Gusto

by Gusto, Inc. · Payroll

All-in-one payroll, benefits and HR software for small businesses.

Updated August 2026 · By the ERP Research Editorial Team · Independent and vendor-neutral.

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Works with: QuickBooksXero
Deployment: Cloud
Company size: SMB, Mid-market
Pricing: Subscription
Founded: 2012
Headquarters: San Francisco, California, USA

Overview

Gusto is an all-in-one payroll, benefits, and HR platform designed for small and mid-sized U.S. businesses. Founded in 2012 and headquartered in San Francisco and Denver, Gusto combines full-service payroll with automatic tax filing, employee onboarding, benefits administration, and HR tools. The company serves over 400,000 businesses and is privately held.

Gusto's payroll includes unlimited payroll runs, automatic calculation and filing of federal, state, and local payroll taxes, and an AutoPilot feature that runs payroll automatically. Built-in benefits administration covers health insurance, 401(k), FSAs, commuter benefits, and more, and time tracking is included. The product is known for an approachable, self-service experience aimed at small employers without dedicated payroll staff.

Gusto is primarily a U.S. domestic payroll product, with contractor payments and international contractor support available. It also offers transparent, published pricing in tiered plans, which differentiates it from quote-based enterprise providers.

Screenshots & demo

Demo video from the vendor's YouTube channel.

Modules & capabilities

Gusto covers 14 of 36 capabilities we track in this category (+1 partial)

39%

Automated payroll runsAutoPilot automatic payroll runs
Core strength
Multi-country payroll runs
Not evidenced
Off-cycle and correction runsUnlimited payroll runs; off-cycle not explicitly documented
Partial
Retroactive pay calculations
Not evidenced
Garnishment management
Not evidenced
Gross-up calculations
Not evidenced

“Not evidenced” means our research found no public documentation of this capability — the vendor may still offer it. Confirm on a demo.

Common use cases

A small business running its first in-house payroll without dedicated payroll staff
Automating payroll tax filing for a growing U.S. company
Offering health insurance and 401(k) integrated with payroll
Paying a mix of employees and 1099 contractors
Onboarding new hires with self-service paperwork
Syncing payroll journal entries into QuickBooks or Xero

Strengths & considerations

Strengths

Transparent, published tiered pricing rather than quote-only
All-in-one payroll, benefits, and HR aimed specifically at small businesses
AutoPilot automatic payroll and strong self-service onboarding experience

Considerations

Primarily a U.S. domestic payroll product (international support is contractor-focused)
Built for small and mid-sized businesses rather than large enterprises

ERP integrations

QuickBooksGusto

Certified marketplace app

Pushes to ERPPayroll journal entriesLabor cost data

Listed in the QuickBooks App Store; syncs payroll journal entries and labor cost/time metrics into QuickBooks Online.

Marketplace listing →

XeroGusto

Certified marketplace app

Pushes to ERPPayroll journal entriesTracking categories

Listed on the Xero App Store; real-time payroll data sync with configurable tracking-category mapping by employee, department or job title.

Marketplace listing →

Connector details independently verified against vendor marketplaces and documentation; last checked 2026-08-11.

Pricing

Model

Subscription

Starting price

Simple plan $40/month base + $6 per employee/month

Free trial

Tiered plans: Simple ($40/mo + $6 PEPM), Plus ($80/mo + $12 PEPM), Premium (custom), and Contractor-Only ($35/mo + $6/contractor). Cost is driven by plan tier and headcount. Get an independent shortlist with pricing guidance below.

Technical & security

Hosting: SaaS (multi-tenant)
Data residency: US
Compliance: SOC 2, GDPR
Mobile app: Yes
Languages: English, Spanish

About the vendor

Founded: 2012
Headquarters: San Francisco, California, USA
Ownership: Private

Alternatives to Gusto in Payroll

ADP Global PayrollUnified multi-country managed payroll for global enterprises across 100+ countries.CloudPayFully managed global payroll and payments across 120+ countries.DeelGlobal payroll, EOR and contractor payments across 130+ countries.G-P (Globalization Partners)AI-powered EOR and global payroll across 180+ countries.NetSuite SuitePeople PayrollFull-service U.S. payroll built natively inside NetSuite ERP.Oracle Payroll CloudConfigurable global payroll unified with Oracle Fusion Cloud HCM.

Gusto — frequently asked questions

How much does Gusto cost?

Gusto's Simple plan starts at $40/month plus $6 per employee per month; Plus and Premium plans add more HR features, and a contractor-only plan is available.

Does Gusto file payroll taxes automatically?

Yes. Gusto automatically calculates and files federal, state, and local payroll taxes and prepares W-2 and 1099 forms.

Is Gusto only for U.S. businesses?

Gusto's full-service payroll is U.S.-focused; it can also pay international contractors, but it is not a multi-country employee payroll engine.

Does Gusto include benefits administration?

Yes. Health insurance, 401(k), FSAs, commuter benefits, and workers' comp can be administered and synced to payroll.

Evaluating Payroll?

Tell us your ERP and requirements and we'll send an independent shortlist — including Gusto and the best-fit alternatives — with honest pros and cons.