal responsibility for your employees) or a PEO (which partners with companies to provide HR services).

In short, it’s an accessible solution for small businesses looking to manage payroll and benefits in one place.

Key features:

  • Payroll and tax management. Process payroll for full-time, part-time, hourly employees, contractors, and vendors — with support for automated W-2 and 1099 tax filings.
  • Employee benefits administration. Get access and enrolment to medical, dental, vision insurance, life and disability coverage, as well as 401(k) plans and other benefits.
  • PEO and EOR services. Choose whether you want Justworks to be an EOR or PEO for cross-border hiring. 
  • Integrated time tracking. Along with centralised benefits administration, this feature greatly simplifies payroll processes for small businesses.

What we like:

  • Employee self-service portals. It’s easy for employees to manage profiles, access payslips, claim benefits, and book time off.
  • Ease of use. A clean UI simplifies payroll runs, onboarding, and benefits management, even if you’ve got minimal experience.

What we dislike:

  • Some features are paid add-ons. You’ll need to pay extra to access time and attendance features.
  • Limited reporting. Reporting options can feel restricted, especially if you’re trying to drill down into employee characteristics like benefits contributions and usage. 
  • Limited advanced HR functionalities. Justworks’ small business focus means it’s unlikely to meet the needs of larger organisations.

Pricing:

  • $8 (£6) per employee per month for payroll + $50 (£36) per month base fee
  • $79 (£58) per employee, per month for basic PEO
  • $109 (£80) per employee, per month for PEO + healthcare coverage

User feedback:

Here’s how users reviewed Justworks on G2.

“I appreciate the ability for my employees to control their time tracking, PTO requests, benefits, etc. It's easy for me to approve hours and PTO. I also like having it all under one site that's easy to access.”
“Justworks is a streamlined, user-friendly platform that makes managing payroll, benefits, and compliance surprisingly accessible for small teams.”
“There is a lack of flexibility in customising features to fit our organisation’s needs. For example, we operate on a 35-hour work week, but the platform is built around a 40-hour model, which creates challenges with time-off tracking. The reporting tools also need improvement, and our experience with the Account Manager has not met expectations.”

6. Remote — best for advanced remuneration packages

Remote is an all-in-one platform that simplifies the international recruitment process.

Source: https://remote.com/global-hr/run-payroll

It comes with various tools to help you find the best candidate. Plus inventive compensation and payment features — like the ability to offer company equity — to build an enticing package.

Remote supports efficient hiring and payroll management so teams can coordinate across borders.

Key features:

  • Global HR and payroll. Get support for multi-currency payroll and compliance with local tax laws, social security, and statutory contributions.
  • Streamlined dashboard. Remote integrates payroll, benefits, and HR data in one place for instant access to the right information.
  • Employee lifecycle management. Automate hiring, onboarding, payroll, benefits administration, compliance, and offboarding.
  • Employee cost calculator. Comprehensive country-specific hiring cost estimates, including salary, taxes, and benefits, will aid budget planning.

What we like:

  • AI-driven features. Remote has several AI tools, including a hiring assistant that finds the best global talent. 
  • Range of employment options. Like Teamed, Remote offers contractor management, EOR, and PEO services.

What we dislike:

  • Steep learning curve. The platform’s comprehensiveness means it can take time to become fluent with the tool. 
  • Poor customer service. Clients report a lack of support during onboarding and difficulty reaching agents on the phone. 

Pricing:

  • $29 (£21) per employee per month for payroll
  • $699 (£514) per employee per month for EOR

User feedback:

Find out what G2 reviews say about Remote below.

“I appreciate the ability to submit days off, view payslips, and add expenses easily. Remote facilitates my working relationship with the company by enabling us to maintain necessary legal contracts and employment records.”

“Remote makes it easy to hire and pay people in different countries. Everything is in one place, like contracts, documents, and payroll. We use it regularly to manage our international team.”
“The initial learning curve with Remote was slightly challenging for me due to not knowing how to use it initially. However, I managed to overcome this by learning on my own.”

7. BambooHR — best for employee management

BambooHR’s cloud-based HR management system simplifies people management by bringing employee data, benefits, timesheets and payroll in one space. 

BambooHR dashboard
Source: https://www.business.com/hr-software/bamboohr/review/

On this broad platform, HR professionals can manage processes from hiring and onboarding staff to improving the employee experience and managing performance.

