Understanding Paylocity's Pricing: A Complete Breakdown

Discover Paylocity's HRIS cost and modules like payroll, benefits, and timekeeping, ideal for mid-market firms. OutSail provides detailed pricing data for over 50 HRIS systems.

Brett Ungashick
OutSail HRIS Advisor
July 4, 2023
user comparing HRIS systems

Paylocity

How Much Does Paylocity Cost?

Paylocity charges employees on a per employee per month (PEPM) basis. A Paylocity subscription can cost anywhere from $22-32 PEPM, depending on the size of your company and the modules included in your scope.

In addition to the software fees, Paylocity will typically charge a one-time implementation fee. Paylocity's implementation fees are typically about 10-20% of the annual software fees (i.e., $10-20K implementation fee on a $100K annual purchase)

What Modules Are Included with Paylocity?
  • Payroll
  • Benefits Admin
  • HR / Employee Files
  • Time & Attendance
  • Onboarding
  • Recruiting / ATS
  • Performance
  • Compensation (limited)
  • Learning (limited)

For most small to medium sized companies, Paylocity can serve as a one-stop-shop for all of their HR-related needs. Paylocity started off as a payroll provider, but has continued to develop broader capabilities over the years.

Historically, Paylocity has partnered with 3rd party systems for their benefits admin and timekeeping tools, but recently Paylocity has started to develop their own capabilities and remove those third parties from their platform.

See How Paylocity Stacks Up: Interested in how Paylocity compares to the competition on cost, features, and more? Visit the HRIS Marketplace for a side-by-side comparison.

Who is Paylocity?

Paylocity was founded in a suburb of Chicago in 1997. The company caught the tailwinds of the internet software boom and has steadily grown to become one of the three biggest payroll providers in the country today.

Paylocity is now a public company with thousands of employees and tens of thousands of customers. Paylocity continues to make strategic investments in their platform and has responded well to market trends such as global payroll, custom workflows and better integrations.

What Sized Companies Fit Paylocity Best?

Paylocity is considered a Mid-Market HRIS, which means the system works best for companies with between 50 and 750 employees. Mid-Market solutions are designed to be an all-in-one HRIS for companies with fairly standard HR requirements.

Mid-Market solutions typically take about 2-3 months to implement and do not require external consultants to successfully implement and manage the solutions. Mid-Market solutions can be limited in how scalable they are, due to a lack of custom workflow tools and limited rules engines.

Need expert help with your HR implementation? Explore our HR Service Partner Finder to connect with the best HR consultants in the industry.

Pros and Cons of Paylocity
Strengths of Paylocity
  • Paylocity is the second largest payroll provider after ADP and has established themselves as a market leader in the mid-market space
  • Paylocity has been making smart technology acquisitions that will allow them to enhance their product and set them up well for future success
  • Paylocity recently updated their user interface and it is now a much cleaner, more inviting experience
  • The onboarding module, in particular, gets strong reviews from employees
  • Paylocity has put a lot of investment into their integration marketplace and has pre-built integrations with many leading 3rd party tools today
  • Paylocity has a sister company, Blue Marble, which offers global payroll services
Concerns with Paylocity
  • Early 2023 was a challenging time for Paylocity’s usually reliable customer service department
  • Recent reports are that the organization was overhauled to create greater efficiency and things are trending back up
  • While their partnership with Blue Marble can support global payroll, Paylocity’s system is still very US-centric and wouldn’t be considered a true global system of record
  • Paylocity’s average customer size is still around 130-150 employees and they tend to work best for smaller, less complex companies
  • Paylocity’s talent management suite was built after their Core HR functionality and the performance, recruiting and engagement functionality is all solid, if unspectacular

FAQs
1. How much does Paylocity cost?

Paylocity typically charges on a per employee per month (PEPM) basis, with subscriptions ranging from $22 to 32, depending on company size and included modules. Additionally, there is usually a one-time implementation fee, typically around 10-20% of the annual software fees.

2. What modules are included with Paylocity?

Paylocity offers a comprehensive suite of HR management tools, including Payroll, Benefits Administration, HR / Employee Files, Time & Attendance, Onboarding, Recruiting / ATS, Performance, Compensation (limited), and Learning (limited).

3. Who is Paylocity best suited for?

Paylocity is considered suitable for mid-market companies with between 50 and 750 employees. It caters to organizations with fairly standard HR requirements seeking an all-in-one HRIS solution. Paylocity's recent developments in benefits administration and timekeeping tools make it an attractive option for businesses in various industries.

4. What are the strengths of Paylocity?

Paylocity is one of the largest payroll providers in the country, establishing itself as a market leader in the mid-market space. The company has made strategic technology acquisitions to enhance its product offerings and user experience. Recent updates to its interface have improved usability, particularly with the onboarding module, which receives positive reviews. Paylocity also boasts a robust integration marketplace and has pre-built integrations with leading third-party tools.

5. What are the concerns with Paylocity?

Paylocity faced challenges with its customer service department in early 2023, although recent reports indicate improvements as the organization underwent restructuring for greater efficiency. While the partnership with Blue Marble supports global payroll, Paylocity's system remains predominantly US-centric. It tends to work best for smaller, less complex companies, as its talent management suite, although solid, was built after its core HR functionality.

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Meet the Author

Brett Ungashick
OutSail HRIS Advisor
Brett Ungashick, the friendly face behind OutSail, started his career at LinkedIn, selling HR software. This experience sparked an idea, leading him to create OutSail in 2018. Based in Denver, OutSail simplifies the HR software selection process, and Brett's hands-on approach has already helped over 1,000 companies, including SalesLoft, Hudl and DoorDash. He's a go-to guy for all things HR Tech, supporting companies in every industry and across 20+ countries. When he's not demystifying HR tech, you'll find Brett enjoying a round of golf or skiing down Colorado's slopes, always happy to chat about work or play.

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