Gusto vs. Justworks: PEO and HR feature comparison

If you’re an HR manager or business owner shopping around for HR tools, you may have come across Gusto and Justworks. They’re two names in the PEO (Professional Employer Organization) and HRIS (Human Resources Information System) space. Each one serves businesses in slightly different ways.

Whether you’re looking to simplify payroll, offer employee benefits, or stay on top of compliance, both Gusto and Justworks may be a suitable option. But which one should you choose? 

In this article, we provide a thorough comparison of the features, use cases, and pros and cons of Gusto and Justworks. We also highlight why Rippling stands out as a superior alternative for businesses looking to cover all their HR bases in one centralised, easy-to-use platform. 

Justworks vs. Gusto: Feature overview

Here’s a side-by-side comparison of Gusto and Justworks, covering their key features:

Gusto vs. Justworks: Use cases

Both Gusto and Justworks meet different business needs, making them suitable for various scenarios. Below, you can find a comparison of the typical use cases for each platform:

Gusto

• Small businesses looking for affordable payroll management: Gusto handles pay runs and automates tax filings, which can help small businesses with payroll tasks. The platform offers a relatively quick setup, so teams can generally start using it with no need for extensive technical support.
• Companies managing employee benefits: Gusto provides tools to handle health insurance, dental and vision insurance, retirement plans, and employee perks. Small teams without dedicated HR resources can use these features to manage benefits administration.
• Remote and hybrid workforces: Employees can access pay stubs, tax forms, and benefits online from any location using Gusto. This feature can support businesses with distributed employees and contractors who need a self-service system.

Justworks

• Businesses using PEO services: Justworks combines payroll, benefits, and compliance tools into one platform, allowing businesses to manage these tasks through a single provider. Companies looking to outsource HR administration may find this approach practical for streamlining operations.
• Medium-sized companies growing their teams: Justworks includes features for onboarding, performance management, and access to HR consultants, which can support companies as they scale. Its compliance tools can help businesses align with regulations when expanding into new states or increasing their workforce.
• Businesses with global contractors: Justworks supports payments to international contractors, which can make it a suitable option for companies with a distributed contractor workforce. This feature enables businesses to pay contractors in different countries directly through the platform, which can simplify cross-border payments and compliance.

Gusto pros and cons

Gusto, like any platform, comes with strengths and limitations. You can explore them below: 

Benefits of Gusto

User-friendly interface

Users generally report that Gusto’s dashboard is user friendly, making payroll and benefits administration straightforward. Users find the interface intuitive, which can reduce the need for extensive training or technical support. 

Employees also benefit from access to their personal information, pay stubs, and tax forms, which enables them to handle these tasks without relying heavily on HR teams.

Comprehensive payroll and benefits integration

Gusto integrates payroll processing with benefits management, offering features like dental and vision insurance, retirement plans, and other employee perks in one system. This integration can reduce the need for separate tools or benefits platforms.

Employee self-service features

Employees can log in to update their personal information, download tax documents, track their benefits, and manage PTO (paid time off) through Gusto’s self-service tools. These features enable employees to handle routine tasks independently, such as submitting time-off requests or checking PTO balances. 

These self-service tools can provide employees with greater control, transparency, and convenience when managing their own information.

Drawbacks of Gusto

Limited online onboarding and offboarding tools

While Gusto offers basic onboarding features, such as digital document signing, it doesn’t provide more advanced tools like customizable onboarding workflows or automation for offboarding. Businesses with complex onboarding needs may find Gusto’s features lacking and need to rely on additional systems to fill these gaps.

No 24/7 customer support

Gusto’s support team is only available during business hours on weekdays, which can be inconvenient for businesses operating outside those hours or dealing with urgent issues. Companies that require around-the-clock support may need to consider other platforms with more flexible availability.

Limited scalability

Gusto’s feature set primarily caters to small and mid-sized businesses, which may make it less suitable for larger enterprises. The platform lacks certain advanced features, such as in-depth reporting and highly customizable workflows. These limitations can make scaling difficult for businesses with more sophisticated HR and payroll requirements, potentially requiring them to transition to a more robust platform as they grow.

Justworks pros and cons

While Justworks can offer valuable tools, it may not meet every business's needs. Below, you can find the benefits and drawbacks of this HR software: 

Benefits of Justworks

Comprehensive PEO services

Justworks combines payroll, benefits, and compliance into one platform through its PEO services, which can simplify HR administration for businesses. By using Justworks, companies can outsource time-consuming tasks like tax filings, benefits enrollment, and compliance monitoring. These PEO services can enable businesses to focus on other priorities, such as growing their operations or managing their workforce more effectively. 

For companies without a dedicated HR team, Justworks can act as an extension of their internal resources, covering essential responsibilities without requiring additional hires.

Compliance and risk management support

Justworks provides tools and guidance to help businesses comply with federal, state, and local regulations. This includes support for multi-state payroll, workplace safety regulations, and labor law adherence, which can reduce the risk of penalties or legal issues. Additionally, with Justworks, businesses can pay international contractors, enabling them to expand their contractor workforce globally while handling compliance with cross-border regulations. 

These compliance features can be helpful for companies operating in highly regulated industries or across multiple jurisdictions with both US-based employees and global contractors.

Support for growing businesses

Justworks offers features like onboarding tools, benefits administration, and access to HR consultants to help businesses manage workforce expansion. These resources enable companies to scale by providing the infrastructure needed to onboard new employees, offer competitive benefits, and maintain compliance. 

For businesses entering a growth phase, Justworks can help their HR processes keep pace with their expanding teams.

