Paylocity vs Workday HCM
A detailed comparison of Paylocity and Workday HCM. See how they stack up on features, pricing, and user ratings.
At a Glance
| Paylocity | Workday HCM | |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.4/5 | 4.0/5 |
| Starting Price | N/A | N/A |
| Free Trial | No | No |
| Free Plan | No | No |
| Features | 9 | 9 |
| Best For | Mid-Market | Enterprise |
Paylocity
Cloud HCM and payroll platform for mid-sized organisations with modern social collaboration tools, on-demand pay, expense management, and workforce analytics capabilities.
Rating
4.4/5
Best for
Mid-Market
Free trial
No
Free plan
No
Workday HCM
Enterprise cloud HCM platform covering HR, payroll, talent management, and workforce planning for large organisations with 1,000+ employees.
Rating
4.0/5
Best for
Enterprise
Free trial
No
Free plan
No
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Paylocity | Workday HCM |
|---|---|---|
| Workflow Automation | ||
| Reporting Dashboard | ||
| EEO/OFCCP Compliance | ||
| GDPR Compliance | ||
| API Access | ||
| HRIS Integration | ||
| Slack Integration | ||
| Zapier Integration | ||
| Mobile App |
Pricing Comparison
Paylocity
Platform
Custom
Workday HCM
Enterprise
Custom
Integrations
Both tools integrate with
Azure AD
Google Calendar
Microsoft 365
Microsoft Teams
Okta
Outlook
Outlook Calendar
Salesforce
Slack
Zapier
Only Workday HCM
ADP
DocuSign
Gmail
Google Workspace
Greenhouse
LinkedIn
OneLogin
Pros & Cons
Paylocity
Pros
- +Modern HR platform with strong payroll
- +Community and social features for employees
- +Good mobile app experience
- +Data insights and workforce analytics
Cons
- -Pricing not transparent
- -Better suited for mid-market than SMB
- -Some features feel like add-ons rather than core
- -Implementation timeline can be long
Workday HCM
Pros
- +Industry-leading reporting and analytics engine (Prism Analytics)
- +True single-platform architecture — HR, payroll, talent all share one database
- +Continuous product innovation with bi-annual feature releases
- +Strong security and compliance posture for regulated industries
Cons
- -No pricing transparency — custom enterprise pricing only
- -Long implementation timelines (6-12 months typical, can be longer)
- -Requires dedicated admin resources or implementation partner
- -Overkill and cost-prohibitive for organisations under 1,000 employees
Which Should You Choose?
Choose Paylocity if:
- • Your company is Mid-Market size
- • Higher user ratings matter to you (4.4 vs 4.0)
- • Modern HR platform with strong payroll
Choose Workday HCM if:
- • Your company is Enterprise size
- • Industry-leading reporting and analytics engine (Prism Analytics)
How we evaluate tools
Our ratings combine verified user reviews from G2 and Capterra with hands-on feature analysis. Pricing is checked against official sources. We may earn a commission through affiliate links, but this never influences our rankings or recommendations. Read our full methodology.