Paychex vs. Paycor

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Paychex
Score 5.3 out of 10
N/A
Paychex Flex, of Paychex' Online Payroll Services, is a cloud-based human resource management and payroll platform. Paychex offers core and specialized services, and scales to meet the needs of small businesses, SMBs, and large enterprises.
$59
per month/+$4 per employee
Paycor
Score 7.1 out of 10
N/A
Paycor provides core HR functions scaled towards small and mid-sized businesses. Paycor offers an integrated benefits platform for interfacing directly with insurance carriers and an adaptable time management platform.N/A
Pricing
PaychexPaycor
Editions & Modules
Paychex Go
$59
per month/+$4 per employee
Paychex Flex Service
Contact sales team
Paychex Flex Enterprise
Contact sales team
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
PaychexPaycor
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeRequiredOptional
Additional DetailsPaycor's pricing for small, mid, and enterprise companies varies based on product bundle and company size. Because Paycor HR software is built to help businesses scale and grow, plans are based on the mix of HR products needed, and company size. Payroll is at the core of Paycor's offering, and their products are sold as a part of their payroll and HR platform.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
PaychexPaycor
Considered Both Products
Paychex
Chose Paychex
They were alright, some of the same issues. Lots of turnover with payroll consultants.
Chose Paychex
More accessible and cost effective for our small business.
Chose Paychex
Both ADP and Paychex are very good at informing businesses of the latest changes regarding payroll. Not sure which one is better, but very much get the most out of each. Both are informative and always looking at additional topics in a world that is constantly changing. …
Chose Paychex
Paychex has been around for a long time and have used it at other organizations. The payroll functionality is the best out of the other systems I have used. They all are great with handling the HR needs of our organization but Paychex is the most streamlined.
Chose Paychex
We use BambooHR in tandem with Paychex. BambooHR is our timesheet service, and Paychex issues the checks/payments to our employees. Ideally we would use one service instead of two to achieve our payment and timesheet needs.
Chose Paychex
Paychex Flex has some room for improvement, I would choose ADP out of the different HRIS's I have used in the past
Chose Paychex
More user friendly works better for self service
Chose Paychex
I far prefer Rippling to Paychex Flex, with its easy to navigate interface and user friendly model. I also appreciate the payday emails from Rippling and the paystub breakdown. It is also very easy and simple to request and view PTO in Rippling. I really dread having to use …
Chose Paychex
In addition to the ones listed above, we also used BenePay, a local payroll company. We found Paychex Flex priced in the middle, with ADP the most expensive and too complicated, with many features that were unnecessary for us. We found that Paychex Flex's features and reporting …
Chose Paychex
I did not select Paychex. It was at 2 companies I started with and ended up having them switch out
Chose Paychex
Looking to switch over to ADP.
I think they are much less expensive
Chose Paychex
Based on what I've noticed, Paychex is comparable to DayForce, which has similar timekeeping functions. I think DayForce has a few easier-to-navigate tools from an Employee Self Service standpoint. iSolved is much better all around from my personal usage. If my company had more …
Chose Paychex
Gusto is more intuitive than Paychex and easier for smaller companies. Paychex has better customer support than Paylocity. Paychex is easier to navigate than Paycom.
Chose Paychex
I'm unable to give you a comparison because Paychex is the only payroll service I've used since I started my business over ten years ago. I've had no reason to explore other payroll services or make a change. I trust it will remain that way for as long as I'm in business.
Chose Paychex
The could not match the price we pay for the same service.
Chose Paychex
User interface and functionalities of Paycor edge out Paychex Flex, however, in my experience, Paycor has horrible service resulting in our discontinuation of services. I think Paychex Flex service is leaps and bounds above that of Paycor.
Chose Paychex
We didn't consider any other products.
Chose Paychex
many of your competitors are either more complicated to use or have major mistakes while using
Paycor
Chose Paycor
I've used quite a few other pay apps through different companies I've worked with over the years. Truthfully, I don't feel like Payor is any better or worse than the rest of them.
Chose Paycor
Much more intuitive and includes timecards. Harder to get data out of Paycor then it was with J1.
Chose Paycor
very similar. Paycor counts time down to the hour. ADP was increments
Chose Paycor
Paycom is terrible or at least it was 5 plus years ago. The in The interface is terrible, there was no mobile app.. it was not a great solution solution and did not have good integrations. Over all the product was terrible for admins and employees In times of critical need …
Chose Paycor
You have way better control when running payroll. Also way easier to adjust individual employees paycheck. Peoplesoft benefits was difficult so we didn’t use it to enroll employees into health insurance . We used excel spreadsheets to calculate.
