Payroll
Best Payroll Software for Trades Contractors (2026)
Independent reviews of 25 payroll services for trades contractors. Gusto leads for most SMB shops; OnPay and Patriot for price-discipline; Hourly.io for integrated workers comp + payroll. We document the ADP/Paychex renewal-pricing patterns honestly.
The headline filter: company size
Unlike lead-gen or insurance, payroll is largely trade-agnostic — what matters is company size and feature needs. Use these company-size guides to find the right pick:
Modern SMB payroll with best product + affiliate economics: Gusto leads on affiliate ($300-$1,000 via PartnerStack), OnPay on flat pricing, Patriot on lowest cost, Hourly.io on integrated WC+payroll.
Gusto
The modern SMB payroll favorite — best affiliate economics in the entire WrenchStack universe ($300-$1,000+ per signup via PartnerStack)
modern saas
$40/mo base + $6/employee on Simple
- G2 / Capterra
- 4.4 / 4.7
- Best team size
- 2-50 users
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- partnerstack
Best for: Modern SMB trades shops with 2-25 W-2 employees + optional 1099 subcontractors who want self-service payroll, automatic tax filing, and integrated employee benefits without the complexity of ADP-tier enterprise systems
OnPay
Lean SMB payroll with flat pricing — favorite of small trades shops who don't need Gusto's bolt-ons
modern saas
$40/mo base + $6/employee
- G2 / Capterra
- 4.8 / 4.8
- Best team size
- 1-25 users
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- direct
Best for: Price-conscious SMB trades shops (1-15 employees) who want clean modern payroll without upsell tiers, and don't need extensive FSM-integration depth or premium benefits tooling
Patriot Payroll
Ultra-affordable payroll for 1-3 employee shops — cheapest tax-filing payroll in the market
modern saas
$17/mo Basic Payroll (no tax filing) + $4/employee, or $37/mo Full Service with tax filing + $4/employee
- G2 / Capterra
- 4.8 / 4.8
- Best team size
- 1-10 users
- Free trial
- 30 days
- Affiliate
- direct
Best for: Very-small trades shops (1-5 employees) who want tax-filing payroll automation at the lowest possible price and don't need extensive FSM integration or benefits administration
Hourly.io
Payroll + pay-as-you-go workers comp combined — the only payroll service with WC built in, structurally relevant for trades
specialty
$40/mo base + $6/employee + WC premium calculated per actual payroll (vs estimated upfront)
- G2 / Capterra
- 4.7 / 4.6
- Best team size
- 2-30 users
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- direct
Best for: Trades contractors (HVAC, plumbing, electrical, roofing, landscaping) in Hourly's geographic footprint who want to eliminate WC audit-shock dynamics or who are migrating away from problematic WC carriers (Pie Insurance pattern)
Fingercheck
All-in-one payroll, time tracking, and HR built for construction and field crews — with certified payroll
specialty
From about $5 per user per month (plus a base fee), with a free trial. Tiered by features
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 2-200 employees
- Free trial
- 14 days
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Construction and field-heavy trades businesses that want GPS time tracking, job costing, certified payroll, and payroll in one native system
Workable when you're already on the parent ecosystem (QuickBooks, Square) or genuinely need mid-market HR consolidation (Rippling).
