5 Best Payroll Solutions for Hotels: Pricing and Features Compared

With so many options out there, finding the right payroll solution for your hotel can be tough. And it’s important to find a provider that meets your needs—whether you’re managing high staff turnover or dealing with multiple pay structures.

In this guide, we’ll review the five best payroll solutions for hotels, focusing mostly on hospitality-specific features and benefits.

Keep reading to see which payroll solution can help you run your hotel more efficiently and stay compliant with tax laws.

Gusto: Best Overall Payroll Solution for Hotels

Gusto is a highly rated payroll software solution ideal for hotels of all types and sizes. Its easy onboarding and offboarding features, smart mobile apps, and support for nationwide chains make it our favorite payroll solution for hotels.

Key Features

• Gusto’s payroll software provides standard features such as automated tax calculations, W-2 and 1099 processing, as well as e-signing and e-filing during tax season.
• Gusto reports records of all your new hires to the government so you don’t have to.
• Payroll support in all 50 states and customized tax calculations for each reduces research burdens for hotel chains with a large national footprint.
• The Time Clock Kiosk app allows employees to clock in and out right from their smartphones, facilitating easy time tracking while requiring PIN codes to prevent time theft.
• Gusto Wallet app allows employees to view their digital paystubs as soon as they get paid.

Ease of Use

Gusto charges no setup fees, and its support team will personally assist you as you begin to onboard the software.

Gusto integrates with QuickBooks, Xero, Clover, and many other top accounting software providers, allowing you to easily make the switch to Gusto for payroll without changing anything else about how you run your books.

Gusto provides chat, email, and phone support. The company is known for its highly rated chat and phone support, but agents are only available from 8am to 8pm EST.

Pricing

Gusto’s payroll software comes in three tiers:

• The Simple plan costs $40 per month, plus $6 per paid employee.
• The Plus plan costs $80 per month (currently $60), plus $12 per paid employee.
• The Premium plan costs $180 per month (currently $135), plus $22 per paid employee.

QuickBooks Payroll: Best All-In-One Financial Solution for Hotels

QuickBooks Payroll is an easy-to-use payroll software solution from a reputable provider. Though it doesn’t integrate automatically with other accounting software providers, its seamless connection with QuickBooks accounting software makes it our favorite choice for hotel managers looking to handle payroll through an all-in-one financial solution.

Key Features

• QuickBooks Payroll comes with expected features like auto-run payroll, automated tax calculations, and automated W-2 and 1099 form filing.
• Same-day direct deposit gives you the flexibility to run payroll at the last minute (up until 10am EST on payday) without fear of missing payment deadlines.
• QuickBooks has a full Tax Resolution team that will sort out any legal payroll errors that may arise and even pay up to $25,000 in penalties on your behalf.
• Run and download over 15 automated reports that show total payroll, tax information, bank transfers, and much more.

Ease of Use

QuickBooks Payroll agents offer custom software setup, but only for QuickBooks Online users under the Payroll Elite plan.

QuickBooks Payroll doesn’t integrate automatically with any main accounting software providers as it’s meant to be used in conjunction with QuickBooks accounting software.

Customer support is available via live chat 24 hours a day, Monday through Friday. Phone support is available 24/7 for users under the Advanced accounting plan, and from 9am to 9pm for all other users.

Pricing

QuickBooks Payroll comes in three pricing bundles:

• Payroll Core for payroll + Simple Start for accounting: $85 per month (currently $42.50), plus $6 per paid employee
• Payroll Core for payroll + Essentials for accounting: $115 per month (currently $57.50), plus $6 per employee per month
• Payroll Premium for payroll + Plus for accounting: $184 per month (currently $92), plus $9 per employee per month

ADP: Best Fully Outsourced Payroll Solution

Though ADP offers standalone payroll software, its fully outsourced payroll service solution is where it really shines. It gives hotel managers the ability to fully delegate payroll processing and compliance so they can spend their valuable time solely on core business operations.

Key Features

• ADP helps you offload all HR duties, including payroll, to a team of dedicated experts.
• You’ll receive constant payroll and HR guidance from the outsourcing team, increasing operational efficiency and profitability over time.
• Your ADP team will provide you with analytical reports summarizing general trends, payroll costs, employee benefits, and more.
• Because of the fully custom nature of payroll outsourcing, ADP’s payroll solution can scale with your hotel, eliminating the need to upgrade to a new provider.

Ease of Use

ADP will take the reins from the beginning of the implementation process, starting with a consultation to determine the level of outsourcing your hotel needs.

