Written by: Coralee Bechteler
Coralee is a business writer with experience in administrative services, education, and software testing.
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
If you’re starting a business and hiring employees, mastering payroll is likely to be one of your first major hurdles. Dealing with payroll is often quite complex and time-consuming, which is why many entrepreneurs turn to a professional payroll service.
Payroll providers can handle the entire payroll process for you, making it nearly seamless and automated while offering additional services so that you can focus on building a successful business.
One of the top options is Rippling. But is it the best service? And is it the right choice for you? This review takes a closer look — putting ourselves in the shoes of an entrepreneur — to help you determine whether this is the right payroll service for your business.
Pricing
Breadth of Services
Help and Support
Customer Satisfaction
Ease of Use
Overall Score: 2.8/5
Rippling presents a convenient one-stop shop for businesses in need of administrative services. Rippling offers customers a broad range of services in three main categories:
This review focuses on Rippling’s HR software, specifically its payroll and related services.
Rippling’s payroll services allow customers to customize their purchases to include exactly what they need, and nothing more. Rippling’s HR software offers several different features, including direct deposit capabilities, employee time tracking, legal filing and compliance, and more.
Rippling offers a number of different service modules within its HR cloud software, and also provides businesses with the ability to customize their subscription plan to include only the services they need.
We’ve identified all of the service modules and their accompanying features that can be added to your HR software subscription below.
Note: Rippling does not have package prices or a la carte prices posted on their website. Instead, Rippling encourages potential customers to request a free quote based on information particular to their business.
| Service Module | Included Features |
|---|---|
| Full-Service Payroll | Executes payroll in all 50 states and international Automated federal, state, and local tax filings W2, W4, 1099 filing Filing for new hires Automated compliance Supported integration for over 400 apps Garnishments Time and task tracking Paid time off tracking Compensation by direct deposit or paper check Mobile app Access to report template library Custom-made report creation Access to workflow template library |
| Time & Attendance | Automated time and attendance tracking Customizable automated workflows Time and attendance policy creation Automated policy integrations Custom-made report creation Automated compliance False time tracking prevention options Access to workflow template library |
| Benefits Administration Flex Benefits ACA and COBRA Administration | Integration of all benefits into one system Paperless and online onboarding process Seamless transfer of existing benefit plans Seamless broker integration Broker referrals Compare over 4,000 benefit packages Online open enrollment plan tracking Automated updates to employee payroll deductions Online employee access Access to workflow template library Issue a pre-tax debit card to employees to assist with: Flexible spending accounts (FSA) Medical FSAs: an account used to pay for out-of-pocket medical expenses Limited FSAs: an account to be used to pay for out-of-pocket vision and dental expenses not covered by insurance only Health Savings Account (HSA): an employee-owned account into which both employee and employer can deposit funds Commuter and transit benefits Automated Affordable Care Act (ACA) reporting Automated Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) compliance |
| Applicant Tracking | Streamlined and automated job posting Applicant tracking system Custom-made hiring workflows and processes Custom-made report creation Automated interview and scheduling integrations 90-second onboarding of new hires Learning management system integrations Automated employee learning management and tracking Employee compliance training monitoring Online access to over 1,000 pre-made employee learning courses Ability to upload employee courses Employee engagement program Access to workflow template library |
| Learning Management | Online access to over 1,000 pre-made employee learning courses Ability to upload employee courses Create course enrollment rules Interactive learning to maximize retention Course completion certifications Employee certification recordkeeping Automated training compliance Create course certification policies Automated policy integrations Automated employee learning management and tracking Access to workflow template library |
| Pulse | Access to survey template library Create employee surveys Supports anonymous surveys Automatic event-triggered employee survey distribution Automated notifications and workflow shifts based on survey responses Unified survey analytics Custom-made report creation Role-based permissions and control for survey creation, dispersal, and access |
| HR Help Desk: HR Support | Phone and email support from certified HR professionals |
Rippling’s Full-Service Payroll module provides businesses with everything needed to run payroll and effectively ensure legal compliance– whether they are domestic or international.
The Full-Service Payroll software module can be used in all 50 states as well as internationally, so it’s perfect for geographically dispersed companies looking for a convenient payroll processing solution.
