Gusto vs Branch

Deel

Rippling

RUN Powered by ADP

Deel is the only global-first people platform that enables companies to hire, pay, manage, and develop talent in 150+ countries without compliance headaches or third-party dependencies. Deel supports 40,000 customers and 1.5 million workers through a single, scalable global system.

Rippling is a cloud-based workforce management system that helps businesses manage operations across HR, finance, and IT.

RUN Powered by ADP® helps small businesses automate payroll, file taxes and manage HR with ease. From AI-driven efficiency to expert support, businesses can take care of their teams anytime and anywhere. 

With Gusto, you get modern HR features like effortless payroll, benefits, hiring, management resources—and more. Gusto is proud to serve more than 400,000 businesses in the US with a single trusted system, competitive compensation tools, and expert guidance to help you empower your team.

Direct Deposit

W-2 Preparation

Compensation Management

Self Service Portal

Employee Database

Compliance Management

Benefits Management

Third-Party Integrations

Wage Garnishment

401(k) Tracking

Check Printing

Reviews for Gusto come from a wide variety of industries, including computer software (9% of reviewers), marketing and advertising (7%), and accounting (6%). The most frequent use case for Gusto cited by reviewers is payroll (57% of reviewers).

Users and use cases

Reviewers indicate Gusto’s pricing is transparent and affordable, and they appreciate the flexible tiered plans. Some users report costs rise with added features or scaling, and they wish lower-tier plans included more functionalities.

Value for money

The Gusto integration most frequently cited by reviewers is QuickBooks Online, an accounting product rated 4.6 out of 5 for its integration with Gusto.

Integrations

Gusto is a payroll tool offering key features such as direct deposit, payroll management, payroll reporting, tax compliance, W-2 preparation, and a self-service portal, among others.

Gusto

Web-based

Paychex Flex

QuickBooks Payroll

ADP Workforce Now

Patriot Software

QuickBooks Online

TriNet HR Plus

Justworks

Square Payroll

Paycor

Paycom

SurePayroll

ADP Comprehensive Services

Xero

Wave

TriNet

OnPay

QuickBooks Time

Simple

Plus

Premium

Contractor

Challenging transition experience

Software Engineer

We ended up switching to Paylocity for global support, and I miss Gusto every day.

36% of reviewers feel negative about Switching and Transition. Users say moving to or from Gusto can be complicated and time-consuming, with difficulties in migrating data and setting up the platform. Reviewers mention challenges when scaling or making changes to company information, and some report frustration with support during the transition process. They feel that switching platforms often leads to confusion, missed information, or administrative headaches, especially for businesses with complex requirements or international operations.

Limited mobile functionality

Email. Marketer

It is not available for mobile devices only handled through desktop as it doesn't have an app.

42% of reviewers feel negative about Mobile Access. Users report frustration with the lack of a dedicated mobile app or limited functionality on mobile devices. Reviewers say accessing features like time entry, paystubs, or PTO calendars is cumbersome or unavailable on smartphones. Some users find the mobile web experience slow or glitchy, and note difficulties with authentication and customer support via phone. They mention that the absence of a robust mobile solution makes it challenging to manage HR tasks on the go.

Restrictive reporting capabilities

The ability to generate necessary reports for 3rd party benefit companies is nearly nonexistent.   If you want to use companies not affiliated with them (Ie companies giving them a kickback) you are up a creek.

42% of reviewers feel negative about Reporting. Reviewers indicate Gusto’s reporting features lack customization and flexibility, making it difficult to generate tailored reports for specific business needs. Users say downloading, formatting, and finding the right reports can be tedious and unintuitive. Some mention issues with data accuracy, limited export options, and cumbersome workflows when integrating with third-party platforms. They feel the reporting tools are less robust compared to other HR or accounting software, which can hinder comprehensive data analysis.

