Essentially, running payroll yourself just means reviewing the numbers and pressing a button on the software to pay out your employees. But nothing can match the convenience of scheduling automatic payroll runs, so if you’re looking for more thorough automation, Paychex or ADP could be a better fit. The easiest payroll software depends on what your company’s needs are. Some of the best payroll services that are also easy to use include OnPay, Gusto and ADP RUN. Time tracking is available through timesheets, which can give you the chance to keep tabs on the hours your employees and independent contractors work. Unfortunately, there is currently no way for workers to fill out timesheets on their own.

• Wave Payroll isn’t just beautiful for small-business owners — it also offers a rich experience for staff members.
• Give your customers the option of paying with one click using a credit card, bank transfer, or Apple Pay.
• This array includes performance management, time-tracking and tools for employee onboarding.
• The system categorizes the transactions (i.e., “Payroll Liabilities” or “Transfer to Wave Payroll Clearing”) for easy payroll bookkeeping.
• Plus, there are no advanced capabilities such as performance management.

However, its processing timeline is three days (many payroll companies have a two-day processing time). This is because all payroll-related expenses incurred in Wave Payroll will automatically post in your Wave Accounting general ledger (G/L). Wave Payroll also includes an easy setup process and offers some nice features, including an employee access feature. Wave Payroll, an add-on option available from Wave Accounting, offers basic payroll services, with full-service payroll available in 14 states.

What Users Think About Wave Payroll

Be sure to test out all the features from the company and employee side to make sure it’s a good system for your business. For example, there are timesheets available, but you have to manually add hours worked. This may work well if you have few hourly workers, but it could end up being a big time sink if you have a larger staff. Payroll itself isn’t automated, but it is easy to set up Wave Payroll with your pay schedules and get reminders to run payroll on time.

• Catering primarily to midsize and large enterprises, Paychex offers a level of sophistication and customization that might be overkill for smaller businesses but is perfect for larger ones.
• However, that’s the only difference between it and Wave’s self-service payroll option.
• Instead, you can access Wave customer service only online, either by submitting a request on the Wave site or pressing the “help” button on your Wave account.
• Some negative points mentioned are the two-step process of paying 1099 contractors and the lack of international payrolls.

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If you include an employee’s email address when entering their information in Wave Payroll, they’ll receive an invitation to connect to it. Since Wave Payroll was specifically created for startups and small businesses with limited to no payroll processing experience, the interface is easy to use. No matter how tech-savvy you are or aren’t, you’ll find the setup process simple as there are step-by-step instructions and a 24/7 chatbot to guide you. Wave Payroll is fairly basic with minimal features so you shouldn’t get overwhelmed as you might with more comprehensive payroll solutions. TriNet Zenefits is also more affordable than Wave Payroll, with a base monthly price of $10.00 for its payroll-inclusive plan, compared to $20.00.

Wave Payroll HR Features

And while you can hire a Wave Advisor, this service costs extra (custom-priced), and you only get assistance in completing and filing business or personal taxes. Employees and contractors can log in to the self-service portal where they view pay stubs and access tax forms. They can also update payment details via this tool, as well as create profiles and update personal information. If you decide to resume pay processing, simply go to trial balance definition’s billing menu to activate your subscription and immediately start using the software’s payroll tools. Note that Wave Payroll’s pricing will automatically switch from “Limited Access” to either its full-service or self-service option, depending on the plan you selected before pausing payroll.

Gusto Payroll Software

Similar easy-to-use competitors like Gusto provide global support. So, if you need multinational paycheck processing, Wave won’t fit the bill. Yes, you can use Wave Payroll to pay independent contractors and regular employees alike.

It’s also a good fit for businesses that pay seasonal employees. If you go to the dashboard, you’ll be able to track wages and taxes you’ve paid or assess payroll benefits and deductions. You’ll have more robust reporting options if you use Wave Accounting as this app allows for cash flow statements, sales tax reports, profit and loss statements and more.

Create beautiful invoices, accept online payments, and make accounting easy—all in one place—with Wave’s suite of money tools. We totally get it—running payroll for your small business can seem like a daunting task, especially when you’ve got so much on your plate. That’s why a payroll software like Wave’s can help ease the burden of doing payroll on your own. G2 shows more than 25 customer reviews of Wave Payroll with a 4.1-star rating.

Business

And luckily, these other tools are similarly user-friendly and visually stunning. If a super easy-to-use payroll software is your dream, Wave Payroll delivers. Its user interface is gorgeous and focuses on point-and-click simplicity. Wave Payroll currently only offers chat support, though a good knowledge base with numerous payroll-related articles and step-by-step instructions is also available.

If you have Wave Accounting, automatic journal entries might come in handy. Once payroll has been run, the entry will be posted on the Transactions page on Wave Accounting automatically. Since deductions and benefits will appear as “Uncategorized Expenses,” you may go into Wave Accounting to categorize them. We built our Payroll tool for small business owners, so it’s easy to use AND teaches you as you go.

Which payroll company is best?

While Wave Payroll isn’t the most robust payroll solution on the market, it will get the job done if you’re a startup or small business in search of basic payroll capabilities. It’s particularly ideal if you operate in one of the 14 states it files taxes in automatically and appreciate an easy-to-use interface without a lot of extras or clutter. Wave Payroll is a good option for very businesses with simple payroll needs. It lets you run payroll in a matter of minutes and provides you with the information you need for filing taxes—or, if you are in one of the states it services, it files them for you.

Wave Payroll

Wave Payroll’s dashboard offers a quick summary of payroll-related information, including upcoming start and end pay dates as well as a pay date. Also included on the dashboard is a Things to Do list as well as quick access to payroll setup and approved payroll. Wave Payroll also lacks benefits add-ons beyond workers compensation packages. Gusto, for instance, offers not only workers compensation plans but also health benefits administration and other employee benefits add-ons.