PayFit Payroll Review UK 2026: Costs, Features & Managed Payroll Quick answer
PayFit combines UK payroll software with managed payroll support, so rather than simply giving your business software and leaving your team to run payroll alone, PayFit’s current service can provide UK payroll experts who prepare and check pay runs before you review and approve them and PayFit can handle areas including:
Payroll calculations
PAYE and National Insurance
RTI submissions to HMRC
Payslips
P45s and P60s
P11Ds
Workplace pensions
Payroll reporting
Payroll payments through BACS files or Faster Payments
Employee leave and absence data
Expenses
Payroll and HR integrations
PayFit doesn’t currently publish a simple universal UK price on its main website. Pricing depends on business size and the level of payroll support required.
Our view: PayFit is particularly interesting for SMEs that sit between two traditional payroll models.
You may not want DIY payroll software where your team carries the entire workload.
But you may also not want a traditional outsourced bureau where you lose visibility over what’s happening.
PayFit’s proposition is essentially experts prepare payroll + technology gives you visibility + your business approves the final pay run.
We think that’s a compelling model for growing SMEs.
Compare PayFit & Other Payroll Providers →
Free quotes • No obligation • Compare UK payroll services and software
Key Takeaways
PayFit combines payroll technology with managed UK payroll support.
PayFit currently says 22,000+ businesses use its platform.
CIPP-qualified UK payroll experts can prepare and check payroll runs.
Customers retain visibility and approve payroll before payday.
PayFit is HMRC-recognised payroll software.
RTI submissions including FPS and EPS can be handled on the customer’s behalf.
PayFit supports automatic pension submissions to major workplace pension providers.
Employee payments can be supported through BACS files or Faster Payments via Telleroo.
Payroll journals can connect with Xero, QuickBooks, Sage and NetSuite.
PayFit also brings payroll, HR, leave and expenses into the same wider platform.
PayFit says onboarding is included without an additional fee.
Its current pricing model is subscription-based per employee rather than the unsupported price estimates previously shown on this page.
We think PayFit’s strongest selling point is combining outsourced payroll expertise with the visibility of payroll software.
Compare Managed Payroll Services →
How do we work?
Our comparisons are researched and reviewed by the Compare Your Business Costs editorial team using provider information, official UK guidance and business buying criteria. See how Compare Your Business Costs works .
Authored by: Ally Cox – Business Technology & B2B Services Specialist, 10+ years’ experience
Last updated: October 2026
Contents
What Is PayFit? PayFit is a cloud payroll and HR platform designed for UK employers and their current payroll proposition combines payroll technology + UK payroll specialists + automation.
PayFit currently says more than 22,000 businesse use its platform.
The software covers areas including:
Payroll
Employee information
Leave and absences
Expenses
HR administration
Performance management
Payroll reporting
However, the most important development for businesses comparing PayFit is its managed payroll model.
PayFit’s payroll experts can prepare and check payroll rather than leaving the entire process with the customer’s internal team.
Our take: this changes how PayFit should be compared.
It’s no longer particularly useful to describe it simply as “automated payroll software.”
The stronger description is managed payroll with modern software visibility.
How Much Does PayFit Payroll Cost? PayFit doesn’t currently publish one universal UK payroll price on its main product pages.
Instead, the provider says the cost depends on business size + level of support required.
Plans can range from self-managed payroll through to more extensive support from a dedicated payroll team.
PayFit currently describes its pricing as a monthly subscription charged per employee.
The provider also says there are no additional charges for routine events such as:
Adding a new starter
Processing a leaver
Adding a last-minute bonus
Running corrections
Receiving support
PayFit also currently says onboarding is included at no additional cost.
Our view: we’d rather see a public £X-per-employee tariff, but the lack of separate routine processing charges potentially makes the eventual quote easier to budget for than a bureau where corrections, starters, leavers and additional support are charged separately.
Ask for the complete monthly cost + annual cost + exactly what support level that price includes.
Compare UK Payroll Costs →
Don’t Compare PayFit With Basic Payroll Software on Price Alone This is particularly important with PayFit.
Suppose basic payroll software costs less each month.
That’s useful if your internal team is happy to collect changes + process payroll + check calculations + investigate anomalies + manage submissions.
But PayFit’s managed proposition includes payroll experts preparing and checking payroll.
You’re therefore comparing software with software + payroll expertise + processing support.
