ADP vs. Paychex: Differences, pros and cons in 2024

ADP and Paychex are both well-established brands within the cloud-based payroll and human resources (HR) space. Both provide basic payroll and tax filing services, compliance expertise, 24/7 customer support and an all-in-one platform option that includes advanced HR management tools and services. 

This comparison will examine Paychex Flex and ADP Run, two small business-focused payroll software offerings. However, ADP Run is not the only payroll software offered by ADP. Roll by ADP is another ADP payroll service designed for on-the-go small business owners wanting payroll software they can run from their mobile device.

Below we provide an in-depth look at each software service, including a comparison of features, pricing, available support and customer reviews to help you decide on the best fit for your business needs. 

Overall, ADP RUN offers more robust features and HR support than Paychex Flex. Though, Paychex is still a worthy competitor. The provider works with businesses to build a budget-conscious and tailored plan that’s best for an organization’s current payroll needs and provides access to advanced tool options later as required.

ADP RUN vs. Paychex Flex side-by-side comparison

Pricing

Winner: Tie

Neither ADP RUN nor Paychex offer transparent pricing. While Paychex’s lowest-tier plan starts at $39 per month plus $5 per employee, its mid-tier and highest-tier plans require a custom quote. Paychex also requires many features to be accessed as add-ons. For example, in its introductory plan, job posting, benefits administration and many new-hire tools are only available as add-ons. The prices for these add-ons are not specified, making it difficult to determine how much its introductory plan will be once final pricing details are revealed.

ADP RUN offers no pricing details on its website but does provide more plan options than Paychex. While Paychex lists three plans on its website, ADP RUN offers four available plans for small to mid-sized companies, as well as a plan specifically for one-employee companies and a contractor-only plan. As such, ADP RUN likely offers more plan options for different budgets.

Despite this analysis, Paychex does stand out with one pricing feature: it offers a generous six-month free trial, while ADP RUN offers a (still generous) three-month free trial. So, if you’re looking to get your payroll started for free and avoid expenses for as long as you can, Paychex is the better option here. 

Payroll tools

Winner: ADP RUN

While Paychex offers standard payroll processing tools small businesses need, including the ability to process payroll via direct deposit or paycards and calculate, deduct and pay employee garnishments and tip wages, ADP Run offers the better set of payroll tools and features. 

ADP RUN offers a truly personalized experience for employers running payroll. Employers can customize their payroll dashboard, including priority to-do lists, payroll history and step-by-step screens for guided payroll processing. Employers can also automate payroll processing or run it through the provider’s app, over the phone and online. Payroll distributions can be made via direct deposit, an ADP debit card or digital or paper check. Paper checks are delivered from ADP to employers for distribution directly to employees while at work.

There are some unique perks to using ADP RUN’s Wisely direct debit card to pay your employees. The account can be used to receive early direct deposits, as well as income from other sources. You can use the Wisely debit card account to shop and pay bills, easily track balances and manage money while enjoying account protection. The Wisely card is compatible with Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay. 

Automated tax filing

Winner: ADP RUN

While both ADP RUN and Paychex offer automated tax calculations, filing and deposits, ADP RUN offers more perks to make the entire tax filing process stress-free. 

Namely, if you receive a penalty or fine for inaccurate tax filing or payment deposits, ADP responds to tax agencies on your behalf and pays fines for any errors the system makes. It further prevents mistakes by leaning on artificial intelligence to detect errors and alert you to them. Finally, it automatically updates its system with changing federal and state tax laws across all 50 U.S. states. 

HR tools

Winner: ADP RUN

ADP RUN’s top-tier plans include robust HR options that exceed Paychex Flex’s options – even when considering add-ons.

ADP RUN includes new hire onboarding, recruiting, salary benchmarking and background screening across all plans. As you invest in its higher tier plans, you’ll access more HR tools. For instance, its second-tier, Enhanced plan gives employers access to job postings on ZipRecruiter. And as you upgrade to its top-tier plans, Complete and HR Pro, you gain access to an applicant tracking system and an HR helpdesk with a library of forms, compliance tools and training kits, such as labor law posters and sexual harassment prevention training.

On the other hand, Paychex provides a digital employee onboarding system and access to a human resources document library with each of its three plans. Paychex’s HR library offers hundreds of downloadable HR forms and tools, such as job-description builders and salary benchmarking tools. However, the more comprehensive tools are all offered as add-ons and not included with even its premium plans. These upgrade options include features such as employee pre-screening, recruiting and applicant tracking and performance management.

Employee experience

Winner: Paychex

Both ADP RUN and Paychex offer employee handbook builders, employee onboarding tools, a self-serve employee portal, benefits administration tools and plans and customizable tools for processing payroll based on employee preferences. However, when it comes to starting employees out on the right foot and providing support, Paychex has a slight edge over ADP RUN. It offers slightly more tools and programs to make work more enjoyable and worthwhile.

While Paychex does not provide employee discounts with nationally-recognized brands and local retailers like ADP RUN, but it does provide tools and education to help employees reach their financial goals. These include employee financial wellness and cash flow assistance programs like short-term loans. In addition, Paychex offers an e-learning system to promote career growth through online courses that keep employees engaged with their roles.

Software integrations

Winner: Paychex

While both offer access to a fair amount of third-party software integrations, Paychex shines in this area, offering an extensive and ever-growing application programming interface (API) library. Paychex integrates with over 1,100 leading software solutions for HR, payroll reporting, benefits administration, recruiting, time and attendance, accounting, hiring, onboarding and much more. Examples include Bamboo HR, Quickbooks Online, Xero, Aetna, Indeed, Nationwide and SimplyHired. Additional costs may apply, depending on the type of integration chosen.

