PayHr vs ADP Canada: service scope and quote pricing

Which option fits your business?

Evaluate PayHr Manual when your Ontario business wants free payroll software and has someone responsible for payments, remittances and submissions. Evaluate an ADP proposal when you want to discuss a broader payroll service arrangement. Put the two on the same worksheet only after naming the tasks included in the ADP package and the tasks your team still owns.

Pricing and assumptions

ADP Canada’s payroll overview directs businesses to a quote and describes payroll services for different business sizes. Its public page provides no fixed Canadian rate; pricing is tailored to the selected package and business. Ask for a proposal that names the package, implementation work and ongoing responsibilities.

PayHr Manual — Free ($0 service fee). Unlimited employees, contractors and manual pay runs, with manual T4/T4A and ROE workflows. Your team arranges and verifies wage payments, tax remittances and manual submissions; bank or adviser charges may still apply. Paid automation is optional.

Examples compare service fees before tax, wages, employer contributions and remittances. They exclude promotions, optional filings and extras unless stated. All employees are paid on every run; there are no contractors. These are budgeting examples, not equivalent service packages or provider quotes.

What PayHr includes

PayHr has free manual payroll and optional automated payments at $6 per person per automated run, plus a one-time $25 automation setup fee. Optional automated ROEs cost $5 each and T4/T4A filings $15 each. Manual document workflows remain free. Review the full PayHr pricing before choosing automation.

PayHr’s employee workflow is Ontario-first; Quebec payroll is not supported. A payment method is saved during workspace setup. Payroll approval records the run and does not itself transfer wages or remit taxes. Compare the work you retain as well as the fee.

Build a responsibility matrix

List each task: collecting hours, changing employee details, checking calculations, approving payroll, funding payments, following up on failures and correcting year-end documents. Beside each, record whether your team or the provider does the work. Name who verifies completion even when a service handles submission.

This exercise makes a service quote easier to evaluate. A higher charge may include work you would otherwise pay a staff member or adviser to perform. Conversely, paying for assistance you do not need may offer little value to a small team with an established process.

What to check before choosing

Ask about implementation timing, record exports, support availability, cancellation terms and any year-end or correction charges. Compare the written total with PayHr’s usage scenario only after confirming province support and matching the scope. Without an ADP quote, this guide cannot determine which total is lower.

For a broader shortlist, see our Canadian payroll pricing comparison and pay-frequency cost guide.

Make a quote comparable in one worksheet

Consider a ten-person business with 24 ordinary runs. Its PayHr automation reference is $1,440 in annual usage plus $25 setup if newly activated, before optional documents and tax. Its PayHr Manual software fee is $0. For an ADP proposal, total the quoted recurring charges, implementation, year-end work and required extras for those same people and dates.

On a separate line, record staff or adviser work that remains under each option. Keep that time estimate separate from vendor fees: combining an unmeasured time saving with a quoted price can make the comparison look more certain than it is.

Illustrative scenario, not a customer case study. Costs use the assumptions and source rates stated in this guide.

Frequently asked questions

Why is there no ADP dollar amount in the table?

ADP’s reviewed Canadian page directs businesses to tailored pricing and does not provide a fixed rate for these scenarios. A number from another business or a US plan would not establish your Canadian price.

What should I send with a quote request?

Describe employee count, provinces, pay dates, entities and the tasks you want handled. Ask for recurring, implementation, year-end and correction charges separately. You do not need to send employee SINs or banking details to establish this initial comparison.

Put your next payday in order

Explore PayHr’s payroll software and free manual payroll plan, or follow the workspace setup guide.