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Payroll · head to head

Justworks vs Openwage

Justworks logo

Justworks

Payroll

Professional employer organisation with published per-employee pricing and a separate payroll-only tier

From
$8/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Openwage logo

Openwage

Payroll

UK earned wage access charging a transparent 1 percent transfer fee, free for employers

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Justworks the published per-employee fee is the platform charge, not your cost; health insurance premiums and workers' compensation are billed on top and are usually several times larger, so the transparent price is transparent about the smaller number.; Openwage it is UK-only, tied to UK payroll cycles and regulation, so it is not usable for international workforces.
  • They diverge on capability: Justworks covers Co-employment PEO, Openwage covers On-demand pay.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Justworks and Openwage actually diverge.

Attributes where Justworks and Openwage differ
AttributeJustworksOpenwage
Starting price$8/monthOn request
Pricing modelPer employee per monthPer-transfer fee, paid by the employee

Identical on both: free tier (No), platforms (Web, iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Payroll).

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 Justworks

  • Co-employment PEO
  • Large-group benefits
  • Payroll and filings
  • Workers' compensation
  • Compliance support
  • Standalone payroll
  • International contractors
  • HR consulting

Only in Openwage

  • On-demand pay
  • Transparent per-transfer fee
  • Payroll and T&A integration
  • No credit impact
  • Automatic payday reconciliation
  • Employer-free deployment

What people use each for

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

Justworks

  • A twenty-person US startup that wants health insurance comparable to a large employer without an insurance broker relationshipnot Openwage
  • A company hiring across several US states that does not want to register as an employer and file taxes in each of themnot Openwage
  • A founder replacing a bookkeeper-run payroll with something that will not produce a state tax penalty noticenot Openwage
  • A team that wants payroll and benefits administration only, without co-employment, at the $8 per employee tiernot Openwage

Openwage

  • A UK employer with shift or hourly staff wanting an on-demand pay benefit at no cost to the businessnot Justworks
  • An employee wanting to know the exact cost of an advance before requesting one, rather than an opaque feenot Justworks
  • A company already running standard UK payroll and time and attendance systems wanting straightforward integrationnot Justworks
  • An HR team comparing earned wage access providers on published unit economics rather than sales quotesnot Justworks

Where each one falls short

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

Justworks

  • The published per-employee fee is the platform charge, not your cost; health insurance premiums and workers' compensation are billed on top and are usually several times larger, so the transparent price is transparent about the smaller number.
  • Leaving a PEO is a project, not a cancellation: you must source your own health plan, obtain your own state employer registrations and unemployment accounts, and time the switch to a plan year, which typically takes months.
  • Coverage is United States only, so the moment you hire your first employee in another country you are running a second system and Justworks handles them only as a contractor.
  • PEO Basic looks like a cheaper way in but excludes the Justworks health plans, which is the main reason companies choose a PEO at all, so most buyers end up on Plus.
  • Benefit plan choice is constrained to what Justworks has negotiated, and a company with strong preferences about carriers or network coverage in a specific region may find the options do not fit.

Openwage

  • It is UK-only, tied to UK payroll cycles and regulation, so it is not usable for international workforces.
  • Even a published, low fee still means employees effectively pay to access their own earned money, and frequent use compounds that cost over a year.
  • The 50% cap on gross (not net) earned pay can overstate what an employee can actually draw once tax and deductions are accounted for, creating confusion at the point of request.
  • As with all earned wage access, dependency on the product is a symptom of insufficient pay cadence or amount that the advance itself does not fix, and can mask a deeper compensation problem an employer should address directly.
  • Accuracy is entirely dependent on the employer's payroll and time and attendance data being current, so errors upstream produce incorrect available-balance figures for employees.

Pricing, plan by plan

Justworks

$8/month
  • Payroll$8/month
    • Plus a $50 monthly base fee
    • Payroll, tax filing and benefits administration
    • No co-employment, so no access to Justworks health plans at PEO rates
  • PEO Basic$79/month
    • Full co-employment PEO
    • Payroll, tax filing and compliance
    • Does not include access to Justworks-sponsored health plans
  • PEO Plus$109/month
    • Everything in Basic
    • Access to Justworks health, dental and vision plans
    • Premiums are billed separately and are the larger cost
  • Dedicated HR consulting$30/month
    • Add-on to PEO plans
    • Named HR adviser support

Openwage

On request
  • Openwage$undefined/month
    • Free for employers to offer
    • 1% fee per transfer, minimum £1, paid by the employee
    • No interest and no credit check

Which should you pick?

Choose Justworks if

  • You need co-employment peo.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want large-group benefits.
Justworks review

Choose Openwage if

  • You need on-demand pay.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want transparent per-transfer fee.
Openwage review

Questions people ask

Is Justworks or Openwage better?
Neither clearly leads. Justworks starts at $8/month and Openwage at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Justworks or Openwage?
Justworks starts at $8/month and Openwage at On request.
Does Justworks or Openwage run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Justworks best used for?
Justworks is most often used for a twenty-person us startup that wants health insurance comparable to a large employer without an insurance broker relationship, a company hiring across several us states that does not want to register as an employer and file taxes in each of them, a founder replacing a bookkeeper-run payroll with something that will not produce a state tax penalty notice, a team that wants payroll and benefits administration only, without co-employment, at the $8 per employee tier. Of those, a twenty-person us startup that wants health insurance comparable to a large employer without an insurance broker relationship and a company hiring across several us states that does not want to register as an employer and file taxes in each of them are not what Openwage is typically brought in for.
What can Justworks do that Openwage cannot?
Justworks covers Co-employment PEO, Large-group benefits, Payroll and filings, Workers' compensation. Openwage covers On-demand pay, Transparent per-transfer fee, Payroll and T&A integration, No credit impact.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Justworks: What does co-employment actually mean?

Justworks becomes the employer of record for payroll tax and benefits purposes while you retain full control over hiring, management and day-to-day work. It is a legal arrangement, not an outsourcing of your team.

Openwage: Who pays the fee?

The employee, at 1% of the amount transferred with a minimum of £1; the employer benefit itself is free.

Justworks: Is the $79 figure my total monthly cost per employee?

No. It is the platform fee. Health insurance premiums, dental, vision and workers' compensation are additional and typically dwarf it.

Openwage: Is it a loan?

No, Openwage states it is not a loan or credit product; there is no interest and no credit score impact.

Justworks: Can Justworks employ people outside the US?

No. It can pay international contractors, but it is not an employer of record abroad.

Openwage: How much can an employee access?

Up to 50% of gross wages already earned in the current pay period.

Justworks: What is the difference between the Payroll plan and the PEO?

The Payroll plan handles payroll and benefits administration under your own EIN at $8 per employee per month plus a base fee. The PEO adds co-employment and pooled large-group insurance at $79 or $109.

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