Best STP-Compliant Payroll Software for Australian Businesses
Last Updated: 14 Mar 2026
Written ByKarin Rosenberg
Human Resources Specialist at Citadele bank
Built with HR and software expert input using a structured evaluation process- Use case: A company hiring in Australia needing STP-compliant payroll.
- Outcome: A compliant, scalable payroll setup that automates award interpretation and minimizes the risk of wage theft.
Executive Summary
The Australian payroll landscape is defined by strict regulatory complexity, driven by Single Touch Payroll (STP) Phase 2, SuperStream, and the intricate Modern Awards system. For companies hiring in Australia, payroll is not just an administrative task—it is a critical compliance strategy to avoid severe penalties and wage theft accusations.
Our Top Picks for STP-Compliant Payroll Software for Australian Businesses
- 1Employment Hero — Best for companies with 5–500 employees needing robust local compliance and automated award interpretation.
- 2Rippling — Best for tech startups, scale-ups, and multi-national companies expanding into Australia.
- 3
- 4
- 5
Who This Guide Is For
This guide is built for leaders managing payroll operations in Australia:
- HR and People Ops leaders establishing or expanding workforce in Australia.
- Finance and Payroll directors navigating STP Phase 2 and SuperStream.
- Operations leaders in industries with complex rostering and Modern Awards.
- Founders and global expansion teams hiring Australian talent with or without local entity.
What "Good" Looks Like
Strong vendor fit for Australian payroll requires:
- Native STP Phase 2 compliance — Automatically disaggregates gross income.
- Automated Award Interpretation — Pre-built library of Modern Awards.
- SuperStream integration — Processes superannuation electronically.
- Scalability — Can grow from small local team to mid-market or global workforce.
- Unified HR capabilities — Connects payroll to onboarding, performance management, and rostering.
Our Top Recommendations
1.
Employment Hero (Fit Score: 0.92)
Employment Hero
(Fit Score: 0.92)Best for companies with 5–500 employees needing robust local compliance and automated award interpretation.
What stands out:
- Reportedly features a pre-built library of Modern Awards that automates pay calculations based on timesheets, age, and classification.
- Fully compliant with STP Phase 2 automated reporting capabilities.
- Offers a full suite of HR tools including onboarding, performance management, and employee engagement.
Why We Recommend
- Widely regarded as the gold standard for handling complex Australian industrial relations.
- Reduces the risk of underpayment through automated award interpretation, which is a critical compliance factor in Australia.
- Utilizes a native payroll engine (formerly KeyPay) to ensure deep local compliance.
EXPERT REVIEW
Fit Consideration
- The interface can feel complex due to the depth of features.
- Support tiers vary depending on the plan you choose.
- Mandates minimum monthly spends, impacting micro-businesses.
Pricing benchmark:
Payroll [S1-60]
AUD 10
PEPM
2.
Rippling (Fit Score: 0.88)
Rippling
(Fit Score: 0.88)Best for tech startups, scale-ups, and multi-national companies expanding into Australia.
What stands out:
- Natively supports Australian STP Phase 2 and superannuation processing.
- Built-in award interpretation for major awards (such as the Professional Employees Award).
- Market-leading user interface favored by tech companies and businesses with a global footprint.
Why We Recommend
- Uniquely combines payroll with device management (IT) and expense management [01].
- Unifies HR, IT (device management), and global payroll on a single data layer.
- Offers highly advanced workflow automation, triggering payroll changes automatically based on HR or IT events.
EXPERT REVIEW
Fit Consideration
- Modular pricing can get expensive as you add features.
- Some terminology and platform logic can feel US-centric.
Pricing benchmark:
3.
Xero (Fit Score: 0.75)
Xero
(Fit Score: 0.75)Built for micro-businesses (1-5 employees) with simple, award-free salaried workforces.
What stands out:
- Ubiquitous use by Australian accountants and a highly accountant-friendly ecosystem.
- Simple setup and instant implementation.
- Fully compliant with STP Phase 2 and SuperStream.
Why We Recommend
- Incumbent accounting platform for small businesses in Australia, offering seamless reconciliation with the general ledger.
- Handles basic STP Phase 2 and SuperStream compliance effectively for small teams.
EXPERT REVIEW
Fit Consideration
- Lacks native Modern Award interpretation; complex calculations require manual entry or third-party add-ons.
- Recent price hikes and the removal of the 'Payroll Only' subscription by March 2025 have increased costs for micro-employers.
Pricing benchmark:
Comprehensive [S3-16]
AUD 100
Per month
4.
Deel (Fit Score: 0.7)
Deel
(Fit Score: 0.7)Best for companies without an Australian entity or fully remote distributed teams.
What stands out:
- Fast international hiring capabilities.
- Consolidated global view for remote workforces.
- Processes global payroll for companies that have established their own entities.
Why We Recommend
- Acts as an Employer of Record (EOR) for companies hiring in Australia without a local entity [05].
- Provides a single system of record for highly distributed, multi-country teams.
