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Verified ratings, feature-by-feature comparison and rand pricing — everything a South African business needs to pick between these two.
Online payroll from R90 a month with legislation that updates itself
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Ratings
Verified user ratings across every dimension — BrightPay against Sage Business Cloud Payroll, nothing weighted.
Dimensions won
1 – 0
BrightPay vs Sage Business Cloud Payroll, across 5 rating dimensions
Widest rating gap
+0,1
BrightPay leads on functionality
Verified reviews
439
201 for BrightPay, 238 for Sage Business Cloud Payroll
201 verified reviews
238 verified reviews
Overall
Ease of use
Value for money
Customer service
Functionality
Who South African reviewers actually write about.
Cheapest paid plan, shown per month.
BrightPay
Custom pricing
Sage Business Cloud Payroll
R90/mo
Head to head
Row by row, with the stronger score highlighted. Straight from verified reviews.
| BrightPay | Sage Business Cloud Payroll | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4,1 | 4,1 |
| Reviews | 201 | 238 |
| Ease of use | 4,0 | 4,0 |
| Value for money | 4,1 | 4,1 |
| Customer service | 4,0 | 4,0 |
| Functionality | 4,1 | 4,0 |
| Starting price | Custom pricing | R90/mo |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
Features
Everything each product ships, side by side. No marketing gloss.
| Feature | BrightPay | Sage Business Cloud Payroll |
|---|---|---|
| UK PAYE against current HMRC rules | ||
| Real Time Information submissions | ||
| Automatic enrolment for workplace pensions | ||
| Statutory sick and parental pay | ||
| Employee self service app | ||
| Client portals for bureaus | ||
| Payslip design and delivery | ||
| CIS for construction clients | ||
| Journal export to accounting software | ||
| Automatic cloud backups | ||
| Automatic PAYE, UIF and SDL updates | ||
| Guided pay run process | ||
| Weekly, fortnightly and monthly pay cycles | ||
| Email payslips | ||
| UIF declarations | ||
| Leave management | ||
| ACB bank payment files | ||
| Real time calculations | ||
| Unlimited companies and users | ||
| Predefined legislative and payroll reports |
Pricing
Every plan from both vendors, priced as South African teams actually pay.
Priced per employers and employees under management from the 2026/27 tax year. Bureau options for practices.
Calculator based
no card needed
Straight from the vendor
These are list prices in rand and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Bright for the figure you'll actually pay.
Full product for up to 2 employees. Price includes VAT.
R90/mo
per month
Up to 10 employees. Price includes VAT.
R401/mo
per month
Up to 25 employees. Price includes VAT.
R951/mo
per month
Up to 50 employees. Larger tiers run to 200 employees at R4,182 per month.
R1 712/mo
per month
Straight from the vendor
These are list prices in rand and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Sage for the figure you'll actually pay.
Verdict
Sage Business Cloud Payroll edges this comparison on verified user ratings (4,1 vs 4,1), but the right choice depends on your workflows: BrightPay remains a strong pick where its strengths — HMRC recognised with direct RTI filing and Auto enrolment with major UK pension providers — match your priorities. Shortlist both, take the free trials where offered, and test against a real month of your own data.