Gusto debuted in 2011 and became a well-known, well-liked, simple, and affordable payroll software. As the company continues to mature, it has expanded its offerings to include benefits, workers comp, talent management, and more.
Ratings
Ease of Use
Best For
Key Differentiator
Price
Free Trial
PROS
- The dashboard feature keeps tabs on compliance tasks
- The hiring and onboarding sequence is nicely streamlined between HR and the new hire
- Post-offer, pre-start tasks are made easy with integrations like CorpNet (state tax set up) Checkr (background checks)
- Easy payroll for U.S.-based W-2 folks, domestic, and international contractors
- Person-to-person phone support, email, and other customer service resources
- The business model is responsive to customer needs
CONS
- Gusto can support payments for international contractors, but not employees
- No native accounting feature to keep earning and spending under the same roof
- Analytics dashboard is simplistic

Need Help? Talk to an HR Software Advisor!
Tell us more about your company & an HR Software Advisor will help you find the right software








Gusto’s software is robust: it’s not adored with fragile bells and whistles that are prone to malfunction, and it’s mostly idiot-proof in that it’s intuitive. It is constitutionally user-friendly so it’ll intervene if you're on the way to doing something ill-advised (like canceling payroll, for example). Gusto has done well in responding to the needs of HR teams since 2011, but that’s not the end of the story.
HR folks are not the primary users of this tool. When a company uses Gusto for payroll and benfits, the whole company uses Gusto, and this means that non-HR workers represent the majority of people interacting with the software. Among these users, many enter the platform via the mobile app (Gusto Wallet), which is available for iOS and Android.
The takeaway is that Gusto is ready to meet you wherever you are, Gusto has a lot of users, and they have considered them all.


We use Gusto on a weekly and bi-weekly basis to pay contractors, send offer letters, engage employees, and onboard new hires. The key workflows that we use are our recruiting workflow and hiring workflow. Of the workflows, Gusto is heavily used on the hiring and employee management side. Gusto is used from the time an employee receives an offer letter through to their onboarding and paychecks.
The top three reasons why we like this solution are: 1. We no longer have to jump from a spreadsheet, to a PowerPoint, to QuickBooks, and an ATS to accomplish daily tasks. 2. We are saving money by having one centralized system that integrates with our other software instead of paying for multiple systems. 3. Gusto has helped reduce our time to hire thanks to automated onboarding.
We are a startup organization, and we were seeking a cost-effective SaaS HR platform to assist with our onboarding and employee management. We started off utilizing spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, and Google Docs. We wanted to streamline our process and have everything in one centralized location. We have used Gusto for two years, and it has been a tremendous help with our hiring workflow. The key benefit it provides is having everything in one place that is readily accessible to all responsible parties in the hiring workflow as well as our employees. We love the self-service functionality.
I dislike Gusto’s applicant tracking system. It isn’t user-friendly and doesn’t have the best UI. They can improve the ATS by making it user-friendly and creating a better dashboard.
Gusto fares well with its competitors in benefits administration and onboarding services. From a cost perspective and the number of features included in their lower-tiered plan, Gusto outperforms its competition. They offer flexible monthly plans that scale with your business without being locked into a contract. This is a very enticing feature for startups that are still getting familiar with tools on the market and determining their software needs.
People should consider how many users require access and whether Gusto integrates with their existing software. They should also look at the number of existing employees and their projected hiring goals to determine if Gusto is a long-term solution.
Over time, Gusto has added new features such as the ATS. It appears it is attempting to be an HRIS. They have also added additional third-party integrations.
Gusto is an excellent tool for startups. It provides cost-effective solutions to help you get started with a small workforce.
I don’t feel Gusto is a good fit for a company seeking an HRIS or a company with over 100 employees. Gusto falls short in this area. Although Gusto has great onboarding capabilities, at times there are discrepancies with payroll, and the ATS isn’t user-friendly or robust.
I use Gusto almost daily to manage various aspects of HR and payroll. My primary focus is on compliance, ensuring state registrations are up to date and payroll regulations are adhered to, especially as we expand into new states. I'm also responsible for pulling reports for compensation planning and performance reviews. The platform is integral for tax compliance; we rely on it to respond promptly to notifications from state entities and maintain our records accurately. Additionally, any changes in employee information are updated in Gusto to keep our records current.

