Paycom VS Paylocity Comparison: Which Is Better?

Both built for mid-sized to larger businesses, the similar-sounding Paycom and Paylocity are popular choices to use for running payroll, but they each have their own pluses and minuses. Both have strong feature sets, but depending on your background or area of technological expertise, their respective interfaces can be tricky to master. Both also offer quote-based pricing and are on the higher end of payroll options on the market.

Overall, Paylocity’s customization, strong number of integrations, and slightly more competitive pricing help it outshine Paycom in a number of areas. But that doesn’t necessarily mean Paycom might not still be the right fit for your business. We’ll drill down further into both products to let you know where they excel and where they’re lacking.

Paycom VS Paylocity

Both Paycom and Paylocity provide a good number of features for your payroll needs and also come with strong customer support. But on the whole, Paylocity’s ease of use, variety of integrations, and more competitive pricing make it the better option in most instances.

About Paycom

Paycom is a solid payroll option for mid-sized to larger companies that can afford its somewhat steep pricing and whose employees may have experience with slightly outdated and moderate complex payroll software. It was also designed to run with HR programs that can help with things like recruiting, training, and employee assessments.

Its payroll program has a solid (if not overly deep) feature set but it provides all of the basics a mid-sized to larger business would need. This includes things like an employee portal that can be easily accessed through an app, unlimited payrolls per month, time tracking, benefits administration, and tax support. It also has highly-rated customer service and provides a specific account representative to each client.

Paycom shines when it comes to employee management and its app comes highly rated, giving employees an easy way to request time off and input and track expenses. This is a helpful tool to cut down on HR costs and potentially save time and unnecessary conversations between HR and employees in other departments.

About Paylocity

Paylocity also has the goal of streamlining issues in HR and payroll to help businesses run more efficiently. It features a highly customizable interface and a stellar number of integrations that add to its functionality. Like Paycom, the software can be a little overwhelming and unwieldy for newcomers and it’s probably not the best option for smaller businesses with a limited number of employees.

Paylocity also features a very highly regarded app that allows employees to do things like download their paystubs and clock in and clock out. Running payroll is easy and can be done an unlimited number of times monthly. It also allows for multiple payment options.

Paylocity is a leader when it comes to its reporting offerings. There are dozens of reporting options to help you track your payroll and expenses and you can customize them to your liking as well. Paylocity features strong and helpful customer service and, although its pricing is quote-based, its rates are fairly competitive compared with similar programs.

The Key Differences Between Paycom VS Paylocity

While both programs are more than equipped to handle your complex payroll issues, you may be more inclined to choose Paycom over Paylocity depending on your specific industry needs. Neither Paycom nor Paylocity is particularly cheap but they shine in different areas. Paycom has outstanding employee management and highly rated customer support while Paylocity stands out with its reporting and large number of integrations. Here’s a quick breakdown of where the companies differ in terms of features.

1. Pricing: You’ll have to call for a quote with both Paycom and Paylocity but, at least in my experience, Paylocity is a little more upfront with the services it provides while Paycom has multiple add-ons that can add up and be slightly more confusing as to what you’re actually paying. Paylocity’s quote rates also tend to be slightly more competitive.

2. Employee Management: While both Paycom and Paylocity have very strong and easy-to-use apps for employees to use, Paycom goes deeper in terms of the options available for employees and the ease in which it can store and track employee information.

3. Reporting: Here Payocity gets the edge. While Paycom’s reports aren’t necessarily lacking and are certainly adequate, if you’re looking to really delve deep into your payroll or HR analytics, Paylocity has you covered with a wide variety of reports that are highly customizable.

4. Customer Service: Both companies score solid marks in this department. Customers really appreciate Paycom’s knowledgebase and find it easy to get ahold of someone who can directly help with their problems, while Paylocity customers occasionally note a slightly lengthier process to get to an expert.

5. Integrations: This is one of the bigger differences between the two companies as Paycom only has a minimal number of integrations while Paylocity teams up with a wide variety of other services that dramatically improve the quality of its product.

Paycom VS Paylocity: Pricing

Unfortunately, neither company has a simple pricing structure listed on its website. Instead, you’ll have to call the company and talk to a representative who can figure out your business’s needs and give you a quote. It’s not entirely a bad thing, as it’s a way to make sure that you’re not paying for services you don’t need, but it’s an additional step that can sometimes be frustrating. Paycom, in particular, offers a number of its services only as add-ons, which can quickly up the price. As a result, Paylocity gives you slightly more bang for your buck.