ADP Run offers about 650 integrations to help you manage employee benefits and compensation, time and labor, employee learning programs, financial wellness, employee performance, expenses, recruiting and onboarding, compliance and employee rewards and recognition. Integrations include Intuit Quickbooks, Homebase Time Clock and Scheduling and ApplicantPro. 

ADP RUN and Paychex Flex alternatives

Gusto

Gusto is best suited for small companies looking for a scalable solution. In its lowest-tier plan, Gusto allows business owners to run single-state payroll processing for $40 per month plus $6 per employee. It also offers a contractor-only plan for $35 per month plus $6 per contractor. As your business grows and your HR needs expand, Gusto provides higher tier plans to meet your needs.

While the custom quotes you get from ADP and Paychex may exceed that of Gusto’s plans, both providers offer features that make them better for established workforces.For example, ADP RUN’s plans offer multi-jurisdiction (multi-state) payroll processing and Paychex offers an e-learning management system to develop employees’ skills. Therefore, ADP and Paychex are better for larger, more established companies looking to recruit top talent and promote from within. 

Payroll4Free

Payroll4Free is quite different from ADP RUN and Paychex. While Paychex and ADP RUN are designed for more established businesses that need to further develop and streamline their payroll and human resources processes, Payroll4Free is best for companies with no budget to dedicate to payroll. 

Cost is undoubtedly top of mind for most small business owners. ADP RUN and Paychex costs can add up quickly for companies just starting out. Payroll4Free is an excellent option for those looking for a free, bare-bones payroll software with solid customer support. However, its important to note that Payroll4Free is only truly free for companies with fewer than 25 employees or contractors.

Patriot

Patriot offers basic payroll and accounting features at an affordable price. It is a great option for startups and budget-conscious business owners looking to get the most bang for their buck. For $17 per month plus $4 per employee, Patriot’s payroll software allows you to pay an unlimited number of employees via direct deposit and accurately calculate tax deductions. It also includes accounting tools, such as expense reports. However, HR and time tracking tools are add-ons that will cost extra.

Established small- to mid-sized businesses needing advanced HR and workforce development tools will be better suited by Paychex or ADP RUN. Both providers offer advanced recruiting, hiring, onboarding and benefits administration tools in their plans.

ADP vs. Paychex customer feedback

Winner: ADP RUN

Customer ratings are mainly positive for ADP Run. On TrustRadius, it earned 8.2 out of 10 stars based on 542 user reviews, while Paychex Flex has 7.3 out of 10 stars and 492 reviews. On Capterra, the story is similar. ADP RUN earns a slightly higher rating of 4.5 out of five compared to Paychex Flex’s 4.1 out of five stars.

The main complaints from ADP Run customers are that the software can be cumbersome and its customer service response time is slow, whereas Paychex complaints focus on technical issues and glitches.

Positive reviews praise ADP RUN for its value, noting that its good for the price and that it meets the expectations set by ADP’s sales and marketing teams.

“RUN is an unparalleled choice for payroll processing. Error free and easy to use. We have tried other services and none can compare,” said Kathy Davis, owner Fremont Rubber Stamp Co., Inc.

Paychex Flex reviews praise it for being user-friendly and having an intuitive interface, good customer service and knowledgeable account executives.

“We started using Paychex Flex in 2017 at the request of our accountant,” said Sandy Jenkins, CFO of ACT Protective Services, LLCSecurity & Investigation. “I hesitated, as I had always done payroll myself through our business accounting software. However, I found Paychex Flex so easy to use that I can’t see myself doing payroll any other way. I have had other companies try to get me to make a change and I do not see any reason to leave Paychex Flex. It is user friendly, has great reports, and whenever I need assistance, they are always there to help.” 

Final verdict 

Winner: ADP RUN

“Choosing payroll software is like picking the perfect ice cream flavor,” says Daniel Cooper, managing partner of Lolly, a remote software and app development agency. “It’s all about the ingredients.”

“Three key ‘flavors’ to prioritize are: ease-of-use (because who wants to grapple with a rocky road?), robust tax features (think of it as the sprinkles that keep you compliant) and integration capabilities (the cherry on top that syncs with your existing systems).”

Cooper advises small business owners not to rush creating their sundae, and to remember, the best payroll software is the one that satisfies your unique business cravings.

With this in mind, ADP RUN and Paychex certainly bring these key flavors to the table. Both provide user-friendly payroll options, assurance of solid tax compliance and plenty of integration capabilities. However, in a comparison of features, employee experience, software integrations and customer feedback, we give ADP Run a slight edge.

Who is ADP best for?

With all the standard tools to run payroll and manage HR needs, ADP RUN is best for companies looking for a solution with flexible plan choices that will grow with their developmental stages and budgets. For example, a startup can begin with its contractor-only plan to hire one or two workers, then advance to RUN’s payroll Essentials plan, and continue scaling up to bundled HR and payroll plans as appropriate and needed for their stage of business development. 

Who is Paychex best for?

Paychex Flex plans are great for small businesses needing out-of-the-box payroll software and wanting to get started quickly. It offers a customizable solution users can lean on to run payroll, stay tax compliant and develop a top-talent workforce by meeting employees where they are, then growing their skills with supportive learning tools. Business owners seeking to work with their payroll provider and pay a little extra for add-ons to create a custom solution will likely be happy with Paychex Flex.