Advance Payroll is a flexible and intuitive software – but is it right for your business?

✓ Pros:

HMRC-recognised
Easy to use and quick to implement
Comes with forward-thinking features, such as instant calculations and anytime pay
Free demo available

✘ Cons:

Doesn’t transparently advertise its pricing

At a glance: Advanced is an innovative and easy to use payroll software that suits businesses big and small.

Picture the UK in the late 1970s. Ford Cortinas and Austin Allegros roamed the streets. ABBA was spinning in everyone’s cassette players. And Advanced (formerly Mitrefinch) was busy pioneering computerised clocking in systems.

In the decades that have followed, it has continued to develop innovative workforce management solutions for businesses – from HR software to time and attendance solutions. Today, though, we’ll be holding the metaphorical microscope over the Advanced Payroll system and answer this question: Is it the best payroll solution to meet your business’ needs?

Quick facts

Advanced (formerly Mitrefinch) has gained over 7,500 customers around the world
It’s used by some of the leading outsourced payroll providers in the UK

What are Advanced Payroll’s best features?

Let’s kick off with a snapshot of our favourite things about Advanced Payroll…

✓ Unique instant calculations

Quite possibly the most exciting thing about Advanced Payroll is its unique ability to make instant calculations. That’s right – no more waiting endlessly for payroll calculations to run! In fact, during the platform’s benchmark testing, the software was able to produce gross to net calculations for 10,000 staff in just 20 seconds.

How does this work? Well, just as the Hulk’s secret is that he’s always angry, the key to Advanced Payroll’s super rapid sums is that its innovative calculation engine is always running, 24/7, in the background. So essentially, whenever you need gross to net calculations, they’re just… already there.

As well as winning over the impatient among us, this feature also enables more accurate reporting, as well as more flexible submission deadlines. Advanced Payroll has solved a prevalent payroll frustration here, and we’re impressed.

✓ Adaptable paydays

Advanced Payroll offers optional integration with Wagestream, which enables employees to draw down pay when they need it most, instead of having to wait until their official payday.

In enabling staff to access pay that they’ve earned whenever they need it – in the face of an unexpected bill or expense, perhaps – you’ll be offering an excellent workplace perk that’ll not only make your employees’ lives easier, but also show them that you care about their wellbeing. That can only boost their loyalty to you as an employer.

✓ Speedy implementation and dedicated support

Paying staff is, of course, a time-sensitive endeavour – so when it comes to setting up a new payroll system, holdups and hiccups are the last thing you want. Fortunately, Advanced Payroll promises pain-free implementation, providing an on-site “implementer” and a dedicated project manager to ensure the installation goes as smoothly as possible.

Plus, the company offers robust customer support and guided training to help your team get to grips with Advanced Payroll quickly. In fact, it states that full implementation can be achieved within just three weeks. It helps, of course, that the system itself is incredibly easy to learn and use, with highly-polished, intuitive, user-friendly dashboards.

✓ Flexible integration

Advanced’s workforce management solutions can work independently of one another. So, if the payroll software is all you want from the company, that’s fine – it’ll work well as a standalone product.

However, if you’re looking for a full suite of management software, you’ll be happy to know that Advanced’s systems can integrate with one another to create a cohesive end-to-end management tool. This minimises the time you’ll spend inputting information and gathering reports across different platforms.

So, what exactly can you integrate Advanced Payroll with? Well, besides payroll software, Advanced also supplies time and attendance systems (don’t forget to check out our review of those here!), HR software, and access control systems.

How much does Advanced Payroll cost?

One of the frustrations of working with a big payroll software provider like Advanced Payroll is that its pricing is bespoke. In other words, it’ll depend on factors such as the size of your businesses, the number of users who’ll need to have access to the system, and whether or not you choose to integrate it with any of Advanced’s other systems, as discussed in the section above.

The crux is this: we can’t tell you how much Advanced Payroll will charge you right now. But tell us a bit about your business, and we can help you to quickly and easily gather tailored quotes from the payroll service providers that can best meet your unique needs.

Simply answer a few quick questions about your business, and we’ll match you up with the right payroll providers for you. They’ll then be in touch with no-obligation quotes that are tailored to you. It’s a super easy way to compare the price options and suppliers available, without hours of endless research. Oh, and it’s completely free!

▶ Read more: How much does it cost to outsource payroll?

Is Advanced Payroll right for my business?

Check the statement that applies to you to find out!

“I run a small business with a handful of employees”

Advanced Payroll is a breeze to use and pretty painless to set up, which makes it a solid option for small businesses that are new to the world of automated payroll. Plus, its focus on dedicated, responsive customer service means you’ll be in reliable hands if something ever goes wrong. It’s also easy to scale – adding new payments and deductions is super easy – meaning it can grow as your business does.

All that being said, we know that as a small business, your budget may well be a limiting factor. Unfortunately, due to its bespoke pricing model, we can’t advise on whether Advanced Payroll will suit you in that respect. But we can help you to quickly find and compare prices from providers that do suit your needs. Just answer a few quick questions about your business, and payroll providers that can cater to your unique requirements will be in touch with no-obligation tailored quotes. Simple!

