Starting in 2025, organizations may face fines of up to $660 per form for submitting incorrect or late payroll information. Whether you’re a small or a large business, such penalties can have disastrous effects on your company’s profits and future plans.

One of the most effective ways to counter this problem is to implement human resources (HR) solutions. Paycor and Paylocity are two popular software programs that are designed to reduce errors in payroll and streamline HR workflows.

Paycor offers direct debits, real-time calculations, and other tools to support daily operations, while Paylocity empowers businesses with global payroll capabilities along with other useful HR features. 

We have compiled this Paycor vs Paylocity comprehensive guide to help you compare their features in detail and make an informed decision for your next software purchase. 

Paycor Vs Paylocity: At A Glance

Features

Paycor 

Paylocity 

Payroll 

Real-time calculations and employee self-service 

Global payroll and ‘On Demand Payment’ 

Time And Attendance 

Custom rules, geo-fencing, multi-language readers 

‘Quick View Dashboard’, kiosks, fingerprint scanning 

Benefits Administration 

‘Open Enrollment Wizard’ and ‘Ask Emma’ 

COBRA benefits and employee self-service portal 

Integrations 

Offers multiple integrations, including Programmatic, Kudos, and HealthEquity

Integrates with various third-party applications like Dropbox, PARiM, and 24HourFlex. 

Shift Scheduling 

Labor forecasting and AI-powered shift suggestions 

AI-backed shift recommendations and shift management 

What Is Paycor?

Paycor software is an all-in-one human capital management (HCM) solution that is designed to automate HR processes and accelerate daily operations. The platform caters to businesses of all sizes and can be implemented in various industries, including manufacturing, retail, education, and healthcare. 

Moreover, the software offers features for talent acquisition, payroll, talent management, and more, making it a valuable asset for structuring processes and reducing errors. 

Unique Features Of Paycor 

  • Group Punching: It allows line managers to submit group punches for their teams, saving them time and ensuring accurate attendance tracking
  • Job Costing: Enables employees to clock in and out for their specific labor codes, ensuring employee working hours are calculated fairly
  • Labor Budget Caps: Allows employers to set budget caps by day or week and get notified in case expenses exceed the allocated budget
  • Predictive Resignation: Helps businesses predict resignations and identify their reasons, allowing them to implement changes and improve employee retention rate

Pros And Cons Of Paycor 

Pros: 

  • It automates important aspects of payroll, including tax calculations, deductions, and benefits 
  • The reporting capabilities it offers allow businesses to get deep insights into workforce data 
  • Enables users to save the most frequently visited pages in the ‘Favorites’ tab 

Cons: 

  • The mobile app doesn’t offer all the functionalities that the website version does 
  • It can cause issues with some external security applications, requiring users to submit a missed punch later 

What Is Paylocity?

Paylocity is a comprehensive HR platform designed to offer solutions that are not just helpful for the management but also intuitive for employees. The software provides powerful tools for simplifying payroll, recruiting, onboarding, time tracking, and more.

Its wide range of features makes Paylocity HR & Payroll a versatile option that can be used in industries like education, healthcare, finance, and technology. 

Unique Features Of Paylocity 

  • Shift Swapping: Enables employees to swap shifts, helping organizations offer flexibility and freedom to their employees
  • 600+ Pre-Built Learning Courses: Equips businesses with an extensive library of courses for employee development and training
  • 360-Degree Feedback Collection: Allows organizations to collect detailed employee feedback, helping them improve processes and policies
  • Leaderboards And Peer Recognition: Lets employers appreciate top-performing employees and boost employee engagement

Pros And Cons Of Paylocity 

Pros: 

  • It makes end-of-year tax filing very convenient 
  • The software keeps businesses up to date with changes in local regulations
  • Helps communicate important updates, birthdays, and announcements throughout the company 

Cons: 

  • The ability to share customized reports is limited 
  • In most cases, managers have to manually create an employee profile before enrolling an employee in a benefits program 

Paycor Vs Paylocity – Key Features Comparison

Payroll

Paycor streamlines payroll by offering real-time calculations, meaning the software will automatically compute the payable amounts the moment the manager enters employee data. It saves managers time by eliminating the need to manually make calculations once the data has been uploaded.

The platform also allows employees to view their pay stubs up to three days before payday. This accessibility enables employees to report any discrepancies beforehand and reduce the instances of last-minute changes.

Furthermore, employers can choose to process direct debits once employee garnishments have been deducted automatically, making the process even more efficient and error-free. Overall, the software offers powerful tools for tax calculations, deductions, and employee compensation, making it a reliable solution for running payroll.

Paylocity enables organizations to pay their workforce wherever they are with its global payroll capabilities. The software can assist companies in setting up business entities and managing compliance in 100+ countries.

It also offers tools and services for expense management, taxation, and garnishment services, making it an all-in-one platform for handling payroll. Paylocity is extremely helpful in filing taxes ensuring businesses stay compliant with local labor laws.

Additionally, the ‘On Demand Payment’ option allows employees to access their earned wages before payday, helping businesses keep their employees satisfied and lessen the strain on their HR department.

