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As companies are increasingly becoming more international, finding the right global payroll partner can be a huge benefit to organizations.
Businesses want to move from an ad hoc payroll processing approach that can differ from country-to-country to a streamlined process that happens in the same system and allows for holistic, consistent, real-time reporting.
The global payroll space has a number of different providers that take different approaches to the market. Some companies can offer full-suite HRIS's on top of their global payroll capabilities. Some focus purely on global payroll and process payroll themselves in-country, while others focus purely on global payroll but take an aggregator approach. And finally, others will provide global payroll in addition to other global payment services like global EOR (employer of record).
If you're not sure what type of solution you need, or which vendors to focus on, you can reach out to OutSail. OutSail's free services help companies get matched to the right global payroll platforms.
Learn More: Request a vendor report comparing the leading global payroll platforms
Below are the leading global payroll platforms in the market today:
These solutions are highly focused on providing best-in-class global payroll processing and they are happy to integrate with a client's existing HRIS platform. They typically don't offer additional services such as EOR or entity set-up services, but instead are best suited for companies that already have entities set-up abroad.
Blue Marble is one of the pioneers of the global payroll space and offers a comprehensive service at a great price. Their technology platform provides a time, leave management, employee file and compliance portal for employees to access, and also allows for a single dashboard for admins to view all global employees. Blue Marble can also provide in-country consulting support too. They do not process US payroll directly but they have pre-built integrations with many market leading HRIS’s who can meet most company’s US needs. Blue Marble was recently acquired by Paylocity, so it's unclear if they will continue to maintain their friendliness towards other HRIS systems
Blog: The Best Payroll Systems to Integrate with NetSuite
CloudPay has been in the global payroll space since 1996 and continues to develop their platform through strategic investments. CloudPay is best suited for enterprise companies and has prioritized integrations with enterprise HRIS systems like Workday, SAP and Oracle. CloudPay offers a technology platform to streamline the entire global payroll process, providing visibility into your global workforce and they can also provide in-country expertise where needed.
Workday Reviews - Pricing, Pros/Cons, User Reviews
Activpayroll is unique in the marketplace for the fact that they do not rely on a 3rd party payroll network, but instead process payroll themselves in all 46 countries they operate in. Activpayroll offers fully outsourced payroll services and can manage all of a company’s compliance needs too. Activpayroll is also a highly consultative company that helps their partners understand and plan for global expansion. Additionally, they leave their US payroll processing operations up to UKG Pro and offer a deep bi-directional integration.
Want more info on these global payroll platforms? Talk to an advisor about firsthand experience
This group is for companies that are seeking a one-stop-shop for all things global HR and all things global payroll. By bundling these services with one provider, companies can streamline the number of tools they use and the number of vendors they manage.
ADP rarely needs an introduction as the leading payroll provider in the US for decades. ADP has a few different HRIS solutions that they can provide to global companies, including Workforce Now and Vantage. Additionally, ADP acquired Celergo a few years ago, giving them a global payroll platform that is available in over 130 countries. Like most vendors, Celergo uses a payroll aggregator model, and the Celergo system is separate from ADP's HRIS's, which can lead to some additional consolidation work from admins.
Ceridian offers a scalable, global HRIS system called Dayforce that is used by many enterprise companies. Ceridian can also process payroll natively in over a dozen countries, far more than almost any other HRIS provider. And in the countries where Ceridian doesn't natively process payroll, they leverage global payroll aggregators so that they can span the entire globe. One of the biggest differentiators for Ceridian globally is that their global payroll is processed within Dayforce, ensuring that all global HR and global payroll happens in the same system.
Blog: How Long Does it Take To Buy and Implement an HRIS
This is the fastest growing segment of the market. There are boutique global consulting firms that can provide global payroll services and additional global consulting. There are also a number of other EOR providers hoping to launch global payroll in 2022 (Deel, Remote, Oyster). However, these three companies are currently leading the way for global payroll + EOR.
Safeguard Global has been in the industry since 2008, originally as a managed payroll service provider. For companies that want a strong partner in both global payroll and EOR, Safeguard can be a strong fit. They can offer EOR services across the globe through partners. And Safeguard also provides a tech platform for payroll, time and expenses. Safeguard is one of the largest company in the global payroll space and their internal team provides full in-country compliance and tax support
Papaya is one of the fastest growing companies in the global employment space. They are the only company that can currently provide full global payroll, EOR and contractor management services. Papaya also differentiates on technology and can provide a broad set of modules in a modern, easy-to-use platform. Papaya uses an aggregator model for their global payroll processing.
Velocity Global is one of the market leaders in the global EOR space. Velocity Global’s biggest differentiator is their comprehensive service model which leads to very high client retention rates. VG can also offer a lightweight HRIS platform with a broad scope of modules. Velocity Global has recently entered the global payroll processing space and is on their way to also launching contractor management services.
