Base fee, per-employee fee, and the charges that live outside both
The advertised structure is simple - $20-$150 a month plus $4-$15 per employee - and the invoice rarely is. Every line a Whitewood business actually gets billed for is priced below.
Two free marketplace paths: one form brings back multiple vetted payroll providers who know they are competing for the account.
Payroll services quoted to Whitewood businesses in 2026 run $20-$150 a month in base fees plus $4-$15 per employee per month, which puts a ten-person Whitewood payroll at roughly $70-$250 a month before year-end filing and add-on charges.
The county around Whitewood holds 1,248 business establishments, of which 1,133 employ fewer than 20 people - the size band where payroll is bought as a service rather than staffed, per Census County Business Patterns 2023.
Whitewood plus 7 surrounding communities within 40 km hold about 36,037 people, which is enough employer density that several payroll providers will quote the same account - the competition a single quote request is meant to create.
Published payroll pricing in 2026 has settled into a stable shape: a monthly base fee of $20-$150 plus $4-$15 per employee per month, with full-service tax filing usually included at the top of that range and sold as an add-on at the bottom. What separates a good Whitewood quote from a bad one is the list of items priced outside that structure.
The line items that surprise Whitewood buyers are never the base fee. Year-end W-2 and 1099 filing is commonly 4-8 dollars per form, additional state filings run 6-20 dollars per state per month for remote employees, off-cycle payroll runs cost 5-50 dollars each, and implementation fees reach $200 dollars at the enterprise end of the market.
Put a payroll quote out to competing quotes before you compare prices
Two free marketplace paths: one form brings back multiple vetted payroll providers who know they are competing for the account. Competing quotes are the only reliable way to see what your headcount actually prices at.
External links go to the marketplaces' own sites and forms. This site may earn a referral fee at no cost to you - it never changes the data above, and no individual payroll provider pays to appear in our research.
Every line, priced (2026)
| What you are buying | 2026 published range | The number that actually matters |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly base fee | $20-$150/month | Meaningless alone - always price it with your headcount attached |
| Per employee, per month | $4-$15/employee/month | At 10 employees this is most of the bill: $70-$250/month all in |
| Fully outsourced processing | $30-$100/person/month | Quoted per person rather than base plus fee - bundles compliance work |
| Year-end W-2 and 1099 filing | $4-$8/form | Included at some tiers, billed at others - ask before January |
| Additional state filings (remote staff) | $6-$20/state/month | One remote hire in a new state can change the plan you need |
| Off-cycle or bonus runs | $5-$50 each | Bonus season is when this line shows up on the invoice |
| Setup / implementation | $0-$200 | Commonly waived at small-business tiers - ask, it is negotiable |
| A late federal deposit | 2%-15% of the deposit | The reason the monthly fee is the second-most important number (IRS IRC 6656) |
How to make two Whitewood quotes comparable
- Employee count, split into salaried, hourly and contractors - contractors are usually priced separately or per 1099
- Every state where an employee physically works, including remote staff - each one commonly adds 6-20 dollars a month
- Pay frequency, and how many off-cycle or bonus runs you expect in a year at 5-50 dollars each
- Whether full-service tax filing and deposits are included at the quoted tier or sold as an add-on
- Year-end W-2 and 1099 filing: included, or 4-8 dollars per form
- Implementation or setup fee, and whether prior-year payroll history is migrated at no charge
- Benefits, garnishments, time tracking and workers' comp integration - each is commonly its own line
- The renewal price, in writing, alongside the first-year price
The stale-advice warning: the e-filing threshold moved
Plenty of still-published payroll guides tell small employers they can paper-file W-2s and 1099s until they hit 250 returns. That threshold is gone. The rule now counts all information returns together, and at 10 or more for the year, electronic filing is required. For a Whitewood business with a handful of employees plus a few contractors, that arithmetic arrives much sooner than the old rule implied - and it is a question worth asking any provider: is electronic filing included at my tier, or billed per form at 4-8 dollars?
What this means in Whitewood
Withheld income tax and the employee share of FICA are trust funds - money that was never the company's. That is why the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty can reach an owner or officer personally, and why 'the company can't pay' is not an exit from this particular bill.
This page is independent research, not legal, tax or accounting advice. Federal deposit rules and state wage, unemployment and final-paycheck laws change - verify current requirements with the IRS and your state labor and revenue agencies, or with a licensed CPA or attorney, before acting.
Put a payroll quote out to competing quotes before you compare prices
Two free marketplace paths: one form brings back multiple vetted payroll providers who know they are competing for the account. Competing quotes are the only reliable way to see what your headcount actually prices at.
External links go to the marketplaces' own sites and forms. This site may earn a referral fee at no cost to you - it never changes the data above, and no individual payroll provider pays to appear in our research.
Common questions
How much does payroll cost per employee per month?
Per-employee fees cluster at $4-$15 dollars per month on top of the base fee for standard payroll software and services. Fully outsourced processing and PEO-style arrangements are quoted differently - commonly $30-$100 dollars per person per month or a percentage of gross payroll - and bundle benefits administration and compliance work that standard payroll does not include.
What is the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty?
Withheld income tax and the employee share of Social Security and Medicare are held in trust for the government. When those amounts are not paid over, the IRS can assess a penalty equal to the full unpaid trust-fund amount personally against any responsible person who willfully failed to pay - an owner, officer or bookkeeper. It is one of the few business tax liabilities that reaches through a corporation or LLC to an individual.
Is payroll priced per employee or per payroll run?
Both models exist. The common structure is a monthly base fee plus a per-employee fee, which is predictable regardless of how often you run payroll. A per-run model charges each time you process, which favors businesses paying monthly and penalizes weekly payrolls. Ask for the all-in annual total under your actual pay frequency - that single number makes the two models comparable.
Do I have to file W-2s and 1099s electronically?
Almost certainly yes. The threshold dropped to 10 returns: if you file 10 or more information returns of all types combined in a calendar year, they must be filed electronically. Articles still citing the old 250-return threshold are out of date. Any full-service payroll provider files electronically as standard - confirm it is included rather than billed per form.
How much does a payroll service cost for a small business?
In 2026 published pricing, payroll services charge a monthly base fee of roughly $20-$150 dollars plus $4-$15 dollars per employee per month. A ten-employee business commonly lands between $70 and $250 dollars a month before add-ons. Full outsourced processing is often quoted per person instead, at roughly $30-$100 dollars per employee per month. These are directional market ranges, not quotes.
Put a payroll quote out to competing quotes before you compare prices
Two free marketplace paths: one form brings back multiple vetted payroll providers who know they are competing for the account. Competing quotes are the only reliable way to see what your headcount actually prices at.
External links go to the marketplaces' own sites and forms. This site may earn a referral fee at no cost to you - it never changes the data above, and no individual payroll provider pays to appear in our research.