QuickBooks Payroll Reviews

“reliable payroll records and tax forms”

Pros

One thing this software does really well is keep payroll records organized so it's simple to go back and review previous weeks when needed. Direct Deposit processes quickly and without problems. It also makes W2s, 1099s and other year-end paperwork easy to handle and taking care of the required IRS forms throughout the year is pretty simple too.

Cons

Calling customer support can be frustrating since it's an Intuit QuickBooks company. Even when the issue turns out to be something that only takes a couple of minutes to fix, the phone wait can stretch to an hour. There also seem to be a lot of updates, although to be fair, those updates do help keep everything working correctly.

“fast weekly payroll processing”

Pros

Running weekly payroll with QuickBooks Payroll is quick and accurate and I can usually get it done in about 15 minutes.

Cons

The employee summary report formats are not very user-friendly. I also have to go back and recalculate things for quarterly reports and the software has produced errors in those quarterly reports so I end up triple-checking everything before filing.

“payroll and bookkeeping lifesaver”

Pros

Connecting my bank account lets it track income and expenses with very little effort. It practically handles your taxes which honestly feels amazing. It saves a ton of time on data entry so it's cost-effective and there's no need to hire someone just to enter receipts and transactions. It keeps accurate records of money-related activity, helps balance the checkbook and makes it easier to stay on top of spending and savings. I can also make adjustments quickly just by reviewing the balance sheet. It's so simple to use that almost anyone could figure it out. Pretty much perfect.

Cons

There isn't much to complain about. If I make a mistake and have to track down the issue, I can call support, explain what happened and they usually fix it right away. The only area that could use some improvement is invoicing. When I am creating an estimate and need to send it out, I have to be extra careful because that part could use a little more polishing.

“helpful payroll edits but glitchy”

Pros

Getting comfortable with this software doesn't take long. Making adjustments to an employee's paycheck is also easy when needed and there are several chances to review and fix anything before payroll is finally submitted.

Cons

The downside is that the program can be pretty glitchy. I have had it log me out right in the middle of running payroll for no clear reason. There have also been a few random times when it didn't withhold payroll taxes properly or failed to send the email check stub.

“integration at a low cost”

Pros

The pricing is affordable and it integrates well with QuickBooks and TSheets.

Cons

There are constant bugs and handling employee management tasks or switching someone from a paper check to direct deposit is a mess. I have spent more time dealing with customer support than I would have if I had just run payroll by hand. Most of these problems have been dragging on for more than four months and payroll really feels like an afterthought in QuickBooks.

“reliable payroll every time”

Pros

Payroll has been consistently reliable for us and getting everything set up was easy too. We rarely run into any payroll problems at all. When we're unsure how to handle something, our accountant usually steps in to help, though the system seems clear enough that we could likely figure it out ourselves if we spent a little more time on it.

Cons

Getting help from support can be frustrating because calls often get routed to the wrong department or you have to talk to multiple people before reaching the right person. Every transfer means going through the same verification process again. On top of that some support representatives have very strong accents which can make the conversation harder to follow.

“organized accounting workflow”

Pros

Everything is kept in one user-friendly system and it's simple to navigate. The software cuts out the need for multiple tables, spreadsheets and tracking sheets that would otherwise be used to record and manage a company's accounting tasks.

Cons

One concern is that if you use the online version of QuickBooks instead of the on-premises program, there's a risk that sensitive financial information could be exposed to internet hackers.

“strong tools, frustrating support”

Pros

It's useful that the platform gives you the ability to manage pretty much your entire business while keeping thorough, detailed records of everything.

Cons

The customer service is incredibly frustrating. It feels like no one ever really knows how to help and you can pretty much count on being stuck on the phone for at least an hour.

“reliable payroll accuracy”

Pros

Payroll gets completed quickly and accurately which takes the stress out of the process. It handles all the details and the most up-to-date tax tables are always applied.

Cons

There are times when work is slower and I could probably run payroll myself so having an on-demand option would be a nice addition.

“frustrating switch with poor support”

Pros

Nothing good to say about it.

Cons

On paper, a lot of the promised benefits sounded fine but the reality has been the opposite. They said they could support employees working across multiple locations, yet they simply do not. They were also supposed to be easy to work with but their risk group is so vague and unclear that using the platform as a whole becomes nearly impossible. We were told there would be API support for our integration partner and after almost two years, there is still nothing available. Getting help has been just as bad, with support calls leading to hours on hold almost every month. Even something as basic as adding employees is frustrating because assigning them to locations cannot be done during normal data entry and instead requires calling them. I could go on but moving from ADP to QuickBooks has easily been one of the most unproductive decisions we have made.

“costly renewals and printing limits”

Pros

Getting started wasn't too difficult and entering the data was fairly easy. That said because of the support and the fees they charge, I wouldn't recommend this product.

Cons

One of the biggest frustrations was that I couldn't print checks or W-2s unless I bought them directly from Quicken. I had already purchased checks and W-2 forms from an office supply store but QuickBooks wouldn't print on them properly. The QuickBooks-branded checks and W-2s were much more expensive and the extra cost just wasn't justified. I ended up finding other software and completing the forms by hand for far less money. I also bought a physical copy of the software specifically to avoid paying monthly or yearly update fees that my small business simply doesn't need. I don't need online access at all. After the first year, QuickBooks Payroll Full stopped working and when I called support, I was told I had to pay an annual renewal fee to keep using the program. That makes no sense for a small business like mine. I don't think I should have to keep paying for software I already purchased. On top of that it doesn't connect to or update with my bank so I have to enter everything manually. It really should function more like Mint which actually links to my bank account. As it works now, I would not buy this program again.

“all payroll tasks in one place”

Pros

Once everything is configured the right way, running payroll each week is pretty simple. I just enter the weekly information to generate paychecks and right there in the same section I can also handle and record payroll tax payments. It's a big plus not having to jump between different websites to take care of everything. I can even e-file 941, 940, W-2s and W-3 reports online from that same payroll area which is really convenient.

Cons

I still need to use the L&I website to make those payments and there's no option to file 1099s online yet, at least not that I have seen. It would also be helpful if payroll mistakes could be corrected while working in the Accountant's Copy.

“payroll data locked out”

Pros

At the beginning, before they removed data access from the end user, I was happy with just about everything.

Cons

Right now, the customer service is terrible and it was never like this before. I have been without access to my payroll data since 1/16 and after 16 separate phone calls, I keep getting walked through the same steps again and again with absolutely no result. Every time, I am told the engineering team is working on it but nothing gets fixed. They also say they'll call back later that day and then no one ever does. So the next morning, I have to call again and repeat the entire situation from the start. At this point I am already looking into other payroll providers. Intuit keeps emailing me reminders that payroll is due and tax forms need to be filed, yet I cannot even get into the information I need to do any of it. On 4/19/16, I was finally told there was a major software issue and that I wasn't the only customer affected but it took 16 calls, zero return calls from them and me getting extremely upset before anyone admitted that. I am very unhappy with Intuit right now. Years ago, they asked users for feedback on the best way to handle payroll. I strongly preferred keeping the data on my side, backed up with them, while I handled electronic filing from my own computer. They decided instead to keep everything secure on their end. I said at the time that this could become a serious problem if they ever had software or hardware failures and our information got stuck on their side. I was told, Oh, no sir!! That would never happen! And now that is exactly what has happened. I have no access to my accounts or my payroll information. After all of this, the only response I got today even after raising hell, was, You have to wait and be patient, sir. Based on what's happening right now, I would tell anyone considering Intuit to be very cautious.