Heartland Payroll vs Square Payroll

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Our analysts compared Heartland Payroll vs Square Payroll based on data from our 400+ point analysis of Payroll Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.

Heartland Payroll Software Tool

Product Basics

Heartland Payroll is an online bookkeeping software that handles payment processing, Point of Sale interactions, capital and engagement with customers. It can manage compensation for retail, restaurants and multiple other industries both onsite and offsite. It also handles compensation, recruiting, benefits, time and attendance and more. Users looking for more full-service care can access services such as HR management, guidance with the Affordable Care Act and loans.
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Based in the cloud, Square Payroll is suited for businesses of all sizes. Integrating with the well-known POS solution from the same company offers features that assist with processing pay, filing taxes, employee self-service and more. The support staff helps users with implementation, whether they need help with their first implementation or simply just assistance migrating data from an old interface. Its capabilities also provide time tracking, invoice creation, appointment scheduling, direct deposit and more.
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$89 Monthly
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Tailored to your specific needs
$35 Monthly
Get a free price quote
Tailored to your specific needs
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Mobile
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Product Assistance

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Email
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Knowledge Base
24/7 Live Support
Email
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24/7 Live Support

Product Insights

  • Accurate Payroll: Automate the entire operation to cut down on errors and changes in data made by human error. Handle the complexities of benefits, retirement and more with accurate calculations.
  • Timer Saver: Cut down on paperwork and save time that would otherwise be spent filling out data. It automates payment, benefits, workers’ compensation and other necessary compensation processes, freeing up time to find and analyze issues.
  • More Engaged Customers: Draw in customers with rewards programs and gift cards while monitoring and analyzing their behavior to improve processes and bring up the bottom line. The simplification of POS interactions also makes them more likely to return and reflect positively on the experience. Monitor customer activity, build relationships with customers, analytics the metrics and send custom emails to keep in touch.
  • Better Insights: Analyze data to better understand how campaigns are affecting the bottom line. This includes reporting on customer intelligence, performance, reputation management and benchmarking on competitors.
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  • Synchronized Systems: Fully synchronize the payroll solution with other Square systems, including partners that offer timecard solutions. Automatically calculate employee hours to run payroll.
  • Payroll On-The-Go: Run payroll directly from any internet-connected device with the mobile app. Creates a quick and seamless process that gets employees paid expediently, while administers don’t have to spend time tediously inputting data.
  • Affordable Small Businesses Payroll: Offers two pricing models, one of which is specifically designed to meet the needs of businesses that rely on contractors. The monthly subscription fee starts as low as $34 monthly for companies with standard employees. Hire contractors and spend only $5 monthly per contractor or employee.
  • Manageable Processes: Run payroll with only necessary employee information. Customize pay periods while employees can create their accounts, making the setup process quick and straightforward.
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  • Payment Processing: Give and receive payments easily through rapid authorization and fast funding. To help customers, the POS systems can accept money from ACH, digital wallets, EMV chips cards and gift cards. This system is supported online, through mobile, by the virtual terminal. Other options include a merchant administrative portal, work orders, invoicing, custom forms, e-commerce and integrates with Plaid, QuickBooks and Zapier.
  • Tax Management: Oversee business withholdings for the year, whether from health benefits, unemployment, social security or workers’ compensation.
  • Recruiting: Execute talent acquisition activities such as posting jobs, scheduling interviews, getting applications, onboarding new hires and keeping their eyes on potential candidates with the applicant tracking system. The system also offers to screen companies for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit.
  • Affordable Care Act: See which employees need health insurance and use the ACA reporting tool to determine the large employer status. It comes with monthly reporting that shows the number of full-time employees and equivalents, shows the total paid and unpaid hours for workers and helps with completing the 1094-C and 1095-C forms.
  • Benefits: The solution integrates with the benefits management system Ease. Administrators can transfer employee updates, new hire information and deductions to the payroll system.
