What is payroll software?
Payroll software is a tool that automates and manages the payroll process. Using software makes it easy for you to pay your staff, manage payroll taxes, and have control over employees’ holidays and expenses.
There are many different payroll software to choose from that suit Irish businesses and comply with Irish Revenue. Most offer free trials so you can try them before you decide to purchase. In this guide, we’ve compared some of the most popular payroll software for small businesses in Ireland to help you decide which one is best for you.
If you’d prefer to outsource your payroll obligations, we can help. Our IPASS-qualified Payroll Team can look after the entire payroll process in Ireland for you, so talk to us today about your needs.
Advantages of payroll software
-
Compliance with Revenue
As an employer, you are obligated to deduct certain employee taxes and pay them to Revenue. By using payroll software, these deductions are made automatically, and you can rest assured that your business is compliant with Revenue requirements.
-
Save admin time
Payroll software can save you hours of admin time a month. It helps you to calculate payroll taxes, manage employee requests like holidays and expenses, and makes sure that there are clear reports on Revenue payments, so you have a clear breakdown of tax payments due.
-
Pay your employees automatically
Paying your employees on time every month is vital to making sure your business runs smoothly. Using payroll software helps you to pay your employees and provide them with payslips automatically.
-
Keep data secure and backed up
Most payroll software is backed up to the cloud and encrypted so you don’t have to worry about sensitive data being lost or stolen. Look for software that has cloud storage, so you can use it from anywhere.
-
Access to better reporting
Most software allows you to create reports to track different factors such as your total outgoings from payroll. This is useful for making strategic decisions and forecasting.
-
Increase business insights
If you currently use bookkeeping software like Xero, you can integrate your payroll software and increase your cash flow visibility.
How to choose the best payroll software?
Before you choose payroll software for your business, here are a few things to consider:
Price
Decide which package gives you the best value for money, based on your needs. Consider whether you’ll be billed monthly or annually and what suits your business best.
Storage and backup
Consider whether the software runs on a desktop or on the cloud. Is data backed up automatically to make sure you don’t lose anything important?
Integration
Consider whether the software integrates with other software and third-party apps, for example, integrating your payroll software to your accounting software helps you to have more control over your finances.
Employee benefits
Does the software offer an employee portal so employees can book annual leave or claim expenses easily and quickly?
Reporting
Does the software allow you to create reports to track different factors such as your total outgoings from payroll?
Support
What support is available if you have problems using the software? Is there a dedicated support team to help you?
Best payroll software for small businesses in Ireland
To help you narrow the search for the best payroll software for your business, here is a list of the top providers in Ireland so you can make an informed decision on what’s right for you.
1. BrightPay / BrightPay Connect
BrightPay is the No.1 payroll software provider in Ireland and has won Payroll & HR Software of the Year 2021, 2019, and 2018. It has a 99% Customer Satisfaction and 5 Star Rating on TrustPilot.
To get the most out of this software, we recommend that you opt for the Connect add-on that introduces automated cloud backup, online employer dashboards, annual leave management, client payroll entry and approval, and an employee self-service portal.
Access to Brightpay Connect payroll software
Outsource your payroll service to Accountant Online to avail of free access to BrightPay Connect software, making it easy for you to manage all of your payroll administration. We take care of paying your staff and sending payslips, while you can focus on the operations like managing employee leave.
If you are a new employer, we help you to set up payroll software for the first time and ensure that employers and employees are comfortable with the software.
To learn more about our Payroll Services, talk to our Client Services Team – we’re always happy to help.
Considering BrightPay Connect?
Price
BrightPay’s standard software costs €159 per year for one employer with multiple employees or free access with Accountant Online's payroll service.
Storage and backup
BrightPay offers automatic cloud backup so you can keep your data safe.
Integration
You can access better reporting by exporting payroll data from BrightPay into accounting software like Xero.
Employee benefits
Employees can use BrightPay’smobile app to view and edit their personal details, request annual leave, view payslips and their payroll calendar, including annual leave, sick leave and parenting leave
Reporting
Employers have access to an online employer dashboard to view payslips, run payroll reports and manage employee leave.
Support
Free email and phone support and webinars to help users make the most of the software. You can also share your employer dashboard with department heads, your accountant, and anyone else who needs access
2. SimplePay
SimplePay is an easy-to-use software, which is ideal for users who have not used payroll software before. During setup, the SimplePay team will ask you questions about your requirements and they can customise your package to your needs.
This software charges a rate per employee (from €4 for 1 employee) and the more employees you have, the cheaper payroll will be per employee. SimplePay also offers a 30-day free trial so you can test the software before you commit to a subscription.
