Paycom Pricing in 2025 – Cost per Employee, Monthly Fees, and Hidden Charges Explained

Paycom pricing in 2025 runs on a per-employee-per-month model, but the lack of published rates makes it hard to know whether a quote is fair. Many companies only discover the real numbers after a sales call, and even then it’s not always clear what’s driving the total cost. This guide pulls together the best available benchmarks, real-world bill examples, and the main levers that move your price up or down so you can quickly judge whether Paycom is worth it for your business.

Paycom Pricing Breakdown: PEPM ranges and monthly costs

You’ve seen the headline numbers in the quick answer box. This section organizes Paycom pricing into clear cost-per-employee bands and example monthly bills, so you can compare how much Paycom costs at different sizes.

Typical Paycom cost per employee per month

At a high level, this is what independent sources say about Paycom cost per employee:

Some buyers report lower teaser Paycom prices, but once you add the modules most mid-market companies need, the all-in cost of Paycom almost always falls back into these bands.

How much is Paycom per month for a typical company?

Using the usual $25–$36 PEPM range for full HCM, your approximate Paycom monthly cost might look like this:

On top of this, expect a one-time implementation fee of about 15–35% of your annual subscription and the usual payroll taxes and benefit premiums you’d pay with any provider.

Over the lifetime of a long-running or perpetual LLC, those recurring obligations will usually matter more than the one-time software setup charge.

The cheapest way to use Paycom if you’re price-sensitive

If you like the platform but worry about Paycom fees, you can keep costs down by:

• Starting payroll-first – Turn on core payroll, tax filing, and time tracking first; add talent modules later if they prove ROI.
• Limiting modules – Only pay for extras (LMS, advanced analytics, succession) if they clearly replace other paid tools.
• Watching pay frequency – Weekly payroll creates more chargeable pay runs than bi-weekly or semi-monthly with the same headcount.
• Avoiding over-licensing – Some add-ons are priced per user; don’t buy full access for employees who won’t use them.

Used this way, cost-sensitive buyers get closer to the cheapest Paycom price possible without giving up core compliance and payroll automation.

What is Paycom and what does it do?

Before you go too deep into spreadsheets, it helps to know what Paycom is and what Paycom does day-to-day inside your business. Paycom is a U.S.-based, cloud HCM provider that started as one of the first fully online payroll services and has grown into an all-in-one HR and payroll platform used by mid-sized and larger employers.

All of those Paycom services sit behind the same per-employee pricing model you saw above, so understanding which pieces you actually need is key to controlling Paycom payroll pricing.

Paycom as an all-in-one HR and payroll platform

At its core, Paycom is a single database system that covers most of the employee lifecycle in one app:

• Employee records and HR data
• Recruiting and applicant tracking
• Onboarding and document management
• Payroll, tax filing, and year-end forms
• Time tracking and scheduling
• Benefits, performance, and learning tools

Unlike “stitched-together” HR stacks, Paycom’s big pitch is that everything lives in one system, which cuts down on manual re-entry and reduces the chances of mismatched employee data across HR, payroll, and time.

Core payroll, tax filing, and time tracking you almost always pay for

No matter which optional modules you choose, almost every customer pays for Paycom’s core:

• Payroll engine – Calculates gross-to-net pay, handles multiple pay groups, supports direct deposit and pay cards.
• Tax filing – Prepares and files federal, state, and many local payroll tax returns, and helps you stay aligned with employer obligations described in IRS Publication 15 (Employer’s Tax Guide).
• Time and attendance – Tracks hours worked, PTO balances, and overtime, so payroll calculations match what labor laws and your policies require.

If all you need is help keeping up with payroll and employment-tax rules, this “core stack” is what drives most Paycom services on your quote and is the foundation of your Paycom payroll pricing.

Add-on HR and talent modules that can raise your price

On top of core payroll and HR, Paycom sells add-on modules that make life easier but can nudge your invoice up:

• Talent acquisition and onboarding – Recruiting, background checks, and digital onboarding workflows.
• Talent management – Performance reviews, goals, and learning management (LMS).
• Advanced self-service and automation – Tools like Beti® (employee-driven payroll) and newer AI-driven features that streamline repetitive HR tasks.

These add-ons can be worth it if they replace other tools or save enough HR time, but from a cost perspective they’re exactly what you want to scrutinize when you’re comparing what Paycom does against other vendors or a simpler payroll-only solution.

