Which vendors do AI assistants recommend for payroll software for uk small businesses?
Employment Hero is named in 63% of answers — the assistants have a settled reply for payroll software for uk small businesses.
Entrenched
8 unbranded buyer questions, put to ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity with web search on, from London, GB, on 2026-09-14. 32 answers were read; every vendor claim below carries a quote from the answer it came from.
Share of answers
| Vendor | Named in | Credited with |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Employment Hero | 20 of 32 (63%) | Hmrc-recognised; free; cloud-based |
| 2. Moneysoft Payroll Manager | 18 of 32 (56%) | Hmrc-recognised; annual licence model, not per employee; good for fluctuating headcount |
| 3. BrightPay | 17 of 32 (53%) | Long-time tool of choice for uk accounting practices running payroll across multiple clients; moving to cloud-first model for 2026/27; dedicated payroll system loved by accountants |
| 4. Xero Payroll | 17 of 32 (53%) | Hmrc-recognised; sends data to nest or the people's pension; integrates with xero bookkeeping |
| 5. QuickBooks Payroll | 12 of 32 (38%) | Simplest starting point if already using quickbooks; low-cost add-ons; popular paid option |
| 6. PayFit | 12 of 32 (38%) | All-in-one payroll, time-off, expenses, onboarding; clean ui, automates complex calculations; hmrc submissions |
| 7. HMRC Basic PAYE Tools | 11 of 32 (34%) | Free; hmrc-recognised; for businesses with fewer than 10 employees |
| 8. Moorepay | 9 of 32 (28%) | Outsourced fully managed payroll service; preferred choice for uk smes needing compliance, accuracy and support; software or managed service |
| 9. Sage Payroll | 8 of 32 (25%) | Top recommendation for most 10-employee businesses; value-for-money; easy-to-use dashboard |
| 10. ADP | 7 of 32 (22%) | Designed for larger enterprises; high security; full uk tax compliance |
| 11. FreeAgent | 6 of 32 (19%) | Free with natwest/rbs/ulster bank/mettle accounts; native hmrc-recognised payroll; rti submission |
| 12. Zellis | 6 of 32 (19%) | Popular paid option; leading outsourced payroll provider in uk and ireland; comprehensive outsourced managed payroll operation |
The questions
- What is the best payroll software for a UK small business with 10 employees?
- Which UK payroll software is HMRC-recognised and handles RTI submissions?
- What payroll software handles auto-enrolment pensions for a UK employer?
- Which payroll tools integrate with Xero or QuickBooks in the UK?
- What is the cheapest payroll software for a UK company with one director?
- Which UK payroll software produces P60s and P11Ds automatically?
- What payroll platforms are suitable for UK businesses with hourly-paid staff and rotas?
- Which UK payroll providers offer a fully managed service rather than software?
In the assistants' words
“Employment Hero Free Payroll: HMRC‑recognised “100% free” payroll that auto‑submits RTI and handles PAYE/NI; good if you want zero software cost and basic HR tools.”
ChatGPT · Q1on Employment Hero
“Employment Hero Free Payroll”
ChatGPT · Q2on Employment Hero
“The annual licence model is a key differentiator — you pay once per year, not per employee, which for businesses with fluctuating headcount gives genuine budget value.”
Claude · Q1on Moneysoft Payroll Manager
“**Best budget option:** **Moneysoft** — cheaper for some small teams, with one guide citing about **£95 per year** for 10 employees.”
Perplexity · Q1on Moneysoft Payroll Manager
“This has long been the tool of choice for UK accounting practices running payroll across multiple clients, though note for the 2026/27 tax year it's moving away from its desktop product to a cloud-first model.”
Claude · Q1on BrightPay
“**BrightPay (Cloud)**”
Gemini · Q1on BrightPay
“**Xero Payroll** or **QuickBooks Payroll**”
Gemini · Q1on Xero Payroll
“**Best if you already use accounting software:** **Xero Payroll** or **QuickBooks Payroll** — these make most sense if you already run your accounts on those platforms.”
Perplexity · Q1on Xero Payroll
“If you use QuickBooks, QuickBooks Payroll is the simplest starting point.”
Claude · Q1on QuickBooks Payroll
“QuickBooks (Intuit)”
ChatGPT · Q2on QuickBooks Payroll
Read this carefully
Share is the share of answers naming the vendor; that's recall. It is not citation, not market share, and not a recommendation from us. A sample of 32 answers on one day. Engines change. 28 extracted claims were dropped because the quote could not be found in the frozen answer — that drop count is published on purpose. Engines: claude-sonnet-5, gemini-3.6-flash, gpt-5, sonar. Method: methodology.