Gusto Review: Product Details, Pros & Cons

Updated 10th Feb 2022.

Gusto is a popular full-service payroll software used by many new and small business owners. You don’t have to worry about payroll tax payments or year-end reporting because the service handles it all for you. It’s perfect for small businesses because it’s inexpensive and easy to use.

Is Gusto the right payroll software for your business? Continue reading our review to learn about its features, history, pricing, and more!

How does Gusto Score?

What Is Gusto?

Gusto started in 2012 as ZenPayroll. The three founders chose to stay in Palo Alto because they wanted to work in the same space while developing the service. Initially, their main goal was to build a backend system that would pay them for their efforts.

Gusto is now used by more than 100,000 enterprises across the United States for payroll and benefits administration. Its headquarters are in San Francisco, New York, and Denver.

Other notable backers of Gusto’s venture include Hollywood stars Jared Leto and Ashton Kutcher and tech guru Alexis Ohanian. Some of Gusto’s products include:

• Time tracking: Gusto’s time tracking features make it simple to monitor the hours worked by hourly or remote employees. With its employee time tracking software, you can ensure that all employee hours are accurately recorded for payroll. Think about using Gusto’s accounting integrations with tools like Xero or QuickBooks to simplify task costing.
• Employee benefits: Wanting to keep track of vision insurance with 401(k)s, health reimbursements, or medical and dental insurance? The service can easily handle an employee benefits plan tailored to your company’s budget and size. Gusto will transfer your existing benefits plan if you have one.
• Payroll: The payroll software is the most famous product from Gusto. Thanks to the full-service approach, the platform will provide you with all the tools you need to automate payroll administration with just a few simple clicks. Managing employee payments is made easier, as are benefits administration, HR responsibilities, and the reduction of errors in tax returns.

Gusto Summary

You can rely on Gusto for all of your human resources needs in addition to handling your payroll processing and payroll tax obligations. This cloud-hosted all-purpose system stands out from other payroll service providers because it combines excellent payroll services with powerful HR software. Gusto’s qualities make it nearly impossible for its users to be dissatisfied as it provides a comprehensive set of features, including: 

• Gusto Payroll Services
• Benefits Administration
• Hiring and Onboarding
• Gusto Time Tracking
• Gusto Wallet
• Gusto Integrations

Gusto Features ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

If doing payroll is not your cup of tea and you’re looking to reduce the payday pressure, Gusto is a usable payroll solution that can appeal to you. Let’s go through its features so that you can decide if this is the best option for your needs.

Gusto Payroll Services

Gusto makes payroll processing simple as the platform speeds up the procedure. Normally, manually setting up payroll can take anywhere from 45 minutes to a few hours, depending on the number of employees and the volume of the required information.

No Gusto payroll review is complete without mentioning its simplicity and ease of use. The list of employees and their annual salary or hourly rate are displayed on a standard payroll. An easy-to-use interface allows you to enter overtime hours and other compensation such as commissions or bonuses.

To record time off, you must open a different panel, but that’s the only inconvenience associated with usage. Hours of public health emergency leave may be entered as well.

Using Gusto, you can check how many days off and PTO hours each employee gets, based on your company’s policy. Additionally, a PDF or CVS version of such document is available upon request.

Benefits Administration

Gusto goes a step farther than the rest of the payroll software market with its Benefits Administration service. To make payroll deductions easier, you can move the management of your existing benefits providers onto the platform.  

Standard retirement plans, vision, dental, medical, disability, and life insurance are all on the menu. Also, Gusto’s Benefits Administration includes commuting benefits, matching charitable contributions, and even the ability to create your own unique benefit plan.

Employees can use self-service capabilities as an additional advantage of the Benefits Administration feature.

Without engaging human resources, they can choose their health plans, make modifications based on future life events, and add dependents to their plans.

Users particularly appreciate that lifelong employee accounts give users continued access to their data even after leaving the organization.

Hiring and Onboarding

Regardless of how you work (remote, hybrid, or in-office), you can rapidly hire and train new personnel. Your company’s style and culture will be reflected in the letter templates provided to new employees. With Gusto’s easy-to-follow onboarding checklist, companies can streamline the process of setting up employee benefits, getting necessary paperwork signed, and dealing with other onboarding responsibilities.

Documents can be shared, sent, and stored electronically, and electronic signatures can be requested as necessary. All forms are saved in your Gusto account and can be accessed at any time. Organization charts, staff directories, virtual birthday cards, and surveys all contribute to a more enjoyable workplace.

Gusto Time Tracking

Employees can clock in and out in real-time using their account dashboard or add/edit hours afterward. The program immediately stores employee spreadsheets as soon as the management approves hours.

Gusto Wallet

All of your employees can use the Gusto Wallet app, available for free, to save and spend money more securely and conveniently. Savings objectives can be set for up to five sub-wallets with no additional or concealed fees.

Roughly 32,000 ATMs around the world offer free withdrawals to Gusto users. With a debit card, you can open a spending account in your wallet and earn interest on your money. The mobile app provides easy access to protected transaction records.

Gusto Integrations

From accounting software to collaboration tools and point of sale (POS) systems, Gusto is compatible with a wide range of third-party applications.

Gusto is a time-saving payroll, onboarding, benefits, and support solution tailored to small businesses. Because it’s cloud-based, anyone with an internet connection and a browser can access it from anywhere. In addition, you have the option to effortlessly upgrade or lower your plan based on whether you require additional features or not. Start your free trial now by contacting Gusto.

Gusto User Experience ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

For the most part, Gusto software is intuitive to use. If you have all of your company and employee details on hand and you can link your bank online, you can be up and running in less than 24 hours.

A representative will contact you after signing up for the service if you have any questions or concerns. You’ll be instructed on how to import past-period payroll information to complete your yearly records.

The site can be accessed using a mobile web browser without a dedicated app as there isn’t one. It appears and functions almost identically to the desktop version when using a smartphone.

Gusto Customer Service ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Gusto’s customer service is a major selling point. The platform provides incredibly helpful and courteous customer service.

In the United States, Gusto has two offices: one in San Francisco and one in Denver. You have three options to get customer support:

• Signing in to your account and contacting the staff directly is the easiest way to get in touch.
• You can contact them on the phone if you don’t have an account. From 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., phone help is available Monday through Friday at (800) 936-0383.
• You can also get in touch with customer support by filling out a simple form on their official website.

Gusto Pricing ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Even though this platform is more expensive than its rivals, its many extra features make it worthwhile. There are four main plans that you may choose from right now:

• Basic plan — $19 per month base plan plus $6 a month per individual
• Core plan — $39 per month base plan plus $6 a month per individual
• Complete plan — $39 per month base plan plus $12 a month per individual
• Concierge plan — $149 per month base plan plus $12 a month per individual

The basic plan is a beta plan that includes payroll basics and is suitable for one or two teams. On the other hand, the most advanced plan includes qualified HR professionals, an HR resource center, time monitoring, HR on autopilot, and other benefits.

Gusto health insurance coverage, health reimbursement ($15 a month for each employee), and 401(k) retirement integrated plans ($39 a month plus $6 a month for each employee) are among the various plans and packages available. Gusto can also assist you in paying up to 1099 contractors for as little as $6 per month per employee. Flexible spending accounts, 529 college savings programs, and health savings accounts are among the options.

Gusto features a plan specifically designed for businesses that use contractors. You wouldn’t have to pay any monthly fee. Instead, you’ll be charged $6 for every contractor you pay using Gusto.

Frequently Asked Questions about Gusto