10 Best Canadian Payroll Software Shortlist
Here's my pick of the 10 best software from the 20 tools reviewed.
With so many different Canadian payroll software solutions available, figuring out which is right for you is tough. You know you want to streamline and simplify the process of calculating and managing employee wages, deductions, and tax withholdings for businesses operating in Canada—but now need to figure out which tool is best. In this post, I'll help make your choice easy, sharing my personal experiences using Canadian payroll software with teams of all sizes, with my picks of the best Canadian payroll software overall.
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Best Canadian Payroll Software Comparison Chart
This comparison chart summarizes key pricing details for my top Canadian payroll software selections, or you can scroll down to compare more detailed specs side-by-side.
| Tools | Price | |
|---|---|---|
| Deel | Flat rate user pricing, with free HR tool for businesses | Website |
| Papaya Global | EOR from $650/employee/month or $2/contractor/month; Global payroll from $3 to $12/employee/month | Website |
| Humi | From $8/user/month | Website |
| ADP Workforce Now | From $160/month for up to 49 employees | Website |
| Remofirst | From $199/employee/month for EOR and $25/mo for contractors | Website |
| QuickBooks Online | from $22.50/month | Website |
| Ceridian Dayforce | Pricing upon request | Website |
| Push Operations | From $11 per employee, per month | Website |
| Easypay | From $439 per year | Website |
| Knit | From $43 per month | Website |
Compare Software Specs Side by Side
Use our comparison chart to review and evaluate software specs side-by-side.
Compare SoftwareHow to Choose Canadian Payroll Software
Canadian payroll software offers numerous benefits for Canadian organizations, including straightforward compliance monitoring against Canadian laws and regulations, to start. To help you figure out which Canadian payroll software best fits your needs, you need to pinpoint your key users and document their specific challenges first.
As you work through your own unique software selection process, keep the following points in mind:
- What problem are you trying to solve - Start by identifying the challenges you're trying to overcome. This will help you clarify the features and functionalities the payroll software needs to provide.
- Who will need to use it - To evaluate cost and requirements, consider who will use the software and how many licenses you'll need. You'll need to evaluate if it'll just be your HR professionals, select accounting staff, or entire departments that will require admin-level access. Once that's clear, it's also useful to rank the needs of your different users to identify the key priorities for your power users, managers, and employees, to ensure they're all met.
- What other tools it needs to work with - Clarify what tools you're replacing, what tools are staying, and the tools you'll need to integrate with, such as accounting, time-tracking, or other human resources software. You'll need to decide if the tools will need to integrate together, or alternatively, if you can replace multiple tools with one all-in-one Canadian HR management system.
- What outcomes are important - Review the capabilities you want to gain or improve, and how you will measure success. For example, you may want to provide more flexible payment options for your employees, such as on-demand pay. You could compare software features until you’re blue in the face but if you aren’t thinking about the outcomes you want to achieve, you could waste a lot of valuable time.
- How it would work within your organization - Consider the software selection alongside your existing workflows and systems. Evaluate what's working well, and any problem areas that need to be addressed.
Remember every business is different — don’t assume that a payroll system will work for your organization just because it's popular or made in Canada.
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Deel
Visit WebsiteThis is an aggregated rating for this tool including ratings from Crozdesk users and ratings from other sites.4.8 -
Paycor
Visit WebsiteThis is an aggregated rating for this tool including ratings from Crozdesk users and ratings from other sites.4.1 -
Paychex Flex
Visit WebsiteThis is an aggregated rating for this tool including ratings from Crozdesk users and ratings from other sites.4.2
Best Canadian Payroll Software Reviews
Here’s a brief description of each 1op 10 Canadian payroll software solution, including each tool’s best use case, some highlighted features, and screenshots to give you a sense of the user interface. Keep reading to find additional bonus picks at the bottom of the list.
Deel
Best global payroll solution for Canadian organizations interested in hiring foreign talent
Deel is a global HR solution with global payroll features that companies can run even without supervision. This software can run payroll in over 90 different countries worldwide, including Canada, while also streamlining operations, and eliminating problems with handling taxes, local compliance, and benefits.
