Best Payroll Software in Australia 2026

Side-by-side comparison of Australian payroll packages. Every price is AUD inc. GST, every compliance rating verified against ATO requirements, and every data-hosting location confirmed directly.

5 products reviewed·Verified March 2026

Payroll Comparison

Software	Starting Price	BAS	STP 2	Bank Feeds	Data Location	AU Support
XeroNZ-Made	$35 /mo inc GST	✓ Direct	✓	Big 4 + more	AU	US hrs	Review Xero
MYOBAU-Made	$35 /mo inc GST	✓ Direct	✓	Big 4 + more	AU	AEST	Review MYOB
KeyPayAU-Made	$4 /mo inc GST	No	✓	—	AU	AEST	Review KeyPay
Employment HeroAU-Made	$20 /mo inc GST	No	✓	—	AU	AEST	Review Employment Hero
PayrollerAU-Made	$0 Free for 1 employee — full payroll features including STP Phase 2 reporting, payslips, and super calculations	No	✓	—	AU	AEST	Review Payroller

BAS Lodgement STP Phase 2 Payday Super AU Bank Feeds Data Sovereignty GST Handling

Choosing Payroll Software in Australia

Picking payroll software in Australia isn’t just about features and price — it’s about ATO compliance and local suitability. We rate every product against AU-specific requirements first, then look at usability, integrations, and value for money. All prices listed are in AUD inclusive of GST and were verified directly with each vendor in March 2026.

Top Pick

Xero

Australia's most popular cloud accounting platform

Australia's most widely-used accounting platform — your accountant almost certainly knows it
Deepest bank feed coverage with 50+ AU banks including all Big 4 (CBA, NAB, Westpac, ANZ)
Direct BAS lodgement to ATO via Standard Business Reporting (SBR) — no need for the ATO portal

From $35/mo inc GST · Read full Xero review →

Runner-Up

MYOB

Australia's original business management platform

Australian phone support at 1300 555 666 (Mon-Fri 7am-7pm AEST) — Xero doesn't offer this
Payroll for unlimited employees included in Pro plan ($70/mo) — no per-employee add-on cost
130+ Australian bank feed connections — one of the broadest coverages available

From $35/mo inc GST · Read full MYOB review →

#3 Pick

KeyPay

Cloud payroll built for AU accountants and bookkeepers

Best-in-class Modern Award auto-interpretation covering 100+ Awards with auto-rate updates — eliminates the #1 source of payroll errors
STP Phase 2 compliant (ATO-certified since June 2022) and confirmed Payday Super ready for July 2026
Multi-client dashboard purpose-built for accountants/bookkeepers managing 20+ client payrolls from a single login

From $4/mo inc GST · Read full KeyPay review →

#4 Pick

Employment Hero

All-in-one HR, payroll and benefits platform for AU businesses

All-in-one HR + Payroll eliminates multiple subscriptions — onboarding, leave, rostering, payroll, and compliance in one platform
Best-in-class Modern Award auto-interpretation: 50+ pre-configured awards with automatic Fair Work rate updates (powered by KeyPay engine)
STP Phase 2 compliant (ATO-recognised since Sept 2022) and Payday Super ready via HeroClear real-time NPP payments

From $20/mo inc GST · Read full Employment Hero review →

#5 Pick

Payroller

Simple payroll for AU small business

Free for 1 employee — lowest barrier to entry of any AU payroll software
Very simple and easy to use — 85% of users run first payroll in under 15 minutes
STP Phase 2 compliant with automatic ATO reporting

From $0/mo inc GST · Read full Payroller review →