Deel vs. Gusto: A US Payroll Services Comparison

Employers operating in the US need to manage a range of regulatory obligations that can vary significantly at the federal, state, and even local levels. Between navigating jurisdiction-specific rules, keeping up with mandatory filings, and handling tax and employee classifications, businesses often expend significant time and capital. This is where partnering with a US payroll solution can provide value.

Deel and Gusto are two of the leading payroll platforms that cater to US businesses. But choosing the one that's best fit for your needs can be a challenge. What are the key features, pros and cons, and best use cases for each?

What is Deel Payroll - US?

Deel Payroll - US is Deel's US-specific solution for seamlessly running payroll across all 50 states. It offers end-to-end execution, simplified workflows, and airtight compliance from start to finish.

Key features include:

• Full compliance coverage at the federal, state, and local levels, backed by licensed in-house experts
• Effortless tax calculations, filing, and payments across all US jurisdictions
• Integrated bulk payments, deposits, payslip creation, and delivery
• Innovative HR tools that streamline your employees’ lifecycle, including document management, onboarding, training, and offboarding
• 80+ powerful integrations, including Workday, BambooHR, Netsuite, Expensify, and more
• Deel Payroll Connect integration which funnels all your payroll into a single dashboard
• 24/7 customer support

Deel is not just a US solution, but a global people platform trusted by 37,000 businesses worldwide. With its fully in-house infrastructure, Deel delivers a broad suite of services designed to meet the full spectrum of your workforce management needs, including:

• The ability to scale internationally and seamlessly hire, pay, and manage a global workforce in line with local laws and regulations
• Tax reporting and payroll management for different types of workers, including international and domestic contractors
• A self-service portal for both employees and contractors that streamlines time-tracking, paid time off requests, benefits management, and more
• Centralized and highly customizable HRIS, including talent management and training tools
• AI-powered tools for report generation and compliance questions
• And much more

What is Gusto?

Gusto is a payroll service provider that enables growing businesses to outsource their payroll and HR functions. It offers a range of features at affordable rates for US-based organizations. Its key features include:

• HR and payroll solutions for domestic clients
• Outsourced benefits, taxes, and related admin
• Compliance monitoring and management across all US states
• Several essential accountancy, recruitment, and cloud-based integrations that streamline your workflows
• Three plan tiers tailored to suit varying business needs
• Affordable pricing

Gusto offers a straightforward way to run payroll, administer benefits, and stay compliant within the US.

Deel vs. Gusto: US payroll comparison

There are several key criteria that an employer might consider when choosing the right payroll provider. Here is a high-level overview of how Deel compares to Gusto across core functionalities:

Find out more about how Deel and Gusto compare.

Ratings

Deel: 4.8 rating (G2) based on 9,100+ reviews

Gusto: 4.6 rating (G2) based on 5,000+ reviews

Multi-state compliance

Deel offers a comprehensive, fully integrated payroll solution that encompasses tax filing, multi-state compliance, and payment processing. This includes:

• Multi-state and local compliance: Deel uses built-in compliance tools to help businesses navigate changes to labor laws, taxes, and deductions in every US jurisdiction
• Automated updates: The platform applies real-time updates to reflect changes to regulations, such as revisions to California paid family leave laws and New York SDI tax rates
• Audit trails: Deel maintains detailed logs of system activities to ensure transparency and support compliance audits
• No third-party reliance: Deel's fully in-house, integrated infrastructure promotes greater efficiency and minimizes delays and compliance risks
• In-house expertise: Deel is backed by a dedicated team of over 350+ legal and compliance professionals
• Compliance and Knowledge hubs: Deel's clients can access a centralized Compliance hub for real-time regulatory updates and a Knowledge Hub with valuable resources for hiring and payroll

Gusto caters to US-based businesses, especially smaller ones, by offering essential payroll and compliance services, but with some limitations and outsourced functions.

