Payroll software · Australia · Head-to-head
Deputy vs KeyPay (Employment Hero Payroll)
Two Australia payroll software options, compared side by side for Australia trades.
Which should you choose?
KeyPay (Employment Hero Payroll) is the safer default — Deputy carries a reputation caution (see below), while KeyPay (Employment Hero Payroll) does not. Choose Deputy only if its specific strengths clearly outweigh that, and read the warning first.
Deputy
Tier S · RecommendedAU-built rostering + time & attendance with award interpretation, into compliant pay runs
⚠ Third-party reviews (2025–2026) report a late-2025 price increase moving existing customers to new tiers, add-on costs stacking, and slow support response on billing.
A Sydney-founded workforce-management platform (rostering, time & attendance, award interpretation) that historically fed external payroll (Xero/MYOB/QuickBooks) and now also offers first-party Deputy Payroll. Its edge over ledger-led tools is the front end: scheduling, clock-in, and a built-in modern-award engine that auto-fills penalty rates/overtime/allowances before pay is calculated — the hardest part of AU payroll for award-covered trades crews.
Pros
- + Built-in modern-award engine ("Fair Work without the guesswork")
- + AU-founded (Sydney) with regularly updated award templates + custom Pay Rate Builder
- + Deputy Payroll supports STP Phase 2
- + Converts approved timesheets to pay in "zero clicks"
Cons
- − Modular pricing — payroll is a +$5/user/mo add-on, add-ons stack
- − Documented late-2025 price increases
- − Per-user model + ~$30/mo minimum poor value for very small teams
- − Workforce-mgmt core, not deep accounting/ledger (usually paired with a GL)
Australia note
AU-founded; the standout AU value is modern-award/Fair Work interpretation at the timesheet level. Supports STP Phase 2; AU materials acknowledge the 1 July 2026 payday-super reform as a cash-flow implication.
KeyPay (Employment Hero Payroll)
Tier S · RecommendedAU payroll with award-interpretation engine — handles Fair Work penalty rates automatically
KeyPay (now Employment Hero Payroll) is AU's leading award-interpretation payroll. Handles complex AU Fair Work award penalty rates, allowances, and overtime calculations automatically — a structural moat in the AU market where awards are notoriously complex. Powers Employment Hero's broader HR+payroll platform.
Pros
- + Best AU award-interpretation engine in the market
- + Handles Fair Work complexity automatically
- + Powers Employment Hero's broader HR/payroll platform
- + Cross-market (AU/NZ/UK/SG)
Cons
- − Pricing higher than simpler payroll alternatives
- − Best fit for businesses with award-complexity needs
- − Employment Hero bundle can be overkill for pure payroll
Australia note
Award interpretation is the structural moat. AU Fair Work awards have 100+ different penalty/allowance rules — KeyPay automates what would otherwise be manual calculation.
More Australia options
See all Australia payroll software vendors and the rest of the Australia directory.