OnPay review 2024: Cost, plans, features and more

Best flat-fee service with expert support

OnPay

Blueprint Rating

Learn More

Via OnPay's website

Monthly fee

$40 per month plus $6 per employee

Direct deposit

Yes

24/7 customer support

No

Pros

• One flat-fee plan for all features.
• Includes industry-specific payroll features.
• End-to-end customer service and free account migration.

Cons

• Only available in the United States.
• No automated payroll processing.
• No 24/7 live chat support.

Featured payroll software offers

OnPay

Learn More

Via OnPay’s website

Monthly fee

$40 per month plus $6 per employee

Direct deposit

Yes

SurePayroll

Learn More

Via SurePayroll’s website

Monthly fee

$29.99 per month plus $5 per employee

Direct deposit

Yes

Gusto

Learn More

Via Gusto’s website

Monthly fee

Starting at $40 plus $6 per month per employee

Direct deposit

Yes

Rippling

Learn More

Via Rippling’s website

Monthly fee

$35 per month + $8 per user

Direct deposit

Yes

OnPay payroll software review

Pricing and plans

Unlike other payroll software companies, OnPay offers a single plan of service that includes all of its features instead of tiers of service. For a $40 per month base price, plus $6 a month per employee, you access: 

• Unlimited payroll runs. 
• Automated federal, state and local tax payments and filings.
• W-2 and 1099 processing.
• Expert support.
• The ability to manage multiple pay rates and schedules.
• Garnishments.
• Unemployment insurance withholdings.
• Custom reporting capabilities. 
• HR tools, such as essential hiring and onboarding forms and templates, compliance audits, automated onboarding flows and an HR resource library. 
• An employee self-service portal. 
• Software integration options such as Quickbooks Online, Xero, Mineral and When I Work. 
• Customer support features, including free account migrations, integration setup assistance, weekday support (by phone, chat and email) and emergency weekend email support. 

OnPay offers moderate pricing compared to other payroll software services. For example, Quickbooks Payroll starts at $45 per month, plus $5 per employee. You don’t get workers’ compensation administration or many HR tools for this price. However, these features are included in its $75 to $125 per month plans (plus $8 per person). However, Patriot offers plans starting at $17 per month plus $4 per person but doesn’t provide tax filings. For this feature, you must pay for its full service plan at $37 per month plus $4 per person. 

Despite its moderately priced full-featured service, one of OnPay’s disadvantages is that the pricing structure doesn’t scale for large companies. You will pay $6 per person per month whether you have 50 employees or 500. In contrast, other software providers, like JustWork, offer a discounted rate once you reach a certain employee threshold. It also offers a customized plan and pricing structure as you scale.

OnPay is an affordable solution for small businesses that need one solution to manage all aspects of employee hiring, payroll and benefits. In addition, its full-featured plan and robust customer support features — including integration setup assistance, weekday support and emergency weekend support — make it a good fit for startups that are beginning to hire employees and may need extra support to navigate business growth. 

Features and add-ons

OnPay’s payroll software offers three primary toolsets: payroll processing, human resources management and employee benefit administration tools. Within these tool suites, its standout features include employee onboarding, automation features and benefits management solutions. 

Employee onboarding and management features

Although OnPay is a basic and straightforward software option, it offers some unique benefits for employee management. It has automated onboarding flows, onboarding forms and templates and six employee-permission tiers for each employee to have as much control as they need to complete work and payroll tasks. The employee self-serve feature also gives employees access to self-onboarding flows, paystubs, employment documents and tax forms. 

Customization and automation features

OnPay’s payroll features are customizable to your specific business needs. You can quickly design reports to continually monitor the metrics that matter most to your company. Companies can also set up multiple payroll schedules and make adjustments as needed from a single central location. 

In addition to its easy customization features, the software uses automations to ensure effortless error detection. Its built-in error detection sends warnings and alerts if discrepancies are noted. If errors are discovered after a pay run is processed, the run can be canceled without penalty.

OnPay also makes it easy to set up payroll taxes for employees across different states. Once a company specifies the states where their employees work, OnPay automatically calculates each state’s taxes for each individual.

Finally, OnPay’s self-serve centralized intranet allows employees to update personal information, make paid-time-off (PTO) requests, find tax documents and more. This means you can spend more time running your business than answering employee requests.

Employee benefit management

To offer benefits packages, a company must only indicate its preferred budget and benefits, and OnPay will compile several packages from which to choose. Benefits administration is available in all 50 states and includes medical, dental, vision and workers’ compensation administration. OnPay does not natively offer retirement plans, but it does help businesses work with its integration partners to do so.

What it’s missing

One potential downside of OnPay is that it’s only available in the United States. Companies interested in creating a global framework for time tracking, IT support, expense management and hiring may be better served by another software, such as Rippling. It lets you create a custom product that can onboard and pay employees in their own currencies around the globe, automate global compliance and implement a global IT and finance solution.

