Patriot Payroll vs Payroll4Free
Two payroll & HR tools side by side. Prices are the starting plan a small business would pick, in USD.
Short version
Payroll4Free costs less for a six-person team.
Patriot Payroll fits retail shop, restaurant or café, service business, agency or studio, trades or contractor, online store.
| Compare | Patriot PayrollPatriot Software | |
|---|---|---|
| In one line | The cheapest full-service payroll for a handful of employees | Free payroll software for teams of 9 or fewer |
| Starting price | From $17/mo + $4/person | Free |
| Six-person team | $41/mo | $0/mo |
| Plans | Basic $17/mo + $4/worker (you file taxes); Full Service $37/mo + $5/worker; 30-day free trial; 50% off for 3 months | Free for 9 or fewer people paid no more than once a month (ad-supported); filled-out tax forms incur a small fee; optional Payroll Tax Service and Direct Deposit Service at unpublished prices |
| Pricing model | Free trial | Free |
| Free trial | 30 days | — |
| Users | Per worker paid | Up to 9 paid |
| Both connect to | No shared connections on record. | |
| Also connects to | QuickBooks Online, Patriot Accounting | None in our catalog |
| Team size | Just me · 2–10 people | Just me · 2–10 people |
| Available in | US | US |
| Phone support | Every plan | Every plan |
| Live chat | Every plan | None listed |
| Support hours | Phone: 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. ET, Monday - Friday · Live chat: 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. ET, Monday - Friday | Not published |
| Incidents posted | 2 incidents posted on Patriot Software's status page, which covers all Patriot Software products and regions, in the 90 days to Oct 27, 2026; 2 marked major or critical by Patriot Software. Status page | We found no public status page for Payroll4Free.com. |
| Capterra score | Not listed | 3.1 / 5 from 13 reviews (few reviews) |
| Trustpilot score | Not listed | 2.2 / 5 from 8 reviews (few reviews) |
| Fit: Retail shop | 78 | 58 |
| Fit: Restaurant or café | 75 | 55 |
| Fit: Service business | 82 | 60 |
| Fit: Agency or studio | 72 | 45 |
| Fit: Trades or contractor | 82 | 60 |
| Fit: Online store | 65 | 45 |
| Why people pick it |
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| Where it falls short |
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| Visit Patriot Payroll | Visit Payroll4Free | |
Six-person prices are what a team of six would pay on the published plans; "Not listed" means those plans don't cover six. How we calculate prices
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