The short answer
Both sell by quote. Paylocity serves small businesses to enterprises with HR, payroll, time, benefits, expenses and corporate cards on one platform and 435 integrations.
LeadChange Score: editorial assessment based on public information.
Paylocity wins 2Workday HCM wins 02 ties
| Dimension | Paylocity | Workday HCM |
|---|---|---|
| CapabilitiesBoth cover payroll, HR, time and talent. Paylocity adds expenses, corporate cards and procurement; Workday adds workforce planning, HR service delivery and reorganization modeling. Payroll, Global Payroll, Human Resources, Time & Labor, Talent Management, Benefits, Employee Experience, Expense Management, Corporate Cards, AP Automation, Guided Procurement, Headcount Planning, Asset Management, Access Management & Identity | 10 of 12 core capabilities | 10 of 12 core capabilities |
| IntegrationsPaylocity lists 435 integrations, including Greenhouse, Checkr and Indeed, with an OAuth2 API and webhooks. Workday connects payroll to native and partner systems in 180+ countries. 435 | 435 native | 11 documented |
| Fit and supportPaylocity serves small businesses to enterprises, with phone and email support on weekdays. Workday targets mid-market and enterprise organizations, so it is less suited to small businesses. Small businesses, mid-market companies, enterprises | Small businesses, mid-market companies, enterprises | Mid-market companies, enterprises |
| SecurityBoth state SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001. Workday adds GDPR and HIPAA; Paylocity supports SAML single sign-on. Yes | SOC 2, ISO 27001 | SOC 2, ISO 27001, GDPR |
| Attribute | Paylocity | Workday HCM |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Base fee + per employee | Quote only |
| Best for | Small businesses, mid-market companies, enterprises | Mid-market companies, enterprises |
| Founded | 1997 | 2005 |
| Headquarters | Schaumburg, Illinois, US | Pleasanton, California, US |
| Attribute | Paylocity | Workday HCM |
|---|---|---|
| Price transparency | Quote only | Quote only |
| Deployment | Cloud | Cloud |
| Mobile apps | iOS, Android, Apple Watch | |
| Single sign-on | SAML (SP- and IdP-initiated) | |
| SOC 2 Type II | ||
| ISO 27001 | ||
| Ownership | Publicly traded | Publicly traded |
Pricing. Neither publishes prices. Paylocity charges implementation fees and bills W-2 preparation and time clocks separately; Workday sells deployment as fixed-fee Launch packages.
Capabilities. Both cover payroll, HR, time and talent. Paylocity adds expenses, corporate cards and procurement; Workday adds workforce planning, HR service delivery and reorganization modeling.
Integrations. Paylocity lists 435 integrations, including Greenhouse, Checkr and Indeed, with an OAuth2 API and webhooks. Workday connects payroll to native and partner systems in 180+ countries.
Fit and support. Paylocity serves small businesses to enterprises, with phone and email support on weekdays. Workday targets mid-market and enterprise organizations, so it is less suited to small businesses.
Security. Both state SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001. Workday adds GDPR and HIPAA; Paylocity supports SAML single sign-on.
ADP Workforce Now has the highest LeadChange Score in HCM Software after excluding these two (6.5/10).
Paylocity serves small businesses through enterprises and adds finance tools as you grow; Workday targets mid-market and enterprise organizations that need planning and reporting depth.
Neither publishes a price. Paylocity charges a base fee plus per-employee fees by product; Workday adds a separate deployment package to its quote.
Workday ships over 5,000 prebuilt, configurable reports and 160+ dashboards. Paylocity offers a compliance dashboard and 30+ payroll audits with automatic alerts.
Yes. Paylocity lists global payroll in 100 countries; Workday connects native and partner payroll across 180+ countries.
Paylocity’s Ignite AI runs purpose-built agents for pay, time and recruiting and explains payroll variances in plain language. Workday’s Payroll Agent validates, explains and recommends the next action in pay runs.
Paylocity, founded in 1997, is headquartered in Schaumburg, Illinois. Workday, founded in 2005, is based in Pleasanton, California.
Both Paylocity and Workday HCM state SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001. Only Workday HCM states HIPAA (BAA) and GDPR.
Your team size, what matters most and your role: see which one fits more of your answers, from verified facts and list prices. Then, if you like, ask to hear from both.
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What the LeadChange Score means
A 0–10 editorial assessment built only from verified facts, across six weighted dimensions: capabilities, pricing, integrations, security, fit and support, and data confidence.
Payments, commissions and lead fees are never inputs.