Another possible disadvantage noted in several reviews is OnPay’s lack of automated payroll processing. Pay runs must be manually sent at the end of each pay period. While many have noted that OnPay saves them time overall via features like automated tax payments and filing, the manual payroll requirement may introduce unwanted hassles. Similarly, it does not automate the issuance of W-2 or 1099 forms. If you want OnPay to take care of this for you, you have to pay an undisclosed extra fee. 

Customer support and experience

OnPay is known for its excellent customer service. While it doesn’t offer 24/7 chat support, it does make it easy to schedule an appointment with a live representative. There are also many ways to connect with onPay’s customer service. Users can call, email, submit a support ticket or chat with a live representative Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern Time. Emergency email support is available on weekends. 

In addition to excellent support, OnPay provides end-to-end, expert support upon setup with free account migrations. An expert will walk your company through the setup process (including integration setup) and take on most of the heavy lifting of switching your company’s payroll software. 

OnPay has a 4.8 out of five rating on G2 with 254 user reviews. A common positive feature noted in many reviews is its excellent customer service. Users say the company is patient and knowledgeable in assisting with account migration and payroll processing setup. Many also report that the company is fast and knowledgeable when responding to and resolving user issues pertaining to taxes, reporting and more. 

OnPay’s website is straightforward to use and contains an extensive knowledge base to help users with common questions and issues. The OnPay site is optimized for mobile, which is important because, though it has an iPhone app, the app has a 1.9 out of five-star rating on the App Store with 23 reviews. 

OnPay vs. the competition

OnPay is our choice for the best flat-fee service with expert support. Here’s how OnPay stacks up against the other payroll software companies on our 2023 best payroll software list. 

OnPay vs. Rippling

Rippling offers a much larger array of features than OnPay, including IT support, global workforce management and time tracking tools. A small company with limited payroll and HR needs might be overwhelmed with everything Rippling has to offer, so OnPay’s flat fee and limited feature structure might be more appealing. Rippling requires users to pick and choose the features they want for customized pricing. 

OnPay vs. Patriot 

Patriot offers a basic payroll plan starting at $17 per month plus $4 per employee. To get access to automated tax filing, which OnPay also offers in its flat-fee plan, Patriot users must pay $37 per month plus $4 per employee. For nearly the same base price as OnPay, Patriot users don’t get the same HR and benefit support and must pay an extra fee for these add-ons. However, companies that need only the most basic payroll features can save money by choosing Patriot. 

OnPay vs. Gusto

Gusto offers many of the same features as OnPay, with the addition of built-in retirement benefits and time tracking. It can also run payroll automatically, a feature that OnPay doesn’t offer. As such, Gusto is better for companies with large and established workforces that need to streamline their processes and incentivize long-term employment. 

However, the least expensive plan Gusto offers is the same price as OnPay’s flat-fee plan. To access all available features, users must pay for Gusto’s Plus plan at $80 a month plus $12 per person or request a custom quote for its Premium plan. These higher-tiered plans offer some features OnPay includes in its $40-per-month plan, such as hiring and onboarding tools, compliance alerts and payroll migration and setup. 

OnPay vs. Payroll4Free

If you need bare-minimum payroll services and are on a limited budget, Payroll4Free is the optimal solution. It is also free for companies with fewer than 25 employees or contractors and offers the ability to run payroll and calculate tax withholdings and payments. There is an additional fee to have the software file your taxes, but other features — like payroll, leave tracking and reporting tools — are available at no cost.

However, if you need advanced features to manage a growing workforce, such as HR features, automated tax filings, customer support for more complex needs and software integrations, OnPay is likely a better fit. 

Is OnPay right for your business

For small businesses needing to manage payroll and human resources, OnPay is a safe bet. With support that spans from initial account migration to user issue resolution, it allows you to pay your employees without difficulty, avoid costly payroll errors and manage hiring and employee benefits all in one place. Its user interface is intuitive and customizable, and the customer support team is knowledgeable and helpful. 

However, an all-purpose software like Rippling may suit you better if you need to manage global payroll needs. Or, if you would rather separate HR from payroll, something simpler like Payroll4Free or Patriot can be a budget-friendly alternative. Finally, consider Gusto if you have a larger workforce that could benefit from advanced automations. 

Featured payroll software offers

OnPay

Learn More

Via OnPay’s website

Monthly fee

$40 per month plus $6 per employee

Direct deposit

Yes

SurePayroll

Learn More

Via SurePayroll’s website

Monthly fee

$29.99 per month plus $5 per employee

Direct deposit

Yes

Gusto

Learn More

Via Gusto’s website

Monthly fee

Starting at $40 plus $6 per month per employee

Direct deposit

Yes

Rippling

Learn More

Via Rippling’s website

Monthly fee

$35 per month + $8 per user

Direct deposit

Yes

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)