Streamlined onboarding processes

Senior Business Analyst 

Having the ability to deploy custom onboarding checklists was extremely useful and meant we could keep everything within Gusto without the need to create separate documents in other software.

95% of reviewers feel positive about Employee Onboarding. Users think Gusto makes onboarding new hires straightforward and efficient, allowing employees to input their own information and complete checklists digitally. Reviewers appreciate that the platform centralizes documents, automates compliance tasks, and enables self-onboarding, which saves HR teams significant time. They say the onboarding workflow is intuitive, supports custom checklists, and reduces paperwork. Some users highlight the benefit of seamless integration with payroll and benefits, making the entire process less stressful and more organized for both administrators and new employees.

Effortless platform navigation

Managing Partner

Navigation is easy and it is simple to switch between Admin and Employee platforms for review.

92% of reviewers feel positive about Navigation. Reviewers indicate Gusto’s navigation is intuitive, with well-structured menus and a clean dashboard that make it easy to access all necessary features. Users appreciate being able to find reports, documents, and HR tools quickly without a steep learning curve. They say the platform’s layout supports both new and experienced users, and switching between different roles or tasks is straightforward. Many highlight the ease of moving through tabs and menus as a key benefit.

Visually appealing interface

Account Executive

The UI is very clean and keeps the information and material you're looking for in a well structured display.

93% of reviewers feel positive about the User Interface. Users say Gusto’s interface is clean, modern, and visually organized, making it easy to locate important information quickly. Reviewers appreciate the thoughtful design, clear labels, and dashboard features that highlight key dates and notifications. They find the interface user-friendly for both administrators and employees, with streamlined workflows and minimal clutter. Some users mention that the aesthetic elements, such as fun facts and reminders, make the experience more enjoyable and less stressful.

Intuitive and simple operation

Marketing Media

Today Gusto takes care of all this without me having to worry, the platform is very intuitive and very simple to use, for me it was the best investment I made in my company without a doubt.

95% of reviewers feel positive about Ease of Use. Reviewers indicate Gusto is easy to set up and operate, even for those without prior experience in payroll or HR software. They find the platform’s layout and automation features reduce manual work and make routine tasks, like payroll processing and benefits management, much faster. Users say the software guides them step-by-step, offers helpful tutorials, and provides clear instructions. Many appreciate that the interface is straightforward, allowing them to focus on their core business rather than administrative tasks.

Operation Management

Gusto excels at automated payroll, tax filing, employee self-service, benefits administration, and smooth onboarding, ideal for small businesses.

Federal WildFire Contracts

I am moving my business to Paychex, a company that understands authorization, accountability, and basic respect for its customers’ money. If you value control over your finances and don’t want to fight the same battle year after year, look elsewhere.

Warehouse assistant manager

Gusto is a one stop shop for our employees who are enrolled in health benefits, its easy to navigate to your benefit details in the app for each employee and on the back end as the company, its a nice dashboard and easy to see what is being paid.

Software Implementation

The platform also has occasional limitations in customization for more complex pay structures, and certain reports could offer more flexibility in filtering and exporting data.

Community Engagement and Operations Manager

From onboarding contractors and staff to seamless time-tracking, it has turned what used to be a massive administrative burden into a simple, automated process.

Chief of Staff

The straightforwardness of the platform allows for basic functionality for payroll without the bells and whistles that oftentimes gets confusing on previous platforms that were used in the 90's and 00's

Director of Operations

Our team completes their annual sexual harassment training through the platform, which is quick and engaging thanks to the interactive videos!

The employee self-service portal is well-organized, letting team members update information and access pay stubs without constant admin involvement.

People Operations Specialist

Our company didn't feel like the Gusto platform could grow to host all of our HR needs, as well as desirables like Learning Management.

CTO and Co-Founder

The dashboard is clean and it clearly points out where the pay related items are so I do not have to dig around to find them.

Graphic Designer

The third party accountant was based in India and would call me at odd or inopportune times to verify my hours before submitting payroll.