The better calculation is PayFit subscription versus current payroll software + internal payroll time + external payroll support + HR administration.
Our take: PayFit becomes more commercially attractive as the internal cost of payroll administration increases.
How Does PayFit Managed Payroll Work? PayFit’s current managed payroll model is designed to combine external payroll expertise with customer control and their UK payroll experts can:
Collect payroll information
Enter payroll data
Check payroll information
Prepare each pay run
Calculate relevant payroll deductions
Generate payslips
Submit RTI information
Flag payroll issues and anomalies
The customer can then review + approve the payroll before payday.
What we like
We think this solves one of the genuine trade-offs in payroll outsourcing.
Traditional outsourcing can sometimes leave the employer feeling removed from the payroll process.
DIY payroll software gives you complete visibility but leaves the work with you.
PayFit’s proposition attempts to provide expert help without giving up visibility – That’s a useful middle ground.
What Payroll Work Will Your Team Still Do? PayFit can prepare payroll, but your business still controls the information going into it and you’ll need accurate information around areas such as:
New starters
Leavers
Salary changes
Bonuses
Commissions
Overtime
Deductions
Absences
Employee changes
PayFit can connect HR information and automate parts of this process, but internal approval remains important.
Our key buying question would be – “What information does our team need to provide each month, and what does PayFit do after we provide it?”
Then ask competing managed payroll providers exactly the same question.
PayFit AI PayFit now incorporates PayFit AI into its payroll and HR proposition and they say PayFit AI can:
Support everyday payroll and HR questions
Help automate routine tasks
Flag unusual payroll information
Help identify potential issues before payroll is finalised
Our view: “AI payroll” isn’t in itself a reason to choose a provider.
The useful question is what does the AI actually prevent or automate?
Anomaly detection is potentially valuable.
For example, spotting that someone’s net pay has changed unexpectedly before payroll is approved is much more useful than simply adding an AI chatbot to the interface.
We’d therefore judge PayFit AI on errors caught + admin removed + questions resolved.
Is PayFit HMRC Recognised? Yes! PayFit is HMRC-recognised payroll software and their payroll service supports:
Full Payment Submissions
Employer Payment Summaries
Tax-code changes
PAYE calculations
National Insurance calculations
Statutory payroll processes
PayFit says RTI submissions can be sent to HMRC on the customer’s behalf and their UK payroll specialists can also check payroll before the final pay run is approved.
Our take: HMRC functionality is essential rather than exceptional for UK payroll.
The stronger PayFit proposition is automation + payroll-expert checking.
That’s more valuable than simply stating that software can submit an FPS.
PayFit Workplace Pensions & Auto-Enrolment PayFit supports workplace pension administration and the platform can automatically assess employee eligibility and handle pension submissions to major providers.
PayFit currently highlights support for providers including:
Nest
The People’s Pension
Smart Pension
Aviva
Nest submissions can be processed in real time, while other supported pension-provider submissions can be handled through the payroll process.
PayFit can also send relevant enrolment communications.
Our view: pensions are one of the areas where payroll automation can save meaningful recurring administration.
When comparing providers, don’t ask “Does it support pensions?”
Ask “Which pension tasks will our team still need to perform each month?”
Can PayFit Pay Employees? PayFit provides two useful routes for moving from completed payroll to employee payment.
BACS files
PayFit can generate a bank file in the appropriate format for the business to upload to its bank.
Faster Payments
PayFit also integrates with Telleroo for Faster Payments.
Our take: this matters because payroll isn’t finished when the net-pay calculation appears on screen.
Employees still need to receive the money.
Reducing the manual work between approved payroll → employee bank account is a meaningful part of payroll automation, so ask exactly what approval your finance team needs to perform before payments are released.
Can You Correct a PayFit Payroll? PayFit allows users to undo a payroll run, make a correction and rerun it – the platform also provides variance analysis to compare the current payroll with the previous month and identify reasons for changes.
We like this feature.
Payroll errors and unexpected changes are inevitable and so the question isn’t whether an unusual payroll situation will ever happen.
It’s how painful is it to identify and correct it?
A clear variance view can be particularly useful before payroll approval.
What Does PayFit Integrate With? PayFit integrates with HR, finance, pension and payment systems and current accounting integrations include:
Xero
QuickBooks
Sage
NetSuite
PayFit can automatically generate payroll journals formatted for accounting systems and it also supports integrations with HR platforms including:
An Open API is also available for businesses requiring custom integrations.
