Written by: Natalie Fell
Natalie is a writer with experience in operations, HR, and training & development within the software, healthcare, and financial services sectors.
Reviewed by: Daniel Eisner
Daniel Eisner is a payroll specialist with over a decade of practical experience in senior accounting positions.
Updated on July 14, 2023
Payroll is an absolutely crucial business process, and because it’s often complex and tedious many entrepreneurs rely on a professional payroll service to do the job.
Two of the leading online services to consider are QuickBooks and ADP RUN. To help you determine which is better, and which might be best for you and your business, we have thoroughly reviewed their services by putting ourselves in the shoes of an entrepreneur.
Read on to make the choice that will keep your business on the surest path to success.
We found that while it was close, ADP RUN offers a better overall customer experience and a richer suite of services.
Explore ADP RUNQuickBooks has three plans, all of which include full payroll services. Their plans include health care benefits and 401K plans.
ADP RUN has four plans, all of which include full payroll services and tax filings. Their upper tier plans offer quite a few HR tools as well.
QuickBooks has three plans. The base plan is $45 per month plus $5 per employee per month. It offers full-service payroll, including W-2s and 1099s and tax filings, plus health insurance benefits and 401K plans.
QuickBooks’ middle plan is $75 per month plus $8 per employee per month. It has the additional benefits of same-day direct deposit and time tracking on the go, enabling employees to track hours on their phone. You’ll also have access to an HR support center and receive workers’ compensation administration.
QuickBooks’ top-tier plan is $125 per month plus $10 per employee per month. It has the unique benefit of tax penalty protection: if you’re fined for late tax filings, QuickBooks will cover it up to $25,000, subject to terms and conditions. You’ll also have a personal HR advisor.
All four of the ADP RUN plans are custom priced. The base plan includes full payroll services and tax filings, while the three upper-tier plans offer various levels of HR tools and support. None of their plans include employee benefits.
While the value is difficult to judge since ADP RUN has custom pricing, the ADP RUN plan offers onboarding tools that QuickBooks does not. The QuickBooks plan, however, offers health care benefits and 401K plans.
| QuickBooks | ADP RUN | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $45 per month plus $5 per employee per month | Custom |
| Payroll service and tax filings | Included | Included |
| W-2s and 1099s | Included | Included |
| Direct Deposit | Included | Included |
| Health care benefits | Included | Not included |
| 401K plans | Included | Not included |
| Electronic reports | Not included | Included |
| Employee access portal | Not included | Included |
| Customer Support | Included | 24/7 |
| New hire reporting | Not included | Included |
| Auto payroll | Included | Included |
| Employment verification | Not included | Included |
| New hire paperwork and onboarding | Not included | Included |
The ADP RUN plan offers more onboarding and HR tools, while the QuickBooks plan, again, offers employee benefits.
| QuickBooks | ADP RUN | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $75 per month plus $8 per employee per month | Custom |
| Payroll service and tax filings | Included | Included |
| W-2s and 1099s | Included | Included |
| Direct Deposit | Included | Included |
| Health care benefits | Included | Not included |
| 401K plans | Included | Not included |
| Electronic reports | Not included | Included |
| Employee access portal | Not included | Included |
| Customer Support | Included | 24/7 |
| New hire reporting | Not included | Included |
| Auto payroll | Included | Included |
| Employment verification | Not included | Included |
| New hire paperwork and onboarding | Not included | Included |
| Time tracking on the go | Included | Not included |
| Worker’s comp admin | Included | Not included |
| Poster compliance | Not included | Included |
| SUI management | Not included | Included |
| Wage garnishment payments | Not included | Included |
| Background checks | Not included | Included |
| HR support center | Included | Not included |
The ADP RUN plan offers quite an extensive set of HR tools plus many extras, making it a more robust plan than the QuickBooks plan.
| QuickBooks | ADP RUN | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $125 per month plus $10 per employee per month | Custom |
| Payroll service and tax filings | Included | Included |
| W-2s and 1099s | Included | Included |
| Direct Deposit | Included | Included |
| Health care benefits | Included | Not included |
| 401K plans | Included | Not included |
| Electronic reports | Not included | Included |
| Employee access portal | Not included | Included |
| Customer Support | 24/7 | 24/7 |
| New hire reporting | Not included | Included |
| Auto payroll | Included | Included |
| Employment verification | Not included | Included |
| New hire paperwork and onboarding | Not included | Included |
| Time tracking on the go | Included | Not included |
| Worker’s comp admin | Included | Not included |
| Poster compliance | Not included | Included |
| SUI management | Not included | Included |
| Wage garnishment payments | Not included | Included |
| Background checks | Not included | Included |
| HR support center | Included | Included |
| Personal HR advisor | Included | HR Help Desk |
| Tax penalty protection | Included | Not included |
| Employee handbook wizard | Not included | Included |
| HR toolkits | Not included | Included |
| Compliance database and updates | Not included | Included |
| UpHR forms and documents | Not included | Included |
| Job description wizard | Not included | Included |
ADP RUN’s highest-level plan has the added benefits of a proactive HR support team, an employee assistance program, and employee and employer HR training. It also includes business and marketing tools with live advice, and legal services.
The site is user-friendly. The plans are easy to find, with good detail on features and pricing. You can even get more information on each individual service. It’s laid out well and easy to understand.
When you view all the packages, you’re advised to select one to set up an account. After you select your plan, you’re offered bundled plans that include QuickBooks accounting features. You can select one of those plans, or select “just payroll”.
Then you go to check-out, where you’ll set up your account and password. The next step is to enter credit card information, which is unusual, as most competitors do not charge clients until the first payroll run.
This means that with Quickbooks you need to be absolutely certain of your choices when you’re setting up your account.