Winner: Paylocity wins here due to its ‘Global Payroll’ and ‘On Demand Payment’ options.

Time And Attendance

Paycor allows managers to view, approve, or disapprove time-off requests all from a single dashboard, saving them time and effort. The system also notifies employers of any discrepancies with timely alerts, minimizing the chances of errors and avoiding penalties.

It allows employers to set custom rules, enabling them to set time and attendance tracking parameters based on their company policies and local laws. Businesses can also use a number of punch-in features, including geo-fencing, PIN/badge entry, multi-language readers, and facial recognition.

These features eliminate errors and buddy punch-ins, which ultimately lead to a transparent attendance record and more productive departments. Additionally, the software offers AI-powered insights to analyze time and attendance data, helping employers make data-backed decisions for process optimization.

Paylocity equips managers with a ‘Quick View Dashboard’ that displays all the essential data like employee attendance, time punches, timecard corrections, and more. Just like Paycor, the software enables employers to create custom rules based on their local labor laws, making businesses more efficient without putting them at risk of any violations.

Organizations can use time clocks, tablets, kiosks, and other devices with integrated geo-fencing capabilities to register punch-ins accurately. Administrators can choose to implement fingerprint scanning, facial recognition, geo-fencing, and photo capture to prevent buddy punching and ensure all employees are adhering to shift timing.

Moreover, employers can utilize a range of reports to analyze productivity trends, staffing requirements, and resource allocation, enabling them to enhance productivity and cut down wasted time.

Winner: It’s a tie as both software offers unique features designed for specific use cases and business requirements, making each platform stand out in certain areas.

Benefits Administration

Paycor offers an ‘Open Enrollment Wizard’ that guides managers through different stages of the process, including designing and execution of the benefits programs. The platform also seamlessly integrates with several benefits providers and QuickBooks, allowing businesses to simplify documentation and eliminate data duplication.

Additionally, it offers a feature named ‘Ask Emma,’ a dedicated support for benefits. Users can get real-time support and recommendations based on their requirements and circumstances.

Paylocity lets administrators manage all of their benefits in one place by integrating their 401 (k) plans with popular benefits carriers. This integration eliminates manual tasks and ensures updates are communicated in a timely manner.

Employees can also access their benefits information using self-service portals, promoting transparency and enhancing employee engagement. Moreover, organizations get tools to manage COBRA benefits and other contribution plans, giving more flexibility and control over what programs their employees have access to.

Winner: Paycor wins by a slight margin as it offers ‘Ask Emma,’ a dedicated benefits support, and ‘Open Enrollment Wizard.’

Integrations

Paycor supports integration with a number of third-party applications, including Ignite, Kudos, Lattice HR, HealthEquity, and Programmatic. Businesses can choose these integrations from a number of categories, like taxation, talent acquisition, and employee benefits. These integrations further enhance the software’s capabilities, making it a powerful platform for both growing and established organizations.

Paylocity’s marketplace lets businesses choose external software based on different functionalities like compensation management, background checks, and performance management. Some of the offered integrations are 24HourFlex, PARiM, 15Five, Asana, and Dropbox. Organizations can leverage these integrations to boost team performance and capabilities.

Winner: It’s a tie, again, as both platforms support integrations with some of the most popular solutions available in the market.

Shift Scheduling

Paycor equips managers with features like labor forecasting and AI-powered shift suggestions, helping them create schedules that align with the available resources and company goals. Furthermore, managers can use the calendar interface to view open shifts and manage their workforce in multiple locations.

Administrators can set scheduling rules, utilize pre-built weekly templates, copy-paste shifts, and set shifts on repeat, significantly simplifying workflows and ensuring employees comply with business requirements.

It also lets employees synchronize their shifts with their calendars, keeping them up to date with upcoming shifts. Apart from that, the system sends shift reminders, ensuring staffing requirements are always met.

Paylocity allows organizations to create schedules based on employee location, role, and skill level, helping them fill shifts with the most suitable resources. Managers also get AI-backed shift recommendations, enabling them to make better decisions and automate repetitive tasks.

Moreover, the platform enables managers to edit and delete shifts using their mobile devices, providing them with the convenience of managing their workforce from anywhere. Managers can also notify employees of their updated shifts using the same device, simplifying the whole process.

Winner: Paycor takes the lead as it offers more extensive features for shift scheduling.

Final Verdict – Which HR Software Is Better?

Both Paycor and Paylocity are powerful HR software that offers comparable features for various functionalities and operations. Despite their similarities, they have some major differences, making them ideal for different scenarios. 

Paycor is an excellent platform that offers extensive solutions like automated calculations, AI insights, and geo-fencing capabilities, making it a good option for simplifying multiple processes at once. 

Paylocity, on the other hand, stands out due to its global payroll capabilities, allowing businesses to hire and pay employees in more than 100+ countries. Moreover, it comes with powerful time tracking and scheduling tools to help simplify daily operations. This combination makes it a great choice for companies operating in and outside of the US. 

In the end, the final decision should be based on your specific requirements, workflows, and future goals. We highly recommend getting in touch with one of our consultants who will suggest to you the ideal software solutions based on your circumstances.