Payroll software · New Zealand · Head-to-head
Crystal Payroll vs PayHero
Two New Zealand payroll software options, compared side by side for New Zealand trades.
Which should you choose?
Crystal Payroll and PayHero are both Tier S: our check found each one's prices published on its own website, so you can compare their costs before talking to sales. The tier is not a quality ranking: weigh the pros, cons, pricing and New Zealand-specific notes below against your trade and region.
Crystal Payroll
Tier S · Published pricesAuckland-made cloud payroll with automatic IRD payday filing, running since 2005
Crystal Payroll is a New Zealand cloud payroll and timesheet service based in Birkenhead, Auckland, which says it has been running since 2005 and serves thousands of Kiwi businesses. It says it is an IRD-accredited PAYE intermediary and files payday returns to IRD for you two working days after payday, from a Payday Filing Dashboard. It handles KiwiSaver and holiday pay calculations, including for variable-rate and shift workers, and connects to Xero, MYOB, Reckon and Farm Focus.
Pros
- + Automatic IRD payday filing from a Payday Filing Dashboard
- + Holiday pay and leave calculations for variable-rate and shift workers
- + Employee app for timesheets and leave requests
- + No minimum period, and money back within 30 days of your first pay run, Crystal says
Cons
- − Published price covers up to 5 employees; bigger teams use a calculator or ask sales
- − One-off $50 registration fee, and training costs $60 an hour
- − Data migration priced on request
New Zealand note
Crystal Payroll says it is an IRD-accredited PAYE intermediary and files payday returns automatically two working days after the pay date. It says it manages holiday pay and leave calculations under New Zealand law, including for staff on variable rates and shift workers, and employees can submit timesheets and leave requests through its app.
PayHero
Tier S · Published pricesNew Zealand payroll software from Wellington's FlexiTime, with automated payday filing and GPS timesheets for trades
PayHero is New Zealand payroll software from FlexiTime, a Wellington company that says it has run payroll for Kiwi businesses since 2008 and launched PayHero in 2019. It covers pay runs, automated payday filing with Inland Revenue, leave, and timesheets and leave requests through an employee app. Its trades page adds GPS time tracking, job-level timesheets, tool allowances and mileage reimbursements.
Pros
- + Published NZD prices, pay as you go with no lock-in contract
- + Automated payday filing of PAYE with Inland Revenue
- + Trades features: GPS time tracking, job-level timesheets, tool allowances and mileage reimbursements
- + Public holiday entitlements calculated from work patterns and timesheet history
Cons
- − Origin plan is capped at 10 employees
- − Base fee plus a per-employee charge each month, excluding GST
- − GPS clock-in, timesheet approvals and break calculations need Super or above
- − Leave rules change when the Employment Leave Act 2026 starts in August 2028
New Zealand note
PayHero says it handles leave in line with the Holidays Act 2003 and current government guidance, and calculates public holiday entitlements from work patterns and timesheet history. The Employment Leave Act 2026 replaces the Holidays Act from 6 August 2028; PayHero has said it plans to update the software and move existing leave balances across before then.
More New Zealand options
See all New Zealand payroll software vendors and the rest of the New Zealand directory.