Considering SimplePay?
Price
SimplePay charges for the exact number of active employees a month. The more employees you have, the less you pay per employee. Prices start from €4 for one employee and can go down to as little as €0.73 depending on how many staff you have (up to 500).
Storage and backup
Data is backed up and stored securely on SimplePay servers.
Integration
Integrates with Xero online accounting and QuickBooks Online.
Employee benefits
Employee leave requests can be submitted and approved through the self-service function.
Reporting
An activity log shows when changes were made and by whom and you can access employee and payroll data, such as leave days taken by employees, and variances in payroll amounts.
Support
Email support.
3. Sage
Sage offers payroll packages to suit Irish businesses of any size, making it ideal for Startups and growing businesses. As well as a free trial, Sage often run promotions and free trials for new users, making it a budget-friendly option.
This software is most suited to medium and large businesses or high potential Startups with plans to expand. Sage lets you run payroll from 5 to 100 employees (from €10+VAT per month), so they can support you with Payroll at any stage of your business journey.
Considering Sage?
Price
From €10 + VAT per month (based on payroll for 5 employees)
Storage and backup
BrightPay offers automatic cloud backup so you can keep your data safe.
Integration
Automatically add your payroll data to any online accounting software
Employee benefits
Employees can use Sage's online portal to view their payslips and access, view, and modify their employment information online.
Reporting
Sage allows you to analyse your payroll payments and generate reports on how much you are paying to employees and Revenue and how much payroll is costing to run per employee.
Support
You have access to a professional support team 24/7 over phone, email or chat.
4. Parolla
Parolla is an Irish payroll software company, built with Irish payroll in mind. They focus on providing excellent customer support, with a 100% positive customer chat feedback rating and a 5-star Xero product review ranking.
Parolla has extensive support on how to use the software so you can rest assured help is there when you need it.
Considering Parolla?
Price
Parolla offer three pricing packages: Starter (up to 5 employees - €12.50+VAT per month), Standard
(up to 20 employees - €20+VAT per month), and Enterprise (up to 25 employees - €25+VAT per month).
Storage and backup
Give access to employees, owners, accountants, managers, HR and payroll administrators
Integration
Send payroll information to Xero and other accounting software.
Employee benefits
Employees can access to a self-service feature to view payslips, submit leave requests and expenses, submit claims for flat rate allowances and travel passes, and apply for a Cycle-To-Work scheme
Reporting
You have the ability to set up additional deductions such as pension contributions such as Personal Retirement Savings Accounts (PRSA’s), occupational pensions schemes, and personal pensions plans
Support
Access video tutorials to help you use Parolla software, as well as email, telephone, and live chat support
5. Thesaurus Payroll Manager
Thesaurus Payroll Manager is another payroll software provider that requires an add-on to access the cloud version – Thesaurus Connect.
Although it is an optional add-on, we recommend that users of this software opt for the Connect version as it provides automated cloud backup of your payroll data and a web-based self-service dashboard for your employees.
One of the standout differences with Thesaurus Connect compared to other software is that they offer in-person training and support.
Considering Thesaurus Connect?
Price
The Thesaurus standard licence for up to 10 employees costs €159 per year. If you opt for this software, we recommend that you also purchase the add-on Thesaurus Connect to access cloud storage (from €0.50 per month per employee).
Storage and backup
BrightPay offers automatic cloud backup so you can keep your data safe.
Integration
Set up an automatic integration between your payroll data and your accounting software, saving time when preparing your annual financial statements
Employee benefits
Employees can view and download payslips and their personal data, view their calendar and book annual leave through their employee dashboard.
Reporting
As an employer, you can analyse payments made to employees during different periods. These reports are created and emailed to you every month automatically.
Support
Free email, phone support and website support.
How to choose the best payroll software for you?
Start by listing out your payroll needs and history with online software. Consider how much training you need and if you have the knowledge and resources to manage payroll in-house or if you should outsource.
Our team of IPASS-qualified payroll professionals can take care of processing your payroll weekly, fortnightly, or monthly, and can provide payslips to your employees, as well as taking care of processing payments to Revenue.
Talk to our Client Services Team about your payroll needs and we are happy to discuss how we can help you to run payroll efficiently and smoothly.
Kiera leads the Bookkeeping, VAT, and Payroll Teams at Accountant Online. Kiera has worked in the financial services industry for over 18 years. She is passionate about helping businesses to get their finances in order so they can get back to what’s important: running your business. Kiera holds a part-qualified accountant qualification from ACCA.