Furthermore, Rippling’s Full-Service Payroll software module automatically handles all required filing and reporting. This means that no matter where a business’s employees may be located, legal compliance requirements will always be met.
Rippling’s Full-Service Payroll software covers legal compliance for:
This module also tracks the total time employees spend working each pay period, monitors paid time off (PTO), and even allows employers to supervise the time spent on individual tasks and projects. The Full-Service Payroll module supports direct deposit and paper paychecks.
Rippling’s Full-Service Payroll Software presents straightforward integrations with over 400 different apps, access to Rippling’s report and workflow template libraries, as well as the ability to generate custom reports. This module also provides employers and employees with access to Rippling’s mobile app.
The Time & Attendance module can help companies with a large number of employees, as well as international companies and companies that support hybrid work structures.
Rippling’s Time & Attendance supports the creation and implementation of employee time and attendance policies, automates legal labor compliance, and automatically tracks the time and dates employees work.
The Time & Attendance module also helps prevent employees from inaccurately tracking their work time, such as when an arriving employee clocks in a colleague who is not yet at the workplace. Businesses that purchase this module will gain access to Rippling’s automated workflow template library and be able to create custom reports.
Rippling’s Benefits Administration module represents an advantageous package, providing benefit management support that businesses of all sizes will benefit from– including smaller businesses that will continue to grow.
Rippling’s Benefits Administration module helps integrate all the different available benefits into one convenient system. This module is equipped with several different accommodating features, such as seamless broker integration and automated updates of paycheck deductions.
Businesses that purchase the Benefits Administration module are provided with access to Rippling’s workflow template library and tracking and management for open enrollment, and can research and compare over 4,000 different benefits packages.
Rippling’s Benefits Administration services offer broker referrals, an online onboarding process, and online access to benefit plans. This module also supports employee flex benefits, commuter benefits, automatic Affordable Care Act (ACA) reporting, and Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) compliance.
Rippling’s Applicant Tracking module aims to help new businesses and businesses in stages of rapid expansion and onboarding many new employees.
Purchasing the Applicant Tracking module streamlines hiring processes in several different ways, including automated job posting, applicant tracking system (ATS) services, interviewing and scheduling app integrations and automation, and their famous 90-second onboarding process. This module grants customers access to Rippling’s workflow template library, and additionally offers the ability to create customized hiring workflows and reports.
The Applicant Tracking module also supports employee development, providing businesses with online access to a learning management system with over 1,000 readily available courses. Furthermore, employers have the ability to upload their own courses, integrate other learning systems into Rippling’s, and automatically track employee learning and training compliance.
Rippling’s Learning Management module supports internal business development, a good service for businesses that value continuous learning for employees.
The Learning Management module includes the learning and employee development features that Rippling’s Applicant Tracking module does, with some additional features. These include the ability to specify course enrollment prerequisites and conditions, the creation of course certification policies, and the automatic integration of rules and policies.
Rippling’s Learning Management module also includes interactive learning engagement activities to help maximize employee knowledge retention, employee certifications upon completing a course, as well as a recordkeeping system for these certifications.
Rippling’s Pulse module supports communication between employees and their employer, and helps provide valuable analytical insight into business processes and day-to-day functioning.
Rippling’s Pulse module includes a survey template library that enables the creation of new, customized surveys. This module includes survey analytics, custom reports, and permission controls for the creation and distribution of surveys.
The Pulse module supports extensive customization, allowing businesses to configure specific survey-issuance triggers. For example, say an employee quits their job at a company that utilizes Pulse. The business could set a trigger to automatically send out satisfaction surveys to all employees.
Rippling’s customers receive phone and email support from certified HR professionals.
Rippling’s payroll software offers a complete suite of services, such as federal, state, and local tax filings, including employee 1099s and W-2 and W-4 forms to ensure legal compliance.
Businesses can pay employees via direct deposit or paper check, and Rippling also provides payroll reports.
Rippling provides automated onboarding services that enable businesses to hire new employees in just 90 seconds. The service includes applicant tracking, job-offer documents, and new-hire paperwork. Moreover, Rippling supports the customization of these documents as well as the gathering of electronic signatures.
Rippling’s administrative benefits service allows businesses to integrate all benefits into one convenient system. This means that HR teams can manage and administer employee retirement plans, medical and dental insurance, vision coverage, and more– all accessible online, paperlessly, in their HR software.
