Gusto vs Square Payroll in 2026

Verdict

Pick Square Payroll if you already take cards on Square, the crew clocks on the POS, and you want published $35 + $6 math without a second login family. Pick Gusto if payroll and benefits are the job, you are not on Square, or you need Simple/Plus/Premium in writing. Do not buy Square to get payroll for an office. Do not buy Gusto Premium to impersonate a restaurant HCM.

This sits next to restaurant payroll and Gusto vs QuickBooks Payroll. Toast shops should read restaurant payroll first — Square Payroll is the wrong POS family. Homebase is the fork when the leak is the schedule.

Public pricing as of September 20, 2026

Gusto: Simple $49 + $6 per person, Plus $80 + $12, Premium $180 + $22, Contractor Only $35 + $6. Simple is single-state. Confirm gusto.com/product/pricing.

Square Payroll: full-service $35/month + $6 per person paid that month. Contractor-only $6 per contractor paid, no base fee. Confirm squareup.com/us/en/payroll/pricing. Multi-state and multi-EIN limits exist — read Square’s current constraints.

• Ten people, one state, Gusto Simple: $49 + $60 = $109/month.
• Ten people, Square Payroll: $35 + $60 = $95/month — if they are all paid that month.
• Seasonal café, four people in July and one in January: Square bills the people you paid. Model the year, not July.
• Office with no Square POS: Gusto. Do not drag in a register.

Register vs first-hire desk

Square Payroll is payday next to the register: tips, team management, a crew that already has a Square login. Benefits and workers’ comp are partner add-ons, not the $35. Gusto is the first-hire desk: onboarding forms, benefits next to payday, a published multi-state Plus plan. That is why Gusto ranks first on small-business and nonprofit payroll.

Construction and certified payroll are a different conversation — see construction payroll. Restaurants on Toast should not dual-stack Square “to save $14.” Home-services shops on Jobber still need a payroll product; Gusto is the usual add.

Who should pick which

• Café or counter already on Square: Square Payroll.
• First office hire, no POS: Gusto Simple.
• Multi-state W-2s: Gusto Plus unless Square’s current page covers you in writing.
• 1099-only: Square contractor-only at $6, or Gusto Contractor Only if you want Gusto’s 1099 flow.
• You need a PEO: Justworks, not this fork.
• You want devices and HRIS: Rippling quote.

We are not your tax preparer. Tip credits, overtime, and classification belong to a professional.