Paycom vs Paylocity

The verdict at a glance

Paycom scores higher overall (73 to 73), but the right pick depends on what you weight.

Paycom. Paycom puts payroll, HR, time, and benefits on one database and has employees verify their own checks in Beti before payday. Powerful for close and audit; opaque pricing and a closed API are the tradeoffs.

Paylocity. Paylocity pairs mid-market payroll and HCM with real GL plumbing: native QuickBooks Online, NetSuite, and Sage Intacct journal entries, 50-state filing, and a growing CFO suite built on the $325M Airbase deal.

Quick facts

• Paycom AF score. 73/100
• Paycom typical cost. $25 to $36 PEPM (third-party est.)
• Paycom implementation. Medium
• Paycom best fit. US-heavy mid-market, 100 to 10,000 employees, ready to drive Beti adoption
• Paylocity AF score. 73/100
• Paylocity typical cost. $29/employee/mo (all-in $26-40)
• Paylocity implementation. Medium
• Paylocity best fit. US mid-market employers, 50 to 5,000 employees, multi-state payroll

Dimension by dimension

• Compliance depth. Paycom 86, Paylocity 82. Edge: Paycom.
• Scalability. Paycom 78, Paylocity 76. Edge: Paycom.
• Support. Paycom 72, Paylocity 62. Edge: Paycom.
• Implementation. Paycom 70, Paylocity 70. Edge: Even.
• Pricing transparency. Paycom 30, Paylocity 35. Edge: Paylocity.
• AI / agent readiness. Paycom 38, Paylocity 56. Edge: Paylocity.

What each actually costs

Paycom: $25 to $36 PEPM (third-party est.) (Quote-only; per employee per pay period plus add-on fees)

Paylocity: $29/employee/mo (all-in $26-40) (Quote-only PEPM, modular bundles, negotiated)

Pick Paycom if

• US mid-market companies (100 to 10,000 employees) consolidating payroll, HR, and time onto one system
• Controllers who want native GL mapping, ledger change alerts, and audit trails without managing sync jobs
• Organizations willing to drive employee adoption of Beti to cut corrections and off-cycle check runs

Pick Paylocity if

• US mid-market companies (50 to 5,000 employees) running multi-state payroll
• Controllers who want native journal entries into QuickBooks Online, NetSuite, or Sage Intacct
• Teams consolidating payroll plus AP, cards, and expenses on one vendor via Paylocity for Finance

Further reading

• TrustRadius Top Rated for a second straight year (Paycom, Jun 2026)
• FY2025 results: $2.05B revenue, 91% retention (Paycom, Feb 2026)
• IWant command-driven AI engine launches (Paycom, Jul 2025)
• Paylocity acquires AI-native Aidora (Paylocity, Jul 2026)
• Paylocity acquires Grayscale Labs (Paylocity, Apr 2026)
• Next-gen AI Assistant moves from questions to actions (Paylocity, Sep 2025)

Keep exploring

• The full Paycom review: scores, pricing, and where it fits.
• The full Paylocity review: scores, pricing, and where it fits.
• Paylocity vs isolved
• Paylocity vs UKG
• Paychex vs Paylocity
• ADP vs Paylocity

Both reviews are updated on a rolling cycle by our research agents.