QuickBooks has a robust mobile app for employers. You can enter employee hours, submit payroll, view payroll taxes and forms, and even pay payroll taxes. They also have an app for employees to track their hours and clock in or clock out.
Th employers’ app is far superior to those of competitors. Many payroll services do not even have an app for employers to manage payroll.
The site is quite user-friendly and information is easy to find. The only issue was that new clients must pay immediately when they sign-up, which seems a bit aggressive. Otherwise, the site is not very “salesy” and just guides visitors to the optimal plan. Overall, a pleasant customer experience.
We tested all three forms of QuickBooks customer support, as detailed below.
We asked chat support a simple question – do you offer the option of paying employees by direct deposit or paper check? She asked us several questions before saying she had to route us to a sales person, and asked for our email and phone number. Disappointing! We just wanted a quick answer, not a sales pitch. We never got our answer.
Support Rating:
Response time:
Reasonable
Phone customer support is only available if you have an account. Non-customers can only contact sales, so we did and asked the same question. The answer was yes, both are available, but we also got a bit of pressure to sign up.
Support Rating:
Response time:
Reasonable
Again, email support is only available if you have an account.
Support Rating:
Response time:
Reasonable
The ADP RUN website is very user-friendly. Each of the four plans’ features are easy to locate and review and each feature is thoroughly explained.
ADP RUN requires potential customers to request a quote before purchasing services, so we tested the online quote process instead. First, we clicked on the blue Start Quote button at the top of the ADP RUN homepage.
We then clicked on the No button under “Are you a current ADP client?”.
Next, we were given the option to be contacted or to schedule a call. We chose the Contact me option.
The next step prompted us to provide our zip code, number of employees, company name, and email address.
The last prompt asked for a full name and phone number. After clicking Get Pricing, we received a popup message that a representative would be in touch.
ADP RUN’s mobile solutions give employees access to their payroll information and benefits on their smartphone. Employees can complete a variety of tasks, such as view their pay stubs, manage their time and attendance, and enter time-off requests. Employers can also access their account online through a safe and secure app and run payroll from anywhere.
The ADP RUN web experience is very user-friendly and the quote process took just a few minutes to complete. Each ADP RUN RUN payroll plan was clearly outlined and it was very easy to find detailed information on each plan feature.
However, it was rather difficult to find live customer assistance, as the chatbot is heavily automated and there’s no email feature for prospective customers. If you’re interested in speaking with a representative as you’re exploring the various plan options, calling customer service is your best bet.
We tested all three forms of ADP RUN customer support, as detailed below.
The ADP RUN chat feature is heavily automated. When we tried to engage the chat for support with questions as a potential customer, we were directed to a customer support page, which seemed like it was for existing customers only.
Support Rating:
Response time:
Reasonable
We decided to go through email and phone to get our questions answered. We learned that if you are an existing customer, live chat agents are available M-F 7:30am–10pm EST.
We called the ADP RUN customer service number and reached a live representative within about two minutes. We asked if we could get a ballpark estimate on pricing for each of the plans. The representative was very polite and cordial and said that pricing needs to be provided by the sales team.
They asked if we’d like to be transferred to get a quote started, but we declined and said we would try completing one online instead. The call ended after we thanked the representative, who was not pushy and did not try to upsell or convince us to stay on the line.
Support Rating:
Response time:
Immediate
While there is email support available for ADP RUN customers, we were unable to locate an email support feature for prospective clients. However, we did receive an automated email once we completed our online quote:
Support Rating:
Response time:
Reasonable
After a thorough assessment, we have determined that ADP RUN offers the better value and broader service offerings. With ADP RUN you’ll get richer payroll services and extensive HR tools. The main advantage of QuickBooks is that employee benefits are included, while with ADP RUN there is an additional cost. However, we feel that ADP RUN provides a better overall customer experience.
As a leading human resources advisory site, we take our responsibilities seriously. We understand that countless entrepreneurs, and potential entrepreneurs, rely on our judgments and insights, particularly when it comes to managing their business.
As a result, our writers do their utmost to gain a comprehensive understanding of the services offered and the actual customer experience. In this case, we:
Thanks to this full immersion in the actual customer experience, our reviewer and team are able to provide the most complete and insightful comparison of QuickBooks and ADP RUN payroll services.
A payroll service handles the payroll process for you, making it nearly seamless and automated while offering additional services that can make life easier for a business owner. The service takes care of all the red tape so you can focus on building a successful business.
The Core plan offers full-service payroll including W-2s and 1099s and tax filings. It also includes health insurance and 401K administration.
The Premium plan has the added benefit of same-day direct deposit, as opposed to next day in the Core plan. With the plan, you’ll also have access to an HR support center and receive workers’ compensation administration.
The Essential plan includes a robust suite of payroll services, including access to an online portal and mobile app, 24/7 customer support, and payroll tax filing. You’re also able to run electronic reports and have access to a comprehensive new hire reporting feature.
It also includes payroll delivery services, integrations with accounting software platforms, and the ability to set recurring payrolls that process automatically. All ADP RUN plans also come with direct deposit capabilities as well as a direct debit card option from Wisely.
The Enhanced payroll plan from ADP RUN includes everything from the Essential plan plus access to services from ZipRecruiter, state unemployment insurance assistance, and background checks. You will also get poster compliance services, wage garnishment payment services, and check signing and stuffing.
Payroll is an absolutely crucial business process, and because it’s often complex and tedious many entrepreneurs rely on a professional payrollser ...
Payroll is an absolutely crucial business process, and because it’s often complex and tedious many entrepreneurs rely on a professional payrollser ...
Payroll is an absolutely crucial business process, and because it’s often complex and tedious many entrepreneurs rely on a professional payrollser ...