15Five vs Gusto Pricing (2026)
How do these two stack up on price? Here's what each one costs, what you get, and where the value sits.
Engage
- Employee Engagement Surveys
- Targeted Assessments
- Action Planning
- Heat Maps & Data Breakdowns
- Benchmarking
Perform
- AMAYA
- Insights Dashboard
- AI-Assisted Performance Reviews
- 15Five Agents
- OKRs & Goals
- 360° Feedback
- Talent Matrix
- Career Paths & Plans
Total Platform
Popular- Manager Training Microlearnings
Simple
- Single-state payroll
- Unlimited payrolls per month
- Tax filings and payments
- Basic PTO policies and holiday pay
- Direct deposits or printable checks
- Payroll approvals
- Payroll on AutoPilot®
- Gusto employee app
- Multiple pay rates and schedules
- Employer mobile app
- Domestic contractor payments
Plus
Popular- Multi-state payroll
- Next-day pay
- Time Tracking
- Unlimited payrolls per month
- Direct deposits or printable checks
- Tax filings and payments
- Payroll approvals
- Payroll on AutoPilot®
- Gusto employee app
- Multiple pay rates and schedules
- Employer mobile app
- Domestic contractor payments
- Expenses and reimbursements
- Workforce cost reports
- Unlimited custom earning types
Premium
- Dedicated Service Advisor
- Access to certified HR experts
- Performance & compensation management
- Custom reports
- Priority support
- Payroll migration and account setup
- Unlimited payrolls per month
- Direct deposits or printable checks
- Tax filings and payments
- Payroll approvals
- Payroll on AutoPilot®
- Gusto employee app
- Multiple pay rates and schedules
- Employer mobile app
- Domestic contractor payments
- Expenses and reimbursements
- Workforce cost reports
- Unlimited custom earning types
- Unlimited custom admin roles
15Five vs Gusto FAQ
- Which one is cheaper?
- 15Five starts lower at $4/mo, compared to $49/mo for Gusto.
- Can I use either one for free?
- Neither has a free plan.
- How do they charge?
- Different approach here. 15Five uses per-seat pricing, while Gusto goes with hybrid. That changes the math depending on your team size and usage.
- Which one is a better deal?
- Depends on what you need. 15Five: At $4-16/seat/month, 15Five lands in the mid-market lane — pricier than bare-bones survey tools but cheaper than enterprise HCM suites bundling performance, comp, and LMS together. They're clearly courting mid-sized companies that want a dedicated performance/engagement layer without buying into a full Workday-style platform. Gusto: Gusto sits mid-market — pricier than bare-bones payroll tools but cheaper than enterprise HRIS platforms like Rippling or Justworks, positioning itself as the payroll-first choice for small businesses that will eventually need light HR features. The $0/mo contractor-only promo is a clear wedge to land freelancer-heavy startups cheap, then upsell them once they hire W-2 employees.
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