Competitive Analysis & Research
Understand competitors, validate with users, and continually refine payroll product insights.
Guide: How to Conduct Competitive Analysis & Research for Your Payroll Product
Why Competitive Analysis Matters
Launching a payroll product means entering a crowded, mature market where most solutions appear similar on the surface. But employers experience these products very differently. Competitive analysis helps you learn:
- What employers value
- Where legacy systems fall short
- How your payroll product can differentiate
- How to better position, price, and sell your offering
This research is input, not a final answer, use it to inform decisions, not dictate them.
Important Context Before You Begin
1. Most payroll competitors do not list full features or pricing online
Legacy payroll companies often gate pricing behind a sales call. Others describe features vaguely or inconsistently.
👉 Do not over-index on competitors that publish detailed pricing or feature lists.
They represent only a small segment of the market.
2. The best insights come from your existing users
Your employer base knows:
- Which payroll system they currently use
- What they love about it
- What frustrates them
- What they wish payroll would do better
This makes your own users your richest source of actionable competitive intel.
3. Competitive research is ongoing
Payroll is a regulated, evolving product category.
👉 Set a reminder to revisit competitive analysis 2–3 times per year.
Where to Research
1. G2.com
G2 is one of the best public sources for understanding:
- User sentiment
- Feature categories
- Pricing ranges (even when not fully public)
- Strengths and weaknesses across providers
Search “Payroll Software” and look at:
- The top 10 legacy providers
- The top 5 emerging or niche providers
- Any competitor your users frequently mention
2. Your employer base
Gather insights through:
- Pre-sales questions
- Support conversations
- Quarterly surveys
- Alpha / beta interviews
- Customer Advisory Groups
Ask directly:
- "Who do you use for payroll today?"
- "What do you like about them?"
- "What frustrates you?"
- "What made you consider switching?"
3. Legacy and niche competitors
Typical legacy competitors include:
- ADP
- Paychex
- Paylocity
- Paycom
- QuickBooks Payroll
But your employer base may compete with niche or vertical-specific platforms (e.g., restaurants, healthcare, construction).
👉 Spend time understanding these, they are often the real alternatives your customers consider.
The Top 3 Areas Check Recommends You Research
Use these as inputs, not conclusive answers.
1. Product & Feature Fit
What problem does each competitor solve best?
Where do they fall short?
Where does your product offer a meaningful improvement?
Focus especially on:
- Onboarding experience
- Time-to-run-first-payroll
- Tax accuracy and reliability
- Employee pay methods
- Integrations and reporting
2. User Experience & Support
Employers frequently cite UX and support, not features, as reasons they switch payroll systems.
Look for insights on:
- Ease of use
- Quality of help articles
- Availability and responsiveness of support
- How well the product handles exceptions (off-cycle runs, deductions, bonuses, etc.)
3. Pricing Positioning
While pricing is rarely transparent, you can still analyze:
- Pricing tiers mentioned in reviews
- How price changes with company size
- Per-employee fees vs. all-in pricing
- Whether employers feel they get fair value for what they pay
Use this intel to inform your pricing strategy, not match a competitor’s.
How to Structure Your Competitive Analysis
A simple framework works best:
1. Identify competitors
- Top 3 legacy payroll providers
- Top 1–3 niche or vertical competitors
- Any system your users regularly mention
2. Evaluate them across the 3 recommended categories
Use a table, slide deck, or shared Notion doc.
3. Capture real customer quotes
Customer language > marketing language.
It will directly improve sales, marketing, and product storytelling.
4. Summarize insights into clear takeaways
Examples:
- “Competitors struggle with X; we should emphasize Y in our pitch.”
- “Users feel overcharged for Z; we can differentiate with transparent pricing.”
- “Onboarding with legacy providers feels slow; our speed is a competitive advantage.”
Final Reminder
Competitive analysis is not one-and-done.
Payroll is a dynamic, compliance-driven category, features evolve, pricing shifts, and employer expectations change.
👉 Review your competitive landscape at least twice per year and update your GTM positioning accordingly.
Last updated on December 16, 2025