Best 7 Cloud-Based Payroll Software in 2025

Our independent research found that Staffology Payroll by Iris is the best cloud-based payroll software on the market. It offers hands-on training, comes with an intuitive mobile app, numerous integrations, and highly secure data processing. Plus, pricing is transparent, a rarity in the payroll industry.

All businesses have three options for paying their staff: fully-managed UK payroll services, part-managed payroll services, or using payroll software to manage payroll in-house.

Cloud-based payroll software enables you to securely manage employee data, comply with the latest legislation, and run payrolls automatically from any device with an internet connection, unlike on-premise software.

The Best Payroll Software Platforms: Key Takeaways

• Staffology Payroll by Iris is our top-rated cloud-based payroll software, with transparent pricing starting at £39 per month, and a large number of accounting and HR integrations.
• Other top-rated cloud-based software platforms include ADP, our top pick for security, and MHR, which offers extensive payroll reporting.
• When choosing a payroll software provider, make sure it’s HMRC compliant, and can either integrate with your existing software or offers native people management tools, such as HR software.
• Switching to a new payroll software provider can take between a few weeks and a month, and the best time to switch is before the new tax year in April.
• In the 2025/2026 tax year, the national minimum wage, national living wage, and statutory maternity and paternity pay all increased, so make sure you’ve updated your payroll accordingly to avoid fines.

For a quick summary of what each top-ranked payroll software provider offers, see the table below:

1. Staffology Payroll by Iris: Best Cloud-based Payroll Software Overall

What are Staffology Payroll by Iris’ key features?

• From £39 per month
• Live training
• Customisable reporting tools including payslips, HMRC, pensions, tax, P11D, audits, and BACS
• Unlimited users, employees, and companies (for a price)
• GDPR and RTI compliant for HMRC with annual confidentiality training for staff, including CIPP-accredited payroll managers
• Employee mobile app
• Demo and free traial available

Our verdict on Staffology Payroll by Iris

Staffology Payroll by Iris is available from £39 per month, and is one of the rare payroll software providers to advertise its pricing. This is useful for small businesses with a limited budget and who want to move forward fast, without going through a quote process. The only other provider on this list to offer transparent pricing is 1 2 Cloud Payroll, which charges between £5 and £200 per month.

Perhaps even more appealing is that it packs more accounting and HR integrations than any of the providers we researched (seven and five, respectively) – which allows it to work alongside more programs than ADP (three and three) or MHR (one and three). Business owners who want to keep their current accounting or HR software and integrate it with Staffology Payroll by Iris will benefit massively from this.

However, there are some downsides. Some users have commented on Staffology’s poor customer support, citing a lack of telephone support, though our research has shown the Payroll arm of Staffology does have a customer support line to contact for any queries.

How much does Staffology Payroll by Iris cost?

Staffology Payroll by Iris has a starting price of £39 per month. Here’s what you’ll pay based on employee numbers:

2. ADP: Best Payroll Software For Security

What are ADP’s key features?

• HR, recruitment, benefits management, and learning management software/solutions also available
• CIPP-accredited expert payroll advice
• GDPR and RTI compliant for HMRC
• Time and attendance keeping features
• Employee mobile app
• Demo available

Our verdict on ADP payroll software

Following extensive testing, we can conclude that ADP is a payroll provider that’s big on security, attested by its ISO 27001 certification (something Qualitas Payroll Service doesn’t have) and its efficient data encryption. Also, unlike OneAdvanced, it wasn’t hit by any data breaches in the last two years.

Besides payroll software, ADP offers other people management software, which integrate easily with its payroll solution. These include HR and benefits management platforms. This is an advantage for businesses keen on keeping the number of their suppliers low.

ADP also has a time and attendance feature, which can be used as a clock-in system, great for companies that employ hourly or shift-based employees.

That said, ADP isn’t perfect. For example, it doesn’t provide payroll change reports, despite offering extensive reporting tools, something competitor MHR does offer. Plus, unlike Staffology Payroll, ADP isn’t transparent with its pricing.

How much does ADP cost?

You’ll need to contact ADP directly for a quote as its pricing is dependant on factors such as payroll frequency and the number of employees you have.

