Payroll by Wave vs. Rippling

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Payroll by Wave
Score 9.9 out of 10
N/A
Wave Accounting headquartered in Toronto now offers Payroll by Wave, a payroll app for small businesses.N/A
Rippling
Score 8.7 out of 10
N/A
Rippling is an all-in-one platform for HR, IT, payroll, and spend management used to streamline the entire employee lifecycle, from hiring to benefits administration. Rippling additionally automates HR tasks, ensures compliance, and simplifies approvals. Rippling can also handle device management, software access, and compliance monitoring, from the same dashboard, and provides payroll support, real-time financial…
$8
per month per user
Pricing
Payroll by WaveRippling
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Recommended
$8.00
starting price per user, per month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Payroll by WaveRippling
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsFor additional pricing details visit the Rippling pricing page.
More Pricing Information
Features
Payroll by WaveRippling
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
9.4
5 Ratings
13% above category average
Rippling
9.2
623 Ratings
13% above category average
Pay calculation10.05 Ratings9.1541 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors9.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment9.03 Ratings9.0340 Ratings
Benefit plan administration9.01 Ratings9.0562 Ratings
Direct deposit files9.05 Ratings9.6547 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management9.55 Ratings9.3375 Ratings
Reimbursement management10.02 Ratings9.2313 Ratings
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Rippling
9.0
579 Ratings
13% above category average
Employee demographic data00 Ratings9.3388 Ratings
Employment history00 Ratings9.1403 Ratings
Job profiles and administration00 Ratings9.1467 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.00 Ratings9.1398 Ratings
Organizational charting00 Ratings9.0488 Ratings
Organization and location management00 Ratings9.0414 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)00 Ratings8.2315 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Rippling
9.4
537 Ratings
14% above category average
Approval workflow00 Ratings9.3513 Ratings
Balance details00 Ratings9.5474 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment00 Ratings9.5324 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Rippling
9.5
661 Ratings
15% above category average
View and generate pay and benefit information00 Ratings9.7622 Ratings
Update personal information00 Ratings9.7650 Ratings
View company policy documentation00 Ratings9.6519 Ratings
Employee recognition00 Ratings9.2312 Ratings
View job history00 Ratings9.5441 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Rippling
9.2
245 Ratings
15% above category average
Tracking of all physical assets00 Ratings9.2245 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Rippling
8.9
277 Ratings
16% above category average
Report builder00 Ratings8.7270 Ratings
Pre-built reports00 Ratings9.0254 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data00 Ratings9.0213 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Rippling
9.5
445 Ratings
16% above category average
New hire portal00 Ratings9.5436 Ratings
Manager tracking tools00 Ratings9.5311 Ratings
Performance and Goals
Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Rippling
9.3
172 Ratings
14% above category average
Corporate goal setting00 Ratings9.5147 Ratings
Individual goal setting00 Ratings9.3153 Ratings
Line-of sight-visibility00 Ratings9.1147 Ratings
Performance tracking00 Ratings9.2151 Ratings
Performance Management
Comparison of Performance Management features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Rippling
9.3
204 Ratings
15% above category average
Performance plans00 Ratings9.1178 Ratings
Performance improvement plans00 Ratings8.9166 Ratings
Review status tracking00 Ratings9.5176 Ratings
Review reminders00 Ratings9.7192 Ratings
Multiple review frequency00 Ratings9.5158 Ratings
Succession Planning
Comparison of Succession Planning features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Rippling
9.6
159 Ratings
18% above category average
Create succession plans/pools00 Ratings9.8129 Ratings
Candidate ranking00 Ratings9.6140 Ratings
Candidate search00 Ratings9.4146 Ratings
Candidate development00 Ratings9.6135 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
Payroll by Wave
-
Ratings
Rippling
9.8
182 Ratings
22% above category average
Job Requisition Management00 Ratings9.9141 Ratings
Company Website Posting00 Ratings9.8135 Ratings
Publish to Social Media00 Ratings9.8123 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting00 Ratings9.8125 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention00 Ratings9.6129 Ratings
Applicant Tracking00 Ratings9.9135 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts00 Ratings9.8164 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Payroll by WaveRippling
Small Businesses
Dayforce Powerpay
Dayforce Powerpay
Score 9.1 out of 10
Dayforce Powerpay
Dayforce Powerpay
Score 9.1 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.6 out of 10
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.6 out of 10
Enterprises
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.1 out of 10
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.1 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Payroll by WaveRippling
Likelihood to Recommend
10.0
(6 ratings)
8.8
(703 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(1 ratings)
9.1
(6 ratings)
Usability
10.0
(1 ratings)
8.9
(700 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(1 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
8.9
(2 ratings)
8.8
(630 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(1 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
Payroll by WaveRippling
Likelihood to Recommend
Wave
Great for small business payroll needs. Reports and taxes are taken care of, everything is automated and once you're set up it's literally just a matter of minutes to run payroll each time. You also get email reminders which is helpful. There are premium features available for companies with larger/more robust needs, and I would definitely recommend looking into this software if you are searching for a user friendly payroll solution
Read full review
Rippling
Rippling is an all-in-one workforce management solution that really does shine in streamlining the human resource, payroll, and IT processes in small and medium-sized enterprises, and this applies to those companies during growth phases. It's great for startups and companies with distributed workforces because it simplifies global payroll and benefits administration and ensures compliance across different regions. True to the strong integration with most of the well-known SaaS applications, Rippling boasts the strongest IT management features and is thus suitable for organizations that want intelligent solutions at the forefront. However, the platform may not be the best suited to large enterprises with tens of thousands of employees as they might need more complex HR solutions. Businesses with very complex global payroll needs would also find it lacking compared. Companies with more highly customized workflow processes in HR or deep workforce analytics might also experience difficulties because those are more standardized with Rippling. For tight-budget concerns, the platform could be too costly if their needs do not fully utilize its suite of features. Rippling has been a flexible solution, especially for growing businesses with diverse teams, but it may not be cut for large or highly specialized organizations.
