Rippling 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.
Payroll4Free fits restaurant or café, trades or contractor.
Rippling fits service business, agency or studio, online store.
Rippling suits teams past ten people.
| Compare | ||
|---|---|---|
| In one line | HR, IT, and finance on one employee record | Free payroll software for teams of 9 or fewer |
| Starting price | From $35/mo + $8/person | Free |
| Six-person team | $83/mo | $0/mo |
| Plans | Quoted; roughly $35/mo base + $8 per person for payroll | 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(ad-supported); filled-out tax forms incur a small fee; optional Payroll Tax Service and Direct Deposit Service at unpublished prices |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 | Paid | Free |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Users | Per person | Up to 9 paid |
| Both connect to | No shared connections on record. | |
| Also connects to | QuickBooks Online, Xero, Homebase Scheduling, Buddy Punch, Puzzle, When I Work600+ listed by the vendor | None in our catalog |
| Team size | 11–50 people · 51–200 people | Just me · 2–10 people |
| Available in | US · UK · CA · AU | US |
| Phone support | Not looked up yet | Every plan |
| Live chat | Not looked up yet | None listed |
| Support hours | Not published | Not published |
| Incidents posted | 12 incidents posted on Rippling's status page, which covers all Rippling products and regions, in the 90 days to Oct 27, 2026; 6 marked major or critical by Rippling. Status page | We found no public status page for Payroll4Free.com. |
| Capterra score | 4.9 / 5 from 4,886 reviews | 3.1 / 5 from 13 reviews (few reviews) |
| Trustpilot score | 4.6 / 5 from 2,643 reviews | 2.2 / 5 from 8 reviews (few reviews) |
| Fit: Retail shop | 55 | 58 |
| Fit: Restaurant or café | 45 | 55 |
| Fit: Service business | 70 | 60 |
| Fit: Agency or studio | 90 | 45 |
| Fit: Trades or contractor | 50 | 60 |
| Fit: Online store | 75 | 45 |
| Why people pick it |
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| Where it falls short |
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| Visit Rippling | 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
Rippling: partner link. We may earn a commission; it never affects rankings.
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