Deel's payroll software helps Canadian businesses stay compliant with relevant Canadian regulations. Canadian businesses won’t have to worry about taxes, compliance, government declarations, and calculations as Deel will handle everything for them.
Companies can get their entire team operational with Deel in just a month, which is impressive since other payroll providers often take many months to finish the payroll setup process. Subscribing to one of Deel’s plans with payroll functionalities can help Canadian businesses expand and hire more talent abroad while ensuring compliance with all relevant regulations by being able to handle taxes, provide benefits, and handle local, legal, tax, and accounting expertise.
Standout Features and Integrations:
Features include an easy-to-use platform that unifies EOR (employer of record) services, contractor payments, and payroll management. Deel’s in-house payroll team processes payroll directly and provides end users with support to resolve any issues within your payroll process. In addition, Deel can help you offer localized benefits for staff based within Canada or any other location they support.
Integrations include Ashby, BambooHR, Expensify, Greenhouse, Hibob, Netsuite, Okta, OneLogin, Quickbooks, SCIM, Xero, Workday, and Workable. They also have an API that supports additional custom integrations as well.
Pricing for Deel is a flat rate and varies depending on the country you're based in and the type of plan you select. They offer three plans: Direct Employees, Contractors, or EOR Employees. Payroll handling features are only available in the Direct Employees and EOR Employees packages.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Add-ons available to localized benefits and global payroll
- Flat rate pricing with no hidden fees
- Manages Canadian compliance obligations on your behalf
Cons:
- Could be too pricey for small businesses
- No free trial available
Best global payroll software for Canadian organizations with global expansion plans
Papaya Global is a global payroll platform offering smart, simple, and streamlined payroll solutions for many companies worldwide, including ones in Canada. Their global payroll platform supports 160+ countries and comes with payroll, compliance, benefits, and HR features that are suited for global businesses. Using this solution allows companies to comply with Canadian regulations, including SOC2.
Using Papaya Global, Canadian businesses receive a robust payroll solution that handles their local payroll needs, plus the added ability to hire talent abroad while also ensuring that they comply with all relevant regulations. New customers will be able to go live with the platform quickly, get 360-degree visibility on their workforce spending, and boost productivity and performance when using their solution.
Standout Features and Integrations:
Features include numerous payroll automations for payroll calculations, tax filing, compliance, equities, and time and attendance tracking. Businesses can also access all their data from one intuitive dashboard, giving them a comprehensive view of their entire workforce. From there they can request standardized reports and handle risk-free payroll payments without leaving the platform.
Integrations are available with most financial tools, as well as with BambooHR, Expensify, NetSuite, SAP SuccessFactors, and Workday.
Pricing for Papaya Global varies depending on the end user’s use case and country. They charge a setup fee per location, a cycle fee per employee, and a year-end fee for tax filing. Papaya Global does not charge any additional fees.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Well-suited for companies interested in global expansion
- Can be used to pay international contractors or foreign employees
- Automatic compliance monitoring
Cons:
- Pricing structure can be complex depending on your workforce needs
- No mobile app
Payroll is, by nature, complicated. Humi aims to take the guesswork out of payroll and HR software by making their interface as intuitive and easy-to-use as possible. HR info such as hires, terminations, vacation usage, and benefits enrollment are integrated with payroll processing, reducing dual entry work. Employees can also access self service pay stubs that detail vacation accruals and deduction breakdowns, and easily receive direct deposits.
Humi provides an excellent option for Canadian businesses or teams with HR in Canada because T4s, Records Of Employment (ROE), Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) remittances, and Employer Health Tax (EHT) calculations are automatically included in the platform. Multi-province payroll makes it easy to manage employees across the country. And Humi’s tax engine is specifically designed for Canadian regulations, making any audit and compliance efforts that much easier. Standout Features and Integrations: Features include unlimited pay runs, automatic T4 and ROE generation, records and reporting, EHT and WCB calculations, direct deposit, self-serve pay stubs, multi-province payroll, and automatic CRA remittance.
Standout Features and Integrations:
Features include automatic T4s and ROEs, records and reporting, EHT calculations, direct deposit, self-serve pay stubs, multi-province payroll, benefits, and automatic CRA remittance.
Integrations include Xero, Indeed, Greenhouse, Voila!, Workable, and Zapier.
