Small business
Cloud payroll for smaller employers, scaling with headcount.
R380/mo
per month
- PAYE, UIF and SDL at current rates
- Monthly EMP201 figures
- Emailed payslips
- Leave tracking
Paymaster vs BrightPay
Verified ratings, feature-by-feature comparison and rand pricing — everything a South African business needs to pick between these two.
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Ratings
Every score, at a glance
Verified user ratings across every dimension — Paymaster against BrightPay, nothing weighted.
Dimensions won
5 – 0
Paymaster vs BrightPay, across 5 rating dimensions
Widest rating gap
+0,3
Paymaster leads on customer service
Verified reviews
237
36 for Paymaster, 201 for BrightPay
Paymaster
4,3
36 verified reviews
BrightPay
4,1
201 verified reviews
Ratings by dimension
- Paymaster
- BrightPay
Overall
4,3
4,1
Ease of use
4,2
4,0
Value for money
4,3
4,1
Customer service
4,3
4,0
Functionality
4,3
4,1
Share of verified reviews
Who South African reviewers actually write about.
- Paymaster (36)
- BrightPay (201)
Cost to get started
Cheapest paid plan, shown per month.
Paymaster
R380/mo
BrightPay
Custom pricing
Head to head
Where each one wins
Row by row, with the stronger score highlighted. Straight from verified reviews.
| Paymaster | BrightPay | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4,3 | 4,1 |
| Reviews | 36 | 201 |
| Ease of use | 4,2 | 4,0 |
| Value for money | 4,3 | 4,1 |
| Customer service | 4,3 | 4,0 |
| Functionality | 4,3 | 4,1 |
| Starting price | R380/mo | Custom pricing |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
Features
Feature by feature, checked off
Everything each product ships, side by side. No marketing gloss.
| Feature | Paymaster | BrightPay |
|---|---|---|
| PAYE, UIF and SDL calculations | ||
| Monthly EMP201 figures | ||
| IRP5 and IT3(a) certificates | ||
| EMP501 reconciliation output | ||
| Emailed payslips | ||
| Employee self service | ||
| Leave and loan management | ||
| Standard payroll reports | ||
| Optional outsourced bureau service | ||
| Local South African support | ||
| 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 |
Pricing
Both price lists, in rand
Every plan from both vendors, priced as South African teams actually pay.
Paymaster plans
Try it free
Bureau service
Fully outsourced payroll run by the Paymaster team.
Custom
no card needed
- Everything in Small business
- Outsourced processing
- EMP501 reconciliation handled for you
- Dedicated payroll administrator
Straight from the vendor
Get current pricing
These are list prices in rand and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Paymaster People Solutions for the figure you'll actually pay.
BrightPay plans
Cloud
Priced per employers and employees under management from the 2026/27 tax year. Bureau options for practices.
Calculator based
no card needed
- HMRC RTI filing
- Auto enrolment pensions
- Employee app and portals
- Unlimited client payrolls on bureau licences
- Automatic cloud backup
Straight from the vendor
Get current pricing
These are list prices in rand and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Bright for the figure you'll actually pay.
Verdict
Our verdict
Paymaster edges this comparison on verified user ratings (4,3 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.