HR Software (HRIS)
Gusto: features, pricing and who it fits
Payroll comes first in Gusto, with tax filing, benefits and light HR tools around it for small US businesses. The bill is a monthly base plus a fee for each person. G2 users score ease of use 9.5 of 10, but global payroll and advanced identity controls are absent.
Who Gusto is for
Best for
- Small US businesses of 1 to a few dozen people wanting simple setup
- Companies that pay a mix of W-2 employees and 1099 contractors
Look elsewhere if
- Large enterprises needing SCIM or deep identity controls
- Companies that need global payroll
Fit by company size
| Category | 1-10 people | 11-50 people | 51-500 people | 500+ people |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HR Software (HRIS) | Strong fit | Strong fit | Workable | Poor fit |
| Payroll Software | Strong fit | Strong fit | No data | Poor fit |
Strong fitWorkablePoor fitNo data from the vendor
Gusto features
- Core HR and employee records
- Employee records and self-onboarding on all plans (basic)
- Payroll integration or built-in payroll
- Built-in payroll is the core product
- Onboarding and offboarding workflows
- Employee self-onboarding on Simple; hiring and onboarding tools on Plus
- Time off and attendance
- Basic PTO on Simple; time and PTO tracking on Plus
- Pricing model and transparency
- Base fee plus per-person fee per plan
- Target company size
- Small businesses (about 84% of G2 reviews)
- Pricing model
- Base fee plus per-person fee per plan
- Tax filing and compliance
- Automatic federal, state and local filing on all plans
- Multi-state payroll
- Plus and Premium; Simple is single-state
- Time tracking and PTO
- Plus adds time tracking and PTO
- Contractor and 1099 payments
- Contractor Only plan $35 + $6 per contractor
Gusto pricing
| Plan | Price | Unit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple | $49 + $6 | per month + per person per month | Single-state payroll, auto tax filing |
| Plus | $80 + $12 | per month + per person per month | Multi-state payroll, time tracking, hiring tools |
| Premium | $180 + $22 | per month + per person per month | HR guidance, same-day and instant pay |
| Contractor Only | $35 + $6 | per month + per contractor | 1099-only businesses |
Prices as listed on gusto.com/product/pricing. Some Gusto guides list Premium as custom. Active employees only are billed.
Prices as published by Gusto on the date above. Quotes for larger teams often differ, which is what a request on SaaSBid surfaces.
Pros and cons
What users like
- Ease of use (9.5 of 10 on G2)
- Quick setup and onboarding
Common complaints
- Support rated slightly behind some competitors
Worth knowing before you buy
- Multi-state payroll only starts on Plus ($80 + $12)
- Simple's price excludes benefits costs and add-ons
- SAML SSO is not self-service: reportedly enabled via Gusto support, and SCIM is reportedly unavailable (third-party Stitchflow)
- Billing counts only active employees
- Contractor-only businesses have their own $35 + $6 plan
