We may earn a commission if you buy through links on this page. It never changes a score or a ranking. How we make money
Most buyers should pick QuickBooks Online Payroll.
Choose QuickBooks Online Payroll if you want published monthly pricing, a 30-day trial, and payroll tied to QuickBooks accounting. Its Workforce Payroll plan lists $50/month plus $7 per employee, with a $25 base-price promotion for the first three months; per-employee fees remain. Choose ADP Workforce Now if your priority is broader HR coverage for a midsize-to-enterprise organization and you can evaluate costs without published pricing or seat limits. Neither product lists a free plan.
01Side by side
| ADP Workforce Now | QuickBooks Online Payroll | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Not published; seat limits are also undisclosed. | From $25 contractor-only; employee payroll $50 + $7/employee. |
| Free plan | No free plan listed. | No free plan; 30-day free trial. |
| Best for | Midsize-to-enterprise organizations, generally 50 to 999+ employees. | Small businesses running employee payroll. |
| Core strength | Payroll and HR offerings across business sizes. | Payroll, tax filing, and QuickBooks accounting sync. |
| Learning curve | Not published. | Not published. |
| Integrations/data | Specific integrations are not published. | Syncs payroll with QuickBooks accounting records. |
| Team/seat costs | Seat limits and prices are not published. | Per-employee fees are listed by plan. |
| Support | Support details are not published. | Support details are not published. |
ADP Workforce Now Choose ADP Workforce Now if
- Choose ADP Workforce Now if you need payroll and broader HR coverage.
- Choose ADP Workforce Now if your organization is midsize to enterprise.
- Choose ADP Workforce Now if you can assess costs without public pricing.
QuickBooks Online Payroll Choose QuickBooks Online Payroll if
- Choose QuickBooks Online Payroll if you run small-business employee payroll.
- Choose QuickBooks Online Payroll if you want payroll synced with QuickBooks accounting.
- Choose QuickBooks Online Payroll if published prices and a 30-day trial matter.
02Pricing compared
QuickBooks publishes prices; ADP Workforce Now does not. QuickBooks Workforce Payroll lists a $50 monthly base price plus $7 per employee. Its base price drops to $25 for the first three months, but the per-employee fee still applies. Premium is $88 per month plus $13 per employee, and Elite is $134 plus $17 per employee. All three list a 30-day trial. Annual prices are not published.
ADP lists Select, Plus and Premium for midsize-to-enterprise organizations, but plan prices and seat limits are not published. Its pricing information generally targets organizations with 50 to 999+ employees. That makes a direct cost comparison difficult before getting a quote. Neither product lists a free plan. QuickBooks also offers Contractor Payments for $25 per month for up to 20 contractors; additional contractors cost $2 per month each.
03Features and depth
The products differ in scope. ADP describes Workforce Now as part of a broader payroll and HR offering for midsize-to-enterprise organizations. Its listed coverage includes payroll and HR, plus time and attendance for small and midsized businesses, workforce management for large businesses, talent for midsized businesses, and benefits administration for midsized and large businesses. Recruiting, performance, compensation and learning management are listed as add-ons with custom, unpublished prices.
QuickBooks Online Payroll centers on paying employees and contractors and handling payroll taxes alongside QuickBooks accounting records. Its listed features include unlimited payroll runs, tax filing, scheduled paydays and Auto Payroll for salaried employees on direct deposit. Payroll AI prepares pay runs for approval, collects time and attendance data, and flags inconsistencies. Premium adds up to five automated HR workflows; Elite includes unlimited workflow configurations and up to $25,000 in annual tax penalty protection. QuickBooks also says payroll syncs with its accounting records. Choose ADP to investigate broader HR coverage; choose QuickBooks for payroll tied to QuickBooks accounting.
04Ease of use and learning curve
Neither product’s published information gives enough detail to compare setup steps or the day-to-day interface. QuickBooks lists a 30-day trial, so buyers can review its workflow before committing. ADP’s trial availability is not published on the vendor's site, and its plans require a quote.
The review summaries score ease of use at 6/10 for QuickBooks and 5/10 for ADP; those scores do not explain what users found difficult. We’d ask both vendors to walk through a typical pay run, tax filing and employee changes using your actual requirements. With ADP, also get seat limits and add-on costs in writing before comparing total cost.
Questions people ask
Which is cheaper, ADP Workforce Now or QuickBooks Online Payroll?
QuickBooks is easier to price from the published figures: Workforce Payroll lists $50 per month plus $7 per employee, with a three-month base-price promotion. ADP Workforce Now’s plan prices and seat limits are not published, so we can’t establish which will cost less without an ADP quote.
Does either payroll product offer a free trial?
QuickBooks Online Payroll lists a 30-day free trial for its Workforce Payroll, Premium and Elite plans, as well as Contractor Payments. ADP Workforce Now’s published pricing information does not list a free trial. Neither product lists a free plan.
Which product is better for a midsize or enterprise business?
ADP Workforce Now is positioned for midsize-to-enterprise organizations, with payroll and HR plus solutions such as benefits administration and workforce management across the listed business sizes. QuickBooks may fit businesses prioritizing payroll connected to QuickBooks accounting. Compare ADP’s quote and plan limits before deciding.
Does QuickBooks Online Payroll include HR features?
QuickBooks lists HR workflows with its Premium and Elite plans: Premium includes up to five automated workflows, while Elite includes unlimited workflow configurations. ADP lists broader HR offerings, but pricing details for its plans and several HR add-ons are not published on the vendor's site.