ADP Alternatives 2026: 7 Options, 2 Free
ADP alternatives: Gusto, OnPay, Patriot Payroll, Square Payroll and 3 more. Prices and licenses checked October 22, 2026.
•4 min read•Payroll, HR & Hiring
Verdict:ADP sells by quote, so the first reason to look elsewhere is simply not knowing the price. Its payroll page lists plans for 1-49 employees (Essential, Enhanced, Complete Payroll & HR+, HR Pro Payroll & HR) and for 50 or more (Select, Plus, Premium), with no dollar amounts. If you run a small US business and want a number before a sales call, Gusto starts at $49 a month plus $6 per person, OnPay at $49 plus $6 per worker with tax filings and year-end forms included, and Patriot Software's Basic Payroll at $17 plus $4 per worker paid after a 30-day trial. Square Payroll suits businesses already on Square, and also offers contractor-only payroll at $6 per person. Paychex is the direct comparison if you want quotes from a similar vendor. For hourly staff, Homebase has a free Basic plan up to 10 employees at one location, with payroll as an add-on. Frappe HR is free if you are technical, but it does not handle US tax filing for you. The trade-off is scale and service: ADP handles larger headcounts, multi-state complexity and HR bundles, and the cheaper tools thin out as you grow past a few dozen people. Leave ADP if you have under 50 employees, want visible pricing and do not need heavy HR. Stay if compliance support and a dedicated team matter more than the monthly bill.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gusto | Paid from $49 per month plus $6 per person (Simple) | Web | Small US teams that want listed prices | Docs only |
| OnPay | Paid from $49 per month plus $6 per worker | Web | Flat-fee payroll with filings included | Docs only |
| Patriot Payroll | Paid from $17 per month plus $4 per worker paid (Basic Payroll, regular price) | Web | Lowest-cost payroll for tiny teams | Docs only |
| Square Payroll | Paid from $35 per month plus $6 per person paid | Web | Square users and contractor-only payroll | Docs only |
| Paychex Flex | See pricing page | Web | Comparing quotes from a second large vendor | Docs only |
| Homebase | Free (Basic plan at $0: up to 10 employees at one location, 90 days of timesheet storage); paid from $30 per location/month (Essentials) | Web | Hourly teams that need scheduling and time clocks | Docs only |
| Frappe HR | Free (Free to self-host; Frappe Cloud hosting starts at $5 per month for Sites) | Web, Self-hosted | Self-hosting developers outside US tax filing | Docs only |
| Rippling | Paid from $8 per employee/month, plus a monthly base fee | Web | HR and payroll | Docs only |
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Good fit if
- You want a published price for US small-business payroll (Gusto is the pick)
- You want the cheapest payroll for a few employees (Patriot Payroll is the pick)
- You run an hourly team and want a free start (Homebase is the pick)
- You want a second big-vendor quote to compare (Paychex Flex is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You rely on ADP features or integrations that these tools do not replicate
ADP today: See pricing page (ADP pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Why people look for ADP alternatives
ADP publishes no prices. Its payroll page sends visitors to Get pricing buttons or a phone number, so a quote is required. Packages split by size: Essential, Enhanced, Complete Payroll & HR+ and HR Pro for 1-49 employees, and Select, Plus and Premium on Workforce Now for 50 or more. The page states no contract terms, and its offer of up to six months free on small business payroll links to separate terms. Businesses that want upfront costs, or that face a platform change when they pass 50 staff, often compare providers with listed prices.
Gusto
Compared with ADP: Simple plan at $49 a month plus $6 per person, with prices you can read, unlike ADP quote-only pages. Aimed at small US teams; larger firms may miss ADP depth and support.
Price: Paid from $49 per month plus $6 per person (Simple) (Gusto pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Small US teams that want listed prices.
OnPay
Compared with ADP: $49 a month plus $6 per worker, with federal, state and local tax filings and year-end forms included. Time tracking, HR and benefits are add-ons, whereas ADP bundles tiers by quote.