BambooHR’s centralisation makes employee information easily accessible and trackable alongside workflow management.

Key features:

  • Centralised employee information. Build a secure, cloud-based employee database giving you access to all data.
  • Compensation management. Create salary bands, communicate total rewards, monitor pay equity, and plan future compensation increases.
  • Performance management. Use dedicated tools for goal setting, performance reviews, feedback collection, and 360-degree assessments.

What we like:

  • Strong customer support. Get in-depth assistance with a dedicated implementation project manager.
  • User-friendly interface. The intuitive and clean user experience allows quicker training times and more frequent use.

What we dislike:

  • Poor mobile experience. A lack of mobile-first design means the mobile app is only suitable for simple tasks.
  • Lacklustre employee engagement. Community-building features are limited, forcing companies to use additional software. 

Pricing:

  • Plans start from $10 (£7) per employee per month. Detailed pricing available on request.

User feedback:

This is what BambooHR users have to say on G2:

“BambooHR has remained true to a lot of its claims of providing a clean interface and intuitive system with resources to help empower employee files, payroll, documents, etc., with ease.”
“Bamboo is easy to navigate for both administrators and employees. We've had great luck so far with calling the Bamboo help desk to answer any of our how-to questions.”
“We’ve [...] found that some features are not yet available in the mobile app, which presents a challenge for our field-based employees who don’t have regular access to a desktop. Expanding mobile functionality and enhancing benefits integrations would take BambooHR from great to exceptional.”

8. ADP — best for AI tools

ADP Workforce Now’s HR management tool centralises payroll, benefits, talent management and analytics in a single platform. 

ADP dashboard
Source: https://www.g2.com/products/adp-workforce-now/reviews?source=search

Despite its size, ADP does a reasonable job serving all kinds of businesses. You can even get custom packages so you only pay for the features you need.

Plus, its payroll and HR services come with extensive reporting and compliance capabilities.

Key features:

  • PEO service. The platform handles the most complex and time-consuming core HR tasks for clients.
  • Global tax expertise. ADP experts stay on top of filing rules and regulations to keep your business compliant.
  • AI-powered HR and recruiting tools. Candidate Relevancy, ADP’s AI-enabled recruiting assistant, identifies the best candidates for every role.
  • Scalable options. ADP’s comprehensive payroll and HR services adapt to your company’s growing needs without requiring you to switch platforms. And no upfront cost.

What we like:

  • Multi-channel payroll services. Run payroll on desktops, smartphones, and other mobile devices. 
  • Benefits administration. Integrate with thousands of insurers and providers to offer workers a wide range of benefits.

What we dislike:

  • Plug-and-play nature. Because of the size of ADP’s customer base, the platform feels like it’s missing a personalised service. 
  • Overwhelming interface. The wide range of tools can make the user experience feel clunky and confusing.
  • Allegedly buggy updates. Some users have reported issues with server connections and login during updates.

Pricing:

  • Available on request.

User feedback:

Here are some G2 reviews from ADP users.

“ADP Workforce Now offers a reliable and centralised solution for payroll, benefits, and employee record management. The reporting tools are powerful, and the integration with other HR systems streamlines administrative tasks.”
“The analytics that ADP provides is comparable to the best in the industry. I have been tracking the complete end-to-payment status for quite some time now, and the interface has only become better.”
“The system is not intuitive and requires navigating multiple disconnected areas to complete even basic tasks. It can feel overwhelming and inefficient — especially for managers and employees without system training.”

9. HiBob — best for workforce planning

HiBob is a comprehensive human capital management platform emphasising reporting, forecasting, and analytics.

HiBob dashboard
Source: https://www.hibob.com/blog/hr-dashboard-examples/

You can automate many day-to-day HR tasks, like onboarding and attendance tracking. It’s also pretty good at giving HR managers the information they need to make long-term decisions.

HiBob focuses on workforce planning and engagement, offering analytics to support HR decision-making.

Key features:

  • Onboarding and offboarding workflows. Create onboarding and onboarding workflows in advance to streamline the hiring process.
  • Time and attendance tracking. The platform tracks time using web and mobile-based clocks. It automatically calculates overtime and lets you implement customisable PTO policies.
  • People analytics and workforce planning. Monitor KPIs like headcount and retention using AI-powered dashboards, forecast workforce needs, and sandbox new HR policies.
  • Integrated payroll and HR. Streamlined functionalities within HiBob reduce manual data entry and human error to boost accuracy.

