Softwr

Accounting · head to head

ADP vs Anaplan

ADP logo

ADP

Accounting

Always Designing for People

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Anaplan logo

Anaplan

Business Intelligence

Connected planning platform with an in-memory calculation engine for large multidimensional models

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: ADP no pricing is published; every quote is custom and driven by employee count and which services are taken; Anaplan workspace is licensed by memory consumed, so a model that grows as the business adds SKUs, regions or scenarios generates a bill increase without a single new user being added, and teams end up optimising models for licence cost rather than clarity.
  • They diverge on capability: ADP covers Payroll, Anaplan covers Hyperblock calculation engine.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ADP and Anaplan actually diverge.

Attributes where ADP and Anaplan differ
AttributeADPAnaplan
Starting price$29/monthOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, iOS
CategoryAccountingBusiness Intelligence
Founded1949Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in ADP

  • Payroll
  • Tax services
  • HR management
  • Time & attendance
  • Benefits administration
  • QuickBooks
  • Sage
  • Oracle

Only in Anaplan

  • Hyperblock calculation engine
  • Connected planning
  • Scenario and versioning
  • Model builder
  • Anaplan PlanIQ
  • Workflow and approvals
  • Application lifecycle management
  • Data integration

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

ADP

  • Payroll processing and tax filingnot Anaplan
  • HR administration and employee recordsnot Anaplan
  • Time and attendance trackingnot Anaplan
  • Benefits administrationnot Anaplan
  • Talent management on the mid-market and enterprise productsnot Anaplan

Anaplan

  • Sales territory and quota planning across thousands of reps where a change to segmentation must reflow quota immediatelynot ADP
  • Demand and supply planning at SKU and location level for a manufacturer with tens of thousands of itemsnot ADP
  • Workforce planning that ties headcount, cost and capacity to a revenue plan across dozens of business unitsnot ADP
  • Replacing a spreadsheet estate where the master planning model has become too large and too fragile for Excel to open reliablynot ADP

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

ADP

  • No pricing is published; every quote is custom and driven by employee count and which services are taken
  • Split into three separate products by company size, RUN for 1 to 49 employees, Workforce Now for 50 and above, and Lyric HCM for enterprise, so growing across a threshold means changing product rather than plan

Anaplan

  • Workspace is licensed by memory consumed, so a model that grows as the business adds SKUs, regions or scenarios generates a bill increase without a single new user being added, and teams end up optimising models for licence cost rather than clarity.
  • Model building requires certified Anaplan modellers using a proprietary formula language, and the labour market for that skill is small, so most customers stay dependent on a systems integrator long after go-live.
  • Thoma Bravo took the company private in 2022 in a $10.7bn deal, and customers have since reported firmer renewal terms; a private-equity owner optimising for cash flow is a real factor in a multi-year planning contract.
  • Native reporting and visualisation are weak for anything beyond planning grids, so most customers push data out to Power BI or Tableau for executive reporting, adding another tool and another latency point.
  • Implementations are long. A connected planning programme across finance and supply chain routinely runs six to eighteen months before the first production plan, which is difficult to justify when the business wants a forecast this quarter.

Pricing, plan by plan

ADP

$29/month
  • Essential$79/month
    • Payroll
    • Tax filing
    • Direct deposit
  • Enhanced$139/month
    • HR tools
    • Background checks
    • Job posting

Anaplan

On request
  • Anaplan$undefined/year
    • Licensed by user tier and by workspace capacity
    • Workspace charged on memory consumed by models, independent of user count
    • Multi-year enterprise agreements are the norm

Which should you pick?

Choose ADP if

  • You need payroll.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want tax services.
ADP review

Choose Anaplan if

  • You need hyperblock calculation engine.
  • You work on Web, iOS.
  • You also want connected planning.
Anaplan review

Questions people ask

Is ADP or Anaplan better?
Neither clearly leads. ADP starts at $29/month and Anaplan at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ADP or Anaplan?
ADP starts at $29/month and Anaplan at On request.
Does ADP or Anaplan run on more platforms?
ADP runs on Web, Ios, Android. Anaplan runs on Web, iOS.
What is ADP best used for?
ADP is most often used for payroll processing and tax filing, hr administration and employee records, time and attendance tracking, benefits administration. Of those, payroll processing and tax filing and hr administration and employee records are not what Anaplan is typically brought in for.
What can ADP do that Anaplan cannot?
ADP covers Payroll, Tax services, HR management, Time & attendance. Anaplan covers Hyperblock calculation engine, Connected planning, Scenario and versioning, Model builder.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

ADP: How is ADP pricing organized?

ADP organizes pricing by business size: Small Business (1-49 employees), Midsized (50-999 employees), and Enterprise (1,000+ employees). Each segment receives customized pricing tailored to specific business needs.

Source
Anaplan: Why is Anaplan expensive even when user counts are low?

Because workspace is licensed on the memory your models consume as well as on users. Large models cost money regardless of how many people log in.

ADP: Is there a current promotional offer for ADP payroll?

ADP currently offers 3 months free when signing up for small business payroll (promotion ends 9/24). Contact sales at 800-225-5237 for details and to request pricing based on your employee count.

Source
Anaplan: Do we need a systems integrator?

Almost always for the first implementation. The proprietary modelling language and the scale of typical models make an experienced partner or an internal certified team effectively mandatory.

Anaplan: Who owns Anaplan?

Thoma Bravo, which took it private in 2022 for $10.7bn.

Anaplan: Can it replace our BI tool?

No. It is a planning and calculation platform; most customers still export to Power BI or Tableau for reporting and dashboards.

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