• Multi-state and local compliance: Gusto handles US-based compliance across all jurisdictions
• Automated updates: Gusto automatically applies any changes in compliance and legislation to its payroll, but this service does not extend to contractors
• Audit trails: Compliance history and documentation of completed actions are available on Gusto's platform
• Third-party reliance: Certain services, such as international contractor payroll, are outsourced, which may affect the user experience

Tax filing and payment automation

When it comes to tax filing and payments, Deel offers comprehensive coverage for federal, state, and local taxes. This includes filing, compliance, form submissions, and more. Here are some of the key functions:

• Tax compliance: Deel's platform streamlines federal, state, and local tax payments and filings, including W-2, W-4, 1099, and new hire reports
• Form filings: The platform supports Form 941 (the employer's quarterly federal tax return) and Form 940 (the employer's annual federal unemployment tax return) filing
• Direct deposits and payslips: Deel ensures direct deposits and payslips are delivered to employees on time
• Instant payroll adjustments: Deel’s real-time G2N calculations allow teams to instantly evaluate costs and make adjustments
• Shorter cut-off dates: Ensuring quicker payroll processing and greater flexibility in managing last-minute changes
• Fast tax payments: Deel's platform distributes payroll tax payments according to the fastest remittance cadence immediately after payroll is computed
• Comprehensive reporting: Detailed insights reports ensure full compliance with local, state, and federal regulations

Gusto's tax filing and payment functions include:

• Limited instant payroll adjustments: Adjustments in payroll require advance planning and are less flexible
• Tax compliance: Gusto's platform can manage federal, state, and local tax payments and filings, including W-2, W-4, 1099, and new hire filings
• Form filings: Supports form filings for tax returns
• Direct deposits and payslips: Both are available on Gusto's platform
• Reporting: Gusto offers its clients several reporting functions

Find out more in our Step-by-Step Guide to the US Payroll Process.

Employee self-service portal

Deel provides employees with a self-service portal designed to save you time and resources across onboarding, training, benefits administration, offboarding, and more.

• Employee self-service portal: Empowers employees to manage their own HR tasks (such as requesting time off), reducing administrative workload and allowing HR teams to focus on strategic initiatives
• Comprehensive HR tools: Deel enables clients to streamline their employees’ onboarding, training, and other essential worker lifecycle steps
• Accessible documents: The self-service portal ensures employees have easy access to payslips, W-2s, benefits information, and other essential documents
• Reduces workload: By offering a self-service portal and streamlining HR processes, Deel helps reduce the ticket load for finance and HR teams and boosts efficiency
• Enhanced trust: A centralized hub for self-managing HR processes, accessing information, and ensuring transparency builds trust with employees, all while eliminating administrative bottlenecks

Gusto offers HR management tools for onboarding, benefits administration, a self-service portal for employees, and centralized document storage. However, some features may not be as fully integrated or as modern as those offered by other providers.

• Basic HR management: Gusto has essential tools for onboarding and benefits administration, with a self-service portal for employees
• Document storage: Offers centralized document storage for easy access to employee records
• Limited functionality: While Gusto provides essential tools for accessing payslips and benefits info, some clients find the interface outdated or limited, which can affect employee trust and satisfaction

Find out more about how you can enhance your workers’ lifecycle.

Customer support availability

Deel offers extensive customer support designed to ensure client satisfaction and operational continuity. This provides clients with peace of mind, knowing they can receive assistance with urgent issues at any time (such as missed runs, IRS notices, and more).

• Comprehensive customer support: Accessible via phone, email, live agents, and 24/7 AI chatbots, all delivering personalized support to help you resolve queries faster
• Global coverage: Support is available no matter your time zone or location
• Quick issue resolution: The support team is always ready to resolve issues and answer questions
• Support for employees: Our service provides comprehensive support for employees, including help with country-specific queries, HR-related issues, and payroll questions
• Dedicated customer success manager: A primary point of contact who facilitates your onboarding, helps you maximize value from our services, understands your specific needs, and delivers personalized guidance and solutions
• Onboarding Manager (OBM): Full end-to-end client onboarding support that helps ensure your Importing of Year-to-Date (YTD) payroll data from previous providers and all necessary documentation to get you started
• Payroll Implementation Managers (PIMS): Provide payroll processing support by executing runs, managing federal, state, and local tax withholdings, and supporting off-cycle payrolls, prorated adjustments, and corrections

Gusto provides customer support via phone, email, and live chat, but only during business hours (6 am – 6 pm MST, Monday-Friday).