  • Surcharge: The surcharge program charges customers 3.5% for credit card transactions. Deposit the next day and get reports on the amount that’s been regained from the venue.
  • Loans: Apply for loans through the Lendio loan marketplace, which provides access to various partners. Loans range from $5,000 to $5 million. Users can have a credit line of up to $250,000. The approval process generally takes about 15 minutes and the approval process is generally done within 48 hours.
  • HR: Services include coaching for issues in management, compensation, access to hiring documents, alerts for state and federal labor law changes and more.
  • Point of Sale: Accept multiple payment options. It works offline, can integrate with third-party apps and can enable purchases with the system, by a kiosk, in a drive-through and more.
  • Time and Attendance: Register punches, track hours, monitor schedules, handle PTO and create reports for various metrics.
  • Other Integrations: Integrations also include time and attendance, 401(k), general ledger and accounting systems and workers’ compensation.
  • Billing: Process billing in a streamlined manner by cutting down on late payments, paper documentation and tracking expenses through analytics. The solution is PCI level 1 certified to help with compliance purposes and serves as bookkeeping software.
  • Online, Mobile and Devices: Check accounts, send billing and pay online, through a tablet, by mobile or by other devices. It also can operate as a POS. Customers access the e-commerce features for a convenient buying experience.
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  • Automatic Payroll: Import employee hours and overtime and calculate salaries to process each pay period automatically. Handles multiple pay rates and does all off-cycle and unlimited bonus runs for no extra charge. Customizes scheduling for payment. Process payroll by 8:00 p.m. PT, so employees get their direct deposit on payday.
  • Employee Self-Service: Have employees create their account, set up direct deposit, fill out necessary forms and even clock in for their shifts. Provide them with 24/7 access to these features to make changes as needed through the mobile app.
  • Tax Filing: Ensure compliance with Square Payroll’s tax functions. Manage W2s and automatically calculates and files tax withholdings, payments, and filings at the local, state and federal level. Supports post-tax deductions and reimbursements. Files federal and state taxes quarterly and files and sends out W-2s and 1099-MISC forms at the end of the year. Includes forms such as form 940, form 941, form 944 and W-3s.
  • Reporting: Provides new hire reports, quarterly reports and sales reports to provide real-time analysis and make more informed decisions about the business. Send reports to key stakeholders.
  • Team Management: Set schedules, track hours, customize access for different groups and provide employee onboarding. Comes in one of two versions, team management and team plus. Team management includes reporting for time cards, time clocks, scheduling for shifts, break tracking and overtime reporting. Team plus has broader functionality such as early break prevention, report for break violations, preventing early clock-ins from break, notes on timecards, many wage rates, unlimited permissions and more.
  • Compliance: Updates automatically to ensure users stay abreast of changes to tax laws and stay in compliance with payment best practices. Save time and money by obeying regulations.
  • Benefits Management: Customize and manage benefits packages while the integrated benefits management functionality enables the system to calculate and make deductions automatically when running payroll. Provides workers’ comp through AP Intego.
  • Integrations: Integrates with QuickBooks Online for users who want to include accounting and can function with any other Square product.
  • Time Tracking: Synchronize Square Payroll with the vendor’s Point of Sale app at no additional cost to allow employees to clock in for their shift directly at the register. Employees can then import timecards, or synchronize with a variety of other popular time tracking systems. Managers can also enter employee hours manually. Tracks sick leave, PTO and overtime. Use customizable user permissions to manage it effectively.
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Product Ranking

#51

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Payroll Software

#21

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Payroll Software

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User Sentiment Summary

Poor User Sentiment 10 reviews
Excellent User Sentiment 1069 reviews
56%
of users recommend this product

Heartland Payroll has a 'poor' User Satisfaction Rating of 56% when considering 10 user reviews from 2 recognized software review sites.

93%
of users recommend this product

Square Payroll has a 'excellent' User Satisfaction Rating of 93% when considering 1069 user reviews from 4 recognized software review sites.

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4.4 (23)
2.8 (5)
4.66 (571)
2.8 (5)
4.6 (471)
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4.5 (4)

Awards

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Square Payroll stands above the rest by achieving an ‘Excellent’ rating as a User Favorite.

