OnPay vs Square Payroll: Which Is Better?
The standalone payroll provider built for any small business versus the payroll tool built straight into Square's point-of-sale system. Six rounds. Real numbers. One honest scorecard.
The verdict
OnPay takes it, 4–1 on rounds.
There's no universal winner — OnPay and Square Payroll are built for different starting points, so match the tool to whether you're already inside the Square ecosystem or not.
Choose OnPay if…
- • You're not already using Square for point-of-sale, or want one flat price with no upcharges
- • You're a church, farm, or nonprofit needing specialized payroll handling
Choose Square Payroll if…
- • You already run Square POS and want tips and hours to flow straight into payroll
- • You're contractor-only or seasonal and want the lowest possible base cost
Round by round
- Round 1Pricing & TransparencySquare Payroll winsOnPay7/10
$49/mo + $6/employee
One flat published plan, free first month, free setup/migration
- Free first month plus free white-glove data migration
- No upcharge for multistate or year-end filing
- Higher base fee than Square Payroll ($49 vs $35)
Source: OnPay pricing
Square Payroll8/10$35/mo + $6/employee (or $6/contractor, no base fee)
Lower entry price; base fee waived in seasonal 'inactivity periods'
- Lower base fee than OnPay ($35 vs $49)
- Contractor-only plan has zero base fee at all
- Full value depends on already running Square POS
Source: Square Payroll pricing
Square Payroll's base price is lower, especially for contractor-only or seasonal businesses — the real question is what that price depends on.
- Round 2Core Payroll & Tax FilingOnPay winsOnPay9/10
Clergy, Form 943/H-2A, 501(c)(3) FUTA exemption
Purpose-built handling for niches most competitors skip
- No upcharge for multistate filing
- Purpose-built clergy and agricultural payroll support
- Niche depth is irrelevant value for a typical retail/restaurant business
Source: OnPay niche payroll support
Square Payroll7/1050 states, multistate included
Automatic filing included on Full-Service; no niche-specific handling
- Multistate filing included at no extra cost
- No clergy, agricultural, or nonprofit-specific handling
- Contractor-only plan has no employer tax filing at all
Source: Square Payroll tax filing data
Both file automatically at no extra charge, but OnPay goes deep on niches Square Payroll doesn't touch at all.
- Round 3HR Features & BenefitsOnPay winsOnPay8/10
+$15/mo + $2/employee for full HR add-on
PTO, eSignature onboarding, org charts, document management
- Modestly priced HR add-on, kept separate from core plan
- Org charts and document management not offered by Square
- No in-house PEO option for larger-scale co-employment
Source: OnPay HR add-on
Square Payroll5/10Direct-tip tracking, shift scheduling via Team App
Strong for tipped/hourly staff; no org chart or document tools
- Direct-tip import and shift scheduling built for hourly staff
- No org-chart, document management, or eSignature onboarding
- No PEO option, same gap as OnPay
Source: Square Payroll HR features
OnPay's HR add-on covers org structure and onboarding depth Square Payroll simply doesn't offer.
- Round 4Ease of Use & SetupTieOnPay8/10
Free white-glove migration, praised
- Free personalized setup and data migration for every customer
- Month-to-month, first month free
- Mobile app rated around 2/5, weakest part of the platform
Square Payroll8/10Month-to-month, no contract
Hours/tips auto-import from Square POS; no long-term commitment
- Month-to-month, cancel anytime
- Hours/tips auto-import, minimal manual entry
- Closing the account is irreversible
- Value collapses if you're not already running Square POS
Source: Square Payroll contract terms
OnPay's setup is free and white-glove for anyone; Square Payroll's is nearly instant, but only if you're already on Square.
- Round 5IntegrationsOnPay winsOnPay7/10
QuickBooks Online/Desktop, Xero, Deputy, When I Work
Broader accounting reach, plus a multi-client accountant portal
- Native QuickBooks and Xero support
- Dedicated multi-client accountant/bookkeeper portal
- No native POS integration for retail/restaurant hours and tips
Source: OnPay integrations
Square Payroll6/10Square POS + Team App (native)
QuickBooks via export only, no broad accounting integration
- Deep native Square POS integration, minimal manual entry
- QuickBooks support is export-based, not deeply native
- No accountant/bookkeeper multi-client portal
Source: Square Payroll integrations
OnPay covers more accounting software broadly; Square Payroll goes deep on exactly the one system it's built around.
- Round 6Customer Support & TrustOnPay winsOnPay9/10
4.8 G2/Capterra, 4.2 Trustpilot — no gap
- 4.8/5 on both Capterra and G2
- 4.2/5 on Trustpilot — no steep consumer-review drop-off
- Smaller brand recognition than Square, fewer total reviews
Square Payroll6/10Solid ratings, real tax-filing complaint
- 4.7/5 on Capterra, reviewers cite ease and transparency
- Reported recurring tax-filing errors on some accounts
- Support runs through general Square help, not a dedicated team
OnPay holds strong ratings across every platform, including Trustpilot; Square Payroll's scores are solid but come with real recurring complaints.
Which one is for you?
Business already running Square POS for restaurant or retail sales
→ Square Payroll · Hours and tips auto-import with almost no manual entry
Contractor-only or seasonal business wanting the lowest base cost
→ Square Payroll · $0 base fee for contractors; waived fee in inactivity periods
Church, farm, or nonprofit needing specialized payroll handling
→ OnPay · Purpose-built clergy, H-2A, and 501(c)(3) FUTA support
Any small business not already using Square for point-of-sale
→ OnPay · Works the same regardless of POS system, no upcharges
Side by side
- One published plan with no tier ladder
- Multi-state filing included at no extra charge
- First month free plus free setup/data migration
- No extra charge for multi-state payroll or year-end filing
- Contractor-only plan has zero monthly base fee
- Seasonal inactivity periods waive fees in slow months
- Automatic filing included by default, no upgrade tier
- Automated multistate filing included
- HR features (PTO, onboarding, org charts) require a paid add-on
- PTO, onboarding, and org charts all require a paid HR add-on
- No in-house PEO option
- Mobile app is the weakest part of the platform, missing desktop features
- Full-Service base fee is double Patriot's Basic tier
- No built-in onboarding workflow or org chart tool
- QuickBooks support is export-based, not deeply native
- Reported tax filing errors from at least one reviewer