• Business hours support: Phone, email, and live chat support are available only during working hours
• Limited availability: No 24/7 support for urgent issues outside of business hours
• Support inefficiencies: Some clients report difficulty escalating issues and a lack of clear resolutions or next steps.
• Priority support is a paid add-on: Clients need to be on the Premium plan, or have the Plus plan together with Priority support and HR services add-on, to receive fast priority support

Here are 8 Essential Questions to Evaluate a Payroll Provider’s Customer Support.

Contractor management

Through Deel Contractor, Deel offers a unified platform to hire and pay both US-based and international contractors with full compliance and contract generation features, all in one place.

• Global contractor management: Easily hire and pay US-based and international contractors
• Compliant contract generation: Generate compliant contracts in minutes with no external legal resources
• Self-service portal: Contractors can access contracts, update their details, and receive payments in local currencies
• Centralized workforce management: Manage all employees and contractors through a single platform
• Seamless experience: Fully integrated solution for contractor management and compliance

Gusto supports some functions for US-based contractors, but its international contractor service is limited to payments only.

• US contractor management: Handles compliant payments and basic management for US contractors
• International contractor service: This is a paid add-on that offers payments only, lacking full compliance and contract generation

Learn more with 7 Challenges Facing Global Companies When Hiring Independent Contractors and How to Hire and Pay International Contractors Legally.

Scalability

With operations in over 150 countries, Deel can scale effortlessly with growing businesses, allowing you to expand into new international markets. By combining Deel Payroll - US and Deel Payroll, you can compliantly pay employees in different countries and currencies and navigate complex international tax and labor laws.

By building up to Deel Payroll, you gain:

• Global workforce management: A single dashboard for managing your US and global workforce, with a consolidated view of wages, taxes, deductions, and variance tracking across payroll cycles
• Automated payroll: Powered by a real-time gross-to-net (G2N) engine that updates instantly with any adjustment
• Seamless scalability: As your business grows, Deel scales with you—empowering you to expand into new countries without disrupting existing workflows
• Fully compliant payroll: Deel ensures full compliance with local tax regulations, labor laws, and payroll requirements, reducing risk and ensuring peace of mind for your global operations
• Access to comprehensive HR tools: Deel simplifies your onboarding, training, and offboarding, regardless of your employees’ location

Gusto focuses on providing tools and services designed specifically for companies that have entities and workforce operations in the US.

• US workforce focus: Gusto’s payroll services are tailored to US-based businesses and employees
• Limited cross-border functionality: Gusto does not offer solutions for managing employees across different countries, which may limit scalability for businesses looking to expand internationally

Find out more about how to pay international employees (with or without entities).

When should you choose Deel or Gusto?

Choosing between Deel and Gusto depends on your specific business needs, strategy, and situation. Here are the best use cases for each:

Deel is best for

• Businesses of any size that want a comprehensive HR and payroll system that can support both US and international employees and contractors
• Businesses looking for a fully integrated and in-house solution that caters to the full range of workforce management needs
• Businesses seeking to manage their distributed or remote workforces—whether domestic or international—from a single platform
• Businesses already using other Deel services and are interested in consolidating their workforce management into a single system

Learn about the difference between unified payroll vs. integrated payroll and why it matters.

Gusto is best for

• US-based SMBs or startups
• Teams with no global hiring plans
• Founders and finance teams that want built-in HR management tools but can manage some third-party integrations

Interested in global hiring as a startup? Learn more with 9 Deel Integrations: Make Payroll Easier for Your Startup.

Streamline your US payroll and open the doors to international growth with Deel

Deel and Gusto are two of the best options on the market when it comes to choosing a US payroll solution. But while Gusto offers a dependable, budget-friendly answer for small and startup businesses looking to focus on affordability, Deel delivers a strategic, all-in-one solution for businesses of any size—including those with global ambitions.

Deel Payroll - US automates federal, state, and local tax filings, eliminates manual payroll admin, and gives you full visibility into your workforce, all from a single dashboard. With our consolidated platform, you can save your organization an average of 86 hours of processing time, so you can focus on growth and expansion.

Find out how. Book a 30-minute demo with our expert team to explore our full service offerings.