Our take: integrations matter most when they remove duplicate data entry.
The important question isn’t “Does PayFit integrate with Xero?”
It’s “What will our finance team no longer have to manually enter because it integrates with Xero?”
That’s the benefit worth measuring.
PayFit HR, Leave & Expenses PayFit extends beyond payroll and their wider platform covers areas including:
Employee information
Leave and absences
Expenses
People management
Performance management
HR documents
That can be useful because many payroll changes originate somewhere else.
An employee joins + takes leave + submits an expense + changes salary + leaves.
If those events are managed in separate systems, somebody eventually needs to move the relevant information into payroll.
Bringing more employee information into the same environment can reduce those handoffs.
Our view: this is a stronger reason to buy integrated HR/payroll technology than simply having lots of features.
The value comes from less duplicated administration.
PayFit Payroll Reporting PayFit provides extensive payroll reporting and they say payroll data can be analysed using more than 200 reporting dimensions.
That can include information around areas such as:
Salaries
Payroll movements
Tax
National Insurance
Student loans
Employee costs
Who does this matter to? Finance teams.
Once a business grows beyond a basic payroll, the requirement often moves from “what did we pay everyone?”
to “why did payroll increase this month?”
PayFit’s variance and reporting functionality can help answer that second question.
Who Is PayFit Best For? We think PayFit deserves particular consideration from Growing UK SMEs
Especially businesses where payroll is becoming too time-consuming to manage entirely internally.
Businesses that want managed payroll without losing visibility
PayFit’s experts prepare payroll while customers retain access to the platform and approve the pay run.
Finance teams
Accounting integrations, payroll journals, reporting and variance analysis can reduce month-end administration.
Businesses wanting payroll and HR connected
Employee information, leave, expenses and payroll can sit within the wider PayFit environment.
Businesses with workplace pensions
PayFit can automate pension assessments and submissions to major providers.
Businesses currently moving payroll information manually
Integrations can reduce duplicate entry between HR, finance and payroll systems.
Who might prefer something else?
A micro-business with a handful of straightforward employees may prefer very basic low-cost payroll software.
A company wanting a traditional local bureau with minimal software interaction may prefer a conventional outsourced payroll provider.
And a multinational business requiring multi-country payroll + Employer of Record + global workforce management should compare international payroll platforms.
PayFit Payroll Pros & Cons Advantages
Managed payroll combined with modern payroll software
CIPP-qualified UK payroll experts
HMRC-recognised software
RTI submissions handled on the customer’s behalf
Customers retain payroll visibility and approval
Workplace pension automation
BACS-file generation
Faster Payments integration through Telleroo
Payroll corrections can be rerun
Payroll variance analysis
Accounting integrations
HR-system integrations
Open API
HR, leave and expenses available in the wider platform
PayFit AI provides payroll and HR support and anomaly detection
Onboarding currently advertised without an additional fee
Potential Disadvantages
No simple universal UK price displayed on the main product pages
Businesses need a quote to establish their exact cost and support level
A very small employer needing only basic payroll may not require the wider proposition
The business still needs to provide and approve accurate payroll information
PayFit is primarily focused on UK payroll rather than being a global EOR/payroll platform
Businesses wanting a completely hands-off traditional bureau model should compare the exact responsibilities retained internally
What Should You Compare Before Choosing PayFit? Give PayFit and competing providers the same payroll scenario, so include:
Employee numbers
Payroll frequency
Variable pay
Bonuses and commissions
Average starters and leavers
Pension provider
HR system
Accounting software
Expenses
Payment requirements
Reporting requirements
Current payroll workload
Then ask “What is our complete monthly and first-year cost?”
We’d also ask:
“Which payroll tasks will your team perform for us?” “What will our internal team still need to do?” “Who is responsible for entering payroll changes?” “Which integrations are included?” “What happens if we need to correct payroll?” “How will employees actually be paid?” “What happens if we submit a payroll change close to payday?” “Which pension administration will you handle?”
And finally “How many hours should our team expect to spend on payroll each month after implementation?”
We think that’s one of the best ways to judge whether the service represents good value.
Compare Managed Payroll Providers →
Our View: Is PayFit Worth It? We think PayFit has become more interesting because its proposition now sits between payroll software
and traditional payroll outsourcing.
