Free Payroll Software in 2026

Payroll software is a necessity for businesses of all sizes, from small companies with 1-3 employees to mid-sized and large companies. Therefore, installing the right software that streamlines the payroll tasks, making them less tedious and super accurate, is vital, but expensive. While tools like ADP, UKG, and Gusto are among the best payroll software on the market, not everyone can afford them. Some businesses need to optimize their budgets, and finding free software can be an effective way to do so. The challenges that come with this are software quality and free plan limits. 

Small business owners will find it easy to work within common free software limitations. Medium and growing companies need unlimited software. The bright side is that there are multiple free plans from great payroll and HR companies.

Best Free Payroll Software

When searching for free payroll software, you may be buried in articles that include software that isn’t completely free. Many of the software may turn out to have hidden fees, offer only a free trial, or have less than transparent plans. The purpose of the list below is to cut through the fat and give you pricing transparency on the best no-to-low-cost options. Some software may include an extra fee for filing, and some have employee caps, but the software itself is free.  

Payroll4Free

Payroll4Free.com is one of the major free online payroll services. For a free software that’s limited to basic services available to every client, free with 9 or fewer individuals, no more than once a month. You can use them for tax calculations, HR functions, and to integrate other software. Small businesses and start-ups can save a lot of money and streamline other employee services and management. Companies that meet in person can benefit from offering pay stubs and paycheck printing right from the software, along with the direct deposit options. Companies with remote employees can also benefit by using their employee portals for printing pay slips.

Small companies should definitely consider Payroll4Free.com because of its flexible features. On top of all their uses, they also have unlimited customer service. The only caveat is that you will need a Windows system to use them.

HR.my Payroll

One great choice for bigger or rapidly growing businesses and enterprises is HR.my. An incredibly skilled developer created HR.my out of a passion for software to create multilingual payroll software.  The developer makes their money based on word of mouth. The more people who talk about HR.my, the more lucrative projects they get offered. If you find you enjoy HR.my after using it, they greatly appreciate testimonials and donations for site upkeep.

You may wonder about HR.my’s security since it wasn’t created by a major development company. HR.my ensures the connections are encrypted with the SSL protocol and has daily backup and data export. Employers have full control over employee web accounts, and the passwords are protected. The payroll solution software offers standard features you need, along with some additional benefits, such as unlimited users and team collaboration. Employees can benefit from the discussion boards and forums created for engagement, brainstorming, and surveys. The navigation and interface are enhanced by a search option. This allows employees to look for specific information that someone else may have covered.

Online companies that were also looking for engagement software might be able to use these forums to help ease social isolation with remote work. The surveys can certainly help with just keeping track of productivity and overall sentiment. Employee feedback from the discussion alone can give management a good sense of morale.

When it comes to payroll services, HR.my considers the majority of payroll needs. Companies can manage PTO, salaries, and pay periods while using automated payroll processing for payslips. Inside employee portals, employees can also update their personal information, leave management, expense claim, time clock and attendance, incident management, and document workflow. It also has an employee self-service portal, document and form sharing options.

HR.my doesn’t exclude anyone since its software is unlimited, so it’s worth a try for most companies. The software is more limited to standard payroll needs with some extra features, so it’s perfect for a low budget.

SumoPayroll

SumoPayroll is an interesting cloud payroll platform that mainly markets to global startups. The software supports up to 10 employees and helps small enterprises grow. Once they’re more established, the software hopes they will move on to a paid plan as loyal customers. The 10-person plan includes all the features in their paid places, but outsourcing for payroll will have a small fee. Small offices could certainly use SumoPayroll; the process is meant to be hassle-free for both employees and employers. Employees can access their mobile app for free. Employers will have access to timesheets and a time clock. This can help employees stay secure while traveling or working away from home.

SumoPayroll follows all government norms, payroll compliances covering the four verticals, including provident fund, employee state insurance, professional tax, and tax deducted at source. Employees may access estimated tax sheets to view likely deductions and submit IT savings accordingly. With SumoPayroll, companies experience seamless payroll management. They start with a draft stage to review and edit employee details as needed, then finalize the run to process salaries, generate payslips, and produce comprehensive reports.

Generally, SumoPayroll is advertised towards young companies, but nothing stops bigger companies from using their security and interface. The pricing for paid plans is in INR (Indian Rupees). Currency converters can give you an estimate, but the best way to get the USD price would be to contact customer service at sales@sumopayroll.com.

TimeTrex

Another popular free and open-source payroll software is TimeTrex. With unlimited employees and the software needed to run payroll, TimeTrex can be a low-budget option for most companies. The software has an all-in-one payroll service with direct deposits and Government compliance. If you don’t have or plan to use the software in an office, you can make an account for the cloud-hosted version. With a sophisticated calculation engine, the system automates tax computations and manages personalized deductions—covering benefits, insurance, garnishments, vacation, and sick leave accruals.

TimeTrex offers full-service employee payroll and features an FAQ page detailing what the software offers. You can give loyal employees bonuses and raises, track wages, and overall earnings.  Any user who has questions can enter them into the website’s features page and pull detailed information on the different software services TimeTrex offers. The site is a second tool for making sure your payroll calculations and year-end tax forms are up to date. This payroll service can be used in the office, but it’s definitely easier to use the cloud version, whether you’re a remote company or not.

Homebase

Homebase is a versatile workforce management platform that delivers value across a wide range of businesses. Its core strength lies in time card management, which significantly reduces the effort required for payroll processing. It enhances team cohesion and streamlines communication. With its group messaging feature, it is particularly valued for enabling quick updates and simplifying shift coverage. Key tools like scheduling and timesheets help businesses gain clearer insights into food and labor costs. By replacing manual entry and spreadsheets, Homebase saves time, improves accuracy in tracking hours, and ensures reliable salary calculations. It also reduces scheduling confusion, makes shift coverage easier, and proves especially useful in emergencies by quickly identifying available coworkers. Overall, Homebase stands out as a convenient, efficient, and communication-focused solution that supports businesses of all sizes in managing their workforce more effectively.

Excelpayroll

Another open-source payroll option is excelpayroll.org. It doesn’t come with any special features, and it’s more for someone who needs something quick and utilitarian. ExcelPayroll uses Microsoft Excel to help companies that don’t have the budget for fancier options. Those with experience with Excel will be able to learn quickly, but the software is designed to make it easier to use Excel for payroll. You can download the tiny gem from excelpayroll.org. It has no monthly fee, no payroll fee, no installation, and it runs on Excel. It offers no error in calculations, as calculations are pre-formulated with Excel functions. Find all the latest product updates here.

More Resources

You may find that these options sound great, but you need to see more. Many of the free software programs here offer detailed online tutorials to provide training on editing and customization, such as SumoPayroll, HR.my, and Homebase. After going through the above options, there are more options to explore. To check out both paid and free payroll software, click here to explore all the payroll options.