Chose Paycor
Paycor is much easier to set up and make changes on the go as the organization evolves. Paycor has a more pleasing interface for managers, software andmin, and employee experience. Reporting is probably more customizable with ADP and they seem to have better and more usable …
Chose Paycor
I think that Paycor's customer service is way better than ADP API Central.
Chose Paycor
I was a big ADP fan and rolled out the system at my previous two jobs. Once I got to my new company I realized how and simple and awesome Paycor is. I would not switch to another company.
Chose Paycor
Paycor is better than Paylocity because at least with Paycor we get responses to our questions and concerns. We do have the best customer success rep and technical account manager who have done wonders for our experience and our account. There is SO much potential with Paycor, …
Chose Paycor
I prefer Quickbooks, it was the easiest system to process, approve, pay, and log. Taxes were easier however it was the most expensive and we were all told that the changes were being made.
Chose Paycor
Paycor seemed simpler and still allowed the employer to control many aspects of what the employeea can do.
The cost was more effective than Paycom. The customer service was another area of concern, even though Paycor could improve on some reps speaking better English, this is …
Chose Paycor
Paycor doesn't have the same functionality for the HRIS piece as the others. Paycor was selected by our payroll provider when we were small.
Chose Paycor
Bamboo's interface and customer service is better than Paycor's. The main reason we have not switched is because of up-front implementation fees that come with every platform. If I had a blank slate, I am honestly not sure I would choose Paycor, but I don't mind having Paycor …
Chose Paycor
Paycom has all one system, so their different modules all talk to one another. They also have an excellent benefit module and EDI feed setup. We have had no problems with their benefit setup or EDI feeds; they work well!
Chose Paycor
I find Paycor to be easier to use, and workflows run smoothly.
Chose Paycor
Overall, I prefer it to the bigger HRIS systems that I work with (ADP, Paycom, Paylocity) and would chose Paycor above those listed. I do prefer utilizing other Ben Admin Systems (Gusto, Rippling, Ease) for pulling general reports, usability, and customer service needs for …
Chose Paycor
Sales rep were really respectful. I felt with some other vendors they were a bit aggressive. The demo that was made in house was nice and the guy demonstrating it knew a lot about the system which made us more confident in the decision. Also, the ability of having all in one …
Chose Paycor
I did not select Paycor. I would not pick it in future roles.
Features
PaychexPaycor
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
Paychex
7.3
Ratings
7% below category average
Paycor
-
Ratings
Employee demographic data7.40 Ratings00 Ratings
Employment history9.40 Ratings00 Ratings
Job profiles and administration8.90 Ratings00 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.8.50 Ratings00 Ratings
Organizational charting1.00 Ratings00 Ratings
Organization and location management9.10 Ratings00 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)6.70 Ratings00 Ratings
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
Paychex
9.2
Ratings
14% above category average
Paycor
7.8
Ratings
5% below category average
Pay calculation9.70 Ratings8.20 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment8.20 Ratings7.70 Ratings
Benefit plan administration8.90 Ratings6.90 Ratings
Direct deposit files9.70 Ratings8.60 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management9.20 Ratings7.50 Ratings
Reimbursement management9.60 Ratings7.30 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors00 Ratings8.20 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
Paychex
8.6
Ratings
7% above category average
Paycor
-
Ratings
Approval workflow8.40 Ratings00 Ratings
Balance details8.70 Ratings00 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment8.60 Ratings00 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
Paychex
8.7
Ratings
8% above category average
Paycor
-
Ratings
View and generate pay and benefit information9.10 Ratings00 Ratings
Update personal information8.40 Ratings00 Ratings
View company policy documentation9.80 Ratings00 Ratings
View job history7.60 Ratings00 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
Paychex
7.5
Ratings
7% below category average
Paycor
-
Ratings
Tracking of all physical assets7.50 Ratings00 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
Paychex
7.0
Ratings
7% below category average
Paycor
-
Ratings
Report builder7.90 Ratings00 Ratings
Pre-built reports8.20 Ratings00 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data5.00 Ratings00 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
Paychex
7.0
Ratings
12% below category average
Paycor
-
Ratings
New hire portal7.60 Ratings00 Ratings
Manager tracking tools6.30 Ratings00 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
Paychex
7.9
Ratings
2% above category average
Paycor
-
Ratings
Job Requisition Management7.80 Ratings00 Ratings
Company Website Posting9.40 Ratings00 Ratings
Publish to Social Media7.20 Ratings00 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting7.10 Ratings00 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention8.00 Ratings00 Ratings
Applicant Tracking8.10 Ratings00 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts8.10 Ratings00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
PaychexPaycor
Small Businesses
Dayforce Powerpay
Dayforce Powerpay
Score 9.5 out of 10
Dayforce Powerpay
Dayforce Powerpay
Score 9.5 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.7 out of 10
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.7 out of 10
Enterprises
PeopleStrong