Pricing for Humi is based on your number of employees and how many modules you’d like to integrate into your program. A free demo is available prior to signing up.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Easy tracking of all employees
- Clean and intuitive design makes it easy for employees to self-serve
- Covers all Canada-specific payroll needs
Cons:
- Free trial does not include exact customization, so some guesswork must be done
- Documents require some elbow grease to customize
- Growing list of integrations means some of your existing providers may not yet be on the list
Best all-in-one solution for time tracking, benefits, talent, HR and payroll management
ADP Workforce Now is an all-in-one cloud-based platform that offers functionality like time tracking, benefits, HR, talent, and payroll management. Since you can manage your entire workforce from their single dashboard, you’ll never again have to waste time toggling between platforms to find what you need. This solution also boasts enterprise-grade data security and comprehensive privacy practices.
ADP’s single dashboard reduces manual data entry by pre-populating data across workflows in real time, so you can enter information once and move on to more important tasks. Proactive error detection sends alerts to reduce mistakes and ensure accurate payroll processing.
Standout Features and Integrations:
Features include automated online payroll processing, a self-serve app for employees, in-house payroll experts, time tracking, HR data management tools, and tax calculation and remittance tools.
Integrations include accounting solutions like Quickbooks, Wave, and Xero, ERPs like Oracle, SAP, and Workday, time and attendance solutions like Clock Shark, Deputy, and Dolce, and recruiting and onboarding solutions like GoodHire, Sapling, and Zip Recruiter.
Pricing for ADP Workforce Now is available upon request and is based on the size of your organization and the features you’d like integrated. They do not provide a free trial option.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Market leader for payroll processing and tax filing
- Global functionality for large multinational teams
- Extensive list of integrations
Cons:
- Larger customer base may mean slightly longer wait times for customer service
- Pricing is supplied via custom quote rather than transparently on the website
- No free trial available
Best for Canadian businesses interested in growing global teams
Remofirst is a global employment platform that enables companies to hire, manage, and pay remote employees in over 160 countries without the need to establish a local entity. The tool provides an Employer of Record (EoR) service, taking on the legal and administrative responsibilities of employment. Remofirst is designed to support businesses in expanding their international workforce by providing a centralized system for managing global employment tasks.
Remofirst assists Canadian payroll software by providing a global payroll service that integrates the management of employees and contractors across multiple countries. With the support of Remofirst's payroll services, Canadian companies can extend their operations internationally while still using their Canadian payroll software for domestic operations. The combination of Remofirst's global capabilities with Canadian payroll software can provide a comprehensive payroll management solution for businesses operating both within Canada and internationally.
Standout Features and Integrations:
Features include contractor management, RemoHealth health insurance, visa and work permit assistance, background checks, remote access, time and attendance tracking, and workforce management.
Integrations include third-party payment providers, such as Wise and PayPal.
Pricing starts at $199/employee/month for EOR and $25/user/month for contractors. Remofirst does not offer a free version or free trial, but a free demo is available.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Good value for money
- Strong customer support
- Easy-to-use interface
Cons:
- Limited integration with other platforms
- Limited customization
- No free version or trial
Best for managing contractors and freelancers around the globe
QuickBooks Online is a cloud-based accounting software designed to help small and medium-sized businesses manage their finances. It offers a range of features, including invoicing, expense tracking, and payroll management. As a user of QuickBooks Online, I've found it to be a reliable and user-friendly tool that has helped me keep track of my business finances with ease.
QuickBooks Online provides direct deposit options for your employees, making it easy to pay them on time and securely. You can also set up custom pay schedules to accommodate different payment frequencies, such as weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly. Another standout feature is the ability to generate T4 slips and other year-end tax forms for your employees. This makes tax season much less stressful, as you can easily provide your employees with the necessary documents for filing their taxes.
QuickBooks Online is highly suitable for managing contractors around the globe with the ability to track contractor expenses, generate and send contractor invoices, and efficiently handle contractor payments through the platform. With QuickBooks Online, businesses can accurately categorize contractor transactions, manage their contractor database, and generate contractor-specific reports for simplified financial management. The platform's user-friendly interface and comprehensive contractor management tools make it a powerful solution for effectively organizing, tracking, and managing contractor-related activities.