Highly rated by small teams for its simplicity and automation, though it feels limited as businesses grow or require complex HR workflows.

Assistant Book keeper

The app allows you to personalize all of your details and your able to share with others.

Office Manager

It's user friendly, automates time consuming processes, and helps ensure employees are paid accurately and on time.

President

Some of the reports are difficult to generate and I have trouble pulling reports for individual people for different metrics sometimes.

HR Director

Every time I request support, someone is available online or over the phone to talk to, which is a feature that most other similar providers lack.

Account Manager

Missing robust features that are available in some other payroll management platforms that also have many other HR features.

Business Manager

The employee app is very convenient—our team finds it simple to access pay stubs, tax documents, and personal information right from their phones.

PERSONAL BANKER

That i have to reverify my e mail every time that i try to cash one of my gifts, and when i am not at work i am not able to get that code sent out to my work e mail, i wish you guys can also verify our accounts by text message and be an easy process when ever i want to cash out my gifts.

Gusto makes payroll and HR management simple, with an intuitive interface and features like automated tax filing, benefits management, and direct deposit.

Volunteer

The interface is clean and intuitive, and the automated tax filing saves a significant amount of time.

Architectural Designer

While Gusto offers a lot of standard HR and payroll features, it has limited flexibility in terms of customization for specific business needs or unique workflows.

Head of US Sales

I can quickly navigate my benefits, paycheck history, edit direct deposit and review my performances and help track my teams expenses for the month and quarter.

Manager

I've been able to take full advantage of this platform's automated functionalities, such as automatic salary calculation, tax filing and payment, and employee benefits management, which has saved me a lot of time and minimized errors.

People Ops Manager

Gusto was a great HRIS for our startup, and supported our employee payroll, benefits, and tax needs as we grew from 5 to 100 employees.  

I responded within 30 minutes, clearly objecting and stating I do not authorize tax payments through Gusto. Despite that, the money was pulled less than 24 hours later.

Owner

everything from scheduling, payroll, training, and even PTO requests.

No meaningful opportunity to stop it. When I pushed back two days later, I was told the money had already been remitted and that I now have to chase a government agency (I'm assuming the IRS, but who knows, they wont tell me) by myself to attempt a refund.

server

Gusto works best as a payroll-focused checking account, not as your financial command center.

Business Development Manager

The mobile app is also not very inclusive, you have to log in on a web based computer to effectively manage.

Overall, Gusto has been a reliable and time-saving solution for managing payroll and HR for our small business.

We also find it very useful for hosting employee manuals, documents, and training modules.

HR Admin

I had no issues with time management and getting them on the phones as they would call right away but even with that, sometimes I did not get my issues resolved

Online Platform Coordinator

It will show you that it's on its way with a deposit date, but no paystub until it has been deposited.

Alerts, budgeting tools, and spending controls are pretty basic.

QA Specialist

It has a very wide selection of merchants and can use alternate methods, such as QR codes.

accounting administrator

does not always notify if i forget to punch out or so sometimes time can be wrong and it messes up the next days time as well

Sales manager

There have been times when the app hasn’t worked and payroll had to be wired to clients accounts, which made us also have to reimburse for wire transfer fees

HR Finance Manager

Reporting was sometimes difficult to pull the information we wanted - especially for PTO accruals

I was able to run payroll for my company by myself without any issues and had all of the support I needed.

The platform is user-friendly, reliable, and makes managing payroll, benefits, and

VP and Head of Employee Success

I don't like the customer service, it's an email and it can takes an extended amount of time to get any issues resolved.

Massage Therapist

I actually was also able to log in and pull tax information from previous years long after I had left that employer.

In my experience, I've used several platforms similar to Gusto, and I believe their payroll function needs improvement.

One major frustration is that when an employee is rehired, Gusto does not reset their settings.

teacher

Limited customization for complex payroll needs

ACCOUNTING MANAGER

Some of the more complicated payroll processings it has some limitations.