3. MHR: Best Payroll Software For Reporting

What are MHR’s key features?

• Highly detailed reporting
• Educational material for businesses
• CIPP-accredited expert payroll advice
• GDPR and RTI compliance for HMRC
• Employee mobile app
• Demo available

Our verdict on MHR payroll software

MHR’s iTrent payroll software has one of the most detailed report-generating payroll software programs on the market. In our testing, we used it to track KPIs, assess risks, establish costs, and produce legislative reports, and it excelled in all those tasks, with the bonus that you can action them through the same platform.

Due to its sheer breadth, this makes MHR more suited to large businesses, as such deep reporting prowess is likely to be lost in smaller organisations.

Unfortunately, MHR doesn’t offer many accounting and HR integrations. It packs only one and three, respectively, way less than Staffology Payroll by Iris (seven and five). This is bad news for business owners who want to coordinate payroll with these related activities.

For its part, however, MHR makes it easy for payroll data to be shared with different systems, which mitigates the lack of integration to some degree.

If you’d like to find out more about the platform’s features, check out our MHR Payroll review.

How much does MHR cost?

You can fill out a quick from on MHR’s website to get an accurate quote.

4. Frontier: Best Payroll Software For International Businesses

What are Frontier’s key features?

• Native HR software
• Payment of international employees
• GDPR and RTI-compliant for HMRC
• Payroll changes reporting
• Employee mobile app
• Demo available

Our verdict on Frontier payroll software

Frontier allows payment of international employees – a must if you have staff across different countries. Among the providers we tested, Frontier shares this feature with Staffology Payroll by Iris and ADP, but beats out OneAdvanced and Moorepay, which don’t come with this capability.

Its international payroll features include multi-language and multi-currency capabilities. Paired with its employee self-service mobile app, and Frontier is a great option for businesses looking to make payroll accessible to employees, wherever they are in the world.

On the other hand, like OneAdvanced, Frontier doesn’t provide an open API, dealing a killer blow to business owners hoping to integrate with their own HR and accounting software. For those, ADP will be a better choice. Also, like MHR, it doesn’t offer advice on how to stay compliant with payroll laws.

Find out more about this provider’s features in our in-depth Frontier payroll review.

How much does Frontier cost?

Frontier’s pricing is bespoke so you’ll need to contact the provider directly for accurate pricing.

5. OneAdvanced: Best Payroll Software For Training

What are OneAdvanced’s key features?

• Pensions auto-enrolment software as standard
• In-depth reporting that is GDPR and RTI compliant for HMRC
• Integration with other OneAdvanced business software products
• Dedicated support centre with 300 CIPP-accredited staff
• Demo available

Our verdict on OneAdvanced payroll software

During our extensive testing process, we were impressed by OneAdvanced’s training prowess, which makes it great if you’re running a small accounting team. In that regard, it beats Moorepay by having a live training feature. However, Staffology Payroll by Iris also offers this.

OneAdvanced also provides integrations with its wide native suite of other applications, like ADP. These include HR, scheduling, recruitment, talent management software, as well as time and attendance. This wide suite of people management software makes OneAdvanced a great one-stop shop for businesses.

Similarly to MHR, OneAdvanced also offers in-depth reporting, such as the ability to create custom reports, which can especially benefit larger companies.

However, OneAdvanced lacks the free trial that Staffology Payroll by Iris offers, which, combined with the fact that its pricing is bespoke, can delay knowing if it’s right for you.

It also lacks the mobile app that many of its competitors (such as Staffology Payroll by Iris and Moorepay) offer. And as far as data security goes, it could be better: of all the providers we researched, it’s the only one that had a data breach in recent years, being a victim of a ransomware attack in 2022.

How much does OneAdvanced cost?

You’ll need to contact OneAdvanced directly as it only offers bespoke pricing.

6. Moorepay: Best Payroll Software For Expertise

What are Moorepay’s key features?