Standout Features and Integrations
Features include automatic tax calculations, which means you don't have to worry about manually calculating taxes and deductions for your employees. This is a huge time-saver and helps ensure accuracy in your payroll process. QuickBooks Online also offers robust reporting features that help you analyze your payroll data and make informed decisions about your business. You can generate reports on payroll expenses, and employee hours.
Integrations include over 400 business apps like Rewind Backups, Knowifiy for Customers, Plooto, Expensify, Fathom, BigCommerce, Verify, Insightly CRM, Mailchimp, and others.
Pricing starts at $24/month CAD or $30/month USD. It comes with a 30-day free trial.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Businesses with remote employees may incur additional costs for province-specific filings
- Easy and efficient tax filing system
- Industry leader in accounting means existing trust in accuracy and reliability
Cons:
- Setup services and expert review are only available in higher tiers
- Limited users, even then highest plan caps at 25
Best cloud-based HCM suite with compliance-centric payroll
Ceridian Dayforce is a recognized HCM leader with a team of in-house compliance experts who remain continuously on top of regulatory changes. You can also offload day-to-day benefits administration and payroll entirely to their team, freeing up your time to focus on other tasks. This payroll software is an excellent solution for Canadian companies who plan to scale internationally, given that Ceridian supports payroll delivery in more than 160 countries.
Ceridian’s consolidated pay and time engine simplifies the payroll process while increasing accuracy with real-time calculations. Ceridian will manage and file taxes on your behalf, aligning with all provincial and federal regulations. Employees can also access their pay stubs and tax information directly with their self-serve feature.
Standout Features and Integrations:
Features include talent management, real-time audits, smart benefits, workforce management, managed payroll, and streamlined HR tools.
Integrations include CIBC SmartBanking for Business and QuickBooks.
Pricing for Ceridian Dayforce is available upon request, and a 60-day free trial is available.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Reliable in-house compliance support
- Scalable; supports payroll in 160+ countries
- Two-month free trial
Cons:
- Transparent pricing not readily available
- Timesheets are presented in biweekly view, not weekly
- Some mobile app limitations
Best full-service payroll software for food services companies
Restaurants have very specific payroll needs, and Push Operations has developed a software to meet them. This fully integrated cloud-based payroll software boasts clients in Canada like Wendy’s, Boston Pizza, A&W, and Denny’s. Push operations allows users to streamline hours into payroll, saving time that would normally be spent manually inputting time calculations for employees serving a variety of shifts.
Push Operations can be used as a standalone payroll software, or you can take advantage of all the features as a comprehensive employee management suite. Push will calculate and pay taxes on your behalf, assist you in pulling T4s and ROEs, and can pay your employees by direct deposit or cheque. Push makes it easy to pay employees who have multiple rates (like overtime) and will monitor split shift premiums and minimum tip top-offs.
Standout Features and Integrations:
Features include regulatory compliance, onboarding, self-serve pay stubs, time tracking, real-time payroll reporting, and one-click payroll processing.
Integrations include Avero, CTUIT, Focus POS systems, Greenline POS, HIK Vision, Par, Squirrel Systems, Ultipro, and Upserve.
Pricing for Push starts at $11 per employee, per month for their Starter + Payroll plan. A free demo is also available.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Helpful and courteous support
- Built to meet the specific needs of restaurants
- Run payroll for employees with multiple pay rates
Cons:
- Primarily for restaurants and food services companies
- Better interface on desktop than mobile
- User permissions can be time-consuming
Easypay
Best for small to medium-sized businesses seeking a well-established solution
Easypay has been providing payroll services to Canada’s small to mid-sized businesses since 1985. Within this payroll software, users can serve any combination of hourly, salary, or commission-based employees, and pay them on a number of different schedules including weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly, and monthly by both cheque or direct deposit. The Easystub feature also enables employees to view and download pay stubs and T4s.
Easypay allows you to print individual or batched ROEs, and it will calculate EI, CPP, and tax for all provinces. Year-end reports like T4 and RL-1 can be filed directly through Easypay. There are no limits on the number of employees you can manage within the system, allowing this platform to grow with you as you scale.