User Favorite Award

Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews

Simple Interface: Users appreciate the clean and straightforward interface, finding it easy to navigate and locate necessary features without unnecessary complexity.
Tax Compliance: Heartland Payroll automatically calculates and files payroll taxes, ensuring businesses remain compliant with federal and state regulations, alleviating concerns about potential penalties or audits.
Direct Deposit: The direct deposit feature streamlines the payment process, allowing employees to receive their wages electronically and eliminating the need for paper checks, which can be time-consuming and prone to errors.
Employee Self-Service: The employee self-service portal empowers employees to access and manage their personal information, pay stubs, and tax documents independently, reducing administrative burdens on HR and payroll teams.
Reporting Capabilities: Heartland Payroll offers comprehensive reporting tools that provide insights into payroll data, enabling businesses to track expenses, analyze trends, and make informed decisions regarding their workforce.
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Simple UI: Over 90% of users who discussed the ease-of-use were impressed by the system.
Affordable: Reviewers felt the pricing was appropriate and affordable in more than 90% of comments that discussed it.
Efficient Payroll Processing: More than 90% of users who discussed payroll processing felt it worked well.
Highly Recommended: In reviews that discussed recommending the service, over 80% said they’d advise other businesses to use it.
Filing Taxes and Reports: More than 80% of comments that discussed filing taxes and year-end reporting were happy with its capabilities.
Adequate Functionality: Users liked the features and felt they worked well in over 80% of reviews that talked about it.
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Dated Interface: Heartland's user interface appears outdated and clunky, making navigation and task completion cumbersome for users accustomed to modern software design.
Customer Service Issues: Heartland's customer service has received negative feedback, with users reporting long wait times and unhelpful responses. This can be frustrating for users seeking timely assistance with payroll issues.
Limited Integrations: Heartland Payroll may not integrate seamlessly with other business software, such as accounting or HR platforms, leading to manual data entry and potential errors.
Pricing Structure: Heartland's pricing structure can be complex and opaque, making it difficult for businesses to anticipate costs and compare options effectively.
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Limited Customization Options: Over 70% of reviews that talked about customization said the options were inadequate.
No Employee Discounts: Businesses had trouble giving employees discounts in over 70% of comments that discussed it.
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Is your payroll process stuck in the dark ages? Heartland Payroll might just be the knight in shining armor your business needs. Heartland Payroll generally receives positive feedback, with users praising its comprehensive features and ease of use. The platform's ability to automate payroll calculations, tax filings, and payments is a major time-saver for businesses. Users also appreciate the self-service portal, which allows employees to access their pay stubs and W-2 forms electronically. Affordability is another plus, especially for small and medium-sized businesses. However, some users have reported occasional glitches and a lack of customization options. Compared to competitors like ADP and Paychex, Heartland Payroll may not have as many bells and whistles, but it offers a solid core feature set at a competitive price point. This makes it an attractive option for businesses that prioritize simplicity and affordability over advanced functionality. Heartland Payroll is best suited for small to medium-sized businesses with straightforward payroll needs. Its user-friendly interface and core features make it easy to manage payroll without a steep learning curve or a hefty price tag. However, larger businesses or those with complex payroll requirements may find the platform's limitations restrictive. It's important to note that software capabilities and user experiences can change over time, so it's always a good idea to check the latest reviews and information before making a decision.

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Square Payroll is an online payment, time and attendance and POS system. Users like it best because it’s easy to use with an intuitive design that can be adopted quickly. They felt the pricing was fair and were especially pleased with its efficient processing of payment. Many users said they’d recommend it to other businesses similar to their own and were happy with its ability to create and file sales, quarterly and new hire reports. Lastly, they were pleased with its features, specifically its easy sign-in, reporting, time tracking and tax calculating. On the con side, customization options were minimal as it’s a reasonably straightforward system. Many companies that use the solution are restaurants that either want to give employees discounts on food or pay with money from their upcoming paycheck. They were displeased with its inability to allow this. Overall, this solution is excellent for small businesses, especially retail and food service. Larger companies should look elsewhere.

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