The software gives businesses visibility.
The payroll experts provide human support and processing.
And the customer retains final approval.
That’s a sensible model for a growing business that has reached the point where DIY payroll takes too much time
but doesn’t want to lose control by simply emailing a spreadsheet to an external bureau every month.
We also like the emphasis on the processes surrounding payroll.
Integrations can connect HR → payroll → accounting → pensions → employee payments.
That’s potentially more valuable than shaving a few minutes from the actual payroll calculation.
The current no-extra-fee approach for routine events such as starters, leavers and corrections is also worth considering when comparing quotes.
But PayFit won’t automatically be the cheapest solution.
A five-person company with fixed monthly salaries may be perfectly well served by simpler payroll software.
PayFit becomes more compelling as employee numbers + payroll changes + integrations + internal administration increase.
For a growing UK SME, we think PayFit deserves a strong shortlist position.
The question we’d use to judge it is “How much payroll work will PayFit’s experts actually remove while still giving us the visibility we want?”
Compare PayFit & Other Payroll Providers →
Free quotes • No obligation • Compare UK payroll services and software
PayFit Payroll FAQs What is PayFit?
PayFit is a payroll and HR platform combining payroll software, automation and support from UK payroll experts.
How much does PayFit cost in the UK?
PayFit doesn’t currently publish one universal price on its main UK product pages. Pricing depends on business size and the level of payroll support required and is structured as a monthly per-employee subscription.
Are there additional PayFit payroll fees?
PayFit currently says its monthly subscription doesn’t add separate fees for routine events such as adding starters, processing leavers, last-minute bonuses, corrections or support. It also says onboarding is included without an additional charge. Confirm the exact commercial terms in your quote.
Is PayFit HMRC recognised?
Yes. PayFit is HMRC-recognised payroll software.
Does PayFit submit RTI to HMRC?
Yes. PayFit says it handles RTI submissions including Full Payment Submissions and Employer Payment Summaries on the customer’s behalf.
Does PayFit manage workplace pensions?
Yes. PayFit supports auto-enrolment processes and pension submissions to major workplace pension providers.
Does PayFit generate payslips?
Yes. PayFit generates employee payslips and securely stores payroll records online.
Does PayFit produce P45s and P60s?
Yes. PayFit supports P45 and P60 payroll processes.
Does PayFit handle P11Ds?
Yes. PayFit’s current payroll documentation includes automated P11Ds within its payroll functionality.
Can PayFit pay employees?
PayFit can generate BACS files for upload to your bank and integrates with Telleroo for Faster Payments.
Does PayFit integrate with Xero?
Yes. PayFit integrates with Xero and can generate payroll journals for accounting.
Does PayFit integrate with QuickBooks?
Yes. QuickBooks is among PayFit’s supported accounting integrations.
Does PayFit integrate with Sage?
Yes. PayFit supports payroll-accounting workflows with Sage.
Does PayFit integrate with HR software?
Yes. PayFit supports HR integrations including platforms such as BambooHR, Personio and HiBob, alongside an Open API.
Does PayFit include HR software?
PayFit’s wider platform includes people management, leave and absences, expenses, HR documents and performance-management functionality.
Does PayFit completely outsource payroll?
PayFit’s current proposition includes managed payroll support where UK payroll experts prepare and check pay runs. Customers retain visibility and review and approve payroll before payday.
Is PayFit suitable for small businesses?
Yes, particularly small and growing businesses that want more payroll support and automation. Very small employers with simple payroll should still compare the complete PayFit cost against basic payroll software.
Compare PayFit With Other Payroll Providers Don’t compare PayFit purely against basic payroll software.
Compare the complete value of software + payroll expertise + RTI + pensions + integrations + reporting + internal time saved.
Then compare that with managed payroll providers offering a similar level of support.
Compare Payroll Providers →
Free quotes • No obligation • Compare UK payroll services and software
Related Payroll Guides Hi, I’m Ally Cox , a senior copywriter and blogger at CompareYourBusinessCosts.co.uk, the UK’s trusted platform for comparing business services.over a decade of experience in the B2B sector, I specialise in simplifying complex topics like leased lines, VoIP, business energy, HR and payroll solutions, accounting software, and EPOS systems .HR, copywriting, and business operations- from clocking-in systems to card machines and office technology .informed, confident decisions when choosing products and services that improve efficiency and save money.