QuickBooks Payroll
Payroll embedded in QuickBooks Online — convenient for QBO users, mediocre as standalone product
embedded
$50/mo Core + $6/employee
- G2 / Capterra
- 3.8 / 4.0
- Best team size
- 2-30 users
- Free trial
- 30 days
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Trades contractors already running QuickBooks Online as their accounting platform who value single-vendor consolidation and seamless integration over standalone product polish
Square Payroll
Payroll embedded in Square ecosystem — convenient for Square-POS users, narrow fit outside that context
embedded
$35/mo base + $6/employee for W-2 only
- G2 / Capterra
- 4.0 / 4.4
- Best team size
- 1-15 users
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Contractors already on Square POS or running primarily 1099 subcontractors who want the cheapest contractor-only payroll in the market
Rippling
All-in-one HR + IT + payroll platform — comprehensive but overkill for most trades shops
all in one hr
$8/employee/mo base, modules priced separately (payroll, benefits, IT management, time tracking, recruiting)
- G2 / Capterra
- 4.8 / 4.9
- Best team size
- 50-500 users
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- direct
Best for: Mid-market trades operations (50+ employees, multi-location, dedicated HR staff) needing comprehensive HR/IT/payroll consolidation in a single platform
SurePayroll
Paychex-backed online payroll built for small businesses and household employers
modern saas
Self-service from ~$20/mo + $4/employee (you handle tax filing)
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 1-25 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Small trades shops (roughly 1-25 W-2 employees) that want affordable, reliable, tax-compliant payroll backed by Paychex without HR or scheduling complexity
Roll by ADP
Chat-based, mobile-first payroll from ADP — run payroll by text in minutes
modern saas
$39/month flat (unlimited payroll runs) plus $5 per employee. First three months free for new customers. Simple, predictable pricing with no long-term contract.
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 1-30 employees
- Free trial
- 90 days
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Owner-operators and small trades shops that want dead-simple, mobile, ADP-backed payroll with flat pricing and unlimited runs
Wave Payroll
Low-cost payroll that plugs into Wave's free accounting — simple and affordable for tiny shops
embedded
$20/month + $6 per active employee/contractor (self-service: you file taxes), or $40/month + $6 per active employee/contractor (full-service with automatic tax filing in all 50 states).
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 1-15 employees
- Free trial
- 30 days
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Solo operators and micro trades shops — especially those using Wave's free accounting — that want simple, low-cost, compliant payroll in the same place as their books
Homebase
All-in-one team management for hourly crews — scheduling, time clock, and payroll in one app
all in one hr
Team-management tiers per location/month: Basic (free), Essentials $24.95, Plus $56, All-in-One $96. Payroll is an add-on at $39/month + $6 per employee. No setup, integration, or per-user fees.
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 2-100 employees
- Free trial
- 14 days
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Trades businesses with hourly crews whose biggest pain is scheduling and accurate time tracking, and who want payroll bundled into the same app
Paycor
Mid-market HCM with payroll, HR, and timekeeping for growing trades operations
all in one hr
Per-employee-per-month, typically ~$19-$27 PEPM depending on company size and modules. No public rate card
- G2 / Capterra
- 3.9 / 4.4
- Best team size
- 20-500 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Established, growing trades businesses with real headcount that want HCM-grade payroll plus HR, timekeeping, and analytics in one platform
Paylocity
Modern mid-market HR and payroll platform with a clean interface for scaling teams
all in one hr
Per-employee-per-month, typically ~$22-$32 PEPM depending on company size and modules. No public pricing
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 20-500 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Growing trades businesses that want a modern, easy-to-use HR/payroll platform with strong employee self-service as they scale past basic payroll
eBacon
Certified-payroll and fringe-compliance software for construction prevailing-wage work
specialty
Custom pricing, reportedly from around $1,000/feature/month depending on the features and modules you need. No free trial
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 5-250 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Construction contractors and subcontractors doing Davis-Bacon or state prevailing-wage / government-funded work who need automated certified payroll and fringe-compliance reporting
Payroll4Construction
Full construction payroll service handling certified, union, and multi-state complexity — by Foundation Software
specialty
Generally ~$1,200-$2,500/month depending on configuration and support level. Complete construction payroll processing and tax filing
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 10-500 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Established construction contractors with certified, union, prevailing-wage, or multi-state payroll complexity — especially those using (or adopting) FOUNDATION construction accounting
Arcoro
Construction-focused HR suite — applicant tracking, onboarding, compliance, and certification management
all in one hr
Custom-quoted, modular construction HR suite (applicant tracking, onboarding, core HR, time, performance, learning). Priced by modules and headcount.