EXPERT REVIEW
Fit Consideration
- Expensive for purely domestic Australian payroll.
- Offers less depth in Australia-specific HR nuances compared to local platforms like Employment Hero.
Pricing benchmark:
Standard [S4-8]
$599
PEPM
5.
ADP (Fit Score: 0.65)
ADP
(Fit Score: 0.65)Built for large enterprises (500+ employees) requiring complex, bespoke reporting.
What stands out:
- Deep compliance expertise and enterprise-grade scalability.
- Managed services options for companies looking to outsource payroll operations.
- Global reach for multi-national corporations.
Why We Recommend
- A 'safe pair of hands' for large, complex organizations that need to process payroll at scale.
- Handles thousands of employees and multi-country payrolls.
EXPERT REVIEW
Fit Consideration
- Opaque pricing compared to modern SaaS competitors.
- Users often criticize the legacy interface and slower, consultative implementation.
Pricing benchmark:
ADP Celergo [S5-19]
Quote
Comparison Matrix
| Vendor | Best for | Target Company Size | Modern Award Interpretation | Est. Cost (50 employees) | Primary Strength |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Local HR & Payroll | SME to Mid-Market (5-500) | Excellent (Native, Pre-built) | ~$500 AUD/mo | Best-in-Class Award Interpretation |
 | Global Workforce Platform | Mid-Market to Growth (20-1000) | Strong (Native, Customizable) | ~$600 - $1,000 AUD/mo [01] | Unified IT/HR/Payroll |
Xero | Accounting-led Payroll | Micro-businesses (1-5 employees) | Weak (Requires 3rd party) | ~$200+ AUD/mo (Ultimate) [02][03][04] | Accounting Integration |
| EOR & Global Payroll | Distributed / Remote | Good (Global focus) | ~$1,450 USD/mo (Payroll) [05] | EOR Capabilities |
 | Enterprise HCM | Enterprise (500+) | Strong (Service-backed) | High (Custom) | Enterprise Scalability |
How to Choose: A Simple Decision Framework
Choose Employment Hero if…
- 5–500 employees in Australia, workforce under complex Modern Awards, want all-in-one local HR and payroll.
Choose Rippling if…
- Tech-forward company or global scale-up, want to unify HR/IT/payroll, rely on automated workflows.
Choose Xero if…
- Fewer than 10 employees on simple award-free salaries, want seamless Xero accounting integration, comfortable with third-party add-ons.
Choose Deel if…
- No registered legal entity in Australia, need EOR to hire Australian talent, managing distributed multi-country workforce.
Choose ADP if…
- Large enterprise with 500+ employees, require bespoke global reporting, want option to outsource payroll via managed services.
Regional Insight
The Australian payroll environment is uniquely complex due to STP Phase 2 and Modern Awards system. STP Phase 2 requires reporting highly granular income data to the ATO every payday. Fair Work Commission enforces 122 industry-specific Modern Awards. Non-compliance can result in criminal penalties under recently updated legislation and public "wage theft" accusations.
The NES applies to all employees, even "award-free". Employers must process superannuation via SuperStream. Software with native "Award Interpretation" is highly prioritized.
Pricing: What's "Normal" in the Australian Market?
Frequently Asked Questions
Methodology
We weighted: Compliance (40%), Scalability (30%), Feature Set (20%), Value (10%).
How we reviewed this article:
We review this page regularly and update it as vendor capabilities, pricing, regional coverage, and regulatory requirements evolve.
Current VersionMay 26, 2026
Updated byKarin Rosenberg
Apr 14, 2026
Written ByKarin Rosenberg
- CL-01. Rippling — pricingChecked 14 Apr 2026
- CL-02. Xero — pricingChecked 14 Apr 2026
- CL-03. Xero — pricingChecked 14 Apr 2026
- CL-04. Xero — pricingChecked 14 Apr 2026
- CL-05. Deel — pricingChecked 14 Apr 2026
- S1-60. Pricing | Employment Hero — vendor_pricing_pageChecked 15 May 2026
- S2-175. Rippling Pricing Analysis — unknownChecked 26 May 2026
- S2-190. Rippling Pricing — vendor_pricing_pageChecked 26 May 2026
- S2-176. Rippling Pricing 2026: Full Breakdown, Features & Hidden Costs — unknownChecked 26 May 2026
- S4-8. Deel Pricing — vendor_pricing_pageChecked 20 May 2026
- S5-19. ADP Celergo — vendor_product_pageChecked 25 May 2026
Essential terminology for evaluating payroll software in Australia:
- EOR (Employer of Record) — A third-party organization that legally employs workers on behalf of another company.
- Modern Awards — Legally binding documents issued by the Fair Work Commission outlining minimum pay rates, penalty rates, and conditions.
- STP Phase 2 (Single Touch Payroll) — A mandatory ATO reporting framework requiring granular payroll data every time employees are paid.
- SuperStream — The Australian standard for processing superannuation data and payments electronically.