Payroll, rostering and HR for builders and design firms
Site crews on awards, office staff on salaries, super every quarter and STP every pay run. These four tools cover it, but they price on different bases: per user, per employee or per business. We show each one's basis next to the number.
Which one fits your business
A few staff and you already use Xero or MYOBYour accounting plan's payroll
Xero Comprehensive includes payroll for 5 people at $107* a month. MYOB AccountRight Plus includes unlimited payroll at $165* a month after the offer period. GST treatment isn't stated on either pricing page.
Or see MYOB plans. Both are affiliate links.
Shift and site crews on awardsDeputy
Award-aware rostering, phone clock-in with a GPS stamp, award interpretation and payroll with super. All-in-One is $15.35 a user a month on an annual plan, GST included in our figure. Free trial.
No commission.
Growing teams who want HR as wellEmployment Hero
Payroll with built-in award interpretation, rostering, clock-on through the EH Work app, and super paid from payroll. Priced per employee by module, with minimums; ask for a quote that matches your headcount.
No commission.
How we make money: the Xero and MYOB links are affiliate links. MYOB pays A$115-185 per paid subscription through Impact, and Xero pays a commission through PartnerStack (it doesn't publish the rate), at no cost to you. Deputy and Employment Hero pay us nothing. The order and the advice come from published facts. Disclosure.
The four compared
Xero and MYOB are priced per business; Deputy per user; Employment Hero per employee. So compare the total for your team, not the headline number. Every price and confirmed fact links to the vendor's own page.
| Checked 21 Oct 2026 | EhEmployment HeroEmployment Hero · Payroll and HRVisit site | DeDeputyDeputy · Rostering and payrollVisit site | XrXeroXero · Accounting with payrollSee Xero | MyMYOB BusinessMYOB · Accounting with payrollTry free |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price (per user, employee or business: see each) | ||||
| Per yearAUD inc GST unless marked | Not publishedPer employee per month, by module (see the vendor page) source | $184/yrAll-in-One (rostering, HR, payroll), per user, annual plan source | $1,284*/yrComprehensive, per business (payroll for 5 people) source | $1,980*/yrAccountRight Plus, per business, after the offer (unlimited payroll) source |
| Billed monthly instead | – | $15.35/mo | $107*/mo | $165*/mo |
| Prices include GST? | Not stated | No, GST added | Not stated | Not stated |
| Other plans (per year) | – | Lite (month x 12, payroll add-on $5 per user per month) $89.10 Core (month x 12, payroll add-on $5 per user per month) $116 Pro (month x 12, payroll add-on $5 per user per month) $172 | Ultimate 10 $1,716* Ultimate 20 $2,160* Ultimate 50 $3,000* | Pro (+$3/employee/mo payroll) $840* Lite (payroll for 2) $315* |
| Fit | ||||
| Single Touch Payroll (Phase 2) | ATO-certified and Phase 2 ready source | Payroll 'designed to support' STP Phase 2 source | Reports STP Phase 2 detail from employee records source | Must move to STP Phase 2 to report source |
| Modern award interpretation | Built-in award interpretation applies correct rates source | Award interpretation with Pay Rate Builder source | Not described as a feature; points to Fair Work source | Mentions 'shifting award rates'; method not explained source |
| Rostering | Rostering syncs with payroll; add-on on some plans source | Auto scheduling, mobile rosters, award-aware source | Not mentioned on Xero's payroll page source | Create and publish rosters; staff see them in app source |
| Clock on from a phone | EH Work app clock in/out with geo-location source | Phone clock-in records a GPS location stamp source | Xero Me logs timesheets; clock-on not mentioned source | Employees clock on and off from their phone source |
| Super paid from the app | HeroClear pays super directly from payroll source | Clearing house functionality inside Deputy Payroll source | Pay super from Xero Payroll via SuperChoice source | Switch on the Pay Super setting source |
| Free trial | No trial stated; free demo offered source | Free trial offered; length not stated source | No trial; first month free when you buy source | Try free for 14 days on Pro and Plus source |
| Honesty | ||||
| Do we earn from this link? | No. Plain link, no commission | No. Plain link, no commission | Yes: a commission via PartnerStack (rate not published) | Yes: A$115-185 per paid subscription, via Impact |
| Visit Employment Hero | Visit Deputy | See Xero | Try MYOB Business free | |
Three questions that decide it
- Are your crews on awards with penalty rates? Then award interpretation matters more than anything else. Employment Hero and Deputy state it; for Xero and MYOB, ask how penalty rates and allowances are set up.
- Do you roster shifts? Deputy and Employment Hero roster; MYOB lets you create and publish rosters in its staff app. We couldn't confirm rostering in Xero's payroll.
- How many people? Per-business plans (Xero, MYOB) are cheap for a small team; per-user and per-employee pricing grows with headcount. Do the sum for your team at 12 months.
General information only, not tax or employment advice. Check your award obligations with the Fair Work Ombudsman.
Businesses ask
Do Xero and MYOB include payroll?
Yes, on some plans. Xero's Comprehensive plan includes payroll for 5 people and its Ultimate plans for 10, 20 or 50. MYOB AccountRight Plus includes unlimited payroll; Lite and Pro add payroll at an extra cost per employee per month.
Which payroll software handles modern awards?
Employment Hero states built-in award interpretation, and Deputy offers award interpretation with its Pay Rate Builder. We couldn't confirm award interpretation as a feature in Xero or MYOB on their own pages.
Is all of this software ready for STP Phase 2?
All four state Single Touch Payroll Phase 2 support on their own pages: Employment Hero says it is ATO-certified and Phase 2 ready, Deputy says its payroll is designed to support STP Phase 2, Xero reports Phase 2 detail, and MYOB requires the move to Phase 2 to report.