Standout Features and Integrations:
Features include direct deposit, self-serve pay stubs and T4s, extensive audit and reporting capabilities, automatic deductions, benefits, and multi-departmental costing.
Integrations include Adagio, Sage300 ERP, SAP, and QuickBooks, among others.
Pricing for Easypay starts at $439 per year. A 45-day free trial is also available.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Trusted provider with a proven track record of over 37 years
- No limits on number of employees
- 45-day free trial
Cons:
- Visual design of interface is basic
- Tech-forward companies may crave more cutting edge technology
- Windows-based platform may be problematic for Mac users
If you’re a Canadian small business owner who needs to set up payroll ASAP, Knit is the software for you. This cloud-based tool is designed to be easy to adopt, promising speedy setup with accurate payroll from day one. In a single click, users can calculate payroll and remit taxes to the CRA based on their specific scheduling needs. You can pull ROEs and employee reports, address EHTs and WSIB, and store T4s for employees to have self-serve access. Pay cheques can be direct deposited into employee bank accounts.
If your business needs support beyond the basics, Knit offers a support team of Canadian payroll experts. Users have the option of asking questions and managing payroll themselves, or outsourcing payroll management for Knit to conduct on your behalf.
Standout Features and Integrations:
Features include direct deposit, tax filing, automatic payroll calculations, WCB and EHT remittances, and online pay stubs.
Integrations include QuickBooks Online, TSheets, and Xero.
Pricing for Knit starts at $43 per month and the tool offers a 30-day free trial.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Easy to adopt and get started fast
- Support team can take over payroll management on your behalf
- Accurate and efficient compliance with Canadian regulations
Cons:
- Primarily for Canadian small business owners
- Slightly higher price point
- Better suited to desktop than mobile app use
Other Canadian Payroll Software
Here are a few more options that didn’t make the best Canadian payroll software list. I didn’t have room for a full review for each of these but they are still worthy of consideration:
- Payworks
Best for fast-growing companies with plans to scale up
- Collage
Best for tech-forward organizations seeking a cutting-edge software solution
- Wagepoint
Best payroll solution for user experience and “human-friendly” support
- Rippling
Best Canadian payroll software for CAD businesses with international employees
- Xero
Best for straight-forward payroll needs for small teams
- Rise
Best software for reliable regulatory compliance and Canadian tax knowledge
- Workzoom
All-in-one people management software with payroll, recruiting, time tracking, and more
- StarGarden HCM
HCM solution with extensive payroll capabilities
- MX-SmartPayer
Saas payroll that offers complete automation and extensive options to customize
- Nethris
Efficient cloud-based payroll software with a comprehensive suite of customizations
Related HR Software Reviews
If you still haven't found what you're looking for here, check out these other related tools that we've tested and evaluated:
- HR Software
- Payroll Software
- Recruiting Software
- Employer of Record Services
- Applicant Tracking Systems
- Workforce Management Software
Selection Criteria for Canadian Payroll Software
Selecting the best payroll software for this list required a thorough understanding of how common pain points can be alleviated by choosing the right software. My approach to selecting the best systems for this list is grounded in thorough research coupled with my personal experience maintaining payroll details within a human capital management (HCM) system for numerous years.
Here’s a summary of the selection criteria I used to develop this list of the best Canadian payroll software:
Core Payroll Software Functionalities (25% of total score): To be considered for inclusion in this list, each solution had to offer the following basic payroll functionalities first:
- Automated and accurate calculation of wages and taxes and timely employee payment processing
- Compliance with CRA reporting and remittance requirements
- Management of employee benefits and deductions
- Generation and submission of year-end tax forms
- Digital pay stubs that are accessible to employees through a self-service portal
- Integration capabilities to sync data with time tracking and other Canadian HR software to reduce manual data entry
In addition to these basic requirements, each software system in this list needed to either 1) show clear evidence of being developed within Canada by Canadian payroll specialists, or 2) demonstrate their experience in serving the Canadian labor market specifically.