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 20-500 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Growing construction contractors that need construction-specific HR — hiring, onboarding, certification/license tracking, and OSHA compliance — as they scale their workforce
Paycom
Premium mid-market HCM with deep employee self-service for 50-750-employee operations
all in one hr
Custom-quoted per-employee mid-market HCM. Premium-priced
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 50-750 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Established, larger trades operations (toward 50-750 employees) wanting a top-ranked, deep HCM with strong employee self-service, and willing to pay a premium
Miter
Modern, integrated construction HCM — payroll, HR, field ops, and expenses built for contractors
specialty
Custom-quoted. A modern construction HCM bundling payroll, HR, field operations, and expense management, with automated certified payroll, union fringes, and multi-state handling.
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 10-500 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Contractors drawn to a modern, integrated construction HCM (payroll + HR + field ops + expenses) who will carefully validate reporting/compliance reliability and support before committing
Heartland Payroll
Small-business payroll bundled with payments — part of Global Payments
modern saas
Custom-quoted small-business payroll, often bundled with Heartland's payments/POS. Part of Global Payments
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 10-50 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Small-to-mid trades businesses (roughly 10-50 employees) that want straightforward, hands-off payroll — especially those consolidating with Heartland/Global Payments processing
Wagepoint
Simple, well-supported small-business payroll — Canada-first, with US payroll too
modern saas
Simple per-pay or monthly small-business payroll pricing (base fee plus per-employee). Canada-first (serves 25,000+ businesses) with US payroll support
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 1-25 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Small Canadian or cross-border trades businesses that want simple, well-supported payroll — and US owner-operators who value simplicity and support over feature breadth
Legacy big-name payroll with documented aggressive renewal-pricing patterns (ADP Run, Paychex Flex) or PEO model that doesn't fit trades operations (Justworks). Listed for completeness with structural concerns.
ADP Run
Legacy mass-market SMB payroll — solid product with documented aggressive renewal-pricing pattern
legacy payroll
Sales-quoted pricing
- G2 / Capterra
- 4.5 / 4.5
- Best team size
- 25-500 users
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Mid-market and larger trades operations (25+ employees) needing complex multi-state, prevailing-wage, or union-compliance capacity that smaller SMB platforms don't handle — and contractors who already have an established ADP relationship that's working well
Paychex Flex
Legacy SMB payroll competitor to ADP — similar structural concerns around sales process and renewal pricing
legacy payroll
Sales-quoted pricing
- G2 / Capterra
- 4.2 / 4.2
- Best team size
- 25-500 users
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Mid-market trades operations needing legacy-payroll compliance depth, or contractors with existing Paychex relationships that work well
Justworks
PEO model bundling payroll + benefits + HR — typically wrong shape for trades shops
peo
$49-$109/employee/mo (PEO model, all-inclusive)
- G2 / Capterra
- 4.6 / 4.6
- Best team size
- 5-200 users
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Tech startups, professional services firms, and non-trades businesses with standard W-2 patterns and no in-house HR — NOT typically a fit for trades contractors
TriNet
Professional Employer Organization (PEO) bundling payroll, benefits, HR, and workers' comp via co-employment
peo
PEO co-employment, quote-based per employee per month
- G2 / Capterra
- —
- Best team size
- 10-500 employees
- Free trial
- No
- Affiliate
- None
Best for: Established or scaling trades businesses that want enterprise-grade benefits, pooled workers' comp, and offloaded HR/compliance via a PEO, and will pay PEO rates for it
Where to start
For most SMB trades contractors with 2-20 W-2 employees, the recommendation is straightforward: Gusto — it's the modern SMB payroll standard, has the cleanest tax-filing automation, the best mixed W-2 + 1099 handling, and the highest affiliate payouts in our entire directory (which means we have aligned incentives to recommend it, which we'd do anyway). For 1-3 employee shops where every dollar counts: Patriot. For trades shops wanting integrated workers comp + payroll: Hourly.io.