ADP RUN, Workforce Now, and TotalSource are the legacy default. Peoplifi delivers the same payroll fundamentals on a 2026-era UI, with time tracking built in and no surprise fees.
ADP works if you have a complex multi-state US-only payroll, need a PEO-style benefits umbrella, and are willing to absorb the dated UX and per-action fees. For everyone else, Peoplifi delivers the modern equivalent at half the cost, with time tracking included rather than billed separately.
ADP is the largest US payroll provider, serving 800,000+ businesses through several products: ADP RUN (small business), Workforce Now (mid-market), and TotalSource (PEO). The strengths are filing depth and reliability; the weaknesses, frequently raised in reviews, are dated UX, fees for actions like off-cycle payroll runs and reissued forms, long support hold times, and contracts that automatically renew.
Quote-based — ADP does not publish public pricing. Real-world ranges from third-party data: $30 to $80 per employee per month for RUN, plus per-form fees, off-cycle payroll fees, and W-2 reissue fees. Annual contract typical.
Starter $3 per seat per month. Growth $6 per seat per month. Business $12 per seat per month. Month-to-month available. Time tracking included. Public pricing on every page.
Mid-market and enterprise companies with complex multi-state US payroll, an active PEO relationship, or a need for in-depth ERP integration.
SMBs that want modern UX, transparent pricing, time tracking included, and the freedom to leave whenever a better option appears.
Federal and state withholding calculations match ADP within rounding for the vast majority of cases. We document our tax tables publicly and update them on the IRS publication date. For complex local taxes (school district, transit, occupational privilege), Peoplifi covers the major jurisdictions and adds new ones based on customer requests.
ADP contracts are typically 1- or 2-year auto-renew. To avoid paying out the remaining term, give written notice at least 30 days before renewal — sooner is safer.
Yes. Direct deposit is processed through our banking partner and settles in 2 business days on Standard or 1 day on Same-Day ACH (Business plan).
Yes — many customers do this for the first cycle. Peoplifi is the system of record for HR, time tracking, and the source data; ADP runs the actual filings. Once trust is built, most teams move payroll to Peoplifi natively.
ADP is the largest payroll-services provider in North America, serving organisations from SMBs (ADP RUN) up through Fortune 500 enterprises (ADP Workforce Now, ADP Vantage). Its strengths: regulatory depth, breadth of services, established broker and accountant relationships, and decades of operating experience. The trade-offs: pricing is rarely transparent, contracts often run multi-year with auto-renewal, the platform UX feels dated to many users, and add-on modules pile up quickly. Peoplifi targets the SMB-to-mid-market segment with public pricing, modern UX, bundled time tracking, and far simpler contract terms.
For US SMBs running ADP RUN, the most common pain points are pricing transparency (quote-based, often higher than expected), the upsell process for additional modules (HR Pro, Time and Attendance, etc.), and limited integration breadth with modern SaaS tools. Peoplifi's public pricing, bundled time tracking and performance reviews, and modern API ecosystem address these directly. For typical 50-100 person SMBs, total HR-software spend often drops 40-60% on a like-for-like basis when moving from ADP RUN to Peoplifi.
ADP Workforce Now serves the 100-1,000 employee mid-market segment with deep HR, payroll, benefits, and talent modules. The breadth is real, and for organisations with very complex multi-state, multi-jurisdiction requirements, ADP's regulatory depth is hard to match. Peoplifi competes effectively for organisations that prioritise modern UX, bundled time tracking, distributed-team scenarios, and simpler vendor relationships. For mid-market buyers evaluating both, the decision often comes down to whether deep US-regulatory edge cases or modern collaboration tooling matters more.
ADP's time-and-attendance module is a separate module with separate pricing in most ADP product lines. Peoplifi includes desktop time-tracking (Windows / macOS / Linux), screenshot capture, idle detection, and productivity analytics on every plan. For organisations that need detailed time accountability — agencies, professional services, BPOs, manufacturing — the bundled vs separate distinction is meaningful both in cost and in workflow integration.
ADP contracts are typically 1-3 year terms with auto-renewal clauses. Cancellation requires written notice in a specific window, and customers who miss the window often face full-term renewal liability. Peoplifi operates on month-to-month or annual terms with clear cancellation policies and no auto-renewal lock-in. Public AED/USD pricing eliminates the back-and-forth quote process. For finance and HR leaders tired of ADP's contract management overhead, this simplicity is a meaningful relief.
ADP-to-Peoplifi migrations follow a documented sequence: export employee master, payroll history, deduction codes, earning codes, and tax setup from ADP RUN or Workforce Now; import to Peoplifi via the migration wizard; reconfigure deduction and earning codes (typically 30-60 minutes one-time); run one parallel payroll cycle to validate federal, state, and local tax withholding matches within rounding; notify ADP 30+ days before renewal to avoid auto-renew lock-in. Concierge migration on Business plan handles the complex piece — particularly multi-state YTD reconciliation — without requiring HR-team data wrangling.
Start your free 7-day trial — no credit card required.
Start free 7-day trial