Key takeaways:
Also read: HRIS vs HRMS vs HCM: What Is the Difference?
In this article...
Rippling vs Gusto: Which is better?
The better overall pick is Rippling. Rippling’s more extensive product portfolio enables companies to do more over a longer period of time. So, unless your business is in an industry where it will reach maturity at mid-size, it’s worth investing in Rippling to scale alongside your team.
Also read: Top HRIS Systems
| Rippling Unity | Gusto Simple | |
| Starting price Jump to comparison ↓ |
$35/mo. + $8/user/mo. | $40/mo. + $6/user/mo. |
| Benefits administration Jump to comparison ↓ |
Add-on | Gusto-brokered, included |
| Payroll Jump to comparison ↓ |
Domestic and global add-ons | Domestic included, international contractor payment as add-on |
| Onboarding Jump to comparison ↓ |
Included | Basic, included |
| Offboarding | Included | Not available |
| Time tracking | Add-on | Starts with Premium |
| Recruiting | Add-on | Starts with Premium |
| Document storage/management | Included, plus signature tools | Included |
| Custom reporting | Included | Included |
| Access control/permissions | Included | Included |
| Org chart | Included | Not available |
Rippling: Better for flexibility
Rippling offers a modular workforce management platform, called Rippling Unity, for all HR, finance, and IT data and processes. In addition to improving overall efficiency, the scalable, modular system simplifies your tech stack and eliminates the risk of data loss that comes with using disparate apps.
Depending on your team’s current needs and future goals, you can add individual features such as global payroll, learning management, and headcount planning as the business evolves. Similarly, IT and finance functions like app provisioning and expense management can be added as needed. The pricing for each module isn’t transparent, though, so you’ll have to conduct thorough cost comparisons to evaluate Rippling’s value compared to other solutions that offer what you need.
Key differentiators
Also read: Top Rippling Alternatives and Competitors
Gusto: Better for affordability
Gusto started out as a payroll SaaS company, and it’s clear that payroll is its specialty. However, the software has since expanded to include a range of capabilities.
Its intuitive user interface, market-leading support, and affordable price point make it a popular HR software solution for many SMBs. Specifically, companies with fewer than 25 employees or those with complex payroll requirements are ideal Gusto customers.
Key differentiators
Also read: Top Gusto Alternatives and Competitors
Rippling vs. Gusto: A detailed comparison
We took an in-depth look at Rippling and Gusto in the areas that will impact your purchasing decision:
Pricing
Rippling offers four pricing tiers as well as add-on products for HR, IT, and finance. It accommodates businesses of all sizes, but its flexibility and scalability make it well-suited for larger companies.
Conversely, Gusto’s lower per-user price is ideal for SMBs. There are three price tiers to choose from, starting with a basic package of HR capabilities that becomes more robust as customers upgrade or add on.
Which to choose for pricing?
Gusto. Here’s why:
Companies with five or more employees enjoy savings that compound with each increase in headcount when choosing Gusto Simple. Plus, Gusto Simple already includes some standard HR features like basic payroll and benefits administration, whereas Rippling customers have to add those for an additional cost.
Gusto’s spread of packages serves small and medium-sized businesses that are in a sweet spot between a basic HRIS and an HRMS. Each tier includes more capabilities than the previous, and Gusto offers a variety of add-ons that bridge the three tiers.
Rippling, on the other hand, offers a broad portfolio of products that lays a longer runway for growth. It targets a broader spectrum of businesses with its range of add-ons for HR, IT, and finance needs. Rippling, therefore, accommodates complex business needs beyond what Gusto can provide at its fullest potential.
Benefits administration
| Rippling’s Add-on | Gusto Simple | |
| EDI | Yes | No |
| Mobile app | No | No |
| Compliance | Yes | Yes |
| Bring-your-own-broker | Yes | Yes |
Rippling’s benefits administration add-on automates tasks like benefits selection, deduction updates, and COBRA administration. The variety of ways you can set up benefits administration through Rippling’s add-on makes it more flexible than Gusto’s base benefits administration offering, but it comes at an extra cost.