How Paycom pricing actually works

Paycom pricing looks like a subscription, but under the hood your bill is a mix of a base platform fee, per-paycheck charges, a one-time setup project, and a few smaller fees tied to banking and forms. This section explains how those pieces fit together and what actually moves your invoice up or down.

Paycom’s per-employee-per-month model and per-paycheck billing

Paycom normally charges a base monthly fee plus a per-employee, per-paycheck amount. When you total everything and divide by active headcount, you get the effective per-employee-per-month (PEPM) you saw in the pricing breakdown above.

Because billing is tied to pay runs, how much it costs to use Paycom can jump if you move workers to weekly payroll, add lots of seasonal staff, or run frequent off-cycle payrolls. So how much Paycom costs per employee depends on both headcount and how often you run payroll.

One-time implementation and onboarding fees

Most Paycom quotes also include a one-time implementation fee that covers configuration, data migration, training, and parallel testing. The amount scales with your size and complexity. Simple single-state setups fall at the low end, while multi-location or heavily customized deployments land at the higher end.

This fee doesn’t change your ongoing Paycom cost per employee, but it does affect your first-year budget and how quickly the system pays for itself.

If you want to zoom out beyond software and look at your overall business finances, our guide to revenue and expenses walks through how to think about income, costs, and profitability over a full year.

Add-on modules and optional services that increase your Paycom price

Standard Paycom pricing usually includes core HR, payroll, tax filing, and time tracking. Your Paycom price goes up as you switch on extra modules such as:

• Talent acquisition – ATS, background checks, candidate portals
• Onboarding and document workflows – e-signatures, I-9s, checklist automation
• Talent management – performance reviews, succession, learning
• Employee-driven payroll tools (like Beti®) – more self-service, less manual entry

For some companies, moving from payroll-only to full HCM nearly doubles their effective PEPM; for others, consolidating two or three legacy tools into Paycom actually lowers total HR software spend. The key is tying each add-on to either a tool you can cancel or a clear, measurable outcome.

Other Paycom fees: NOC fees, year-end forms, and pass-through charges

Beyond the subscription, a few smaller Paycom fees can show up:

• NOC fees (“noc fee Paycom”) – A Notification of Change fee from the bank when direct deposit details are wrong but fixable. Some employers pass this cost to employees; others absorb it.
• Year-end form fees – Per-form charges for W-2, 1095, or 1099 printing and distribution under some contracts.
• Pass-through charges – Extra fees for rush payrolls, plus unavoidable costs like payroll taxes, unemployment insurance, and state programs.

Individually, these don’t usually dominate how much Paycom is per month, but if you have lots of corrections, paper forms, or last-minute year-end runs, they can noticeably increase your all-in Paycom monthly cost.

Paycom cost examples by company size

Here are two simple scenarios so you can quickly see how much Paycom is for different types of companies. These are estimates based on the typical $25–$36 PEPM range, not official quotes.

Example 1: 40-employee professional services firm (single state)

In this case, how much does Paycom cost per employee? Around $22–$28 per month, or roughly $10k–$13k per year in software, plus a modest setup project.

Example 2: 300-employee multi-state employer (more complexity)

How much does Paycom cost per employee? Roughly $28–$34 monthly, which is still typical for a full mid-market HCM suite.

If your quote falls far outside these bands, ask for a line-item breakdown so you can see exactly how much it costs to use Paycom for each module and pay run.

Is Paycom Worth the Price?

Whether Paycom cost is worth it depends on how manual your HR is and how complex payroll has become. If you’re still calculating pay and taxes by hand, tracking hours in spreadsheets, and managing onboarding or reviews via email, Paycom’s automation can save hours each cycle, cut errors, and reduce compliance risk.

Price-wise, Paycom usually sits below enterprise suites like Workday, similar to other mid-market HRIS tools, and above small-business payroll-only software. Point solutions like Salary(dot)com or low-cost payroll tools (Patriot, OnPay, etc.) can be cheaper for small, simple businesses but don’t replace a full HR + payroll stack. If you’re still comparing vendors, our best HR software companies guide walks through leading HRIS and HCM platforms, pricing transparency, and which tools fit different company sizes.

Paycom pricing FAQs

Here are quick answers to common questions about Paycom. Each FAQ starts with a short, direct answer followed by a brief explanation so you can scan and move on fast.