Drawbacks of Justworks

More complex user experience 

Justworks’ interface can feel more complicated compared to other platforms because it prioritizes compliance and PEO-related features. For smaller businesses or those new to HR software, the platform’s layout and options may seem overwhelming. 

Companies that don’t require advanced compliance tools or multi-state payroll management may find themselves navigating features they don’t need, adding to the learning curve. This complexity can slow down adoption and increase the time required for onboarding teams to use the platform effectively.

Few customization options:

Justworks offers limited flexibility when it comes to tailoring workflows, creating detailed reports, or adapting its tools to match unique business needs. For instance, businesses that want more advanced reporting options or the ability to customize HR processes, like performance reviews, may find the platform restrictive. 

This lack of customization can make it challenging for companies with specific requirements or industry-specific needs to adapt the software to their operations, potentially leading some to supplement with additional tools.

H4: Lack of detailed information for workers' compensation coverage

While Justworks does offer workers' comp as part of its PEO services, users report a limited transparency around the specific coverage details and policies. This lack of readily available information may make it hard for businesses to evaluate whether the coverage fully meets their needs. Companies may need to contact support for clarification, adding unnecessary steps to the evaluation process.

Rippling: The right alternative to Gusto and Justworks

Rippling combines HR, IT, and finance into a single, unified platform that helps businesses hire, manage, and pay their workforce globally. Unlike other HR software, Rippling goes beyond payroll and benefits to provide a comprehensive, end-to-end solution for managing employees’ entire lifecycle, from onboarding to offboarding.

Rippling offers a wide range of features to help you manage HR and talent seamlessly:

• HRIS: Manage employee data effectively
• Remuneration bands: Prevent out-of-band compensation
• Time and attendance: Automate time tracking and leave management
• Rostering: Build smarter rosters for your workforce
• Recruiting: Optimize hiring at every stage
• Headcount planning: Align on headcount quickly and efficiently
• Performance management: Build high-performing teams with structured reviews and feedback
• Surveys: Gather valuable employee feedback to improve workplace culture
• Learning management: Upskill your employees through integrated training tools

And these features are just the beginning. Rippling’s unique ability to unify systems and automate tasks truly sets it apart from other HR platforms.

Unify your workforce systems

Rippling eliminates the need for multiple disconnected systems by unifying HR, IT, and Spend into one system, built on a single source of truth. It enables you to manage payroll, benefits, devices, apps, and more—no matter where your employees are located.

Simplify payroll and benefits management

With Rippling Payroll, you can run payroll in minutes across the US and 50+ countries, manage employee benefits, and reinforce compliance with local labor laws. This global reach and integration make Rippling a standout option for businesses with international and domestic employees and contractors. 

Streamline HR administration with a PEO option

Rippling’s PEO services help handle payroll, benefits, and compliance while providing access to enterprise-grade benefits typically reserved for large companies. By taking care of administrative tasks, Rippling empowers you to focus on business growth.

Automate tasks across your business

From onboarding to managing employee devices and apps, Rippling automates workflows that often slow companies down. This automation can save time and reduce errors, making it easier to focus on more strategic initiatives.

With Rippling, you get a platform designed to grow with your business and adapt to your needs. It’s more than an alternative to Gusto and Justworks—it’s a solution built to simplify workforce management.

Gusto vs. Justworks FAQs

Is Justworks worth it?

Justworks provides payroll, benefits administration, and compliance support through its platform, which can make it a suitable option for businesses looking to simplify HR tasks. It can help companies that want access to professional employer organization (PEO) services while managing complex compliance requirements. If your business needs support with HR, payroll, and benefits administration in one system, Justworks could be worth considering.

However, Rippling is a superior option for businesses that want a unified platform that combines HR, IT, and finance. Unlike Justworks, Rippling allows businesses to manage not just payroll and benefits but also devices, apps, and spend—all in one system. With global payroll capabilities and automation tools, Rippling provides a more comprehensive and scalable solution.

What was Gusto called before?

Before it became Gusto, the company was called ZenPayroll. The name change reflects its growth from a purely payroll-focused platform to a more comprehensive HR and benefits administration solution.

Is Gusto a PEO?

No, Gusto isn't a professional employer organization (PEO). Gusto offers payroll, HR, and benefits tools, but it doesn’t provide PEO services like employee co-employment or access to enterprise-level benefits. Businesses needing PEO services would need to look at other platforms, like Rippling, as Gusto focuses on being an HRIS solution.

Is Justworks a PEO?

Yes, Justworks is a PEO company. Justworks offers PEO services that enable businesses to outsource payroll, benefits administration, and compliance tasks. This includes co-employment arrangements where Justworks shares certain employer responsibilities to simplify HR management.

Can you pay employees and contractors with Justworks?

Yes, Justworks enables businesses to pay both employees and contractors, but there are some limitations to its capabilities.

• Employee payroll: Justworks provides full-service payroll for US-based employees, including automated tax calculations, direct deposits, and compliance with federal, state, and local regulations. However, it doesn't support global payroll for employees, meaning businesses can't process payroll for employees located outside the United States.
• Contractor payments: Justworks supports payments to international contractors, allowing businesses to compensate contractors located outside the US directly through its platform. 

If your business needs to pay both employees and contractors around the world, Rippling offers a more comprehensive solution. With Rippling’s Global Payroll, you can process payroll for employees and contractors in over 50 countries, while handling compliance with international labor laws and providing local currency payments. This makes Rippling a stronger option for businesses with global operations.

This blog is based on information available to Rippling as of January 23, 2025.

Disclaimer: Rippling and its affiliates do not provide tax, accounting, or legal advice. This material has been prepared for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide or be relied on for tax, accounting, or legal advice. You should consult your own tax, accounting, and legal advisors before engaging in any related activities or transactions.