Restaurant payroll coordination
Best restaurant payroll software (2026)
By Dan MurphyUpdated 5 min read
What is the best payroll software for restaurants?
The best restaurant payroll software depends on your POS. Toast Payroll and Square Payroll pull hours and tips straight from their own POS. 7shifts and Homebase run payroll from their scheduling timesheets. Gusto, OnPay, Rippling and Paychex Flex handle tipped wages as general payroll platforms. All of them still need correct timecards and tips going in.
Restaurant payroll is harder than most because of tips: tip pools, tip credits, the makeup to minimum wage, and staff paid different rates for different roles on the same timecard. The software below handles at least some of that, according to each vendor's own site.
Software processes what it is given. If timecards, tips and new hires reach it wrong, the run will be wrong. Our payroll approval checklist is the step that sits in front of any of these.
How we chose
- Payroll products that are currently sold and describe restaurant or tipped-wage features on their own sites.
- What each one does with tips and your POS, in its own words.
- No pricing or ratings. Payroll pricing changes often and depends on headcount, so get a current quote.
The list at a glance
| # | Name | Type | Works with |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toast Payroll & Team Management | POS-integrated payroll software | Toast POS |
| 2 | Square Payroll | POS-integrated payroll software | Square POS |
| 3 | Gusto | Payroll and HR software | Integrates with 7shifts and others |
| 4 | 7shifts Payroll | Restaurant scheduling with payroll | 7shifts scheduling |
| 5 | Homebase Payroll | Small-business scheduling and payroll | Homebase timesheets |
| 6 | OnPay | Payroll software | QuickBooks, Xero, time-tracking apps |
| 7 | Rippling | HR, IT and payroll platform | Hundreds of third-party apps |
| 8 | Paychex Flex | National payroll and HR provider | National |
1.Toast Payroll & Team Management
POS-integrated payroll software · Toast POS
Payroll built into Toast. Its site says it pulls hours and tips straight from the POS, handles overtime across locations and multiple pay rates, calculates the tip makeup to minimum wage, and flags problems such as missing SSNs and unapproved tips before the run.
Best for: restaurants already running on Toast POS.
Worth knowing: it works best, and mostly only makes sense, if you already run Toast POS.
2.Square Payroll
POS-integrated payroll software · Square POS
Payroll inside the Square dashboard that imports timecards and direct tips from Square POS, with multiple pay rates and multi-state tax support.
Best for: small cafés and counter-service restaurants already on Square.
Worth knowing: tip pooling is a separate Square feature on specific plans, so check which one you need.
3.Gusto
Payroll and HR software · Integrates with 7shifts and others
General small-business payroll with restaurant features: time tracking and tip-credit compliance that tells you before the run when a tipped employee needs a makeup payment.
Best for: independents that want payroll, HR tools and benefits in one place.
Worth knowing: its own site says it does not file Form 8027, the IRS tip report some larger restaurants must file, for you.
4.7shifts Payroll
Restaurant scheduling with payroll · 7shifts scheduling
Payroll inside the 7shifts restaurant scheduling platform, connected to its time clock and tip-out tools.
Best for: restaurants already scheduling in 7shifts that want one system from schedule to paycheck.
Worth knowing: payroll is only on 7shifts' top plan.
5.Homebase Payroll
Small-business scheduling and payroll · Homebase timesheets
Runs payroll from Homebase timesheets and handles multiple wage rates, tip pools, breaks, overtime and paid time off.
Best for: small single-location restaurants.
Worth knowing: the tip manager is a paid add-on.
6.OnPay
Payroll software · QuickBooks, Xero, time-tracking apps
Small-business payroll with a restaurant page that describes automated tipped-wage calculations, from overtime to the minimum wage makeup.
Best for: owners who want straightforward payroll and plan to connect their own time tracking.
Worth knowing: its site does not describe importing tips directly from a POS.
7.Rippling
HR, IT and payroll platform · Hundreds of third-party apps
An all-in-one HR, IT and payroll platform with a restaurant offer that automates overtime, tip makeup to minimum wage and wage garnishments.
Best for: multi-unit groups that want HR, payroll and devices managed in one system.
Worth knowing: it serves every industry, and a single restaurant may not need that much platform.
8.Paychex Flex
National payroll and HR provider · National
Paychex's payroll platform for restaurants and hospitality, with tools such as a paycheck pre-check, pay on demand and a FICA tip credit calculator, plus help identifying business tax credits.
Best for: groups that want a full-service provider with HR and insurance available from the same company.
Worth knowing: its restaurant page does not describe tip pooling, so ask how pools are handled.
How to choose
Start with your POS. If it has its own payroll (Toast, Square), that is usually the least friction. If you schedule in 7shifts or Homebase, their payroll keeps hours and tips in one place. Beyond that, choose on who handles problems when they come up.
None of these prepares the inputs for you. If what goes wrong is what goes in, see restaurant payroll coordination or the Boston payroll support list.
Where to go next
- Best POS systems with payroll integration: choosing from the POS side
- Restaurant payroll transition checklist: switching without breaking a cycle
- Restaurant payroll coordination: BOHO prepares each run for your approval
Keep reading
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Your restaurant remains the employer of record and approves payroll and employment decisions. BOHO is not a PEO, a staffing agency, or legal counsel.