“I run a larger business with 100 or more employees to manage”

That’s great – we think that Advanced Payroll’s flexibility, scalability, and integration options make it ideal for businesses like yours!

With so many employees to manage, any number of complex scenarios could arise while processing payroll. Fortunately, the platform is well-equipped to deal with all sorts of unique calculations, handling multiple pay groups, tax references, and pay elements and benefits all on one payroll. Plus, its instant calculations engine will save you serious time when it comes to running those numbers.

Compare tailored quotes from leading payroll system providers

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What do Advanced Payroll customer reviews say?

Now, you can’t get a clear picture of what a supplier’s really all about without checking in with its customers. So we took to Advanced’s (formerly Mitrefinch) Trustpilot page and scoured through acres of reviews to find out what real users honestly think of it.

Happily, the majority of s reviewers seem very pleased with the company – it boasts a rare ‘Excellent’ rating, with 74% of reviewers awarding it five stars. A further 14% gave it four stars, with just 12% of users rating it average to bad.

We have to bear in mind, of course, that not all of these reviews are about Advanced Payroll specifically. However, we’ve plucked out a few of the most telling reviews that shed light on Advanced ’s payroll offering.

The majority praise Advanced’s speedy customer service and system implementation:

“We chose Mitrefinch [now Advanced] on the promise of a speedy implementation, having been let down by another provider who shall not be named.

“I’m happy to report that we went live on time and to budget – paying our staff accurately using the payroll module without a hitch. Having moved into support, we find the team both knowledgeable and responsive.

“Highly recommended and we are pleased we made the right choice.”

– Paul, Advanced (formerly Mitrefinch) payroll customer

“Whenever I have a problem using the payroll system, or have a new payment to set up, the Mitrefinch [now Advanced] support team is very efficient in sending a reply and easy to follow instructions, with screenshots, on how to do it.

“The online process to create a ‘ticket’ for a query seems to work much better than waiting for an advisor to call you back.

“Often, with payroll, a response is needed pretty urgently, especially if a payday deadline is looming. Mitrefinch [now Advanced] seems to understand this, and responds quickly.”

– Dianne, Advanced (formerly Mitrefinch) payroll customer

Some highlight the fact that they have had technical issues with the system – however, that’s countered by the fact that Advanced has been quick to fix those problems:

“I use Mitrefinch [now Advanced] to process payroll, and although there have been some problems with the system, Mitrefinch has always been friendly and helpful in solving these issues.”

– Jenny, Advanced (formerly Mitrefinch) payroll customer

Meanwhile, others laud the system for its ease of use, and the fact that all of Advanced ’s tools can be integrated for a smooth user experience:

“One of the things I like best is the interconnectivity of the software. We used to have several different softwares for the different sections of HR and payroll, and were constantly manually entering information several times into different systems. Now, if it’s in one it’s in them all, so there’s less room for human error. I also love how I can automate and customise pretty much anything through field calculations, reports, and overnight server processes.

– Stuart, Advanced (formerly Mitrefinch) payroll customer

Our methodology: How did we review Advanced Payroll?

We regularly research a wide range of market-leading payroll products and services to evaluate them in terms of functionality, usability, data security, and customer support so we can make the most useful recommendations for UK businesses.

Our rigorous research process means these products have been scored and rated in five main categories of investigation and 10 subcategories – in fact, we covered 56 areas of investigation in total. We then gave each category score a ‘relevance weighting' to ensure the product's final score perfectly reflects the needs and requirements of Expert Market readers.

Our main testing categories for payroll products and services are:

Control: the level of customisation and flexibility provided by the payroll software in managing and processing payroll, such as the ability to define pay periods, set up tax withholding rules, and manage employee data.

Data Security: the measures and protocols implemented by the payroll software to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of sensitive payroll information.

Expertise: the level of knowledge and guidance provided by the payroll software vendor or support team. This can include resources such as documentation, tutorials, and training materials.

Scalability: the ability of the payroll software to accommodate the growth and changing needs of a business, including the capacity to handle an increasing number of employees and support multiple locations or entities.

Customer Support: the various channels and methods available for users to seek assistance and support from the payroll software vendor, such as email or ticket-based support, phone support, or live chat.

Verdict

In our opinion, Advanced Payroll should definitely be on your list of payroll software programs to investigate. It’s forward-thinking – its instant calculations engine and integration with Wagestream are pretty innovative – and importantly, it comes with slick, intuitive dashboards that are easy to navigate. Plus, its existing customers seem to be very happy with it, which is always a fantastic sign.

Unfortunately, Advanced Payroll’s downfall is that it isn’t very transparent about its prices. However, we can help you there.

It’s so important to compare your options – pros, cons, prices and all – before committing to a single supplier. That’s what our service aims to help you to do. Simply answer a few quick questions about what your business needs, and we’ll match you up with the very best payroll providers for you. They’ll then be in touch directly with no-obligation, tailored quotes and further info. It’s fast, easy, and free – why not try it today?