Price: Paid from $49 per month plus $6 per worker (OnPay pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Flat-fee payroll with filings included.
Worth knowing: All plans include W-2s, 1099s, year-end filings, unlimited pay runs and federal, state and local tax filings. Time tracking, HR and benefits are add-ons.
Patriot Payroll
Compared with ADP: Basic Payroll from $17 a month plus $4 per worker paid, and a 30-day free trial. Far cheaper than a typical ADP quote, but it is a lighter product without ADP HR depth.
Price: Paid from $17 per month plus $4 per worker paid (Basic Payroll, regular price) (Patriot Payroll pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Lowest-cost payroll for tiny teams.
Worth knowing: Full Service Payroll is $37 plus $5 per worker. Promo prices are half for 3 months after a 30-day free trial.
Square Payroll
Compared with ADP: $35 a month plus $6 per person paid, or $6 per person with no base fee for contractor-only payroll. Fits Square users; you lose ADP broader HR and benefits offering.
Price: Paid from $35 per month plus $6 per person paid (Square Payroll pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Square users and contractor-only payroll.
Paychex Flex
Compared with ADP: Closest like-for-like rival: also quote-only, so no listed price to beat ADP. A promotion offers free payroll for up to six months for new clients with a one-year agreement.
Price: See pricing page (Paychex Flex pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Comparing quotes from a second large vendor.
Homebase
Compared with ADP: Free Basic plan covers up to 10 employees at one location with time tracking; payroll is an add-on at $49 a month plus $6 per employee. A lighter way to start than ADP.
Price: Free (Basic plan at $0: up to 10 employees at one location, 90 days of timesheet storage); paid from $30 per location/month (Essentials) (Homebase pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary SaaS.
Best for: Hourly teams that need scheduling and time clocks.
Worth knowing: Plus is $70 and All-in-One $120 per location per month. Payroll is an add-on at $49 per month plus $6 per employee paid after a 6-month free period.
Frappe HR
Compared with ADP: Free and open source to self-host, with salary structures and payroll runs. Unlike ADP it does not file taxes for you, and you must check your country rules before relying on it.
Price: Free (Free to self-host; Frappe Cloud hosting starts at $5 per month for Sites) (Frappe HR pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, Self-hosted. GPL-3.0 (open source).
Project activity: 9k GitHub stars · latest release v16.52.0 (Oct 22, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Self-hosting developers outside US tax filing.
Worth knowing: Covers payroll (salary structures, income tax slabs, payroll runs), leave and attendance. Check that payroll and tax rules fit your country before relying on it.
Other popular options (paid)
Rippling
Compared with ADP: Payroll plus HR and IT in one system, listed from $8 per employee per month plus a monthly base fee, so costs are visible up front, unlike ADP's quote-only model. Global payroll and contractors are quoted separately.
Price: Paid from $8 per employee/month, plus a monthly base fee (Rippling pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Which one to pick
- You want a published price for US small-business payroll: Gusto
- You want the cheapest payroll for a few employees: Patriot Payroll
- You run an hourly team and want a free start: Homebase
- You want a second big-vendor quote to compare: Paychex Flex
Limits of this review
Docs-only for Gusto, OnPay, Patriot Payroll, Square Payroll, Paychex Flex, Homebase, Frappe HR: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages and we did not test import from ADP. Vendor prices and free limits change; confirm on the linked pricing page before you buy or migrate.
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Kevin Fan
Kevin Fan is a SaaS founder. He runs Free Instead Of, which tracks free and open-source alternatives to paid software and checks each price and free-plan limit against the vendor's own pages.
Methodology
Based on official pricing and product pages checked 2026-10-22: ADP, Gusto, OnPay, Patriot Payroll, Square Payroll, Paychex Flex, Homebase, Frappe HR, Rippling. Prices, free limits and licenses are the figures shown on those pages on those dates. No tool on this page was installed or run. No accounts were created.