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QuickBooks Payroll (plans branded QuickBooks Workforce) Review
Intuit's own payroll, now sold as QuickBooks Workforce: runs inside QuickBooks Online, from $50/mo plus $7 per employee payroll-only
Quick verdict
Who QuickBooks Payroll (plans branded QuickBooks Workforce) suits: Trade shops that already keep their books in QuickBooks Online and want payroll in the same Intuit account. Pricing: From $50/mo + $7/employee (Workforce Payroll, payroll only); Workforce Premium $88/mo + $13/employee; Workforce Elite $134/mo + $17/employee; bundles with QuickBooks Online accounting from $88/mo + $7/employee; 50% off the base fee for 3 months was offered at our October 23, 2026 check. Higher per-employee fees than Gusto Simple or OnPay, time tracking only from the Premium tier, tax penalty protection only on Elite, and no free trial shown on the pricing pages.
About QuickBooks Payroll (plans branded QuickBooks Workforce)
QuickBooks Payroll is Intuit's payroll service for QuickBooks users, now sold under the QuickBooks Workforce name. In its 2026 annual report, Intuit describes QuickBooks Workforce as an all-in-one HR and payroll platform for small and mid-market businesses that integrates with QuickBooks Online. Intuit is a public company headquartered in Mountain View, California, and its payroll page says QuickBooks serves 1.4 million businesses for payroll and tax management.
There are three payroll-only plans. Workforce Payroll is $50/mo plus $7 per employee and includes full-service payroll, next-day direct deposit, 1099 e-filing, basic team management and an employee portal. Workforce Premium is $88/mo plus $13 per employee and adds same-day direct deposit, an expert review of your setup, time tracking, scheduling and more HR tools. Workforce Elite is $134/mo plus $17 per employee and adds expert setup, tax penalty protection (Intuit says up to $25,000), a personal HR advisor, geofencing and mileage tracking. Intuit says every plan includes Payroll AI, which collects time and attendance data, spots inconsistencies and texts the admin, and there is no annual contract.
Bundles with QuickBooks Online accounting are also sold: Workforce Payroll with Simple Start at $88/mo plus $7 per employee, with Essentials at $135/mo plus $7 per employee, and Workforce Premium with Plus (which includes project tracking) at $228/mo plus $13 per employee. At our October 23, 2026 check, every plan and bundle was offered at 50% off the base fee for 3 months.
Intuit also lists health insurance (medical, dental and vision through Allstate), 401(k) plans through Vestwell, workers' comp options, HR advisor access through Mineral and background checks through Checkr from $29.99 per report.
The trade-off: at list prices a 5-employee shop pays $85/mo for Workforce Payroll against $79/mo for Gusto Simple or OnPay, and the gap grows with headcount ($7 against $6 per person). Time tracking starts on Premium, tax penalty protection only comes with Elite, and the pricing pages showed a buy-now discount rather than a free trial. The main reason to choose it is that payroll lives inside your QuickBooks Online account.
How it works
Buy a payroll-only plan or a bundle with QuickBooks Online accounting on Intuit's website. Add employees and contractors; employees get a portal and can use the Workforce mobile app. Each pay period, QuickBooks calculates pay and taxes, pays by direct deposit (next-day on Workforce Payroll, same-day on Premium and Elite) and handles payroll tax filings; auto payroll can run salaried payrolls on schedule. On Premium and Elite, time tracking feeds payroll. Because Workforce integrates with QuickBooks Online, payroll costs post to the same QuickBooks account you use for your books.
Pros & cons
What works
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Built into QuickBooks Online
Intuit says Workforce integrates with QuickBooks Online, and bundles combine payroll and accounting in one subscription, so there is no separate payroll vendor to connect.
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Next-day direct deposit on the base plan
Workforce Payroll includes next-day direct deposit; Premium and Elite add same-day direct deposit.
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Tax penalty protection on Elite
Intuit says Workforce Elite includes tax penalty protection of up to $25,000, along with expert setup and a personal HR advisor.
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Benefits and HR options from one vendor
Intuit lists health insurance through Allstate, 401(k) plans through Vestwell, workers' comp options and HR advisor access through Mineral.
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No annual contract
Intuit says there is no annual contract and you can cancel anytime.
What doesn't
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Costs more per head than Gusto Simple or OnPay
For 5 employees at list prices, Workforce Payroll is $50 + 5 x $7 = $85/mo, against $79/mo for Gusto Simple or OnPay; the gap grows by $1 per extra employee.
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Time tracking starts on Premium
Time tracking and scheduling come with Workforce Premium at $88/mo + $13 per employee, not the base plan.
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No free trial shown
Intuit's pricing pages offered 50% off the base fee for 3 months at our check, not a free trial.
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Main advantage depends on QuickBooks Online
Intuit's pitch for Workforce is its QuickBooks Online integration; if you keep your books in Xero or another system, that advantage goes away.
Pricing
From $50/mo + $7/employee (Workforce Payroll, payroll only); Workforce Premium $88/mo + $13/employee; Workforce Elite $134/mo + $17/employee; bundles with QuickBooks Online accounting from $88/mo + $7/employee; 50% off the base fee for 3 months was offered at our October 23, 2026 check.
Starting base: $50/mo + $7/employee
Affiliate disclosure: The link to QuickBooks Payroll (plans branded QuickBooks Workforce) on this page goes to its own site and is not an affiliate link.
Integrations
Reviews and complaints at the source
We do not copy third-party review scores onto this page: they change often and we could not verify them. Read QuickBooks Payroll (plans branded QuickBooks Workforce)'s current reviews at the source.
Frequently asked
Should I use QuickBooks Payroll if I'm on QuickBooks Online?
It is the simplest way to keep payroll inside your QuickBooks Online account. At list prices it costs a little more than Gusto Simple or OnPay (for 5 employees, $85/mo against $79/mo), and Gusto and OnPay also sync payroll to QuickBooks Online, so compare the plans you need.
What if I use Xero instead of QuickBooks?
Intuit's main pitch for Workforce is its QuickBooks Online integration. Gusto and OnPay both sync payroll to Xero.
Is there a free trial?
The pricing pages we checked on October 23, 2026 offered 50% off the base fee for 3 months on every plan rather than a free trial. Intuit says there is no annual contract and you can cancel anytime.
Other payroll services
Gusto
Tier SOnline payroll with automatic federal, state and local tax filing, contractor payments and published prices for every plan
OnPay
Tier SOne-plan online payroll at $49/mo plus $6 per person, with QuickBooks and Xero sync and optional pay-as-you-go workers' comp
Patriot Payroll
Tier SLow-cost online payroll from Canton, Ohio: $37/mo plus $5 per worker with full tax filing, or $17/mo plus $4 per worker if you file taxes yourself
Hourly.io
Tier SPayroll plus pay-as-you-go workers' comp in one app, with GPS time tracking and job costing on every plan
Square Payroll
Tier ASquare's payroll for businesses already on Square: $35/mo plus $6 per person paid, or $6 per contractor with no base fee
Rippling
Tier AHR, IT and finance platform with payroll, sold by custom quote