The Ultimate Square Payroll Review for 2018

What Is Square Payroll?

Square Payroll is Square, Inc.’s payroll software that allows you to sync your Square Point of Sale to automatically import your employees’ virtual timecards into your compensation system. Beyond that, Square Payroll also offers additional time-saving features like compliant tax filing, online employee and contractor accounts, direct deposit payments, and tip syncing. For all this, Square Payroll will cost you as little as $5 per contractor, per month.

As a consumer, a business owner, or both, you’ve likely heard of Square. Whether you’ve paid for something at a store that uses a Square POS, you yourself use a Square POS for your business, or  you’ve considered taking on funding through Square Capital loans—you know what Square is.

But did you know that Square offers payroll services, as well? Square Payroll integrates with Square POS systems to pay both contractors and employees. That’s the main idea—but, of course, there’s much more to it than those basics.

To help you wrap your head around the details, we’ve compiled a Square Payroll review on all the information you need to decide whether or not it’s the right software for your business.

Let’s dive into this comprehensive Square Payroll review so that you can learn all of the details on this payroll option.

What Square Payroll Can Do for Your Business

First, you likely want to know what exactly Square Payroll can do for your business. You’ve probably gathered that it will help you pay your business’s team, as payroll software tends to do. But what will make it stand out from the crowd of payroll software options?

Beyond just making sure your team gets paid on time and in full, Square Payroll offers up some differentiating features that make it a top contender to be any small business’s go-to payroll solution.

So, let’s dive into the details on all of the features that Square Payroll can offer your business:

Square Payroll Timecard Syncing

One of the biggest draws that Square Payroll offers will depend on whether or not you’re already using Square POS systems. If you have your employees and contractors clock in and out through your Square POS system, their timecards will automatically sync with your Square Payroll app.

Essentially, calculating paychecks for hourly members of your team becomes a non-issue if you use a Square POS’s time-tracking abilities and pay your team with Square Payroll. In fact, with Square Point of Sale and Square Payroll, paying contractors on an hourly basis is perhaps the easiest this process will ever be.

Square Payroll Compliance

At no extra cost, Square Payroll files all federal and state taxes you owe for full-time W-2 employee salaries. They’ll also save you from other bureaucratic headaches that often come with payroll compliance. With Square, you’ll be able to rest assured knowing you’re compliant in all of the following payroll nuances:

• New-hire reports
• Post-tax deductions and reimbursements
• Sick leave tracking
• Paid time off tracking
• Workers’ compensation (via Square insurance partner, AP Intego)

Square Payroll Online Accounts

Through the online accounts that Square Payroll offers, employees and contractors will be able to access their own personal payroll dashboards. Members of your team will be able to manage their direct deposit bank account, view and download their pay stubs, and update their tax withholdings. All they’ll have to do is create a login through an email they’ll receive from Square once you add them to your system.

Square Payroll Direct Deposit Payments

Square Payroll direct deposits will rely on members of your team having successfully linked their bank accounts to their Square online payroll account. If they do that, then they’ll receive their direct deposit paychecks according to the cadence that you choose for your payroll. For your paycheck cadence, Square will allow you to choose one of four schedules:

• Weekly
• Bi-weekly
• Semi-monthly
• Monthly

If you want to change your direct deposit schedule after setting up your account, then you’ll have to contact Square to see if they’re able to accommodate the switch.

Square Payroll Tips Distribution

Square Payroll tips distribution works a lot like their timecard syncing. Every tip processed through your Square POS will be attached to a given employee, and will automatically import to your Square Payroll data.

Square direct deposits for each employee will automatically reflect the tops that your business’s Square POS processed and attached to their name.

For cash tips through Square Payroll, you’ll be able to manually enter the data into your Square online payroll account to record for tax season.

How Square Payroll Cost Works

Square Payroll costs are the most flexible and affordable on the market. The cost of your payroll software will derive from the kind of employees your team consists of and how many of these employees your team contains. Square Payroll costs will be on a monthly basis and will work a bit differently for teams of only contractors as they will for teams of both employees and contractors.

Let’s break down the fees and costs that might come with your account, based on the makeup of your business’s team:

Square Payroll for Contractors Only

If you have a team made up solely of contractors who you pay by the hour, then Square Payroll costs will be remarkably simple. With Square, 1099 contractors will only cost your business $5 per contractor per month. And that’s it!

If you pay your contractors through Square Payroll, fees will only be based on how many contractors you have on your payroll, with no flat monthly fees or pay-based fees tacked on.

Square Payroll for Contractors and Employees

If your team consists of contractors and full-time employees, then Square Payroll costs will be slightly higher. If you have full-time employees on your payroll, then Square will be filing taxes on your business’s behalf and making sure your payroll is fully compliant with tax law. As a result, your accounts’ fees will also include a monthly base cost of $29, plus $5 per person on your payroll per month cost.

What Square Payroll Reviews From Customers Typically Focus On

Now that you’re familiar with all of the logistics that Square Payroll entails, it’s time to zoom out a bit. What do business owners who have actually used this payroll software have to say about it?

We’ve compiled some themes from customer reviews so you can get an idea of common complaints about and praise for the Square Payroll app.

Positive Square Payroll Reviews

As we sifted through all of the positive Square Payroll reviews from customers—and there were many to sift through—we noticed that most happy customers remarked on how easy it was to set up their payroll. Additionally, many reviews laud their customer service as extremely helpful and professional.

Even more, Square Payroll reviews often feature customers raving about the affordability of this payroll software. Plus, many customers have written that data tracking and error correction in the Square app is much easier than they had anticipated.

All in all, Square Payroll reviews suggest that this payroll option has many happy customers.

Negative Square Payroll Reviews

That said, not every Square Payroll review is a positive one. A common complaint within Square Payroll reviews is that this payroll app tends to be a bit wonky when handling time zones—customer reviews state that Square timecards don’t autocorrect the time zone when you manually enter them.

Plus, Square Payroll reviews often feature customers complaining about the short turnaround from when a business owner receives a payroll reminder and the payroll deadline. If you find that you’re often busy around your payroll deadline, then keep this one little hitch in mind before opting for Square Payroll.

Looking Into Square Payroll Alternatives

After reading through all the details of this review, you might still be hesitant to decide on this payroll software. Though Square’s costs are some of the most affordable on the market, you might need more from your payroll service. You might need your payroll software to support more employee benefits that Square can. Or perhaps you simply don’t use a Square POS system and most of Square Payroll’s benefits are lost on you as a result.

Either way, you’ve got a wide variety of alternatives to Square to choose from. If you want to keep shopping your options, check out our comprehensive resource on all of the best payroll services for small businesses:

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from Fundera Ledger https://www.fundera.com/blog/square-payroll/