ADP’s payroll service integrates with QuickBooks, Wave, Xero, and other leading accounting software providers. If you decide to use ADP to outsource payroll, you won’t need to outsource anything else unless you want to.

Pricing

Pricing for ADP’s payroll services is fully bespoke, dependent on the size of your hotel and how many tasks you choose to outsource.

Paychex: Best Payroll Solution for Hotels With Restaurants

Paychex is a payroll and HR software solution with a variety of hospitality-specific components. In particular, its tip disbursement feature and Paycheck Pre-Check feature make it especially well suited for hotels that run restaurants and need extra options.

Key Features

• Paychex provides standard payroll features like automatic W-2 and 1099 filing and automatic scheduled payroll runs.
• Paychex allows you to pay your employees in several ways, including paper checks, direct deposits, and even tip disbursements for restaurant employees.
• Under the Enterprise plan, Paychex provides all-in-one payroll and HR software, allowing you to manage both areas from the same dashboard.
• The Paycheck Pre-Check feature enables employees to review their paychecks before payday, simplifying employee management.
• Paychex accounts for differing wage and hour laws based on your employees’ locations.

Ease of Use

Aside from its base plan, Flex, Paychex advertises full implementation support to get the software up and running in your hotel in as little as 48 hours.

Paychex can integrate with QuickBooks, Xero, and other accounting software providers, allowing you to implement Paychex as a standalone payroll solution.

On its website, Paychex states that users of all three of its payroll plans receive 24/7 client support—but it isn’t clear whether that’s through live chat, phone, or email.

Pricing

Paychex offers three tiered packages—Select, Pro, and Enterprise—but pricing is fully bespoke and dependent on your hotel’s size and needs

Paycom: Best Payroll Solution for Seasonal Hotels

Paycom provides payroll and HR solutions to businesses of all sizes—but it has a handful of features, such as automated hiring and onboarding, that make it ideal for hotels that are located in seasonal areas and experience high turnover rates.

Key Features

• Paycom provides standard payroll features like automatic W-2 and 1099 processing, overtime calculations, and automatic compliance with state and federal tax laws.
• Paycom’s payroll and HR software heavily automate the hiring, onboarding, and training processes, saving you time during seasons of heavy turnover.
• Paycom gives you the ability to create groups of separate compensation programs, along with budgets to go with each one.
• Tax credit software allows you to find and take advantage of relevant federal tax credits, potentially saving your hotel thousands of dollars per year in tax liability.

Ease of Use

Paycom offers exceptional implementation support, with dedicated sales representatives who oversee the entire process until you run payroll for the first time.

Paycom doesn’t directly integrate with accounting software providers, but it does provide a GL Concierge tool for importing payroll data into your accounting software.

Paycom doesn’t advertise customer support hours, since each client receives a support specialist who can be contacted through the Client Action Center.

Pricing

Paycom uses a bespoke pricing model, with different costs and software solutions depending on your hotel’s situation.

Why Should You Use a Payroll Solution Designed for Hotels?

If you’re currently running your hotel’s payroll through a generic “business” payroll solution, you may be missing out. Here’s why we recommend a provider that specializes in hotel operations:

• High turnover: Hotels commonly hire and lose staff members, especially in entry-level roles like housekeeping. This means payroll information has to be constantly updated. A hotel-specific payroll system streamlines both onboarding and offboarding.
• Seasonal staff: Hotels often need extra workers during busy seasons, creating fluctuating payroll needs. Hospitality payroll software easily handles temporary staff, constantly updating information depending on the season.
• Shift work: Hotels operate 24/7, leading to odd shift patterns and lots of overtime. With specialized payroll software, you can track shifts and overtime more closely.
• Different pay structures: Hotels often employ salaried, hourly, and tipped staff—each with different payroll needs. A hospitality-central payroll system has measures for managing multiple pay types, ensuring everyone is paid accurately and in compliance with wage laws.
• Compliance issues: Hotels with locations all across the country each have different tax and labor laws. Hotel payroll software updates regulations automatically based on location.

Our Methodology: How Did We Do Our Research?

Our process for selecting the above five payroll solutions was pretty straightforward.

We started by researching the most reputable payroll solutions based on user reviews, industry ratings, and features. Then, we narrowed it down to those that market their services to hotels and the hospitality industry.

Finally, we dug into the key features of each provider, looking for easy onboarding, mobile app integration, automatic shift tracking, and more, eliminating providers that failed to meet the highest standards.

The above five payroll solutions were the only ones that remained standing.