Square 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.
Square Payroll fits retail shop, restaurant or café, service business, agency or studio, trades or contractor, online store.- Square Payroll suits teams past ten people.
| Compare | Square PayrollBlock | |
|---|---|---|
| In one line | Payroll that pulls hours and tips from Square POS | Free payroll software for teams of 9 or fewer |
| Starting price | From $35/mo + $6/person | Free |
| Six-person team | $71/mo | $0/mo |
| Plans | Full service $35/mo + $6 per person paid (tax filings, multistate); contractors only $6 per person; no contract; paper W-2s $3 each | 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(ad-supported); filled-out tax forms incur a small fee; optional Payroll Tax Service and Direct Deposit Service at unpublished prices |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 | No minimum | Up to 9 paid |
| Both connect to | No shared connections on record. | |
| Also connects to | QuickBooks Online, Homebase Scheduling, When I Work | None in our catalog |
| Team size | Just me · 2–10 people · 11–50 people | Just me · 2–10 people |
| Available in | US | US |
| Phone support | Every plan (US) | Every plan |
| Live chat | Plans not stated | None listed |
| Support hours | Phone: M–F 6 a.m.–6 p.m. PT | Not published |
| Incidents posted | 14 incidents posted on Block's status page, which covers all Block products and regions, in the 90 days to Oct 27, 2026; 0 marked major or critical by Block. Status page | We found no public status page for Payroll4Free.com. |
| Capterra score | 4.7 / 5 from 622 reviews | 3.1 / 5 from 13 reviews (few reviews) |
| Trustpilot score | Not listed | 2.2 / 5 from 8 reviews (few reviews) |
| Fit: Retail shop | 85 | 58 |
| Fit: Restaurant or café | 88 | 55 |
| Fit: Service business | 75 | 60 |
| Fit: Agency or studio | 55 | 45 |
| Fit: Trades or contractor | 70 | 60 |
| Fit: Online store | 55 | 45 |
| Why people pick it |
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| Where it falls short |
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| Visit Square 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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