File No. 133 against No. 121
ADP vs Paychex: what each costs
ADP and Paychex both sell payroll and HR services to small businesses, ADP through RUN Powered by ADP and Paychex through Paychex Flex. They bill the same way as far as their own pages show: by quote, with no published price on either.
The short answer. ADP vs Paychex cannot be ranked on published prices, because neither vendor publishes one. ADP names four RUN packages (Essential, Enhanced, Complete and HR Pro) and Paychex names four plans (Basic, Foundations, Advanced and Complete), all with no figure. Both send buyers to a quote. No free plan is listed on either. Files checked 8 and 11 Oct 2026.
What each one costs
Every figure below is read from the two price files at the moment this page loads, so this page cannot drift away from them. Each row links to the vendor page the price came from.
| Plan | Price | Billed | Checked | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ADP Quote only | ||||
| Essential Payroll | not published | quote only | Vendor page | |
| Enhanced Payroll | not published | quote only | Vendor page | |
| Complete Payroll & HR Plus | not published | quote only | Vendor page | |
| HR Pro Payroll & HR | not published | quote only | Vendor page | |
| Paychex Quote only | ||||
| Basic | not published | quote only | Vendor page | |
| Foundations | not published | quote only | Vendor page | |
| Advanced | not published | quote only | Vendor page | |
| Complete | not published | quote only | Vendor page | |
Which one is for you
Pick ADP if one of its four RUN packages fits and the business has 1 to 49 employees, the size its packages page covers, and a quote by headcount is acceptable.
Pick Paychex if one of its four plans (Basic, Foundations, Advanced or Complete) fits and a quote through its Get a Quote Now button or Request Pricing section is acceptable.
What ADP's pricing page does not say
- The cost cannot be worked out in advance: none of the four packages carries a figure, so the only route to a number is a Get pricing link or the sales phone line.
- The page title calls itself a payroll price and plan comparison, and the page text still contains no dollar amount for any package, fee or add on.
- Retirement plans and Workers' Compensation are marked on the page as add ons. No price is given for either.
- Independent contractor payments are presented in a separate box with its own Get Pricing button, apart from the four packages.
- The page covers RUN Powered by ADP, the product for businesses with 1 to 49 employees. The employee count prompt on the page also offers a 50+ Employees option, which leads to other products that this file does not cover.
- The 3 months free banner carries an asterisk and an end date of 10/22. The value of the offer cannot be worked out without the price it applies to.
What Paychex's pricing page does not say
- The cost cannot be worked out in advance: none of the four plans carries a figure, so the only route to a number is the Get a Quote Now button or the Request Pricing section, both of which lead to sales.
- The page shows four plan names with one line each. What separates Basic from Foundations, Advanced and Complete sits behind a View Payroll Plans button, not on the page itself.
- Hiring and onboarding, time and attendance and workers' compensation are presented as separate solutions that complement payroll, and the page says benefits, time tracking or HR tools can be added later. No price is given for any of them.
- The page asks the question of what payroll costs for small businesses in its own FAQ list, and the visible page still shows no dollar amount anywhere.
ADP or Paychex: what is published
Both price files are quote only. Every plan row on both reads not published.
| Vendor | Plans named on its page | Published price | Route to a price |
|---|---|---|---|
| ADP | Essential Payroll, Enhanced Payroll, Complete Payroll & HR Plus, HR Pro Payroll & HR | none | Get pricing link on each package card, or the sales phone line |
| Paychex | Basic, Foundations, Advanced, Complete | none | Get a Quote Now button, or the Request Pricing section |
What a team of 1, 5 and 20 pays
It cannot be worked out for either vendor. A team cost needs a base fee or a per-employee rate, and neither page prints one. No estimate is given here, because any figure would have to come from somewhere other than the two vendors.
Is ADP cheaper than Paychex
That question has no answer from the vendors' own pages. The only checkable comparison is two quotes for the same headcount and the same level of service. ADP's page shows one price driver: it asks how many employees the company has (1-5, 6-49 or 50+) before the packages can be read. Paychex's file records that what its quote form asks was not read.
Differences the pages do show
- Plan detail. ADP gives each package a one-line description on the page. Paychex also gives one line per plan, with the details behind a View Payroll Plans button.
- Add-ons. ADP marks Retirement and Workers' Compensation as add ons. Paychex presents hiring and onboarding, time and attendance and workers' compensation as separate solutions. Neither prices them.
- Promotions. ADP's page carried a banner offering 3 months free for new small business payroll sign-ups, with terms that were not read. Paychex's file records no free plan and no free trial on its page.
- Billing terms. Neither page states a contract length, setup fee or cancellation terms.
The full records are in ADP's price file and Paychex's price file. Payroll tools that do publish prices, such as Gusto, are in the payroll drawer.
The evidence
Both vendors' pricing pages, as they looked when the figures were read.
Figures on this page come from the two files named above, each read off the vendor's own pricing page on the date shown. Prices change without notice; check before buying.