Payroll & Benefits · head to head
Remote vs Workday

Workday
All industries
Enterprise cloud applications for finance and HR
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Remote has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Remote employer of Record costs $699 per employee per month, charged per head with no volume tier published; Workday high implementation costs equal to or exceeding annual software fees
- They diverge on capability: Remote covers Global Payroll, Workday covers Human capital management.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Remote and Workday actually diverge.
Identical on both: 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 Remote
- Global Payroll
- EOR Services
- Contractor Management
- Compliance
- Benefits
- Equity Management
- HRIS
- BambooHR
Only in Workday
- Human capital management
- Financial management
- Planning
- Analytics
- Payroll
- Time tracking
- Talent management
- Procurement
Both cover
- Slack
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Remote
- Employing staff in countries where you have no legal entity through an employer of recordnot Workday
- Paying and managing international contractors with compliant agreementsnot Workday
- Running payroll and HR records for a distributed workforcenot Workday
Workday
- HR managementnot Remote
- Financial planningnot Remote
- Workforce planningnot Remote
- Compliancenot Remote
- Analyticsnot Remote
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Remote
- Employer of Record costs $699 per employee per month, charged per head with no volume tier published
- Global Payroll carries an implementation fee to set up entities plus a recurring payroll delivery fee on top of the $29 per employee per month rate
- Contractor Management Plus is $99 per contractor per month against $29 for the standard tier
- The Equity product is limited to Delaware C-Corps
- The PEO product bills in USD only and requires a US bank account
- Remote states it collects reserve payments in high risk circumstances, so an upfront deposit is possible
Workday
- High implementation costs equal to or exceeding annual software fees
- Long deployment timelines (12-18 months standard) before ROI
- Steep per-employee pricing at enterprise scale ($408-504 PEPM)
- Limited pre-built templates and customization; often requires extensive configuration
- Requires significant IT and change management resources during implementation
Pricing, plan by plan
Remote
Free- Contractor Management$29/month
- Contractor Payments
- Compliance
- Contracts
- Employer of Record$599/month
- Global Employment
- Payroll
- Benefits
Workday
On request- Small Business$undefined/month
- Core HR
- Payroll
- Time tracking
- Medium Enterprise$undefined/month
- Full HCM suite
- Financial management
- Advanced analytics
- Large Enterprise$undefined/month
- Complete platform
- Custom configurations
- Dedicated support
Which should you pick?
Choose Remote if
- You need global payroll.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want eor services.
Choose Workday if
- You need human capital management.
- You work on Cloud/Web.
- You also want financial management.
Questions people ask
- Is Remote or Workday better?
- Neither clearly leads. Remote starts at Free and Workday at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Remote or Workday?
- Remote has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Remote and On request for Workday.
- Does Remote or Workday run on more platforms?
- Remote runs on Web, Ios, Android. Workday runs on Cloud/Web.
- Can I use Remote for free?
- Yes. Remote has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Workday starts at On request.
- What is Remote best used for?
- Remote is most often used for employing staff in countries where you have no legal entity through an employer of record, paying and managing international contractors with compliant agreements, running payroll and hr records for a distributed workforce. Of those, employing staff in countries where you have no legal entity through an employer of record and paying and managing international contractors with compliant agreements are not what Workday is typically brought in for.
- What can Remote do that Workday cannot?
- Remote covers Global Payroll, EOR Services, Contractor Management, Compliance. Workday covers Human capital management, Financial management, Planning, Analytics. Both handle Slack.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Workday: What is Workday GO and what market is it designed for?
Workday GO is a product designed for small and midsize organizations, bringing together HR and finance solutions with transparent pricing and fast activation in 30 to 60 days. It includes HCM, benefits, payroll, talent, and more at a lower price point than standard Workday.
SourceWorkday: What is Workday Skills Cloud and how does it fit into HCM?
Workday Skills Cloud is an intelligent skills foundation built into Workday HCM. It is described as the world's most open intelligent skills foundation and fuels data-driven talent strategies across recruiting, learning, and workforce planning.
SourceWorkday: Does Workday include payroll and benefits management?
Yes. Workday HCM includes benefits administration and payroll capabilities as part of its core suite. Global payroll processing is available across multiple countries and tax jurisdictions.
SourceWorkday: What is the typical pricing model for Workday HCM?
Workday HCM uses per-employee (PEPM) annual subscription pricing. Companies at scale typically pay $34-42 PEPM. Enterprise organizations with 5,000+ employees typically pay $408-504 per employee annually. Pricing decreases with larger commitments and longer contract terms.
SourceWorkday: How long does Workday implementation typically take?
Standard implementations are lengthy, often taking 12-18 months. Workday GO promises faster activation in 30-60 days. Implementation costs typically equal 100-150% of the first year's software subscription fees.
SourceRelated pages
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