Their app apparently doesn't natively support CO wage withholding, there is no way of telling if they've paid it or not, and they wait until the last possible second on purpose to file.

Its user-friendly interface makes it easy to monitor employee hours and resolve issues efficiently.

Photographer

The Gusto Wallet app for your phone only works for W2 employees, so I can't access my account on my phone. How many people really use their phone to check and manage their finances anyway?

Payroll

Employee Management

Tax Management

Cost Savings

Pay and Paystubs

Training and Learning Curve

Mobile Access

Email Notifications

Reporting

Employee Onboarding

Freelancers

Small Business

Mid-size Business

Large Enterprises

Paylocity

One unified platform for HR, Finance, and IT. Connect people, processes, and data. Automate tasks and drive business growth. 

Paycom is the most automated HCM platform and the only HR and payroll software built on a truly single, unique database that automates the entire employee life cycle. 

Branch enables businesses to accelerate payments to their workforce with our comprehensive workforce payments platform. 


Employee Benefits Administration

Branch

Android

iPhone

Windows

iPad

UKG Pro

ADP TotalSource

Basic

Notification overload and inconsistency

72% of reviewers feel negative about notifications. Some users report receiving too many alerts, including unnecessary or irrelevant messages, which they find disruptive. Reviewers indicate that notifications can be inconsistent, with some important alerts not appearing or being delayed, while others are excessive. They say it’s sometimes unclear where to find the information referenced in a notification, and that managing notification preferences can be cumbersome. Users also mention frustration with persistent or hard-to-clear alerts.

Unreliable messaging experience

64% of reviewers feel negative about message and chat features. Some users say messages are delayed, fail to send, or disappear unexpectedly, making it difficult to maintain conversations. Reviewers report that the chat function can be glitchy, sometimes requiring app restarts to view new messages. They also mention issues with group messaging, lack of read receipts, and reliance on data rather than SMS, which can be problematic in areas with poor connectivity. Users find these limitations hinder effective workplace communication.

Frequent glitches and loading delays

67% of reviewers feel negative about bugs and issues. Users report frequent problems with the app crashing, slow loading times, and needing to restart the app to access features. Some reviewers mention that schedules and messages sometimes fail to load or update, causing inconvenience. They indicate that glitches can disrupt workflow, and that repeated errors, such as app crashes or delays in accessing information, are a recurring source of frustration for teams relying on the platform.

Streamlined workplace organization

100% of reviewers feel positive about the app’s organization. Users say the platform keeps everything tidy and accessible, making it easy to find what they need without unnecessary steps. Some reviewers appreciate that the clear layout helps them and their teams stay on top of shifts and tasks, even after time away. They find that the organized structure saves time and ensures everyone remains informed. Reviewers indicate that having dedicated sections for different functions helps reduce confusion and supports productivity across the workplace.

Efficient team connectivity

98% of reviewers feel positive about team communication. Reviewers appreciate being able to reach all coworkers in one place, noting that the app simplifies group and one-on-one messaging. Users say it’s convenient to share updates, resolve issues, and keep everyone on the same page without needing personal contact information. Some users find the chat features interactive and suitable for quick workplace discussions, while others highlight that it improves overall communication speed and reduces misunderstandings within teams.

Accessible scheduling and alerts

94% of reviewers feel positive about schedule communication. Users say they value being able to check their schedules, request changes, and communicate about shifts directly through the app. Some reviewers highlight the convenience of receiving reminders and updates, which helps prevent missed shifts and improves accountability. They appreciate that managers can quickly post schedules and send alerts, while employees can easily coordinate shift swaps and stay informed about workplace events and changes.

Gusto vs Branch Comparison (2026)

Gusto

Branch

Overview

Video & Screenshots

Pricing

User reviews

Key features

Integrations

Alternatives