What is payroll software?
Payroll software offers tools that make it easier for business owners to manage and run their payroll. Business managers and owners can input hours and days worked and salary details, make note of important paycheck deductions and calculate an accurate payment amount for each worker. Payroll software works well for both small and large organizations and is an especially great tool for businesses that don’t have an HR department or don’t employ an accounting professional.
What to look for when choosing free payroll software
As you begin to explore free payroll software options for your business, there are certain features and capabilities to keep an eye out for:
1. Employee portal
Having an employee portal is a big benefit. Several free payroll software companies offer a portal where employees can access pay stubs and other important payroll data. This can be a time-saver for your company since your employees won’t be asking for records. Employees can instead access these records without assistance. Plus, your employees will be happy to know where their payments and benefits stand.
2. PTO, sick and vacation leave capabilities
Payroll software should be capable of handling and managing paid time off (PTO), sick and vacation leave. This feature can help your business avoid staffing issues and keep better track of employee benefits.
3. Time-off requests support
Choosing payroll software with time-off request support makes it easier for your business to stay organized. It can also allow you to manage and approve time-off requests quickly.
4. Deduction capabilities
It should be easy to handle deductions when running payroll. Free payroll software that includes deduction capabilities allows for more accurate payroll.
5. Multiple payment options
It’s a good idea to consider free payroll software that offers multiple payment options. Check printing is a common way to pay employees, but your staff may appreciate being able to have checks directly deposited.
6. No hidden fees
Some payroll software may appear to be free or may have a free version with additional costs. As you look at payroll software options, always be sure to check into hidden costs, such as direct deposit fees.
Free payroll software tools
Quick Navigation:
ExcelPayroll
Price: Completely free to use. There’s no monthly cost or one-time fees to use this solution.
Key features:
- Supports check payment printing
- Allows for employee tax forms to be printed
- Offers accrual vacation and workers’ compensation reports
- Supports deductions
- Works directly with Excel, meaning you won’t need to install additional software
ExcelPayroll is a payroll solution that’s completely free to use. There are no monthly subscription costs or payroll fees. While other payroll software may need to be installed to use, ExcelPayroll runs directly through Excel. To use this solution, you’ll need to download the provided templates and input employee information and payroll details. This is an excellent option for very small businesses that may have no budget for payroll services or payroll software.
HR.my
Price: Free to use. There are no costs, and any organization, no matter how small or large, can use this solution.
Key features:
- Costs nothing to use and doesn’t charge extra fees
- Supports unlimited users and unlimited employees
- Uses SSL (TLS) protocol to keep data safe and secure
- Supports payroll needs and other functions, such as expense management, time-off requests and attendance and time tracking
- Offers employee-accessible web accounts
Hr.my is an HR management solution that’s completely free to use. Unlike some of its free software competitors, there’s no maximum number of employees who can be paid with this solution. This software makes it easier for your business to handle payroll, review and manage expenses, track attendance and time, and manage employee requests for time off. HR.my also offers employee web accounts, where employees can access payroll details and payroll records.
Payroll4Free
Price: Free to use for organizations with 25 or fewer workers. The only paid services offered are optional. Your company can pay $15 per month to have Payroll4Free deposit and file payroll taxes. You also have the option to pay an additional $15 per month to direct-deposit payments to employees’ accounts from Payroll4Free’s bank instead of your company’s bank account.
Key features:
- Takes care of payroll tax calculations and gives companies access to all completed tax forms
- Supports tracking sick, vacation and PTO time.
- Employees can use the included employee portal to access payroll details, tax forms and employee benefits information on any device
- Workers can be paid via direct deposit or paper check
As its name suggests, Payroll4Free is a free payroll solution — as long as your organization has 25 or fewer individuals. Payroll4Free supports both employee and contractor payments, and organizations can have a mix of both types of workers and still use the software. With this tool, you can easily manage vacation and time off, and payments can be made via check or direct deposit. This software also makes it easy for your company to handle payroll deductions and contributions. Additionally, Payroll4Free offers an employee portal for workers to view payroll details.
SumoPayroll
Price: Free to use for up to 10 employees. For organizations with 11+ employees, affordable paid plans are available. For example, for a company with 25 employees, it costs about $16.50 per month to use this software’s many features.
Key features:
- Its free plan is a great option for smaller organizations that need to process payroll
- Supports direct deposit payments
- Self-service tools make it simple for employees to access payroll information and edit personal details
- Included time management and expense management tools allow for more accurate time and expense management, including time off
SumoPayroll is a feature-packed payroll solution. While this software offers paid plans, it’s completely free to use for organizations with up to 10 employees. With SumoPayroll, companies can quickly process payroll and keep track of employee time and expenses. This software also includes HR employee management tools to keep track of important employee details and manage time-off requests. Your employees will appreciate the ability to access payroll and work-related records and make edits to important contact information.
Free payroll software tools FAQs
Do all companies need payroll software tools?
Not all companies choose to use payroll software tools to handle payroll needs, and it’s definitely not a requirement. While it’s possible to avoid using software, it’s a lot easier to handle payroll needs with payroll software. By using payroll software, your business may make fewer mistakes when handling important payroll matters, such as deducting the correct amount of payroll taxes. Using payroll software can also save you a lot of time.
What are the pros and cons of using payroll software?
There are many pros to using payroll software. For one, employees may be paid more accurately. It can also be faster to handle payroll matters, and it can help business owners keep clear, detailed paycheck records and payroll records. One negative to using payroll software is it takes time to learn the ins and outs of a particular software package.
How can I do payroll without software?
Using a separate software or tool to handle payroll isn’t a requirement. Tools like ExcelPayroll allow your business to manage payroll needs better without having to download additional software. Instead, you can use Excel, which you may already have, to manage and organize payroll matters.