What we like:

  • Compensation benchmarking. Manage salary reviews, bonuses, equity, and pay equity using pre-defined salary bands and benchmarking data from Mercer.
  • Community building. Shoutouts, birthday celebrations, employee feedback polls, and a company-wide social media page help foster a welcoming culture.

What we dislike:

  • No expert support. Customers often lack the dedicated support they need to make the most of the platform.
  • Lack of customisation. The off-the-shelf nature of the platform means it’s difficult to customise it to your needs.
  • Solutions not fit for all. Businesses with unique payroll needs may not find easily available solutions. Additional adjustments or workarounds may be necessary to customise tool processes.

Pricing:

  • Available on request

User feedback:

Find out what HiBob users have to say below.

“A simple but accurate and professional tool. Makes the recruitment process be more efficient and professional.”
“Being a new member to the company, HiBob made it really easy for me to know people and understand the org chart, so I can know who to reach out to when needed.”
“The admin reporting tools are great for producing simple, straightforward reports and work really well for day-to-day needs. However, creating more bespoke reports — for example, around absence data — can be a bit more challenging. The platform is also less flexible when working within matrix management structures.”

10. Paylocity — best for medium-sized businesses

Paylocity is an all-in-one HR and payroll platform that small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) use to manage every part of the employment process. 

Paylocity dashbaord
Source: https://www.b2breviews.com/reviews/paylocity/

It offers solutions for every department: HR can run payroll, finance teams can manage employee expenses, and IT can centralise asset management. 

The combination of HR, payroll, and employee engagement tools in a mobile-friendly platform suits flexible and remote teams looking to scale.

Key features:

  • Global workforce management. Paylocity supports international payroll in 100+ countries.
  • Talent management. Paylocity’s applicant tracking system makes it easy to recruit workers, manage resumes, and schedule interviews.
  • Employee self-service portal. Remote workers can easily update personal data, view payslips, request PTO, and manage tax forms.
  • Smart functionality. Teams can leverage AI-powered expense management and automated payroll processing to speed up tasks.

What we like:

  • Employee engagement features. The platform offers social recognition badges, surveys, and other tools to build a strong culture and better communication.
  • Strong mobile experience. The mobile-first design makes it easy for employees and managers to access data on the go.
  • User-friendly interface. Robust HR tools include benefits administration and time tracking for easy access.

What we dislike:

  • Poor one-to-one support. While Paylocity has an extensive knowledge base, support teams are not always responsive.
  • Too complex. The sheer breadth of the platform can make onboarding slow and complicated, unless you have a tech mindset.
  • Inconsistent customer support and technical performance. Both have received mixed reviews, with some users reporting slow response times and occasional glitches.

Pricing:

  • Available on request


User feedback:

Find out what reviewers think of Paylocity.

“There are a lot of features for both employee and employer. When you hit a wall within the system, there are often quick workarounds to still get what is needed. Pretty easy to use across the board.”
“Paylocity is always updating itself, keeping ahead of requirements at the state and local level. The reporting functions are robust enough while not being too difficult to learn.”
“The customer service has declined over the past few years. Sometimes it may be a while before you get an answer or what you need.”

You’ve got a shortlist of tools, but how do you pick the right one for your brand? We cover the features you need to look for next.

How to find the best HR software and payroll provider

You’ll want an HR and payroll provider that is competitively priced and scales with your business. It should be easy to use, with support available if anything goes wrong. 

Here’s a quick checklist you can use when choosing between different options:

Vendor evaluation checklist

Below, you’ll find more information on each factor and why it’s essential, including specific features to look for.

Exceptional support

Payroll and HR software are mission-critical systems. Even a minor issue can stop pay cheques or cause compliance issues.

Look for a provider that resolves issues quickly without disrupting business:

  • 24-hour support that spans time zones
  • Multiple support channels, including phone, live chat, and email
  • Dedicated account managers who know your business and the local market
  • Online knowledge bases, video tutorials, and additional digital resources
  • Rapid onboarding with a dedicated success manager to get you started faster 

👉Example in action: See how property management company City Relay can onboard new hires within 24 hours thanks to Teamed’s in-country experts. 

Unmatched flexibility

Your HR and payroll platform must grow with your business’s needs, employment strategy, and geographic expansion. 

A rigid system that only works in a handful of countries will hinder your growth and operational efficiency.