Benefits options
You can choose from more than 4,000 Rippling-supported benefits plans from leading carriers like Aetna, Humana, and Blue Cross Blue Shield. You can also bring your own broker to Rippling and migrate your entire existing benefits packages to Rippling.
That way, employees don’t need to re-enroll or update any of their benefits information as a result of the migration. For new employees, Rippling prompts them during onboarding to select their benefits without intervention from an HR person.
Regulatory compliance
Rippling’s benefits administration includes automated ACA and COBRA compliance. For example, it disseminates ACA as well as COBRA notices and collects premium payments from former employees who elect to continue coverage. However, it doesn’t support HIPAA or ERISA compliance like Gusto does.
Gusto includes benefits administration in its base plan but charges an additional fee to use an external broker. If using a Gusto-brokered benefits provider is not an issue, the simplicity of the benefits selection and administration process makes Gusto a compelling choice.
Benefits selection
Gusto also offers a variety of no-cost (included), low-cost, and premium financial and health benefit options. While these à la carte benefits allow you to customize your benefits package, the costs may add up quickly.
For example, customers of any Gusto plan can add the following benefits:
- Workers’ compensation.
- HSAs and FSAs.
- Commuter benefits.
Rippling includes all three of these benefits, which puts it at an advantage over Gusto Simple.
Regulatory compliance
Gusto helps companies remain compliant and file the right paperwork with the right government agencies. Like Rippling, Gusto offers assistance with ACA and COBRA compliance. However, Gusto Simple also helps maintain compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).
Gusto’s benefits administration features are included with every plan, and its lowest tier offers more breadth in compliance coverage than Rippling’s add-on. Gusto’s licensed advisors assist companies with benefits selection to put together competitive benefits packages for the right price.
Which to choose for benefits administration?
It’s a tie. Here’s why:
In terms of managing and administering benefits, Rippling is the better choice. Though you have to opt for the add-on, Rippling’s benefits administration offers more flexibility. It accommodates a range of business situations by allowing you to use its brokered plans, bring your own broker, or migrate existing plans without increasing the total cost or interrupting employees’ coverage.
Gusto wins for compliance in benefits administration. Gusto Simple includes compliance assistance for ACA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA. In contrast, Rippling’s benefits administration add-on is more limited, covering ACA and COBRA only. Rippling customers have to add the Compliance 360 module to get more comprehensive compliance coverage.
Also read: 7 Questions to Consider Before Choosing a Benefits Administration System
Payroll
| Rippling’s Add-on | Gusto Simple | |
| International full-time employee payroll | Yes | No |
| Mobile app | Yes | Yes |
| Compliance | Yes | Yes |
| Financial wellness | No | Yes |
To see how Rippling and Gusto stack up against other payroll software tools, check out our Payroll Software Guide.
Rippling offers full-service, automated payroll and tax filing for local, state, and federal agencies in the United States. Additionally, Rippling’s presence as a global employer of record (EOR) means you can expand your business internationally without setting up a local entity.
The global payroll function also localizes payroll for international teams, so employees can get paid in the appropriate currency without wasting time waiting for conversions and transfers. Plus, customers with access to this add-on can take advantage of Rippling’s in-country compliance experts to assist with complex laws or sensitive employment issues.
Also read: Top Global Payroll Solutions
One of Gusto’s biggest payroll features is AutoPilot, which automatically calculates and files payroll taxes based on up-to-date tax laws. Plus, employees can take advantage of early direct deposit, budgeting tools, and other financial wellness benefits via the Gusto Wallet app.
With respect to payroll compliance, Gusto helps employers send W-2s and 1099s to employees in a timely manner during tax season. For an additional fee, you can select the state tax registration add-on to let Gusto handle state and local paperwork.
However, Gusto Simple lacks the payroll compliance features that Rippling’s payroll add-on includes. To get the same functionality, Gusto Simple customers must upgrade to Plus.