Rippling ensures that new customers have a smooth experience when they register for their HR software. If a business already has existing plans in place, Rippling provides a seamless transfer of the established employee benefits. In turn, this eliminates the unnecessary hassle involved in updating employee information and plan re-enrollment for both the business owner and their employees.
Additionally, Rippling also offers companies the opportunity to shop for new benefit bundles from a collection of over 4,000 different plans, and also provides assistive comparison tools during open enrollment season.
Employees also have online access to their health insurance accounts. Most importantly, Rippling handles compliance with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) related to health insurance, which can give HR teams peace of mind.
Rippling’s reporting function is among the best I have tested. Not only are benefits like Cobra and insurance available, but payroll and HR reports are categorized in a way that does not overwhelm.
The custom writer is intuitive, with all fields labeled exactly as in the default reports. The ability to save and share templates is also a nice feature.
The front page starts with a customizable to-do list, which is a fairly novel approach that allows the user to create a schedule relative to their specific responsibilities. For example, not everybody involved with payroll will be part of every step in the process. The apps list also includes benefits information and can be made user-specific. Rippling’s interface is definitely meant for a tech savvy user base, which extends to the HR functions for things like a custom user experience survey.
The color scheme was a bit of a surprise, with black text against a burgundy background. Also the links felt clunky and heavy, rather than friendly and inviting. The services themselves performed wonderfully, but aesthetically, the site felt uncomfortable, unwelcoming.
Rippling’s payroll submission system was a treat to use, especially with the ability to immediately export your pay run to a number of leading cloud accounting tools.
Everything you’d expect from a top-tier payroll service is here: custom fields; ability to change hours and dollar amounts; single check additions; and more. The preview register was accurate and showed all the relevant information.
The accounting side of this payroll providers definitely ranks among the best.
Rippling was rather confounding to review. The information in all departments is thorough and detailed, and the focus on HR feedback is always welcome. That said, the interface is rather drab and could use a face lift.
Also, the pricing schemes are overly compartmentalized, with any new feature requiring additional costs. Just be sure you’re getting everything you need before you hand over your credit card. Rippling is a good option if all users, not just the department leads, are comfortable with detailed software.
Rippling’s website is very user-friendly and supplies readers with thorough details about its different services and associated features. Users can even get more information on each individual service by clicking around Rippling’s site.
The website also has a robust resources section that provides information on various topics.
In general, the site is laid out well and easy to understand. Our biggest complaint is that Rippling offers minimal pricing details. Rippling just lists a general base expense and encourages potential customers to contact them for a free quote and product demonstration.
As we stated, Rippling does not provide detailed information regarding pricing and service packages on its website. The most information potential customers can glean from Rippling’s Pricing page is that they will be required to pay $8 a month for each employee.
Rippling’s homepage encourages potential customers to provide an email address and set up a demo of Rippling’s software services.
Potential customers are encouraged to request a free quote based on information particular to their business.
Rippling offers a free mobile app for employees and employers. Employees can track hours, manage direct deposit info, and review pay stubs and insurance benefits.
In order to cancel HR software modules and services with Rippling, you will need to log into Rippling’s Help Center and request assistance from their support team.
In general, the site is user-friendly, informative and well organized. Our main frustration is rooted in the lack of information regarding prices, in addition to Rippling not providing a phone number. No matter how proactive you are, you are still at Rippling’s mercy when it comes to scheduling, receiving, and discussing a quote.
Rippling presents businesses with valuable customization opportunities. Essentially, the website aims to help companies determine the correct services they need, without paying extra for unneeded services.
Due to a lack of clear cancelation instructions on Rippling’s website, we sought customer support to better understand how the cancelation process works.
We tested all three forms of Rippling customer support, as detailed below.
When you first engage with Rippling’s chat, a bot asks what sort of help you’re looking for. We selected the second option, then answered the following questions prompted by the bot:
We waited almost 10 minutes before one of Rippling’s customer representatives entered the chat to assist us. When we did finally speak with a real person, our question was unanswered and we seemed to get passed to a different representative.
We repeated our question about cancelation, but the representative was unable to answer. We were instead told to contact Rippling’s support team.