Find a flexible platform by looking for the following features:

  • An all-in-one solution to manage contractors, freelancers and full-time employees
  • The option to seamlessly move from contract management to EOR to entity management for a number of employees at once
  • Fair, transparent pricing that doesn’t become affordable as you scale

👉Example in action: Discover how Teamed has helped accountancy firm CT hire new employees in multiple countries and assist with a sensitive offboarding process. 

Competitive pricing

Payroll and HR software is an ongoing investment that should generate a positive return. 

Overpaying for unnecessary modules or hidden fees will strain budgets, especially for startups and small-to-medium-sized businesses. 

Here’s how to find a platform that offers fair pricing now and in the future:

  • Clear publicly available pricing
  • Modular pricing that lets you add or remove features without penalties
  • No surprise fees for additional services like filings
  • Scalable plans that incentivise growth 
  • Flexible contract terms without long lock-in periods

👉Example in action: See why affordability made Teamed the standout choice for blockchain infrastructure service provider Luganodes.

Compliance you can count on

Employment law can change in a moment. Fail to keep up, and you could face financial penalties, audits, and lawsuits.

Find a provider that stays current with tax laws, labour regulations, and statutory requirements in every country you operate by looking for the following:

  • Regular software updates to reflect new tax rates and labour laws
  • Automated tax filings that avoid late-payment fees 
  • Detailed compliance reporting and document storage for audits
  • Constant monitoring of your team members' EOR status
  • Constant access to employment details and benefits

👉Example in action: Learn how Teamed has helped Data Science Talent fully comply with South African labour laws without lifting a finger.

Works where you work

Remote work and global hiring are becoming the norm. You need software that not only accommodates your current workforce but also paves the way for future expansion. 

Here’s what to look for:

  • Multi-currency payroll and accounting support
  • Localised payroll capabilities tailored to each country’s regulations
  • Entity management capabilities to handle legal entities in multiple jurisdictions
  • Integration with local tax authorities and benefits providers

👉Example in action: Discover how Teamed helps IT, aerospace, defence, and security technologies company Tekever hire from across Europe and beyond.

World-class employee experience

Empowered employees who manage their own information reduce HR overhead and increase satisfaction and transparency. 

Easy access to pay and benefits information also fosters trust and increases employee engagement. 

Here’s what it should look like:

  • Dedicated contact person for your key person, plus dedicated onboarding support for new employees
  • Mobile-friendly self-service apps or portals for employees and managers
  • Easy access to detailed pay stubs, tax documents, and benefit summaries
  • In-app management of contracts, holiday and bank details
  • Personalised dashboards with customised notifications and alerts
  • An EOR service that makes global employment easy

👉Decide if Teamed is right for you in our quick quiz

Best HR and payroll software FAQs

Q: What is HR and payroll software? 

HR and payroll software automates the management of human resources and payroll processes. It streamlines key tasks like payroll calculations, tax filings, and benefits administration, reduces manual errors, and ensures regulatory compliance.

Q: What is the best HR and payroll software for a small business?

For small businesses, the best HR and payroll software will balance usability, cost-efficiency, and core features. Teamed is ideal for small businesses with global ambitions thanks to our AI-native approach, rapid onboarding, and payroll compliance in 180+ countries.

Q: What is the best HR and payroll software for a medium-sized business?

Medium-sized businesses need scalable solutions with advanced features and dedicated support. Teamed is a solid choice due to our flexibility across contractor, EOR, and entity management. Plus, our exceptional on-hand support means an expert is always on hand to answer your questions.

Q: What is the most affordable HR and payroll software?

Teamed is one of the most affordable HR and payroll software solutions, costing just £39 ($49) per contractor per month and £400 ($450) per employee per month for EOR.

Why Teamed offers the best HR and payroll software

Teamed’s AI-powered global employment platform is more than just an HR and payroll provider. 

With multi-country and multi-modal payroll, entity setup and management, and effortless document management, global teams get everything they need to hire, manage, and pay employees — all in one place. 

When you throw in expert in-house support (available 24 hours a day, every working day) and fair, transparent pricing, choosing Teamed becomes a no-brainer.

It’s no wonder three in four customers who evaluate multiple providers pick us.

Book a call today and join 1,000+ growing teams like Eventbrite and Williams Racing who trust Teamed to pay employees, stay compliant, and scale with confidence.

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