Gusto Alternatives (2026): Cheaper Payroll, PEO and Global Options for Startups, With Costs
Gusto is still a sound choice for a US-only startup, but three things changed this year and push some teams to look elsewhere: its Contractor Only plan closed to new customers on October 1, 2026; since May 1, 2026 it refers new customers to Remote instead of employing people abroad itself; and Simple covers one state only, so a second-state hire means Plus at $80 + $12 per person. If cost is the reason, OnPay, Square Payroll, Paychex Flex Essentials and Justworks Payroll are all cheaper than Gusto Plus once you are in two states. If you are hiring abroad, Rippling and Deel do US payroll and EOR in one account.
Why people leave Gusto, with dates
- Contractor Only closed (October 1, 2026). Gusto's October plan notice: no longer offered to new customers from October 1, 2026; contractors are paid inside Simple, Plus or Premium instead. Many ranking pages still recommend it at $35 + $6.
- No direct EOR (May 1, 2026). Gusto now "refers customers directly to Remote for Employer of Record services". Remote offers Gusto customers $100 a month off EOR for the first year.
- Price rises and the state limit. Simple went from $40 to $49 in spring 2025. Simple is "basic payroll in one state", and a remote hire in a second state moves you to Plus.
- Tax-filing complaints. Gusto's Trustpilot score was 1.9 from 2,534 reviews on October 13, 2026. The recurring one-star theme is filing errors that leave the employer with penalties; one reviewer (September 22, 2026): "Gusto policy is to not pay overdue taxes even though Gusto is at fault."
How we chose
A published starting price, multi-state payroll without a plan jump, a route for people abroad, and a vendor taking new customers today. Prices are from each vendor's site, read October 13, 2026.
The alternatives
OnPay
$49 a month plus $6 per worker, with payroll in "as many states as you need" and benefits administration included; the per-worker fee counts each employee or contractor in at least one pay run that month. First month free. The base rose from $40 to $49 in spring 2025, like Gusto's. It suits a US-only team that has outgrown Simple and does not want to pay Plus.
| Plan | Price (monthly / billed yearly) | For / limits |
|---|---|---|
| Payroll Essentials | $49 base + $6/worker per month | Full-service payroll, unlimited runs, multi-state payroll at no extra charge, benefits administration |
| Add-on: HR | + $15 base and $2/worker per month | |
| Add-on: Time Tracking | + $15 base and $4/worker per month | |
| Add-on: Compliance Resources | + $10 base per month | |
| Add-on: Live HR Support | + $65 base per month | |
| Add-on: Benefits | Plan premiums only | |
| Add-on: Year-end forms direct mail | $10 per form | help.onpay.com/hc/en-us/articles/200108067 |
| Add-on: Bundles | $70 + $10/worker (Essentials+Time+HR); $120 + $7/worker (Essentials+HR+Compliance+Live HR); $130 + $10/worker (all five) |
Prices verified on onpay.com/payroll/software/costs-pricing on October 13, 2026.
Square Payroll
$35 a month plus $6 per person paid, multistate and next-day deposit included, unchanged since at least October 2024. A $6-per-person contractor-only plan is the nearest thing to Gusto's closed Contractor Only plan. It is built around Square's point-of-sale, so a SaaS team gets fewer HR extras.
| Plan | Price (monthly / billed yearly) | For / limits |
|---|---|---|
| Full-service payroll | $35/mo + $6 monthly fee per person paid | Unlimited pay runs, multistate payroll, federal and state filings, next-day direct deposit |
| Contractor-only payroll | $6/mo per person paid | Contractor payments only; no tax filings |
| Add-on: Mailed W-2/1099 copies | Annual fee of $3 per mailed form |
Prices verified on squareup.com/us/en/payroll/pricing on October 13, 2026.
Paychex Flex Essentials
$39 a month plus $5 per employee, with "no cost or obligation until your first payroll", pitched at companies with fewer than 20 employees and contractors. The Select, Pro and Enterprise tiers are quote only, so the cheap price ends where a growing startup needs more.
Justworks
Justworks Payroll is $50 + $8 per employee with multi-state included: the cheapest like-for-like replacement for Gusto Plus at 12 or 40 people. Its PEO is $79 (Basic) or $124 (Plus) per employee, and its EOR ($599) is only sold with the PEO. See Justworks pricing and Gusto vs Justworks.