Gusto also offers optional international payroll for contractors located in 95 countries and has launched a beta partnership with Remote to support part-time or full-time employees located abroad. Global payroll support has historically been one of Rippling’s main advantages over Gusto, so the launch of Gusto Global shifts the balance a bit.
Which to choose for payroll?
Rippling. Here’s why:
Unless you only have employees in one state, it’s worth choosing Rippling’s payroll add-on. It offers many of the same automation and compliance features as Gusto and then some. You can also sync the benefits and time-tracking modules or integrate third-party software.
Furthermore, Rippling’s global payroll functionality is worth the investment to manage employee data, payroll, compliance, and more wherever your company operates.
Also read: How to Choose the Right Small Business Payroll Software
Onboarding
| Rippling Unity | Gusto Simple | |
| Native onboarding | Yes | Yes |
| Document management | Yes | Yes |
| Self-onboarding | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile onboarding | Yes | No |
| Customizable onboarding workflow | Yes | No |
Rippling Unity doesn’t include recruiting, so customers will need to either integrate with third-party recruiting software—provided they have the Enterprise tier—or add the Talent Management module. However, Rippling’s Unity tiers do include native, automated onboarding capabilities that require little intervention from HR staff.
Global onboarding
When a new employee is hired, an admin selects the new employee’s country and employment type — contractor, full-time, part-time, etc. — the start date, and whether the employee is eligible for benefits. From there, Rippling deploys the rest of the onboarding flow specifically for that country and employment type. Country-specific information is built into Rippling from the start, so HR staff only need to be concerned with correctly classifying each employee.
Rippling also reflects cultural differences in terminology for working conditions, so every field is tailored to the new employee’s work location. Localization of employee data saves HR staff time because they don’t have to research each country’s unique employee data identifiers or maintain duplicate versions of the same onboarding forms for each country.
A new employee in India, for instance, won’t be prompted to enter a Social Security number since those are for U.S.-based employees only. Instead, their form will ask for their Universal Account Number, and instead of salary, the offer letter and compensation section of the employee profile will display the cost to company.
Provisioning
Rippling Unity’s differentiating feature from Gusto’s onboarding is that it automatically provisions the new employee’s access to apps and tools they need to do their job. The native onboarding function can automatically add new employees to certain Slack channels, for example. As a bonus, new employees can complete onboarding from Rippling’s mobile app.
Gusto’s Simple plan offers native, albeit limited, onboarding functionality along with the option to integrate with third-party recruiting software. So, similar to Rippling, Gusto customers have to upgrade to unlock access to Gusto’s native recruiting tools like job postings and the applicant tracking system (ATS).
Onboarding checklist
Gusto’s onboarding features support customized offer letters, but the Simple plan is not customizable and is designed for a primarily U.S.-based workforce. Gusto’s onboarding checklist includes suggestions of typical stages in the onboarding process which should suffice if you have basic onboarding procedures. If you want more control over what to include in your onboarding workflow, though, you’ll need to upgrade to Plus or Premium.
Provisioning
Gusto Simple helps set up a new employee’s email account via Microsoft 365 or Gmail, but it stops short of full-service app or device provisioning. Gusto also requires new employees to complete onboarding tasks on a desktop device, as Gusto doesn’t provide mobile access to onboarding.
Which to choose for onboarding?
Rippling. Here’s why:
Comparing Rippling and Gusto’s native onboarding features available in their respective basic tiers, Rippling’s Unity platform includes more robust automated functionality. With Gusto, you have to upgrade to get access to the same kind of functionality. Rippling’s mobile experience also makes it easier for employees to finish onboarding from any device.
Rippling vs. Gusto: Which software is right for you?
The primary differentiator between Rippling and Gusto is geographic focus: Rippling targets companies hiring internationally, while Gusto focuses on companies that operate in the United States. Moreover, Rippling’s modular structure offers enough flexibility to support a business at each stage of growth.
Small, established companies that want budget-friendly flexibility should go with Gusto. Conversely, startups and mid-sized companies poised for rapid growth will likely save money in the long run by opting for Rippling.
If neither software meets your company’s unique needs, explore other solutions on the market through our HR Software Guide.
About the author
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