PeopleStrong
Score 9.9 out of 10
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.1 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
PaychexPaycor
Likelihood to Recommend
5.5
(0 ratings)
6.8
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.0
(0 ratings)
8.0
(0 ratings)
Usability
8.3
(0 ratings)
7.2
(0 ratings)
Availability
7.4
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Performance
7.3
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
7.3
(0 ratings)
5.2
(0 ratings)
In-Person Training
4.5
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Online Training
8.3
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
6.5
(0 ratings)
7.5
(0 ratings)
Configurability
7.4
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
9.1
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
9.1
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
8.9
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
9.2
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
PaychexPaycor
Likelihood to Recommend
It's better for larger businesses (50+) with various types of pay structures. Employees need to be comfortable with technology to take advantage of the self-service features. I've struggled with the default in the state tax section; extra steps must be taken when an employee lives in a different state than they work, and we don't know where they live until after completing their profile. So we have to go into the system and make the corrections, then notify the employee to go in and complete the state-specific withholding forms and follow up to confirm they do so.
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In my experience, Paycor is well suited for organizations such as my own where the hiring process and fairly straightforward. A company that values ease of use, consistency, and organization will have great results with Paycor Recruiting. The system is also especially helpful when a company like mine must frequently recruit for the same exact role over and over again. That is where the customizable templates really come into play! On the other hand, a company that has a more specialized or complex recruiting process may struggle with using the platform. If more advanced integrations or data analytics are required then they would likely need a platform that is more robust in those areas.
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Pros
  • It provides a well account of Retirement Plan Account Information.
  • Alerts are sent to email when there is new information to access.
  • Employee access both online and thru app.
  • Paperless options.
  • Easy and quick access to paystubs and tax forms.
  • Easy employee retirement management.
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  • Allows employees to clock in and out on personal AND company owned devices
  • Allows employees to make notes in order to alert us of additional things or particular matters the need attention.
  • Allows employees to send notifications to administraters regarding missed punch situations and also adverse app performance.
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Cons
  • When it comes to audit reports, Paychex Flex could improve on helping clients locate the correct reports for audit purposes more easily
  • When a client receives a discount, it would be helpful if the discount were automatically provided each year, or if the Paychex rep proactively reached out to the client first, versus the client having to call and request that the discount continue.
  • It would be helpful if the invoice was emailed to the client versus the client logging in to access invoices.
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  • Administrative/C-Suite level of canned reports and dashboards
  • Displaying company reminders or documents to sign that are urgent in a way that doesn’t allow an employee to clock out until they have completed the task.
  • More options to build an org chart
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Likelihood to Renew
there are a lot of competitors on the market such as BambooHR and Insperity. Paychex need to make significant improvement on their offline customer service in order to compete with the other guys. Everything is online now and timely response to customer's questions is vital. Customers won't enjoy being put on hold for 45 mins every time they have a question regarding their HSA problems
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The product is really good overall. The customer service is not the best and the benefits administration is kind of painful. However, the good outweighs the bad. We might get a different benefit admin system that can be integrated into Paycor. My controller doesn't want to switch anything for a [long] time.
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Usability
Some things could be streamlined. For example, we could do custom options for the "add items" tab which has so many options that we never use. "Medical Pay" could be something that the system remembers for the applicable employees. Salaried employees' salaries should definitely be auto-filled. Overall the system works well but I think it could be improved to be easier to use and read.
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The performance management module was so inaccessible it was impossible to implement alone. They must have received this feedback a lot as then they started offering implementation specialists ($5,000!) that actually got us up and running. Before that I could not access the module. Other areas are relatively easy to learn via their support articles and videos
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Reliability and Availability
We have not experienced any difficulties with unplanned outages. Notifications are always made for outages, and they do not effect normal business operations.
