U.S. Household Employers: Compare Payroll Service Handoffs

Start with the year-end handoff

Choose a household payroll service by matching its documented year-end handoff and compliance scope to the work you want to retain.

1. Documents: Will the service prepare Form W-2, a signature-ready Schedule H or broader year-end tax work?
2. Delivery and filing: Who sends each document to the employee, tax agency or personal tax preparer?
3. Employer work: What remains for the household employer or personal tax preparer to review, sign or file?

SurePayroll

• Documents: Business News Daily reports that SurePayroll provides a signature-ready Schedule H and offers year-end tax service for $45 plus $4 per employee.[3]
• Delivery and filing: Confirm whether the year-end service includes filing or only preparation and delivery.
• Employer handoff: Identify who reviews and signs Schedule H and how it reaches the person preparing the individual tax return.

ADP

• Documents: ADP says its platform automatically creates Forms W-2 for household employees.[1]
• Delivery and filing: ADP says the platform sends the W-2s to employees.[1]
• Employer handoff: Confirm who handles any required submission to the Social Security Administration and whether ADP prepares Schedule H.

GTM Payroll Services

• Documents: GTM lists optional year-end tax preparation.[7]
• Delivery and filing: Ask which forms are prepared, filed or delivered and who receives them.
• Employer handoff: Confirm the price and the division of work among GTM, the household employer and the personal tax preparer.

For any provider, obtain a written list of each year-end form, its recipient, delivery date, filing owner and extra charge.

Compare published prices and terms

The advertised prices use different billing periods and cover different service levels.

HomeWork Solutions

Published price: Complete costs $95 per month, and Premier costs $155 per month.[2]

Included scope: Complete adds expert support, leave-balance tracking, multi-state payroll, enhanced compliance monitoring and support for complex arrangements. Premier adds a dedicated specialist, priority support, HR consultations, out-of-cycle payrolls and two annual background checks.[2]

Terms to verify: Request setup and additional-worker charges, employee limits, contract length, cancellation terms and a definition of the year-end handoff.

SurePayroll

Published price: Business News Daily lists $49.99 per month for one household employee, plus $10 per month for each additional employee. It reports a year-end charge of $45 plus $4 per employee.[3]

Included scope: The review reports unlimited payroll runs, several common pay frequencies, direct deposit or checks, federal, state and local tax calculation, payment and filing, quarterly Form 1040-ES filing and a signature-ready Schedule H.[3]

Terms to verify: The review describes one household-employer plan with no long-term contract and cancellation available at any time.[3] Ask about refunds and employee limits.

Abacus Payroll

Published price: Abacus says household payroll starts at about $500 per year for one employee.[5]

Included scope: Abacus lists online payroll entry, electronic or physical-check payment, withholding and paid-time-off calculations, payroll-tax forms and filings, paycheck calculations and payment records.[5]

Terms to verify: Request an exact quote covering setup, additional employees, year-end work, geographic availability, the contract and cancellation.

These prices are not directly interchangeable. HomeWork Solutions publishes monthly plan rates, Abacus gives an approximate annual starting price, and SurePayroll’s figures come from an editorial review carrying an affiliate-commission disclosure.[2][3][5]

Match the service to the help you want

• Guided self-service: HomeWork Solutions positions Guided as its self-service option with guidance.[2] Confirm which registrations, payments, filings and year-end documents remain with the employer.
• Full-service or complex payroll: HomeWork Solutions Complete includes multi-state payroll, compliance monitoring and support for complex arrangements. The company also says it can address retroactive filings.[2]
• Dedicated or concierge help: HomeWork Solutions Premier adds a dedicated specialist, priority support and out-of-cycle payrolls.[2] GTM offers concierge payroll and HR for family offices, along with employment consulting, labor-compliance support and optional year-end tax preparation.[7]
• Standardized household payroll: SurePayroll reportedly uses one household-employer plan and supports unlimited runs at weekly, biweekly, semimonthly or monthly frequencies.[3]
• Registration-focused onboarding: Poppins Payroll says it begins IRS household-employer registration, federal tax-account setup, state-account setup where possible and state new-hire filing during setup.[4]
• General payroll platform: ADP markets its small-business payroll platform to households with one employee. It lists time tracking, tax calculation and payment, forms assistance, several payment methods, employee self-service and expert support.[1]
• Payroll alongside staffing: Pavillion describes payroll and benefits support offered with its domestic-staffing services.[6]

Check restrictions and support access

Business News Daily reports that SurePayroll accepts California household employers only as quarterly filers and requires annual filers to change filing status.[3] Confirm the condition directly with SurePayroll before enrolling.

