Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Gusto vs QuickBooks comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Gusto
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
Benefits Administration (10th), Talent Management (13th)
QuickBooks
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
Billing Software (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

Gusto and QuickBooks aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Gusto is designed for Benefits Administration and holds a mindshare of 1.8%, up 0.7% compared to last year.
QuickBooks, on the other hand, focuses on Billing Software, holds 5.0% mindshare, down 9.0% since last year.
Benefits Administration Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Gusto1.8%
Workday12.2%
UKG7.5%
Other78.5%
Benefits Administration
Billing Software Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
QuickBooks5.0%
Zuora6.5%
NetSuite ERP4.4%
Other84.1%
Billing Software
 

Featured Reviews

PS
Founder at SelectSoftware Reviews
Provides time-saving solutions for small business payrolls
I would say, relative to another payroll solution, running payroll with Gusto probably costs half the price and saves us 5 to 10 hours a month. I would say Gusto is a really good payroll solution for small businesses. Running payroll with Gusto costs half the price and saves us 5 to 10 hours a month. My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. I was not offered a gift card or incentive for this review. I rated Gusto 9 out of 10 because of some customer support issues that kept it from being a 10.
MM
Director, Administration at a retailer with 11-50 employees
Provides timely financial insights and supports growth with some room to streamline complexity
We find QuickBooks' budget generation feature valuable but haven't really utilized that as much as we'd want to. It's something that we plan on utilizing next year. It helps save money and time, though I can't speak to specific amounts as I would be really guessing. We use the on-premise version of QuickBooks. We have utilized the third-party application synchronization. An example of a third party that QuickBooks integrates well with is Avalara AvaTax. On a scale of 1-10, I rate QuickBooks a 7.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"I appreciated the templates that they offered for new hires and onboarding."
"Gusto is a really good payroll solution for small businesses."
"I like the payroll part. We also use documents and forms whenever we hire, such as a new hire form for each state, and we like that as well."
"We used QuickBooks before Gusto; we switched because Gusto is much easier, and it also is used for payroll as an HR IT solution with multiple uses."
"I think the most value I have gotten from Gusto has been the interface, as it's very simple to use and it's very easy to understand."
"The most valuable feature of QuickBooks Desktop is its ability to import into QuickBooks Online files easily."
"QuickBooks Online Payroll offers a range of online customizations and advanced features."
"QuickBooks Online has improved my organization by offering a vast array of integrations with other products that allow you to improve process efficiencies while keeping the cost of your ERP or accounting software affordable."
"Gives me the ability to do deep dives into accounting research."
"QuickBooks Desktop is the perfect software program for a startup company to begin keeping track of its accounts, to work with banks, and to present financials to its CPAs so that they can get their taxes done."
"One of the aspects I appreciate the most is its remarkable user-friendliness."
"They have, "Let's walk you through it," introductions, to show you how to use it."
"There are valuable security features including software access security (login password), data backup (getting all transactions and data from the previous bookkeeper), and an audit trail that is available when changes are questioned."
 

Cons

"Their enrollment e-signature, enrollment forms, and other documents need a lot of work."
"In the beginning, their support was top-notch. And then around the beginning of 2022, and end of 2021, their support tanked. We used to get responses in the beginning within one to two business days, and towards the end, we were getting responses in one to two business weeks."
"Their enrollment e-signature, enrollment forms, and other documents need a lot of work. Once we fill in the information, we cannot go back and change any of that. It's a time-taking process. If there is any mistake in the document and if we need to go and change a specific field in the form, it's not possible. We have to redo the entire form."
"My experience with Gusto's customer support sometimes shows they're not responsive, and they have definitely made mistakes in the past."
"The integration is not so good."
"Regarding improvements or enhancements in QuickBooks, there is limited customization that QuickBooks Online supports regarding reports. It's too rigid for complex financial analysis."
"The ability to integrate outside apps is lacking (compared to the online versions) and ability to download bank transactions does not work as well as it should."
"While the data protection is commendable, there is room for improvement in the dashboard."
"The area that I don't use as much is the area about reconciliation with the bank accounts. I do all of that manually, so the area that they can probably improve upon is just better reconciliation with the bank accounts."
"You just need to jump through more hoops than is probably necessary to make it happen, but it's a pretty solid product."
"It would be beneficial to enhance inventory and manufacturing features, as it currently depends on third-party applications like Fishbowl Inventory to address these specific needs."
"As of right now, you cannot edit secondary lists in a batch feature."
"I find it beneficial, but when it comes to a large organization, it is not."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"It is relatively expensive."
"QuickBooks is an amazingly priced solution since it's a very cheap product, making it so good for small organizations since you can get a lot out of it without paying a large amount."
"The price point is higher because you are paying for a whole year in advance. They recently moved to subscription pricing."
"They're trying to catch up with more expensive platforms, so they switched to a subscription model, which makes it even more expensive."
"It is a bit on the high side, but it is affordable."
"The tool's pricing is extremely reasonable."
"The pricing is considered reasonable and reflects the value provided, falling neither in the extremely expensive nor very cheap category."
"When I first started, the only other options were the very expensive programs. QuickBooks Desktop you can find anywhere between $200 and $300 on Amazon or Costco."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Benefits Administration solutions are best for your needs.
885,264 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Outsourcing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business13
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise4
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Gusto?
I wish Gusto's customer support was better for improvements. My experience with Gusto's customer support sometimes shows they're not responsive, and they have definitely made mistakes in the past.
What advice do you have for others considering Gusto?
I would say, relative to another payroll solution, running payroll with Gusto probably costs half the price and saves us 5 to 10 hours a month. I would say Gusto is a really good payroll solution f...
What is your primary use case for Gusto?
Our main use case for Gusto is for payroll, and we pay our US employees through it. Gusto helps with our payroll process because we use it for tax filings and benefits.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for QuickBooks Desktop?
The pricing, setup cost, and licensing cost have different levels, including simple, basic, essential, plus, enterprise, or advanced. The advanced rate is $275 per month.I find it cost-effective in...
What needs improvement with QuickBooks Desktop?
Regarding improvements or enhancements in QuickBooks, there is limited customization that QuickBooks Online supports regarding reports. It's too rigid for complex financial analysis. Data visualiza...
What is your primary use case for QuickBooks Desktop?
The main use cases for QuickBooks currently involve applying taxes on orders, estimated and any kind of exemption that is applying on the orders. Our team is doing an API call with our server, and ...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

ZenPayroll
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Farmgirl Flowers, Bevel, Pooch Pals, ALL MAVEN
West Egg
Find out what your peers are saying about Workday, Oracle, SAP and others in Benefits Administration. Updated: March 2026.
885,264 professionals have used our research since 2012.