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Pros
Wave
  • An intuitive, clear UI helps you know where everything is, what options are at your disposal. Calendars and timelines show that Wave really thought out how to provide you with useful tool.
  • Pay day can be automated and straightforward.
  • Wave onboarding provides guidance at what information to input next until you are all set up.
Read full review
Rippling
  • Rippling Support is great at finding solutions to problems, whether you chat with a bot, read an article in the help section, or speak to an agent.
  • Workflow Studio has been so helpful in automating so many of our Onboarding processes!
  • Utilizing Reports helps so much in having a ton of specific information about each employee all in one place.
Read full review
Cons
Wave
  • Implement an employee time clock option through a separate link which automatically applies to the weekly time sheets.
  • Option to further customize payroll statements
  • Add a per employee payroll dashboard with the option to review rolling, quarterly, and weekly snapshot. Info to include gross pay, employer paid tax, employee paid tax, etc...
Read full review
Rippling
  • Providing point of contact for different aspects of the program, we have a customer service rep, who is fantastic, but he is the only person I know to reach out to, and he generally has to follow up with me with information on which department/person I need to get in touch with to resolve my question.
  • Their "help" section is a bit difficult to navigate, but I will say the team chat makes up for that particular shortfall.
  • Their pricing is a bit all over the place. Everything is "al a carte," so the costs can add up quickly.
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Likelihood to Renew
Wave
No answers on this topic
Rippling
Rippling continues to innovate and amaze me with their new innovations and features. Product feedback is taken seriously so I always give it whenever I can and end up seeing results. Rippling is the new wave of HRIS that cannot compare against others in the industry just due to the fact they are super user friendly!
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Usability
Wave
Very simple & straightforward system to learn and when time is always of the essence the efficiency is much appreciated
Read full review
Rippling
Rippling is certainly the most user-friendly HR and management software I have used. It's incredibly intuitive, with easy access for employees and managers, clear visibility, and simple but incredibly useful functions. I don't feel like it's a hassle to use.
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Reliability and Availability
Wave
No answers on this topic
Rippling
I like that the availability in using Rippling at any given time is useful to me. Getting on the site freely when I need gives me security of knowing that I can be in control of viewing health insurance and hours information. I have yet to get any errors in using the Rippling app.
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Performance
Wave
No answers on this topic
Rippling
Rippling's performance has been great, no errors or glitches yet so far. I am confident that Going from one page to the next and all its complexity usage does not lag or times out, it works effectively and efficiently. While using Rippling and other apps it does not tend to slow it down, works great. No complaints.
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Support Rating
Wave
Quick response times, personalized service. They offer in-depth videos and guides for helping to get set up. Any time I have a question about taxes or reporting, they answer quickly and give comprehensive answers. Members of the team with whom I've interacted have been courteous, friendly, and helpful. Overall, great support.
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Rippling
The Rippling support team is INCREDIBLE. Their chat bot feature is very robust and if you need a live agent they are quick to hop on and a very helpful and friendly. Whether you need a Zoom call for a screen share or things are complicated and they need to make a support ticket, they will always work with you until you find a solution. VERY helpful! and Onboarding as a company/customer was great too.
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Alternatives Considered
Wave
First is the cost. Since QuickBooks removed the inhouse solution and moved everything to the cloud, the cost for a small business is prohibited. Wave is reasonable in cost. Support for QB isn't great they are always trying to upsell and commit. Wave support in comparison is 100% better, and most of the answers are in their manual
Read full review
Rippling
Proof was much more convoluted and not easy to maneuver. Also all the platforms could not relate to each other and so nothing was streamlined in its approach. Also things seemed to lag and was not very up to date when it needed to be. I feel rippling has simplified their processes
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Scalability
Wave
No answers on this topic
Rippling
I can go on here and see all my hours and pto plus health benefits. I like to have the work handbook handy to refer to legal things. How to work my role within it's limits. Being able to put in my hours and view when they are approved is a huge benefit for me.
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Return on Investment
Wave
  • Peace of mind that all the payroll tax-related stuff is taken care of accurately and on time.
  • Easy to use interface saves time and helps ensure I am paid on time.
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Rippling
  • The organization of information increased the business efficiency
  • Employee can search for themselves, leaving HR to do the things they need to be productive
  • Access 24/7 thru mobile app allows employee to function when they have the opportunity leaving the normal work hours for other business.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Rippling Screenshots

Screenshot of the Rippling Dashboard: Employees' home for their payroll, benefits, documents, devices, expenses, and apps.Screenshot of Rippling Payroll: Runs payroll in 90 seconds. Pays employees and contractors around the world. Automatic tax filing.Screenshot of Rippling Benefits Administration: For the management of employees' Medical, Dental, Vision, 401K, FSA, HSA, and commuter benefits.Screenshot of Rippling Single Sign-On: Employees can access all of their SaaS apps in one click from their Rippling dashboard.Screenshot of Rippling’s Time & Attendance platform. This integrates with the rest of the product suite so that when employees clock in, their approved hours automatically synced with payroll and accounting systems.Screenshot of Rippling Mobile Device Management: To manage employees' computers and devices 100% remotely.