SurePayroll support is reported as available Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.–9 p.m. ET, and Saturday, 10 a.m.–2 p.m. ET; its online help center is available around the clock.[3] GTM lists phone support Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m.–8 p.m. ET, business-hours chat and free consultations.[7]

Ask how each provider handles deadline-sensitive problems outside published support hours and whether state, local, worker-count or payroll-frequency restrictions affect the account.

Assign every payroll responsibility

Create a handoff sheet with five fields for every task: task, owner, due date, proof of completion and responsibility after cancellation.

1. Employer and tax-account registration. ADP describes determining applicable taxes and obtaining an EIN as household-employer setup steps.[1] Poppins says it begins federal registration and, where possible, state-account setup.[4] Record which party opens each account, holds the credentials and keeps registration notices.

2. Employment documents and work authorization. ADP and Pavillion identify employment documentation and work-authorization considerations during setup.[1][6] Specify what the provider prepares and what the employer must inspect or retain.

3. State new-hire reporting. ADP and Pavillion identify new-hire reporting as a setup step, while Poppins says it begins the state filing during setup.[1][4][6] Assign the filing and request a receipt or confirmation number.

4. Workers’ compensation. ADP and Pavillion say household-employer setup can involve obtaining or addressing workers’ compensation coverage.[1][6] Ask whether the provider offers guidance, obtains quotes, administers a policy or leaves the task to the employer.

5. Timekeeping and overtime. ADP says household employees are typically non-exempt and connects overtime compliance with accurate weekly time tracking.[1] Assign responsibility for recording, approving and correcting hours.

6. Payroll taxes. Separately assign tax calculation, employee withholding, payments and each federal, state or local filing. Keep payment confirmations and filing copies.

7. Year-end work. Give separate owners and deadlines to W-2 creation, employee delivery, agency submission, Schedule H preparation and personal-return coordination. ADP’s description of creating and sending W-2s illustrates why preparation and delivery should be treated as separate responsibilities.[1]

Before cancellation, request payroll registers, tax-payment confirmations, filing copies, account credentials, year-to-date balances and a list of filings the provider will still complete.

Confirm the worker’s classification

ADP says a worker may be a household employee when the household controls both the work performed and how it is performed. Under ADP’s explanation, workers who choose their methods and supply their own tools are typically self-employed.[1]

ADP warns that misclassifying a nanny as an independent contractor may result in penalties.[1] It also identifies possible household-tax exemptions involving work performed by a spouse, parent, child younger than 21 or employee younger than 18, depending on the circumstances.[1]

ADP recommends consulting IRS Publication 926 and applicable state and local guidance.[1] Resolve classification and jurisdiction questions before selecting a payroll setup.

What to confirm with each provider

The cited provider pages and editorial review leave the following choice-changing details unpublished or unconfirmed:

• ADP: Exact prices, billing frequency, household-specific package limits, contract length, cancellation terms and Schedule H support.[1]
• HomeWork Solutions: Guided pricing, setup fees, additional-worker charges, employee limits, contract and cancellation terms, refunds, W-2 delivery and Schedule H preparation.[2]
• SurePayroll: Setup time, free trial, refund terms, maximum employee count and the precise filing scope of its year-end service.[3]
• Poppins Payroll: Pricing, commitment terms, service limits and the complete year-end handoff.[4]
• Abacus Payroll: Exact price, setup and additional-worker fees, contract and cancellation terms, geographic coverage, support hours and specific Schedule H and W-2 responsibilities.[5]
• Pavillion: Prices, employee limits, contract and cancellation terms, geographic eligibility, payroll frequency and year-end deliverables.[6]
• GTM: Plan prices, setup and additional-worker fees, contract and cancellation terms, payroll-frequency limits, state exclusions and the detailed scope of optional year-end preparation.[7]

“Please list what you register, calculate, pay, file, send to my employee, provide to my tax preparer and leave for me—plus every setup, additional-worker, off-cycle, year-end and cancellation charge.”

Choose based on the written scope for the household’s state, payroll complexity and desired assistance, not the lowest advertised starting price.

References

1. Payroll Services for Nannies & Household Employees | ADP (adp.com)
2. Payroll Services for Household Employees | HomeWork Solutions (homeworksolutions.com)
3. Best Payroll Service for Household Employers – businessnewsdaily.com (businessnewsdaily.com)
4. Nanny Payroll and Tax Services | Poppins Payroll (poppinspayroll.com)
5. Household Employees – Abacus Payroll Inc. (abacuspay.com)
6. How Do Household Employee Payroll Services Work? (pavillionagency.com, 2022)
7. Nanny Tax and Payroll Service for Households | GTM Payroll (gtm.com)