When we asked how to get in touch with the support team, we were only given a link to log into Rippling’s Help Center. This appeared to put us in an endless customer service loop.
Support Rating:
Response time:
Reasonable
Rippling does not provide potential customers with a phone number to call for information and assistance.
We did, however, supply a Rippling chat representative with a phone number that we could be contacted at. Within 20 minutes we received a call from an unknown number, but when we answered the phone, the other end was silent. Later, when a different customer service representative called, that call was not received in our end.
Support Rating:
Response time:
Reasonable
Rippling’s website offers no email address for general customer support. Instead, Rippling provides:
A quick visit to Rippling’s contact page reveals a basic contact submission form, so this is where we sent our question about Rippling’s cancellation policies.
After we submitted our question, we were brought to a screen that directed us to book a demo, which could be frustrating for potential customers that have already experienced a demo.
After more than 24 hours, we have yet to receive a response from Rippling.
Support Rating:
Response time:
Reasonable
Overall, Rippling’s services offer advantages and drawbacks, as detailed below.
Rippling first started to sell software products to the public in 2018, and has since continued to expand and grow. While some companies utilize multiple different niche software apps to manage and execute various administrative tasks, Rippling provides their users with the advantage of only having to log into one account. Once logged into their Rippling account, employees and employers have access to all information in one place
Rippling’s software services are effective for companies of all sizes– from small businesses with just two employees to much larger corporations that employ more than 2,000 people. Rippling boasts that its software is “so powerful it can run itself.”
Paychex Flex payroll services are also priced by quote only and seem to be on par with Rippling. Paychex is an established industry veteran with an A+ rating with the BBB and low customer review score.
Gusto has three plans, while Rippling enables companies to create their own plan. However, Gusto’s plans include significantly more features, especially when it comes to HR support. Like Rippling, Gusto has an F rating with the BBB.
OnPay has one plan with overlapping features that can be found in Rippling’s HR software modules. Though OnPay only has customer support during business hours, Rippling’s customer support is negligible. OnPay has solid ratings with Trustpilot and BBB, but mixed customer reviews.
As a leading entrepreneurial 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 creating 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 review of Rippling payroll services.
Overall, we were disappointed with our Rippling experience. The site might be easy to navigate with plenty of readily available information, but a deliberate exclusion of detailed pricing information proved frustrating.
Rippling’s customer service ranks among the worst we have experienced. The absence of a general contact email address and phone number is discouraging, to say the least. Rippling essentially strong-arms potential clients into scheduling a demonstration to learn more.
At the same time, Rippling does offer a convenient software solution that covers most HR needs. It’s pricey, but the simplicity of Rippling handling all HR duties is a great value. For smaller businesses, a more economical service such as OnPay may be a better choice.
Based on our thorough research, we do not recommend Rippling to business owners.
Good payroll software handles the payroll process for you, making it nearly seamless and automated s you can focus on building a successful business.
Rippling’s payroll services include federal, state, and local tax filings, as well as employee W-4 and I-9 forms and your W-2s and 1099s.
Rippling provides automated onboarding services that includes applicant tracking, templates for job offers, new-hire documents, digital signatures, and enrolling new hires in benefits.
Rippling’s employee benefits services offer businesses easy integration of all benefits into one convenient system. This includes employee retirement plans, medical and dental insurance, and vision coverage.
Rippling provides a seamless transfer of established employee benefits, as well as the ability for companies to shop for new benefit bundles from a collection of over 4,000 different plans. Employees also have online access to their health insurance accounts.
Rippling’s services provide customers with the option to customize their purchases to include exactly what they need for their business, without the inconvenience of having to pay extra for services that are unnecessary.
Rippling’s Time & Attendance module can track time for all employees, even those that are not paid via Rippling’s payroll software– like international contractors.
Rippling automatically generates and updates overtime policies for new employees specific to the state they’re located in, ensuring businesses are always compliant.
Rippling can advise and help companies to avoid complicated compliance issues and claims. For instance, this includes advice regarding training compliance disputes, discrimination claims, and sexual harassment claims.
Employees of a business that utilizes Rippling have access to customer support and health insurance guidance to help determine which options are best.
Rippling claims it can run payroll in just 90 seconds.
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 ...