Gusto simplifies hiring in different states and ensures compliance with varying state laws. The platform is user-friendly, making it easy for both HR staff and employees to navigate. It includes all essential HRIS functions without unnecessary complexity.
Our company chose Gusto to streamline our payroll processing, prioritizing a system that was affordable and easy to set up and use. With a focus on hiring across the US, we needed a reliable platform to handle state registrations and payroll compliance quickly and efficiently. Gusto not only manages payroll but also covers essential HR functions such as expenses, time off, and benefits. It serves as the single source of truth for our US employees and contractors. I've been using Gusto for five months, having been with the company for the same period.
The reporting features in Gusto are somewhat limited and not very user-friendly. We have experienced errors in reporting that have resulted in penalties, although Gusto did reimburse us for these. Customer service response times can be slow, ranging from several days to weeks.
Gusto stands out for its simplicity and competitive pricing. It handles many compliance details, which are often challenging for small businesses to manage on their own. For those seeking a straightforward solution that consolidates multiple HR functions, Gusto is an excellent choice.
When considering a tool like Gusto, evaluate your company’s growth trajectory and geographic spread. Assess the core HR needs your organization must fulfill, such as onboarding, payroll, and compliance, and determine whether Gusto can effectively address these while offering time and cost savings. Prioritize your HR team's needs, focusing on what currently consumes the most time and how a tool can streamline these processes.
Since I started using Gusto, the platform has remained relatively stable without significant changes. However, there have been concerns about the declining quality of customer support, which has become less efficient and helpful over time.
Gusto is well-suited for small businesses, ideally with fewer than 50 employees. It might stretch to accommodate a few hundred employees, but that is nearing the limit of its capabilities without straining the system and the HR team.
Organizations with more than 200 employees may find Gusto lacking in features necessary to manage a larger workforce effectively.
We process payroll semi-monthly, so we use Gusto at least 24 times a year. Occasionally, I log in to update benefits information, such as 401k contributions. It's convenient to store employee documents digitally, eliminating the need for paper files. Gusto is set up to automatically calculate and deduct 401k contributions, including our 25% match up to the maximum. Additionally, it automatically transfers these funds directly to our provider, so I don't have to worry about making separate payments.
The interface is user-friendly. Benefits deductions are seamlessly integrated with payroll processing. I appreciate how support tickets are efficiently tracked within Gusto.
Our small business needed a cost-effective payroll solution, and Gusto provided an affordable option. We've been using it for just under a year to manage payroll for our two employees. We also needed a solution for direct 401k deductions from our payroll, which has allowed us to save on taxes with pre-tax deductions.
I am not pleased that the support team seems to be outsourced outside of the USA, which occasionally makes me question the accuracy of the information provided. Also, I wish I didn't have to use one of their partners to integrate our 401k plan.
Gusto's interface is superior to many competitors with its ease of use and straightforward setup. It intuitively understands my needs without requiring setup in multiple areas to achieve the desired functionality.
Gusto might not be ideal for larger companies. It can be challenging to manage frequent payroll changes due to the platform's complexity in this area.
Since I am relatively new to using Gusto, I am not familiar with its historical changes or updates.
Gusto is very well-suited for small businesses with fewer than 20 employees.
Companies with more than 50 employees or those with frequent payroll changes may find Gusto less accommodating.

Paycom

Paycom
.avif)
Deel
.avif)
Deel

Paylocity

Paylocity

Justworks

Justworks

ADP

ADP
Gusto is not designed for enterprise use, and rapidly growing companies should be aware of the drawbacks of settling into software that isn’t (yet) intended for massive teams. If your goal is exponential growth and your luck leads you there, congrats! But be sure to talk to Gusto early on about the functional limits of their platform.
In 2025, Gusto surpassed the 400,000 customer mark; getting closer to serving half a million businesses across the US.
- ATS to create job posts, publish to job boards, and manage candidates
- Admin dashboard: stay compliant with reminders of state and federal requirements, like anti-harassment training and workers' compensation
- Easy state tax registration for new hires in all U.S. states
- The Gusto Wallet app offers employees easy access to pay history, breakdowns and other useful stats
- Gusto accounts are for life: your employees can dig up old tax records or time cards as needed.
To imagine the momentum of Gusto’s integrations, picture a snowball rolling slowly down a gentle slope. Do not imagine a comet-sized orb crashing into an Alpine village. Gusto is thoughtful about integrations, and with more than a decade of company wisdom guiding their decisions, there are no signs of short-sighted choices.
A prime example of thoughtful integrations can be found with Guideline and Human Interest. These are the two major players trying to win the hearts and minds of small and medium-sized businesses across the United States (especially in California, where the retirement mandate is shaking things up). Gusto wisely integrates with both.
- Simple: $49/month +$6/month/person
- Plus: $80/month +$12 / month/person
- Premium: $180/month +$22/month/person
- Contractor only (no W-2 employees): $35/month/person
Even budget-strapped startups can afford Gusto’s basic plan, and for companies who have some bank capital to invest in human capital, the top-tier Premium plan is a great choice, especially if they have an HR department of one person.
- 5 new add-ons for Simple plans (Time tracking, next-day direct deposit, performance, priority support, and HR resources).
- Personalized health insurance suggestions during shopping.
- Vestwell, Guideline, Betterment at Work, and Human Interest as new 401(k) integration partners.
- New feature Smart Import automates payroll data import from spreadsheets or time-tracking software.
It is evident that Gusto knows their customer base when it comes to the ease with which you can set up this platform. It’s not quite “do it on your phone while you’re commuting to work” easy, but it’s a project you can probably complete before you break for lunch.
The concierge service offered with the higher priced plans is an absolute luxury for that Team of One, Department of Everything HR person (many of us have been there).
While not inclined or qualified to offer legal or tax advice, the SHRM-certified people on the other end of the concierge phone line can help any HR novice through the bureaucratic eccentricity for which HR is known. Upper-tier plans also include a massive resource library so packed with knowledge, even an HR master scholar will be impressed.
For basic users (and end users) the customer service staff is reliably available and knowledgeable. The long hold times and the occasional agent who woke up on the wrong side of the bed are inevitable features of any customer success department, but Gusto’s is better than most.
2011 was a big year in tech, but I can’t recall a single year since tech became the center of the universe that wasn’t a big year in tech. Gusto’s history and their sometimes quiet presence in the space is relevant though. Gusto has grown gracefully despite having lived through some major shifts in the HR tech landscape. Unicorn status: achieved.
Company HQ
San Francisco, California
Number of Employees
1000-5000
Year Founded
2011
Amount Raised
Series E, ~10 billion
FAQ
About SSR

We spend hundreds of hours researching the best HR and recruiting software so you don’t have to. We never take money from vendors during our research phase and rely heavily on practitioners and experts to help us recommend the right software. However we may earn a small fee if you click on vendor links on this page.











