GoKawiilOnPay Data Shows When Small Businesses Should Ditch Manual Payroll
OnPay's analysis of search trends finds small-business owners collectively run over 91,000 searches a year on how to process payroll manually, while employees log 35,000 more searches looking for ways to cash paper checks. The company points to case studies like Max Farnsworth of Farnsworth Industries, who cut hours of monthly manual payroll work down dramatically after switching to an automated platform.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
Manual payroll isn't just a time sink — it exposes small businesses to compliance risk as multi-state rules on paid leave and other mandates multiply, with hundreds of thousands of searches reflecting owner confusion. As companies scale past a handful of employees, the labor cost of DIY systems often outweighs the price of automated payroll and HR tools.
- Manual payroll processing consumes hours that could otherwise be billable or growth-focused work.
- Search data shows tens of thousands of businesses and employees still struggle with basic payroll and paycheck logistics.
- Automated payroll platforms can cut processing time to 15-30 minutes while reducing multi-state compliance risk.
OnPay Payroll Service — Streamline your payroll, HR, and benefits with OnPay Payroll Service, the all-in-one platform designed for growing businesses. It eliminates manual data entry and reduces operational risks, helping you save time and focus on what matters most—your clients and team. Perfect for businesses ready to move beyond DIY payroll and scale efficiently.
See OnPay Payroll Service on Amazon → Affiliate link — we may earn a commission on purchases, at no extra cost to you. Product picked by AI based on this article; it is not a tested recommendation.Source: zdnet.com — Zdnet Brandx For Onpay, 2026-09-14
Published there as: “The moment a business outgrows DIY payroll and what to do next”
Read the original report → The summary and analysis above are GoKawiil's own, written from reporting by the source above. Facts and quotes belong to the original publisher.