QuickBooks Payroll pricing: the price after the discount ends

Intuit now sells QuickBooks payroll as QuickBooks Workforce, with new plan names.

What QuickBooks payroll costs at 1, 5 and 10 people

	People paid
Plan	1	5	10
Workforce Payroll $50 a month + $7 per employee States: Not stated	$57	$85	$120
Workforce Premium $88 a month + $13 per employee States: Not stated	$101	$153	$218
Workforce Elite $134 a month + $17 per employee States: Not stated	$151	$219	$304

Monthly cost at the regular price, one state, employees only. From QuickBooks Payroll (QuickBooks Workforce)'s pricing page, checked Oct 22, 2026.

For 5 employees, Workforce Payroll is $85 a month at the regular price. Gusto’s Simple plan is $79 for the same team, in one state. Neither figure includes QuickBooks’ state tax filing fee, which Intuit’s own offer terms mention but its pricing pages don’t price.

The fee Intuit doesn’t publish

Intuit’s discount terms say the discount “does not apply to per-employee fees, per-contractor fees or state tax filing fees for QuickBooks Workforce”. So a state tax filing fee exists, but none of the pricing pages we read gives an amount. Ask for it in writing before you sign, and add it to the monthly price when you compare.

Payroll alone vs payroll with accounting

Intuit’s main payroll pricing page leads with bundles that include QuickBooks Online accounting. Payroll-only prices are on a separate page. If you already pay for QuickBooks Online, or don’t need it, compare them this way:

Plan	Base fee	Per employee	Base fee vs payroll alone
Workforce Payroll alone	$50	$7
Workforce Payroll + Simple Start	$88	$7	+$38 a month
Workforce Payroll + Essentials	$135	$7	+$85 a month
Workforce Premium alone	$88	$13
Workforce Premium + Plus	$228	$13	+$140 a month

The per-employee fee is the same either way; the bundle adds to the base fee only.

Which plan you need

• Workforce Payroll pays your team, files payroll taxes and includes next-day direct deposit.
• Workforce Premium adds time tracking and same-day direct deposit, plus an expert setup review.
• Workforce Elite adds tax penalty protection and has Intuit set up payroll for you. Benefits administration is listed on Premium and Elite at extra cost, sold separately and only to businesses with 20 or more employees.

Intuit’s pages don’t say whether more than one state costs extra on any plan, or how contractors paid inside a Workforce plan are billed. If either applies to you, ask.

Paying contractors only

	Contractors paid
Plan	5	20	30
Contractor Payments $25 a month (includes 20 contractors) + $2 per contractor	$25	$25	$45

Monthly cost at the regular price, contractors only. From QuickBooks Payroll (QuickBooks Workforce)'s pricing page, checked Oct 22, 2026.

With 20 contractors included in the base fee, this is the cheapest paid contractor-only option in our comparison once you pay 5 or more contractors a month. Below that, Square Payroll’s contractor plan (no base fee + $6 per contractor) costs less.

Other QuickBooks payroll fees

Extra	What it costs
State tax filing fees	Not published source
Background check (Checkr)	$29.99 per report (starting price) source
Printed/mailed 1099 copies	Not published source

Who QuickBooks payroll suits, and who should skip it

A good fit if you already keep your books in QuickBooks Online and want payroll to post there without an extra app, or you pay contractors only and fit under the included contractor count.

Look elsewhere if you don’t use QuickBooks and want the lowest price: for most small teams, Patriot Payroll, Roll by ADP and Square Payroll cost less at their regular prices, and they publish their state fees or include them. See them all in the payroll cost calculator.

Compare with Gusto pricing, ADP payroll pricing or every payroll service.