Paycom VS Paylocity: Features

As you might expect, both Paycom and Paylocity have very strong feature sets. Chances are, if you’ve done your research and looked into them on your own, you’ll find that they both offer all of the basic functions of a strong payroll suite. In short, you likely won’t be disappointed with the depth of either’s features, but Paycom and Paylocity do excel in different areas. Here we’ll take a brief look at where they differ.

Employee App

Both Paycom and Paylocity feature intuitive mobile apps that allow employees greater access to their pay and benefits information. Paycom is slightly more robust and very well-received by its customers who appreciate having all of that information in the palm of their hands. Paycom also recently rolled out Beti, an industry-first system that allows employees to essentially run their own payroll.

Payment Methods

While both run payroll similarly, Paycom allows for direct deposit as its primary payment method while Paylocity has other options including cash card integrations.

Paid Time Off

Both Paycom and Paylocity allow you to set your PTO policies, including sick and vacation days. Multiple users have reported that Paylocity’s system can be a bit difficult to manage at times, however.

Employee Management

Paycom features exceptionally deep employee management tools, with features like applicant tracking, learning modules, time management, and vacations. Paylocity allows you to manage customer information from a single interface, including deductions and garnishments.

Reports

Paycom features a standard number of reports and also provides help through its assistants if there is a particular report that your business would like to run. For Paylocity, reporting is one of the highlights, allowing users to customize their vast array of reports and add them to a database for anyone to see.

Ease Of Use

Both Paycom and Paylocity can be a bit unwieldy at times, due in large part to the extent of their features. Paycom, in particular, has a UI that comes across as a bit outdated and customers who don’t have extensive experience in payroll may find that they have issues with certain functions. Paycom does have a highly reviewed training system in place and its app is sleek and easy to use. Meanwhile, Paylocity users appear to have fewer issues once they’ve gotten used to the system.

Customer Service

This is a strength for both Paycom and Paylocity. Notably, Paycom receives high marks for connecting customers with an appropriate support member quickly to address problems. Both companies are available by phone Monday through Friday but Paylocity has slightly longer hours, with agents available from 7 AM to 7 PM CST.

Integrations

Paylocity is a clear winner here; integrations are one of the company’s biggest selling points. Paylocity has more than 300 potential integrations for its customers to take advantage of, while Paycom’s software can struggle to integrate with other apps and also doesn’t feature an open API.

Reviews & Complaints: Do Users Prefer Paycom Or Paylocity?

Reviews for both companies are generally positive. Both average mostly 4 out of 5 stars on a number of online review sites. Paylocity may have just a slight edge in terms of overall satisfaction, but the differences largely come down to personal preference.

By and large, Paylocity customers are very happy with the product. There are a few complaints about its ease of use but even those recognize that, for software with so many features, it’s bound to take some time to learn how to use it. A few customers were disappointed in the quality of Paylocity’s app and some mentioned that its customer service team was occasionally slow in getting them to the correct person to fix their problem. However, the consensus is that Paylocity gives you a lot for what you pay for and checks all of the boxes for payroll software.

Paycom complaints and praises are fairly similar. There are a few people who find the software less than intuitive and some of the reviews say that their customer service is hit or miss depending on what you need help with. Paycom also has a handful of complaints about its pricing and with customers mentioning that they felt pressured into buying add-ons. But overall the majority of the reviews paint a positive picture of the software.

Is Paycom of Paylocity Better For My Business?

Ahh, if only it were this simple. Both products definitely have their similarities, but they thrive in a few different areas. While we believe that Paylocity checks a few more boxes overall than Paycom, that doesn’t mean the choice is necessarily a slam dunk. Here’s what we suggest:

Choose Paycom If…

Paycom is best for:

• Customers looking for a highly intuitive app for employees
• Businesses who may want to try employee-run payroll
• Businesses with complex employee management needs

Choose Paylocity If…

Paylocity is bet for:

• Businesses looking for in-depth reporting
• Businesses that could benefit from a variety of integrations
• Businesses that are slightly more concerned about overall cost

Comparing Paylocity VS Paycom: The Final Verdict

Hopefully, you have a better idea about what to expect from both of these popular and well-reviewed payroll and HR products. In general, you’ll probably be happy with what both have to offer as they feature nearly everything you would need and expect. Keep in mind that both of these products are really best for mid-sized to larger businesses and, if you have a smaller operation, there are better and more cost-effective options out there.

While Paycom’s app gets high marks for its user-friendliness, and its customer service is excellent, Paylocity’s features, including its reporting and wealth of integrations, probably make it a deeper and more robust offering in general. But, seeing as how both companies have quote-based pricing, you may want to give them a call and see what they can offer you.