Payroll + HR · United States
Homebase pricing: what it actually costs per employee at 5, 10, 25 and 50
At 10 employees, the cheapest plan Homebase publishes is Basic + Payroll: $109 a month — $10.90 per employee per month, base fee included.
- Price statusPublished list price
- Prices read onchecked 2026-09-27
- Last recorded change2026-09-27 · what changed
No vendor we hold publishes a cheaper monthly total at this headcount.
On its cheapest published plan, Homebase costs $109 a month for 10 employees, which is $10.90 per employee per month.
At 5 employees the same plan works out at $15.80 per employee — the headline figure of $6 assumes the base fee is spread over more people.
What the vendor publishes
| Plan | Base / month | Per employee / month | Eligibility as published | What the vendor states |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | $49 | $6 | Only on top of a Basic or Essentials or Plus or All-in-One plan | "Then $49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid". Quoted on Homebase's pricing page as an add-on; the plan fee below is charged as well. Promo "6 Months Free: Payroll & Plus Plan" (standard price recorded, promo excluded; checked 2026-10-03). |
| Basic | $0 | — | Up to 10 employees. Charged per location | Not a payroll price on its own. Payroll is a paid add-on to any Homebase plan, published as "$49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid". The base tiers below are the time-and-scheduling product, not payroll. Up to 1 location, 10 employees max. Payroll add-on available: "$49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid" |
| Essentials | $30 | — | Charged per location | The vendor does not state an upper headcount for this flat fee, so it cannot be reduced to a monthly figure. Per location, unlimited employees; $24/month if billed annually ("Save $72/year"). Payroll add-on: "$49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid" |
| Plus | $70 | — | Charged per location | The vendor does not state an upper headcount for this flat fee, so it cannot be reduced to a monthly figure. Per location, unlimited employees; $56/month if billed annually ("Save $168/year"). Payroll add-on: "$49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid" |
| All-in-One | $120 | — | Charged per location | The vendor does not state an upper headcount for this flat fee, so it cannot be reduced to a monthly figure. Per location, unlimited employees; $96/month if billed annually ("Save $288/year"). Payroll add-on: "$49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid". Free 14-day trial of All-in-One, no credit card required |
Setup fee: not stated in the vendor's published documentation (checked 2026-09-27).
Minimum contract: not stated in the vendor's published documentation (checked 2026-09-27).
What has to be bought together
Homebase does not sell payroll on its own, so a payroll price only exists in combination with one of its plans. The combinations below are what we rank and calculate with; the add-on on its own is not a price anyone can pay.
| Combination | Base / month | Per employee / month | Eligibility as published |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic + Payroll | $49 | $6 | Up to 10 employees. Charged per location. Combined figure: Basic at $0/month per location and Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) at $49/month plus $6 per person. The vendor sells the payroll product only as an add-on, so the plan fee is charged as well. One location assumed. This combination is only available up to 10 employees. |
| Essentials + Payroll | $79 | $6 | Charged per location. Combined figure: Essentials at $30/month per location and Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) at $49/month plus $6 per person. The vendor sells the payroll product only as an add-on, so the plan fee is charged as well. One location assumed. |
| Plus + Payroll | $119 | $6 | Charged per location. Combined figure: Plus at $70/month per location and Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) at $49/month plus $6 per person. The vendor sells the payroll product only as an add-on, so the plan fee is charged as well. One location assumed. |
| All-in-One + Payroll | $169 | $6 | Charged per location. Combined figure: All-in-One at $120/month per location and Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) at $49/month plus $6 per person. The vendor sells the payroll product only as an add-on, so the plan fee is charged as well. One location assumed. |
What that works out at per employee
Vendors quote a per-employee fee and a base fee separately. What you actually pay per employee is both of them divided by your headcount, so the smaller your team, the further the real figure sits above the advertised one. This table is Homebase's published prices put through that division.
| Plan | 1 | 5 | 10 | 25 | 50 | 100 | 250 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic + Payroll | $55.00 | $15.80 | $10.90 | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Essentials + Payroll | $85.00 | $21.80 | $13.90 | $9.16 | $7.58 | $6.79 | $6.32 |
| Plus + Payroll | $125.00 | $29.80 | $17.90 | $10.76 | $8.38 | $7.19 | $6.48 |
| All-in-One + Payroll | $175.00 | $39.80 | $22.90 | $12.76 | $9.38 | $7.69 | $6.68 |
Columns are employee counts. Scroll sideways on a phone.
No other adjustment is applied. We do not add estimated tax-filing fees, discounts, or promotional pricing. The full method is at Method.
Where the base fee stops mattering
Against Gusto — the cheapest published alternative at 10 employees — the ordering turns over at 11 employees: below that Homebase has the lower monthly total, from there Gusto does. That is arithmetic on two published prices, not a recommendation; the comparison shows both at every headcount.
