Pros
Cons
OnPay provides a cost-effective and easy-to-use platform for payroll processing and human resources management, specifically tailored for small businesses. Founded in 2007 by CEO Jesse Burgess, the company was built upon his family’s payroll business. With a strong foundation in the industry, OnPay has grown and is now based in Atlanta, Georgia. This all-in-one solution offers various payroll services, including unlimited monthly payroll runs, automated tax filings, and support for multiple pay rates and employee compensation methods.
Although OnPay primarily concentrates on payroll processing, the platform also provides a variety of useful HR tools and features. These include new hire reporting, customizable personnel checklists that can assist with compliance audits, and an HR resource library. Additionally, OnPay supports numerous third-party integrations and add-ons, making it a flexible solution ideal for small and growing businesses across different industries.
OnPay is crafted to deliver a comprehensive solution for businesses, equipping them with all the essential tools needed to manage payroll, employee and contractor taxes, as well as employee health and dental benefits. The platform also features important HR tools to enhance your human resources processes. Once you sign up, you can access a wide range of functionalities to support your operations.
OnPay’s system is designed to serve companies with both W-2 employees and 1099 contractors, addressing the needs of both types of workers. Admins can generate year-end tax forms, including W-2s for employees and 1099s for contractors, without any additional fees. In addition, OnPay manages tax withholding and payments on your behalf, taking care of deductions for federal, state, and local taxes.
Payroll Management
With OnPay, you can run payroll as often as necessary, without any restrictions. This flexibility is especially advantageous for businesses with diverse pay schedules or frequent payroll cycles. The platform accommodates different pay schedules and rates, making it suitable for part-time, full-time, and contract workers with various compensation arrangements. You can choose to pay employees via direct deposit, paper checks, or prepaid debit cards, providing multiple options to meet both your employees’ preferences and your business needs.
Onboarding
OnPay offers a user-friendly self-onboarding feature for new employees, simplifying the process and saving time for both employers and staff. Additionally, employees can utilize the platform to manage their paid time off (PTO) requests. Another benefit is that employees retain lifetime access to their OnPay accounts, allowing them to log in and retrieve their pay stubs and tax forms even after leaving the company whenever they need them.
Tax Compliance
Through the self-service employee portal, employees can complete their onboarding and submit information about their tax exemptions or deductions. OnPay automatically calculates and withholds the appropriate taxes from employee wages, ensuring accurate and compliant deductions. Employees can access their tax documents through the portal, allowing them to conveniently view and retrieve their tax forms whenever necessary.
Employee Benefits Administration
OnPay allows you to select and manage health insurance benefits for your employees, seamlessly integrating these offerings with your payroll system. In addition to dental, health, and vision benefits, partnering with a low-fee 401(k) provider enables you to enhance your employee benefits package with retirement savings options. OnPay works with well-regarded 401(k) providers like Vestwell and Guideline. While OnPay does not charge a service fee for 401(k) administration, there are associated costs, including a monthly fee and participant fees.
Reports and Analytics
OnPay offers various payroll and tax-related reports that deliver important insights into your business’s financial and HR information. The interactive report designer enables you to tailor these reports to meet your specific needs and preferences. Additionally, OnPay handles the reporting of all new hires to the government on your behalf, ensuring compliance with legal requirements and saving you time and effort in meeting this obligation.
OnPay uses a pricing model that includes a base fee of $40 per month, plus an additional $6 per employee. The company’s pricing page features a sliding scale that helps you calculate the monthly cost based on the number of employees. This scale begins at $46 for one employee and goes up to a maximum of $6,040 for a team of 1,000. This pricing structure suggests that OnPay primarily serves small to mid-sized businesses.
The subscription fee for OnPay includes all core features and functionalities of the platform, excluding the costs associated with any third-party software you might choose to integrate. This allows you the flexibility to begin with a basic setup and progressively add features as your business requirements change.
One of the key benefits of OnPay is that there are no restrictions on the number of pay runs and pay types you can process. This flexibility is especially advantageous for rapidly growing businesses or those that employ a mix of employees and contractors.
If you’re considering trying out OnPay before committing, you can sign up for a 30-day free trial. Throughout this trial period, you’ll have complete access to all of OnPay’s software features, enabling you to explore and test its capabilities. However, it’s important to be aware that the trial period will begin only after OnPay has processed your employee information and verified your bank account. The duration of this process may vary based on your specific payroll experience and how long it takes to complete the verification steps.
OnPay focuses on providing an easy setup and user-friendly experience. However, if you face any challenges or have questions, the platform offers multiple options for support from their customer service team. OnPay features a comprehensive help center with guides tailored to each tool and feature within the platform, including helpful resources like how-to GIFs and walkthroughs. Additionally, live chat and phone support are open on weekdays from 9 AM to 8 PM ET.
For small business owners looking for a simple and affordable payroll solution, OnPay can be a dependable option. The platform provides several benefits that make it especially attractive in this regard. OnPay is both affordable and scalable for rapidly growing companies, thanks to its pay-per-new-hire pricing model. This structure allows you to add new hires to your plan without needing to upgrade to a more expensive tier.
However, it’s important to recognize that as your business expands, you may require more advanced HR features and capabilities. While OnPay does offer a variety of HR tools and features, it may not provide the same level of scalability and depth of functionality as some specialized HR platforms designed for larger organizations.