Gusto vs Justworks: Pricing Comparison 2026

Gusto and Justworks both handle payroll and HR for small businesses, but their models differ fundamentally. Gusto is a payroll and HR software platform. Simple at $40/month + $6/employee/month handles payroll, onboarding, and basic HR. Plus at $80/month + $12/employee/month adds PTO tracking, time tools, and performance reviews. Premium adds HR advisory services. Justworks is a PEO - a Professional Employer Organization that co-employs your workers. Basic at $59/employee/month includes payroll, benefits administration, compliance, and HR support. Plus at $109/employee/month adds medical, dental, and vision benefits. The PEO difference matters. Through co-employment, Justworks aggregates thousands of small businesses into one large group for benefits purchasing. This means a 10-person startup can access health insurance rates typically available to 500+ employee companies. Gusto offers benefits administration but at standard small-group rates. Gusto's advantage is flexibility and lower cost. A 20-person team on Gusto Simple pays $160/month. The same team on Justworks Basic pays $1,180/month. However, the Justworks cost includes compliance support, HR guidance, and benefits access that would cost Gusto users additional subscriptions and consultants. For cost-sensitive small businesses that want payroll software and can handle their own HR, Gusto is the economical choice. For small businesses that want bundled payroll, benefits, and HR support without an internal HR team, Justworks' PEO model delivers comprehensive coverage.