Additional Standout Features (25% of total score): To help me pinpoint the best Canadian payroll software, I also took note of any unique features, including:
- Sophisticated features, such as pay-on-demand or earned-wage-access
- Advanced analytics and reporting capabilities for deeper financial insights
- Advanced integrations with bookkeeping and accounting software to streamline operations
- Enhanced security features, such as multi-factor authentication, to protect sensitive employee data
- Environmental sustainability through paperless payroll processes
Usability (10% of total score): To evaluate the usability of each payroll system, I considered the following:
- An intuitive design and user-friendly interface that simplifies complex processes and requires minimal training to master
- Quick access to essential features without overwhelming users
- A user-friendly mobile experience or dedicated mobile apps for Android and iOS mobile devices
- Role-based access control that's straightforward to configure
Customer Onboarding (10% of total score): To get a sense of each software provider's customer onboarding process, I considered the following factors:
- Quick setup processes and clear guidance for first-time users
- The availability of training materials such as videos or interactive tutorials
- Support systems like chatbots and webinars to guide new users through the initial learning curve
- Support for migrating historical employee data into the new platform
Customer Support (10% of total score): To evaluate the level of customer support each vendor offered, I considered the following:
- The availability of multiple support channels, including email, phone, and chat
- The existence of a self-service knowledge base, FAQ repository, or other self-help resources to speed up troubleshooting
- The overall quality, responsiveness, and helpfulness of the support team during customer onboarding and post-purchase, as inferred from customer reviews
- Whether the company offers a dedicated account manager, full-service payroll services, or any additional human resources support services
Value for Price (10% of final score): To gauge the value of each software, I considered the following factors:
- The availability of free trials or demos to test the software before purchasing
- Transparent pricing models that clearly explain which payroll features are included at each level, with no additional hidden costs for training or set-up
- Tiered pricing plans that cater to different business sizes, from small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) up to enterprise-level organizations
Customer Reviews (10% of final score): Evaluating customer reviews is the final element of my selection process, which helps me understand how well a product performs in the hands of real users. Here are the factors I considered:
- Whether a product has consistently high ratings across multiple review platforms, indicating a broad level of user satisfaction
- Specific praises, criticisms, or trends in customer feedback that indicate the software's strengths or areas for improvement
- Whether customer feedback specifically mentions issues with ease of use, customer support responsiveness, or lacking features
- Any testimonials that highlight how a platform solved a particular challenge or adapted to changing payroll needs
By using this assessment framework, I was able to identify the Canadian payroll software that goes beyond basic requirements to offer additional value through unique features, intuitive usability, smooth onboarding, effective support, and overall value for price.
Trends in Canadian Payroll Software for 2024
As of 2024, the landscape of Canadian payroll software has continued to evolve, driven by a combination of regulatory changes, technological advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), and shifting business needs. Here are several trends that are impacting payroll software development in Canada currently:
- Integration of AI and Machine Learning: Some payroll systems have started to use AI and machine learning algorithms to predict payroll outcomes, identify discrepancies, and suggest optimizations. This cutting-edge feature represents a significant leap towards proactive payroll management, offering insights that can lead to cost savings and more strategic financial planning.
- Predictive Analytics for Payroll Management: Another developing trend is the use of predictive analytics that forecast future payroll costs and trends based on historical data. This advanced feature helps businesses plan more effectively and manage their finances more efficiently.
- AI-Powered Payroll Queries: An unusual yet increasingly popular feature is the use of AI to handle employee payroll queries. This AI-driven approach not only improves efficiency but also enhances the employee experience by providing instant responses to common questions.
- Global Payroll Management Abilities: As businesses become more global, the need for payroll software that can manage multi-country payroll across different currencies has become crucial. Tools like Papaya Global and Deel have emerged as leaders in this space, offering solutions that simplify the complexity of global payroll, tax, and compliance issues.
These trends indicate a shift towards more intelligent payroll solutions that exceed basic payroll processing needs to offer strategic value to businesses. As Canadian payroll software continues to evolve, you can expect to see more sophisticated features designed to streamline payroll management, ensure compliance, and enhance decision-making capabilities.
What is Canadian Payroll Software?
Canadian payroll software is a digital tool that automates and facilitates the intricate task of managing employee compensation and payroll-related tasks for businesses in Canada. It encompasses functions like calculating salaries, deductions, taxes, and generating pay stubs and reports, offering a reliable and efficient means for businesses to accurately pay their employees while adhering to Canadian payroll regulations and easing the burden of manual payroll processing.
