Pricing
How much does payroll software cost in Africa?
PayrollMaster is priced per employee per month, and statutory filing is included rather than billed per submission. That makes payroll cost a predictable function of headcount. A payroll bureau prices on headcount AND activity — so every joiner, leaver and correction lands on an invoice.
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Starter
For a small team running payroll in a single country.
KES 100
per employee / month · Billed monthly. Cancel any time.
Start free trial30-day free trial. No credit card.
- One country
- All statutory deductions, calculated and filed
- KRA P9A and P10 forms with e-signature
- Employee self-service payslips
- Payslips generated and emailed in bulk
- Email support
- Most teams start here
Pro
For teams paying staff across more than one African market.
KES 150
per employee / month
Start free trial30-day free trial. No credit card.
- Everything in Starter
- Payroll across every supported country, from one account
- Mobile money, bank, cash and cheque payment methods
- Overtime, leave and casual workers
- Employee loans and repayments
- Reports, analytics and the double-entry journal
- Zoho integration live, more on the roadmap, plus the API
- Bulk import and export
- Priority support
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Enterprise
For large or complex payrolls, with finance in the loop.
Custom
Custom pricing
Book a demo30-day free trial. No credit card.
- Everything in Pro
- Financial and expense management
- Custom integrations and full API access
- Advanced compliance tools
- Custom approval workflows
- Single sign-on
- Dedicated account manager
- White-label options
- 24/7 phone support
| Feature | Starter | Pro | Enterprise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Payroll | |||
| Countries included | One | All supported | All supported |
| Employees per payroll run | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Statutory deductions calculated | Included | Included | Included |
| Overtime and leave management | Not included | Included | Included |
| Casual and daily-rate workers | Not included | Included | Included |
| Employee loans and repayments | Not included | Included | Included |
| Approval workflows | Standard | Standard | Custom |
| Compliance and filing | |||
| Monthly statutory returns | Included | Included | Included |
| KRA P9A and P10 with e-signature | Included | Included | Included |
| Audit trail and payroll rollback | Included | Included | Included |
| Advanced compliance tools | Not included | Not included | Included |
| Payments | |||
| Payment methods (bank, mobile money, cash, cheque) | Included | Included | Included |
| Multiple bank accounts with salary splits | Included | Included | Included |
| Payment status tracked per employee | Included | Included | Included |
| Reporting and integrations | |||
| Payroll reports and double-entry journal | Core | Full set | Full set |
| Payroll journal export | Not included | Included | Included |
| Accounting integration (Zoho live) | Not included | Included | Included |
| Custom integrations | Not included | Not included | Included |
| Full REST API access | Not included | Not included | Included |
| Support | |||
| Email support | Included | Included | Included |
| Priority support | Not included | Included | Included |
| Dedicated account manager | Not included | Not included | Included |
| 24/7 phone support | Not included | Not included | Included |
| White-label options | Not included | Not included | Included |
The comparison people actually make
Is this cheaper than outsourcing to a bureau?
Past about ten employees in a market, usually yes — and sooner if you operate in more than one country.
The structural difference is what you are billed for. Software is priced on headcount. A bureau is priced on headcount and activity: a new joiner is a line item, a mid-month correction is a line item, a reissued payslip is a line item. If your company is stable and small, that is cheap. If you are hiring, it is not — and the quote you compared against was the base fee, not the invoice.
We will tell you on a call if a bureau is genuinely the better answer for your size. It sometimes is.
Need help getting set up? Jumpstart implementation handles configuration, migration and go-live for a one-time fee.
Questions
Questions about pricing
Does PayrollMaster file statutory returns for me?
PayrollMaster produces the monthly statutory returns in the format each authority expects — the PAYE return, social security schedules and levy remittances for every country you operate in. Filing is included in the subscription rather than charged per submission.
How much does payroll software cost in Africa?
PayrollMaster is priced per employee per month, with statutory filing included rather than billed per submission. That makes payroll cost a predictable function of headcount. Outsourcing to a local bureau is usually cheaper below about ten employees per country and more expensive above it.
Is there a free trial?
Yes — 30 days, with no credit card required to start. That is long enough to run a full parallel payroll: the same employees, the same month, compared line by line against whatever you use today. We would rather you found a discrepancy in the trial than after you switched.
Are statutory filings included in the price?
Yes. Statutory returns are part of the subscription, not a per-filing charge. This is the main structural difference between payroll software and a payroll bureau: a bureau prices on headcount and activity, so every change you make appears on an invoice.
Can I add a country later?
Yes. Adding a market means adding employees with that country attached — the statutory rules are already maintained. You do not migrate to a different product or negotiate a new contract per country, which is the usual cost of expanding when you use a local bureau in each market.
Run a parallel payroll before you switch
Take one real month, run it on PayrollMaster alongside whatever you use today, and compare the output line by line. We would rather you found a discrepancy in the trial than after you moved.