Employment Hero vs PayFit
Verified ratings, real UK pricing and the compliance detail, weighed side by side — with a written verdict at the end.
Employment Hero
Payroll Software
- United Kingdom
- Australia
- New Zealand
- Singapore
- Malaysia
- Phone
- Live Chat
- Knowledge Base
- Forum
PayFit
Payroll Software
- United Kingdom
- France
- Spain
- Germany
- Phone
- Live Chat
- Knowledge Base
PayFit leads on verified reviews by 0.1 of a point — 4.2 against 4.1 for Employment Hero.
The short version
What each one costs and how each one rates, side by side. Only the rows where leading means something are marked; vendor and availability are in the overview above.
| Detail | Employment Hero | PayFit |
|---|---|---|
| What it costs | ||
| Starting priceLowest paid tier, excluding VAT | £3/user/month | £29/mo |
| Free version | YesYes | NoNo |
| Free trial | YesYes | YesYes |
| How it rates | ||
| Overall ratingMean of verified Assaylist reviews | 4.1 | 4.2 |
| Verified reviewsVolume is evidence, not a score — this row is not a contest | 273 reviews | 245 reviews |
Highlighted where one clearly leads. Rows without a highlight are not a contest.
How reviewers score them
Across the four dimensions we ask every reviewer about — and, below, the star split each average is built from.
- Employment Hero
- PayFit
| Dimension | Employment Hero | PayFit | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ease of use | 3.9 | 4.1 | 0.2 to PayFit |
| Value for money | 3.9 | 4.1 | 0.2 to PayFit |
| Customer support | 4.0 | 4.0 | Level |
| Functionality | 3.9 | 4.0 | 0.1 to PayFit |
What each average is made of
Two products can share an average and not share a reputation. These bars show the star split behind each score.
| Product | 5 star | 4 star | 3 star | 2 star | 1 star |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employment Hero | 42% (114 reviews) | 35% (95 reviews) | 12% (33 reviews) | 10% (26 reviews) | 2% (5 reviews) |
| PayFit | 44% (109 reviews) | 37% (91 reviews) | 12% (29 reviews) | 5% (12 reviews) | 2% (4 reviews) |
Feature by feature
Everything either vendor publishes, split into what separates them and what they share.
- Both products
- 15%
- Only Employment Hero
- 947%
- Only PayFit
- 947%
19 features listed across both products.
What only one of them does
Employment Hero
9- Automatic enrolment
- Employee app
- Employee benefits marketplace
- HR records and leave management
+ 5 more in the table below
PayFit
9- Automated payroll
- Employee self service
- Leave management
- Light HR records
+ 5 more in the table below
Showing 19 of 19 features
| Detail | Employment Hero | PayFit |
|---|---|---|
| Where they differ · 18 | ||
| Automatic enrolment | YesYes | NoNo |
| Employee app | YesYes | NoNo |
| Employee benefits marketplace | YesYes | NoNo |
| HR records and leave management | YesYes | NoNo |
| Integrations | YesYes | NoNo |
| Onboarding and contracts | YesYes | NoNo |
| Performance and engagement | YesYes | NoNo |
| Right to work record keeping | YesYes | NoNo |
| RTI payroll with a free tier | YesYes | NoNo |
| Automated payroll | NoNo | YesYes |
| Employee self service | NoNo | YesYes |
| Leave management | NoNo | YesYes |
| Light HR records | NoNo | YesYes |
| Modern interface | NoNo | YesYes |
| Onboarding | NoNo | YesYes |
| Payslips | NoNo | YesYes |
| Pension auto enrolment | NoNo | YesYes |
| RTI submissions to HMRC | NoNo | YesYes |
| Where they match · 1 | ||
| Reporting | YesYes | YesYes |
A dash means the vendor has not published a feature list — which is not the same as the feature being unavailable.
How they handle UK obligations
Checked against the vendor's own documentation or HMRC's published list. A dash means we have not verified it — never that it is missing.
| Detail | Employment Hero | PayFit |
|---|---|---|
| Verified against vendor documentation | ||
| RTI-compliant payroll | YesYes | YesYes |
| Pension auto-enrolment | YesYes | YesYes |
| UK-based support | UK support team | UK support team |
What each tier costs
Both line-ups on one ladder, so the middle tier on one side sits next to the middle tier on the other.
Employment Hero
PayFit
Free Payroll
FreeLower
- Compliant RTI payroll at no software cost
- Automatic enrolment
- Employee self serve
Light
£29/mo
- Base fee plus £5 per employee
- Automated payroll
- RTI and auto enrolment
Core Payroll
£3/user/monthLower
- Minimum £30 a month
- Advanced payroll features
- Integrations
Standard
£59/mo
- Base fee plus £6 per employee
- More HR features
- Everything in Light
HR Essentials
£4/user/monthLower
- Minimum £40 a month
- Onboarding and HR records
- Leave management
Premium
£119/mo
- Base fee plus £7 per employee
- Advanced features
- Everything in Standard
Rungs are matched by position in each vendor’s own line-up, not by what the tiers include — an entry plan on one side may cover more than the other. Prices exclude VAT unless stated, and per-seat plans are quoted per seat. Always confirm on the vendor’s own site.
Which should you choose?
Two answers, because there are two right ones depending on what you need.
Choose Employment Hero if
- It costs less to get started — £3/user/month against £29/mo.
- There is a free tier you can stay on, which PayFit does not offer.
- It lists 9 features PayFit does not, including automatic enrolment.
Choose PayFit if
- It lists 9 features Employment Hero does not, including automated payroll.
On verified Assaylist reviews, PayFit currently rates 4.2 against 4.1 for Employment Hero. That gap is not the whole story: Employment Hero starts at £3/user/month and PayFit at £29/mo, so the right answer depends on the tier you actually need and on which one handles your UK obligations. Read both profiles before you commit, and confirm current pricing on the vendor's own site.
We may earn a commission if you buy through links on this page. It never affects our ratings or what we recommend. How this works.