• CIPP-accredited payroll advice
• Large suite of HR/people management solutions
• Tax-related educational resources
• GDPR and RTI-compliant for HMRC
• Employee mobile app
• Demo available

Our verdict on Moorepay payroll software

Moorepay boasts an array of consultants ready to give insightful information to its customers, making it ideal for businesses that require hands-on guidance. Like ADP, Moorepay provides CIPP-accredited expert payroll advice and offers tax-related educational resources.

This makes it a great option for businesses that don’t have a large in-house payroll team or are relatively new to payroll and need expert guidance.

Additionally, Moorepay packs a large suite of other people management software, besides payroll. This includes HR, benefits management, performance management, recruitment, and more.

However, when testing the software, we found that, unfortunately, Moorepay doesn’t allow for the payment of international employees, nor does it offer live training, features that Frontier offers. Also, it lacks transparent pricing, unlike 1 2 Cloud Payroll and Staffology Payroll.

How much does Moorepay cost?

Moorepay’s pricing is based on factors including processing, add-ons, and setup. You’ll need to contact Moorepay directly for a bespoke quote – or if you want to learn more about the provider, check out our Moorepay payroll review.

7. 1 2 Cloud: Best payroll software for small businesses

What are 1 2 Cloud’s key features?

• From £5 per month
• Free phone support within working hours
• GDPR and RTI compliance for HMRC
• “Rollback facility” for easily amending errors in pay
• Demo available

Our verdict on 1 2 Cloud payroll software

1 2 Cloud is an HMRC-approved payroll software provider suitable for small businesses, thanks to its transparent pricing packages. Pricing starts at a fixed rate of just £5 per month for one to two employees, going up to £200 per month for up to 500 employees.

When testing the software, our researchers liked its intuitive dashboard layout, similar to ADP’s. This makes it accessible to non-payroll experts using payroll software for the first time.

On the flip side, 1 2 Cloud doesn’t pack a lot of integrations: it only syncs up with Sage on the accounting front. As far as accounting integration goes, this is the same offer as Moorepay’s, but that competitor also allows for HR and time and attendance integration (which 1 2 Cloud doesn’t).

Find out more about the provider’s strengths and weaknesses in our 1 2 Cloud Payroll review.

How much does 1 2 Cloud cost?

1 2 Cloud charges a fixed monthly subscription price to businesses with between 1 and 500 employees, and charges per employee for any company over 500.

Here’s a breakdown:

• 1-2 employees: £5/month
• 3-5 employees: £10/month
• 6-9 employees: £15/month
• 10-15 employees: £25/month
• 16-20 employees: £30/month
• 21-30 employees: £40/month
• 31-50 employees: £50/month
• 51-80 employees: £60/month
• 81-100 employees: £70/month
• 101-120 employees: £80/month
• 121-150 employees: £100/month
• 151-200 employees: £120/month
• 201-300 employees: £150/month
• 301-500 employees: £200/month
• 500+ employees: £0.5/employee/month

Other charges to watch out for with 1 2 Cloud Payroll:

• P11D Returns: £5/P11D employee/year
• P11D(b) Returns: £10/company/year
• CIS usage cost: same as payroll pricing

How to Choose Payroll Software: Buying Guide

Managing payroll can be a complicated and time-consuming task for businesses of all sizes. To pick the right software, it’ll need to have a handle on all the features that will make that process easier from dealing with taxes, pensions, and statutory deductions to the core functionality of paying employees accurately and on time.

Here are the features we believe you should look out for:

HMRC compliance

A basic functionality, and one that we have made sure is a part of all the options on this page, is compliance with HMRC regulations. This will allow for accurate tax calculations and reporting. Namely, the cloud payroll software should be able to:

• Automatically update with the latest tax codes and thresholds.
• Handle statutory payments such as SSP (Statutory Sick Pay) and SMP (Statutory Maternity Pay).
• Submit RTI (Real Time Information) to HMRC.

Automation capabilities

You’ll want the software to make your life easier, automatically solving payroll tasks for you including:

• Calculating PAYE (Pay As You Earn), National Insurance contributions, and pension deductions.
• Generating payslips and P60s automatically.
• Automatically updating payroll records when there are changes in tax laws or employee data.