Features of Canadian Payroll Software
Aside from being able to manage your basic payroll needs in compliance with Canadian regulations, here are some of the other key payroll features to look for:
- Canadian Payroll Tax Filing: Most of the payroll software on this list have tools to help you file your federal payroll taxes with the CRA, including Employment Insurance (EI) and Canada Pension Plan (CPP) contributions.
- Provincial Tax Filing: There may also be tools to help you with filing specialized provincial payroll taxes, including the Employer Health Tax in Ontario or British Columbia, Quebec Pension Plan (QPP) contributions, and workers' compensation premiums for each province or territory.
- CRA Compliance: This feature is vital because it guarantees that the software is updated with the latest tax rates and Canada Revenue Agency rules and regulations, preventing legal issues and ensuring accurate payroll tax calculations.
- Year-End Tax Form Preparation: Automating the preparation and distribution of required tax forms — including T4, T4A, and RL-1 slips — is crucial for meeting CRA deadlines and requirements, reducing workloads during the busy year-end period.
- Multiple Payment Options: Many tools will allow you to pay employees by direct deposit or cheque, and may also have invoicing options for contractors and freelancers.
- Electronic Records of Employment (ROE): This feature is important because it automates the creation and submission of ROEs to Service Canada, a mandatory step when an employee leaves a company, ensuring compliance and efficiency.
- Employee Self-Service: Usually employee portals are available where staff can access their pay stubs and tax forms, update their bank account information, and more.
- Workforce Management & Time-Tracking: Some systems provide tools for employee time tracking, managing time off requests, scheduling shifts, and more. Integrated time tracking, in particular, is helpful since it ensures accurate pay based on the exact hours worked.
- Payroll Services: In addition to software, some providers also offer payroll management solutions (also called full-service payroll), meaning they can handle pay runs on your behalf.
- Customizable Reporting & Analytics: Most payroll software will generate payroll reports and may offer real-time dashboards to help you track your payroll process. Customizable reports help businesses make informed financial decisions and ensure transparency.
Choosing a Canadian payroll software that offers these features will help you automate tedious portions of your payroll process and ensure compliance with Canadian tax laws and labor regulations. By prioritizing these features, you'll reduce the risk of errors, and maintain good standing with regulatory bodies, all while saving time and resources.
Benefits of Canadian Payroll Software
For Canadian HR professionals, selecting the right payroll software is not just about automating salary disbursements; it's about finding a solution that addresses the unique regulatory environment, diverse workforce, and specific operational needs of Canadian businesses. Here are several key benefits you can expect to gain by investing in the best Canadian payroll software for your needs:
- Compliance with Canadian Regulations: Using software that automatically updates to reflect changes in CRA guidelines and national and provincial tax laws and regulations helps businesses avoid penalties and ensures compliance.
- Robust Reporting for Canadian Requirements: This feature aids in strategic decision-making and ensures that businesses have the necessary documentation to meet CRA audits and inquiries, providing peace of mind and operational transparency.
- French and English Language Support: Given Canada's bilingual nature, having software that supports both English and French is essential for clear communication and to accommodate all employees comfortably.
- Localized Data Security: Canadian payroll software is designed to comply with Canadian data privacy laws such as the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and other provincial data protection laws, ensuring sensitive employee information is securely managed.
- Customizable for Canadian Union Rules: For organizations with unionized workers, Canadian payroll software can be customized to adhere to union-specific rules and collective bargaining agreements, ensuring that payroll reflects negotiated terms accurately.
These benefits highlight the importance of selecting a solution that's designed with the Canadian market in mind, ensuring that HR professionals can manage payroll efficiently, accurately, and in compliance with all relevant laws and regulations.
Costs & Pricing for Canadian Payroll Software
Whenever you’re investing in a new HR solution, it’s important to consider how cost-effective it will be. Payroll software providers offer a range of pricing options to suit different business sizes and needs. Understanding these options will help you make an informed decision that aligns with your business requirements and budget constraints.
The payroll systems in this list generally offer a subscription-based payment model based on the number of employees you have. However, some payroll providers offer custom pricing based on your business needs (see our breakdown of payroll software costs for more details).