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I feel like Paycor is always up and running! If they are planning downtime, they communicate it clearly. Every once in a while, I get something that says the system isn't working but it is usually back up within the hour. I typically find by the time that the employees complain about it, that it is resolved within the system.
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Performance
Unless there is lag time within the internet, the Paychex Flex website loads exceptional fast, pages load quickly and reports that I need to print or download load quickly. If I need to create a specialized report, once I complete it I receive an e-mail telling me my report is ready to be downloaded. Changing between web pages is fast as well.
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For the most part, everything moves super fast. There are a few sections (Expense Management) that sometimes take a bit to load correctly. Or if they are interesting, it takes a minute to talk to each other! But reports are quickly downloaded and available! Even data heavy reports run fairly fast!
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Support Rating
Neil Williams makes this entire system work - without our direct contact with our professional advisor - this would be just like any other platform and the relationship would not have the dimension that is has. Using chat or phone support with a new person every time you need support wastes time, as generally the person you are talking to does not have an intimate knowledge of our company. By having an assigned professional representative that knows our companies, this provides a level of confidence of caring coming from the Paychex side.
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I feel like support will transfer you back and forth between departments and put you on hold forever. I believe it is very difficult to see the status of an open ticket. During my experience, it feels like the client has to push all communication and request updates from support regularly.
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In-Person Training
We did online training only
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No answers on this topic
Online Training
It was easy to understand and follow along. I do like the informational videos that we can utilize before we opt to call in for customer service support. It has made a difference since sometimes that resolves the issue I may have had and saved myself a phone call to Paychex support.
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The online trainings are super helpful. They have user guides that you can read through, interactive training that will walk you through it as well as plain web based ones. I've actually never had an in-person training but all of the information you need can be found online. They also will do individual support training if you are struggling with a certain area.
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Implementation Rating
Implementation was very smooth. The most cumbersome task was entering the current employees into the system during initial set up, but Paychex staff handled most of that and verified against prior system reports as well as internal reports provided to ensure 100% accuracy.
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I've been through a payroll software implementation multiple times in my career, ranging from upgrades to an existing platform to complete replacement of providers. This implementation was the easiest from the standpoint of confidence in my implementation personnel. The implementation consultants at Paycor were AMAZINGLY knowledgeable about the software and offered us advice at every step of the way. We never had any concerns that they didn't know what we wanted or needed.
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Alternatives Considered
In addition to the ones listed above, we also used BenePay, a local payroll company. We found Paychex Flex priced in the middle, with ADP the most expensive and too complicated, with many features that were unnecessary for us. We found that Paychex Flex's features and reporting to be sized right for our size (around 30 employees). Paychex Flex also offered a very reasonable service to apply for the ERTC
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Overall, Paycor is a solid system that meets most of our needs. It offers a wide range of functionality and generally performs well. However, there are a few technical issues that create challenges, particularly within the onboarding module. From the few systems we have used, Paycor has the most potential
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Scalability
Employees can log in at home and get up to date information on their FSA balance and any medical bill reimbursements they may have uploaded. At renewal time they have the ability to make changes to their FSA or for new employees star the enrollment.
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I gave it a 10 because we only use it across one organization. However, it has allowed us to break it into multiple departments and layers of management. It is also easy for us to utilize across different locations but still under one master company. They have always provided us support when we decide to change something on an organizational level
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Return on Investment
  • With Paychex Flex we have been able to improve our compliance with required documentation for new/rehires
  • Moving everyone to direct deposit and mobile clock in/out eliminated lines at punching stations and paycheck pickup stations
  • Lost checks is a thing of the past
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  • We can process Payroll in a 25% of the time that we previously could.
  • Scheduling takes 2 or 3 times as much effort as it did before.
  • Onboarding allows employees to do self-service but comes with a lot of questions from team members so it is net the same amount of time at the end of the day.
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ScreenShots

Paychex Screenshots

Screenshot of Screenshot of Screenshot of

Paycor Screenshots

Screenshot of the real-time data insights that support critical business decisions.Screenshot of Paycor's expense reportingScreenshot of the recruiting processes streamlined in PaycorScreenshot of workforce scheduling in PaycorScreenshot of Paycor's mobile app, that allows employees to punch in and out from their phonesScreenshot of the Paycor Home Screen