Square Payroll vs Homebase: $35 + $6 against $49 + $6 with a $0 to $120 plan fee underneath
Last updated 2026-10-03
Short version
- Square Payroll Full-Service is $35 a month plus $6 per person paid. Homebase payroll is an add-on at $49 a month plus $6 per employee paid, and a Homebase plan fee sits under it.
- On the Basic plan ($0, one location, up to 10 employees) the gap is $14 a month at any headcount, $168 a year.
- From 11 employees Basic is not available, so a paid plan comes in. On the lowest-priced paid plan, Essentials ($30 per location), 25 employees cost $185 at Square and $229 at Homebase, $44 apart. On Plus ($70) the gap is $84; on All-in-One ($120) it is $134.
- Homebase's page showed "6 Months Free: Payroll & Plus Plan" on 2026-10-03, a limited-time offer. Square charges $3 a year per paper W-2 or 1099 mailed, opt-in.
- Both pricing pages were re-read on 2026-10-03.
Homebase bills in two layers
On Homebase's pricing page payroll reads "Then $49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid," and it is an add-on to any of the four plans: Basic, Essentials, Plus, All-in-One. The plans themselves are the time-and-scheduling product, priced per location.
| Homebase plan | Monthly (monthly billing) | Condition |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | $0 | 1 location, up to 10 employees |
| Essentials | $30 per location | $24 on annual billing |
| Plus | $70 per location | $56 on annual billing |
| All-in-One | $120 per location | $96 on annual billing; 14-day free trial, no credit card |
Read 2026-10-03. The $49 + $6 payroll add-on goes on top of this table.
Square Payroll is one layer: $35 + $6 and nothing under it. The page says "No commitment, no long-term contracts required."
Inside the Basic plan (up to 10 employees): $14
Basic is $0, so up to ten employees the comparison is $49 + $6 against $35 + $6. The per-employee fee is the same $6; the base fees are $14 apart. The gap is therefore $14 at any headcount in this range.
| Employees | Square Full-Service | Homebase Basic + payroll | Gap per month | Gap per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $41 ($41 each) | $55 ($55 each) | $14 | $168 |
| 5 | $65 ($13) | $79 ($15.80) | $14 | $168 |
| 10 | $95 ($9.50) | $109 ($10.90) | $14 | $168 |
Monthly total, effective per-employee figure in parentheses. List prices only. Both read 2026-10-03.
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From the eleventh employee, or on any paid plan
Basic stops at 10 employees, so an eleventh means Essentials or higher. With Essentials at one location, Homebase's fixed part becomes $49 + $30 = $79, plus $6 per employee. The gap to Square becomes $14 + $30 = $44.
| Employees | Square Full-Service | Homebase Essentials + payroll | Gap per month | Gap per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | $185 ($7.40 each) | $229 ($9.16 each) | $44 | $528 |
| 50 | $335 ($6.70) | $379 ($7.58) | $44 | $528 |
| 100 | $635 ($6.35) | $679 ($6.79) | $44 | $528 |
Essentials at one location, monthly billing, $30. A second location adds another $30.
Under ten employees the same thing happens if you pick a plan above Basic: the gap grows by the plan fee. At ten employees, side by side:
| 10 employees | Monthly | Gap to Square's $95 |
|---|---|---|
| Homebase Basic + payroll | $109 | $14 |
| Homebase Essentials + payroll | $139 | $44 |
| Homebase Plus + payroll | $179 | $84 |
| Homebase All-in-One + payroll | $229 | $134 |
One location, monthly billing throughout. What each Homebase plan does is left to Homebase's own page. This site's dataset describes the plans as the time-and-scheduling product and makes no call on whether Square's $35 + $6 covers the same ground.
The six-months-free banner
On 2026-10-03 Homebase's pricing page carried "6 Months Free: Payroll & Plus Plan ... Limited time offer." Read as six free months of the payroll add-on, a ten-employee first year is $654 against a list-price $1,308. If the Plus plan is also free for six months, the other six months add $70 x 6 = $420, for $1,074 in total. Square's ten-employee year is $95 x 12 = $1,140, so for that first year alone the order reverses. The conditions are Homebase's, and this site ranks on list price.
Square's pricing page shows no free period or discount, and the dataset holds that item as unconfirmed.
Paper forms and multi-state
Square: "Digital delivery of W2s/1099s" is included; mailing paper copies is an opt-in $3 per form per year, so ten forms are $30 a year. Multi-state is included.
Homebase: year-end forms are included (confirmed on joinhomebase.com/payroll, 2026-09-27). Multi-state is not stated on the pricing page.
At your own headcount and location count
The $14 answer holds only inside Basic: one location, ten employees. Past that, add the plan fee and the number of locations before comparing. Put your headcount into the calculator and Square and Homebase land in the same table; check whether the Homebase row carries the plan fee you would actually use before reading it.
Scope of this comparison
Prices and the wording of two pricing pages only; no product judgment. We have not used either. List prices, not quotes. US dollar plans only. Overtime and tips on an hourly team are covered in article-29, and billing when you pay both employees and contractors in article-33.
Sources
- https://squareup.com/us/en/payroll/pricing (checked 2026-10-03)
- https://www.joinhomebase.com/pricing (checked 2026-10-03)
- https://www.joinhomebase.com/payroll (inclusions as read 2026-09-27)
- https://seatbill.com/payroll-pricing/d/square-payroll (checked 2026-10-03)
- https://seatbill.com/payroll-pricing/d/homebase (checked 2026-10-03)
Related on this site
- Homebase pricing: the plan layer and the payroll layer (d/homebase)
- Square Payroll pricing for employees and contractors (d/square-payroll)
- Gusto against Homebase, identical up to 10 employees (vs/gusto-vs-homebase)
- Square Payroll against SurePayroll (vs/square-payroll-vs-surepayroll)
- Payroll for an hourly team with overtime and tips (article-29)
- Paying employees and contractors: are you billed for both? (article-33)
Written by Kaz (pen name). Figures are copied from vendors' published pricing pages on the dates shown. We have not used these products.
Written by Kaz, independent publisher. No commercial relationship with the companies named unless it is listed on the disclosure page.
Published September 27, 2026. The figures above come from the government and vendor pages listed under Sources.
I have not used these products. Nothing here is a personal test result.
Corrections: contact form.