Plan Comparison Table for Canadian Payroll Software
| Plan Type | Average Monthly Price | Price Per Employee, Per Month | Common Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | Basic payroll processing, CRA remittance, T4 slips, ROE, direct deposit, up to a certain number of employees |
| Basic | $20-$30 per month | $2-$4 | All Free features plus additional employees, enhanced reporting, and customer support |
| Standard | $30-$50 per month | $3-$5 | All Basic features plus multi-province support, advanced reporting, and integration with other software |
| Premium | $50-$70 per month | $4-$6 | All Standard features plus priority customer support, custom features, and advanced analytics |
| Enterprise | Custom Pricing | Custom | All Premium features plus unlimited employees, dedicated account manager, and bespoke integrations |
As you're trying to determine the best plan for you, it's essential to weigh the cost against the features and support provided. Consider both your current needs and future growth to select a plan that offers the best value and flexibility for your business. The price per employee metric is particularly useful to help you forecast incremental costs if your business scales.
FAQs: Common Questions About Canadian Payroll Processing
Still have questions about how to process payroll in Canada, and what software you can use to help you out? Here are some answers to FAQs on this topic:
What makes Canadian payroll software unique?
There are plenty of payroll software options available on the market—but not all of them are suitable for Canadian employers.
Canada’s payroll requirements are notoriously complex. Both employers and employees pay payroll tax and contribute to CPP and EI. Payroll taxes include both federal and provincial taxes, meaning that companies with employees spread across Canada need to navigate many varied deductions. This is why payroll software specifically for Canadian companies is so helpful–because it takes the guesswork out of the deductions and taxation process, ensuring that your company remains compliant and your employees receive their pay without issue.
What is an Employer of Record for Canada?
An Employer of Record (EOR) for Canada is a third-party service provider that acts as the legal employer for future employees you wish to hire within Canada, while your parent company maintains day-to-day control of your employee’s tasks and workload. As the legal employer, the EOR assumes full legal responsibility for any new hires, including payroll, tax deductions, compliance management, benefits administration, and any other Canadian-specific employee perks.
Using an EOR service is beneficial for companies wanting to hire Canadian staff or expand their operations into Canada since it simplifies this process considerably. Rather than burdening your HR professionals with the task of becoming experts in Canadian labor laws and regulations, you can outsource these requirements to an EOR in Canada and gain peace of mind that your future operations will be compliant.
To find out more about Canadian EOR services, check out my list of the best employer of record in Canada.
How do Canadian payroll software handle provincial tax differences?
Most Canadian payroll software is equipped for handling provincial tax differences. These systems are built to automatically adjust calculations based on the employee’s location, whether someone’s in Ontario with its health premiums or Québec with its unique tax requirements. Generally, the software updates payroll calculations to comply with provincial and federal tax laws.
This built-in assurance means fewer headaches for HR and payroll teams because the software stays on top of legislative changes, ensuring accuracy and compliance without manual intervention. However, you’ll want to be sure to double check with the provider how they handle provincial taxes before you buy, to be sure it will cover your needs.
What are the data security measures in Canadian payroll software?
Canadian payroll software providers generally take data security seriously by employing a mix of the following safeguards:
- Encryption to ensure data in transit and at rest is unreadable to unauthorized users.
- Secure data centers with robust physical and cyber security measures protect against breaches.
- Role-based access controls to ensure only authorized personnel can view or modify sensitive information.
Regular security audits and compliance with Canadian privacy laws further bolster trust. It’s like having a digital fortress safeguarding employee data—pretty solid! Check with a provider what security systems they have in place so you’re well-informed ahead of purchasing.
How do these platforms manage employee benefits and deductions?
These platforms typically have automation capabilities to handle various deductions like taxes, retirement contributions, and health insurance premiums, adjusting them according to employee selections and legislative requirements. For benefits, they track eligibility, enrollments, and changes, ensuring accurate benefit deductions from paychecks. It simplifies what could be a complex process, making sure everything from health benefits to pension contributions is accurately recorded and applied.
What Do You Think About This List?
One of the biggest benefits of cloud-based payroll software is that it’s constantly being updated. As new functionality becomes available and each solution adopts it in their own time, the list of the best Canadian payroll software will inevitably evolve over time.
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