Payroll outsourcing companies in Australia: services & costs.

Payroll outsourcing companies provide comprehensive payroll management, from collecting timesheets and calculating wages to managing super, processing PAYG withholding and submitting STP reports to the ATO, staying current with Fair Work and modern award changes. Accountee, founded by ex-Big 4 professionals from BDO, NAB and Westpac, combines Sydney-based oversight with efficient global delivery to provide Big 4 quality at around 60% lower cost, processing $30M+ annually with a 100% ATO compliance record, from $4 per person per pay run.

End-to-end payroll: pay run processing (weekly/fortnightly/monthly), timesheet collection and validation, gross-to-net calculations with PAYG, award and EBA interpretation, penalty rates and allowances, payslip generation, super calculations and quarterly payments, leave accrual, termination/final pay, STP reporting, WorkCover, payroll tax and reporting. Accountee also offers CFO-level advice and, for recruitment agencies, contractor payroll, client invoicing with margin tracking and cash flow forecasting.

Costs vary: Employment Hero charges $20+ per employee/month with $200+ minimums; ADP and Rippling $29-$79+ per employee/month; traditional firms charge percentage or hourly fees. Accountee offers $4 per person per pay run plus a simple monthly retainer, all-inclusive with no hidden fees. A 20-employee fortnightly payroll typically runs $400-$600/month all-in, versus $2,000+ with major competitors, 40-60% savings while maintaining Big 4 quality.

Cost savings (no $65K+ in-house salary, fewer penalties, less software spend), time savings (reclaim 15-20 hours per month), compliance assurance (expert handling of Fair Work, awards, ATO and super), and scalability (grow from 5 to 500 employees without hiring). Quality providers like Accountee also add strategic value: CFO-level advice, cash flow management and business structure optimisation.

Assess expertise and qualifications (CPA/CA leadership, track record, compliance record, industry specialisation), service model (dedicated teams vs shared resources, accountants vs bookkeepers, local hours), technology (real-time reporting, integrations, security), pricing (transparent, scalable, no setup or lock-in), communication (proactive, fast responses) and references. Accountee excels across all of these with ex-Big 4 leadership, dedicated teams, modern technology, transparent pricing 40-60% below competitors and same-day responses.