Integration with other systems

Ideally, any payroll you choose will integrate with your existing software systems. This could include:

• Accounting software: Integrations with systems like Xero, QuickBooks, or Sage ensure seamless flow of financial data.
• HR tools: If you use HR software, ensure your payroll solution can synchronise with it to manage employee data, leave tracking, and expenses.

Pension auto-enrolment

Since pension auto-enrolment is a legal requirement for most UK employers, your payroll software must:

• Automatically enrol eligible employees into a pension scheme.
• Send the necessary communications to employees.
• Deduct pension contributions and submit reports to your pension provider.

Ease of use

If you are using cloud payroll software instead of a payroll service, you and/or your team will be completing payroll tasks yourself. That means you’ll want software that has an intuitive, user-friendly interface. A clean, simple layout can save time and reduce the chance of errors, especially if you don’t have a dedicated payroll team.

Customer support

You never know when you might need some help with managing your payroll. Opt for software that provides comprehensive customer support through:

• Phone, email, or live chat.
• Online resources such as tutorials, webinars, and FAQs. Good support is crucial if you run into technical issues or need guidance on payroll processes.

Reporting

Reporting can allow you to easily break down where business spending is going on the payroll. That can be especially important for companies that are large and need a birds-eye view of their bulging payroll. Most software offers some kind of functionality here, including detailed reporting features like:

• Payroll summaries and breakdowns.
• Tax and National Insurance reports.
• Pension contributions and RTI submissions. Reporting capabilities are essential for tracking expenses, auditing, and compliance.

Data security

Securing your payroll data is crucial since you need to comply with GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) rules. Software that allows for this is therefore necessary to safeguard sensitive employee information. All the options we suggest on this page adhere to such standards.

Costs

And most crucial of all: how much will the software cost your business? This will vary depending on the pricing model of the software:

• Subscription-based: Most cloud-based payroll software has monthly or yearly payments based on the number of employees or payroll runs you need.
• Pay-per-use: Some software charges per payroll run or report generation. We suggest factoring in both upfront costs and ongoing fees and checking if there are any hidden costs for additional features or users.

What Are Important Payroll Dates For this Tax Year?

The current tax year is the 2025/2026 tax year, so here are the important payroll deadlines that your business needs to be aware of:

Are There Any Changes to Payroll Legislation in 2025?

If you’re running payroll yourself with the help of cloud-based payroll software, it’s important to be aware of legislation changes that affect payroll. Here’s what you need to know:

National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) increase

From April 2025, the NMW for employees aged between 18 and 20 years increases from £8.60 an hour to £10 an hour. For employees aged between 16 and 17 years, the NMW increases from £6.40 an hour to £7.55 an hour.

The separate rate that exists for eligible apprentices under 19 years old has also increased from £6.40 up to £7.55 an hour.

The NLW (applicable to employees 21 and over) increased from £11.44 an hour to £12.21 an hour.

If you currently have employees on the NMW or NLW, you must make sure you have increased their salaries to reflect the changes from April 2025. Not doing so breaks employer law and can result in fines of up to £20,000 for each affected employee.

Employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) increase

There are three major changes to NICs for businesses. From April 2025, the NIC rate for employers rises from 13.8% to 15%, meaning employers must pay more in contributions.

There is also a change to ranges. The secondary threshold has dropped from £9,100 to £5,000. This means employers have to start paying NCIs on earnings starting at £5,000.

However, there’s also some positive news. Before the 2025/2026 tax year, businesses with an NIC bill of £100,000 or less were able to take £5,000 off their employer NIC bill, thanks to the Employment Allowance. However, from April 2025, this has increased from £5,000 to £10,500, and is available to more businesses since the government has removed the £100,000 limit.

New rates for Statutory Maternity Pay and other parental leave

Rates for statutory maternity pay, paternity pay, shared parental pay, adoption pay, maternity allowance and statutory parental bereavement have all increased as of April 2025.

For maternity pay, it’s now 90% of the employee’s gross weekly pay per week, subject to a maximum of £187.18 per week (up from £184.03 per week) after the first six weeks. For paternity pay, it’s also £187.18 per week (up from £184.03 per week) or 90% of their average weekly earnings per week.

How We Ranked the Best Payroll Software