Rippling
Rippling has shown no prices on its pricing page since about September 2025. Its small-business page says "$8 per user per month plus a $40 per month base fee", while its HRIS review article says the base fee is $35: Rippling's own pages disagree. Its blog prices US Payroll at $8 per employee billed annually or $10 monthly, on top of the platform, and EOR "starting at $499". Vendr reports a median Rippling contract of $45,645 a year across 289 purchases. VC-backed startups can get six months free (three for EOR) through Startup Stack, in exchange for an 18-month minimum term (24 months above 50 FTE). See Gusto vs Rippling.
Deel US Payroll
$29 per employee a month self-service (it was $19 in 2024 and early 2025), with EOR at $599 and contractor management at $49 in the same account. Deel's US PEO shows $125 per employee on one tab of its pricing page and $110 / $120 (Starter / Pro) on another. See Deel pricing.
Rippling and Deel are in litigation: Rippling sued Deel on March 17, 2025 (N.D. Cal. 3:25-cv-02576), alleging trade-secret theft and racketeering. The court ruled in February 2026 that Rippling's RICO and trade-secret claims could proceed, and on September 25, 2026 it sent Deel's counterclaims about a Rippling account to arbitration. A status conference is set for November 13, 2026; there is no trial date. See Deel vs Rippling.
Quote and bundle only: ADP RUN and QuickBooks
ADP's RUN packages for 1 to 49 employees all say "Get pricing"; its app-based Roll by ADP is $39 + $5 per employee, and ADP was advertising three months free until October 22. QuickBooks Payroll is now QuickBooks Workforce, and its pricing page shows only accounting bundles, from $88 + $7 per employee with Simple Start; per-employee fees changed on July 1, 2026.
If you are leaving because of cost
| Annual fee, US-only team | Pre-seed: 3 people, 1 state | Seed: 12 people, 2 states | Series A: 40 people, 2 states |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gusto (Simple at pre-seed, then Plus) | $804 | $2,688 | $6,720 |
| OnPay | $804 | $1,452 | $3,468 |
| Square Payroll | $636 | $1,284 | $3,300 |
| Paychex Flex Essentials | $648 | $1,188 | Above its target size |
| Justworks Payroll | $888 | $1,752 | $4,440 |
| Rippling (from) | $1,128 | $3,072 | $9,120 |
| Deel US Payroll | $1,044 | $4,176 | $13,920 |
| US employer payroll taxes | $26,421 | $114,650 | $431,753 |
Our payroll cost model, vendor prices read October 13, 2026. Salaries $110K / $120K / $135K; pre-seed all in California, seed 10 California + 2 Texas, Series A 32 California + 8 New York; 2026 federal and new-employer state rates. Rippling = $8 platform + $10 monthly-billed payroll per employee + $40 base, before any Startup Stack months.
The biggest saving on the table is about $1,500 a year at seed, under a day of runway. Switching to save fees alone rarely pays for the migration work. The number that does matter is abroad: for 4 people outside the US at seed, EOR fees run $28,752 a year at $599 (Deel, Remote), $23,952 from Rippling's $499, and $19,152 at Pebl's $399, against $1,392 to $2,352 to pay the same people as contractors through Remote or Deel. That gap, more than three weeks of runway in fees alone, is the decision to get right, along with whether those people can lawfully be contractors where they live. Run your own team through the calculator.
How to move off Gusto
- Pick a quarter start if you can, so each quarter's federal and state filings sit with one provider.
- Download every payroll register, tax filing and W-2 from Gusto before you close the account. One reviewer (September 18, 2026) said that once you stop using Gusto "they hold your W2s and payroll reports hostage", so do this first.
- Give the new provider year-to-date wages, taxes withheld and tax payments per employee, plus state account numbers and current unemployment rates.
- Run a test payroll, then cancel Gusto (month to month, no contract).
Not hands-on tested yet: we have not run a live account on Gusto or the tools listed. Prices and terms come from each vendor's published pricing page and help center, read on October 13, 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a cheaper alternative to Gusto?
Yes, once you have people in two states. At 12 people, Square ($1,284), Paychex Flex Essentials ($1,188), OnPay ($1,452) and Justworks Payroll ($1,752) all cost less a year than Gusto Plus ($2,688).
Can I still sign up for Gusto Contractor Only?
No. It closed to new customers on October 1, 2026. Square's contractor-only plan ($6 per person paid) is the closest replacement for US contractors.
Is Rippling better than Gusto?
For a US-only team, Gusto publishes its prices and runs month to month. Rippling fits when you want payroll, IT and global hiring in one system and accept a custom quote.
Which Gusto alternatives can employ people abroad?
One that does US payroll and EOR in the same account: Rippling (EOR from $499) or Deel ($599). Justworks also offers EOR at $599, but only with its PEO.
Related: Gusto pricing, Deel alternatives, the payroll and EOR hub and revenue per employee benchmarks.