Gusto
VerifiedPayroll, benefits & HR software
Data verified Sep 4, 2026
Editorial Verdict
AI-researched, not hands-on testedGusto's payroll core is genuinely unlimited on every plan, with automatic tax filing and around 150 integrations. The honest catch: the Simple plan has no time tracking or advanced PTO, add-ons can tack on $10-30 per employee per month, and there's no free trial -- the first month doubles as your evaluation period.
Reviewed by AIToolPundit Editorial Team · last verified October 2026
About Gusto
Gusto is the modern people platform for small and medium businesses. With easy-to-use payroll, benefits administration, hiring, and HR tools, Gusto serves 300,000+ businesses making it simpler to take care of teams.
Commonly Cited Strengths & Limitations
Strengths
- Unlimited payroll runs on all plans
- Automatic payroll tax filing and compliance
- All-in-one payroll, benefits and HR platform
- Around 150 third-party integrations
Limitations
- Simple plan is limited on HR tools with no time tracking or advanced PTO
- Add-ons can raise costs by $10-$30 per employee per month
- No free trial (first month serves as evaluation period)
- Contractor-Only plan supports U.S.-based payments only
Common Use Cases
- Running payroll
- Filing payroll taxes and compliance
- Administering employee benefits
- Hiring and onboarding employees
- Time tracking
- Paying independent contractors
Details
- Pricing Model
- Paid
- Starting Price
- $49/mo
- Founded
- 2011
- Team Size
- Small and midsize businesses
- Headquarters
- San Francisco, California, USA
- Platforms
- WebiOSAndroid
- Category
- HR & Recruiting
Who is Gusto for?
Small business owners
Run payroll, benefits and HR from a single platform without dedicated HR staff.
Accountants and bookkeepers
Manage client payroll and sync data with accounting tools like QuickBooks and Xero.
Businesses paying contractors
Use the Contractor-Only plan to pay independent contractors without W-2 employees.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does Gusto cost?
Gusto starts at $49/mo (Paid).
Does Gusto have an API?
Yes, Gusto provides an API for developers.
What platforms does Gusto support?
Gusto is available on Web, iOS, Android.
What does Gusto integrate with?
Gusto integrates with Asana, DocuSign, FreshBooks.
Is Gusto cloud-based or self-hosted?
Gusto is offered as a cloud-based (SaaS) deployment.
What are the downsides of Gusto?
Simple plan is limited on HR tools with no time tracking or advanced PTO Also, Add-ons can raise costs by $10-$30 per employee per month
Who is Gusto best for?
Gusto is best suited for Small business owners, Accountants and bookkeepers, Businesses paying contractors.
What can I use Gusto for?
Common uses for Gusto include running payroll, filing payroll taxes and compliance, administering employee benefits, hiring and onboarding employees.
How does Gusto compare to BambooHR?
Gusto and BambooHR are both used for hr & recruiting -- specifically hr & recruiting tools. See the full side-by-side comparison for pricing and feature differences.
Key Features
- Full-service payrollRuns unlimited payroll with automatic calculation and filing of payroll taxes.
- Automatic tax filingFiles federal, state and local payroll taxes and handles compliance automatically.
- Employee benefits administrationManages health insurance and other employee benefits within the platform.
- Hiring and onboardingProvides recruiting, custom offer letters, onboarding checklists, e-signatures and automated workflows.
- Time trackingSyncs employee hours to payroll (available on Plus and higher plans).
- HR toolsIncludes document storage, PTO management, performance reviews and HR advisory services on higher tiers.
- Multi-state payrollSupports paying employees across multiple states on the Plus plan and above.
- Contractor paymentsPays independent contractors, including global contractor payments as an add-on.
Integrations
Technical Details
- Deployment
- Cloud
- API
- Available
Official Pricing
Gusto's published plans · verified Sep 4, 2026
Simple
$49/mo
- $6 per employee/month
- Unlimited payroll runs
- Automatic tax filing
- Basic HR tools
Plus
$80/mo
- $12 per employee/month
- Multi-state payroll
- Time tracking
Premium
$180/mo
- $22 per employee/month
- Certified HR expert access
- Dedicated Customer Success Manager
- Priority support
- Payroll migration assistance
- Custom reporting
Contractor Only
$35/mo
- $6 per contractor/month
- U.S.-based contractor payments only
Pricing shown above is sourced from Gusto's own published plans as of Sep 4, 2026 and can change at any time -- confirm current pricing on Gusto's own site before purchasing.
Full Gusto pricing breakdown, free plan and cheaper alternatives →
Real Pricing from Verified Users
See what people actually pay for Gusto
Reviews
0 reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to share your experience!
Switching Stories
Real migration experiences with Gusto
Discussion
Ask questions, share tips, or discuss this tool with other users.
No discussion yet. Start the conversation!
Similar tools in HR & Recruiting
Other listed tools in HR & Recruiting, not reviewed as direct alternatives
- Payroll, Time & Benefits
- Hiring & Onboarding
- HR Data & Reporting
- HR
- IT
- Finance
- AI Agents
- Human Capital Management
- Payroll
- Voice AI
- Real Talent
- MyGreenhouse
- Applicant Tracking System (ATS)
- Recruiting CRM
- Automation
- AI Recruiting Agent
- Passive candidate sourcing
- Applicant screening
People Also Viewed
More in HR & Recruiting
HR software for small & medium businesses
Hiring software for better HR teams
The workforce management platform
Performance management & employee development