Who this suits, and who it does not
- If price is the only thing you are deciding on, Homebase is the cheapest published option we hold for payroll + hr in this market at 10 employees.
- If your headcount is under 5, the base fee of $49 dominates the bill. Check the per-employee column at your actual size before comparing anything.
- If you are not ready to decide, wait. Published prices change without notice and the figures here are only as current as 2026-09-27. Confirm on the vendor's own page before you sign.
Price history
| Date | Plan | What changed | Was | Now |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-27 | Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | Monthly base fee price change on the vendor's page — The pricing page now shows "Then $49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid". Our 2026-09-07 reading recorded "$39/month + $6/month per employee paid". The per-employee fee is unchanged. | $39 | $49 |
The same entries, next to every other vendor's, are on the price history (RSS).
Where each figure comes from
Every figure above is either a number Homebase publishes or a gap it leaves. Field by field: what we hold, which of the vendor's own pages it was read from, the day it was read, and the vendor's wording where we have it. Nothing in this table comes from a third party, and no blank is filled with an estimate.
Show the source of every figure on this page (28 fields)
| Plan | Field | What we hold | Read from | Read on | The vendor's wording |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Setup fee | Not stated in the vendor's published documentation | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| — | Minimum contract | Not stated in the vendor's published documentation | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| — | Free trial | 14 days | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | Monthly base fee | $49 | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | Per-employee fee | $6 | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | Eligibility | Only on top of a Basic or Essentials or Plus or All-in-One plan | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | Tax calculation | Included | joinhomebase.com/payroll | 2026-09-27 | "Automated tax calculation, filing, and payment" |
| Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | Tax filing | Included | joinhomebase.com/payroll | 2026-09-27 | "1099s, W-2s, tax filings, amendments included." |
| Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | Direct deposit | Included | joinhomebase.com/payroll | 2026-09-27 | "Direct deposit & printable checks" |
| Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | Year-end forms | Included | joinhomebase.com/payroll | 2026-09-27 | "1099s, W-2s, tax filings, amendments included." |
| Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | Off-cycle runs | Included | joinhomebase.com/payroll | 2026-09-27 | "Includes unlimited payroll runs." |
| Payroll add-on (on top of any plan) | Conditions on the price | — | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | "Then $49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid". Quoted on Homebase's pricing page as an add-on; the plan fee below is charged as well. Promo "6 Months Free: Payroll & Plus Plan" (standard price recorded, promo excluded; checked 2026-10-03). |
| Basic | Monthly base fee | $0 | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Basic | Per-employee fee | Not published on the vendor's page | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Basic | Eligibility | Up to 10 employees. Charged per location | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Basic | Conditions on the price | — | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | Payroll is a paid add-on to any Homebase plan, published as "$49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid". The base tiers below are the time-and-scheduling product, not payroll. Up to 1 location, 10 employees max. Payroll add-on available: "$49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid" |
| Essentials | Monthly base fee | $30 | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Essentials | Per-employee fee | Not published on the vendor's page | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Essentials | Eligibility | Charged per location | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Essentials | Conditions on the price | — | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | Per location, unlimited employees; $24/month if billed annually ("Save $72/year"). Payroll add-on: "$49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid" |
| Plus | Monthly base fee | $70 | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Plus | Per-employee fee | Not published on the vendor's page | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Plus | Eligibility | Charged per location | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| Plus | Conditions on the price | — | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | Per location, unlimited employees; $56/month if billed annually ("Save $168/year"). Payroll add-on: "$49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid" |
| All-in-One | Monthly base fee | $120 | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| All-in-One | Per-employee fee | Not published on the vendor's page | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| All-in-One | Eligibility | Charged per location | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | |
| All-in-One | Conditions on the price | — | the pricing page | 2026-09-27 | Per location, unlimited employees; $96/month if billed annually ("Save $288/year"). Payroll add-on: "$49/mo base fee + $6/month per employee paid". Free 14-day trial of All-in-One, no credit card required |
The same record, for every vendor, is the sources column of plans.csv on the data page.
Where to check this yourself
Go to Homebase and open its pricing page. Everything above comes from https://www.joinhomebase.com/pricing, read on 2026-09-27.
Related
- Homebase compared with Gusto
- Homebase compared with Paycor
- Alternatives to Homebase
- Why payroll costs more than the advertised per-employee fee
- Put your own headcount against Homebase in the calculator
- What payroll software costs, and where the money goes
- Payroll plus HR pricing in the US: 12 published plans from $109 to $400 a month for 10 employees, including Paycor's $99 + $5 small-business tier
- Square Payroll vs Homebase: $35 + $6 against $49 + $6 with a $0 to $120 plan fee underneath
Written by Kaz, independent publisher.
Page last updated: 2026-10-03. Sources: vendor pricing pages only. Figures checked between 2026-08-20 and 2026-10-03. I have not used these products. Nothing here is a personal test result.
Ranking method and formulas: Method. Listing position on this site is not for sale.
Corrections: contact form.