Choosing The Right MYOB Payroll Software For Your Business

MYOB Payroll Software

MYOB offers a range of payroll packages which cater to the varying needs of different businesses. Some are designed specifically for small businesses, whilst others are designed to meet the more demanding requirements of larger organisations.

Below we give a brief overview of different MYOB packages so you can identify which is most appropriate for your needs. Whilst there's a range of packages available, there are two we usually recommend. These as MYOB Essentials Payroll for small businesses with simple payroll requirements, and IMS Payroll for businesses of any size with more complex payroll requirements.

MYOB Essentials – Payroll

Essentials Payroll is designed for small organisations with simple payroll needs. It does a nice job of paying people with a simple 3 step process.

Pros

Works well for casual employees, those working flexible hrs & for set hours
Employees can enter their times using a phone App. This imports to payroll
Essentials has a simple one-step process to transfer payday files to the IRD
Browser access so use from either your Mac, PC or tablet
No software needs to be installed & updates are automatic
Pays can be deleted and re-entered (this is both a pro and a con!)
Quick to setup & minimal training required
You can upgrade & integrate to Essentials Accounting with general ledger, debtors & creditors

Cons

No costing or department tracking available (yet)
Annual leave tracked in hours (not days)
No pay summary/sheet available
Doesn’t integrate to other accounting packages beyond Essentials Accounting
Limited features
Limited reports

Conclusion:

Essentials Payroll is recommended for employers with less than 10 employees. It suits those with simple payroll requirements. It’s not suited for those needing department or cost centre reporting.

MYOB ACE Payroll

ACE Payroll has been used by thousands of small NZ businesses for many years. It’s recommended for small employers. ACE Payroll is 100% owned by MYOB. You pay an initial software fee and then an optional annual subscription.

Pros

Easy to use but initial setup and training is a must for new users
Ace Payroll is self-explanatory with descriptive text on most screens
Integrates automatically to MYOB AccountRight & Essentials
Comprehensive set of reports
Records actual dates employees have off via a calendar
Drill down reporting right to the employee’s payslip
No limits on how many staff you can pay (no per employee charge)
6 months free introductory support (email/phone)

Cons

PayDay filing happens via file transfer (not via Gateway as does Essentials Payroll)
Not cloud based (runs on your desktop)
Single -user access

Conclusion:

ACE Payroll is designed for small businesses, however it's not ideal for businesses with staff working flexible hours. If that's your business, then we suggest you consider MYOB Essentials Payroll or IMS instead.

MYOB Payroll

MYOB Payroll has been used successfully by thousands of small and medium NZ businesses for 20 years. It is recommended for employers with less than 20 employees.

Pros

Easy to use but initial setup and training is recommended for new users
Integrates nicely to MYOB AccountRight providing useful journals
Good set of reports & filtering to find information

Cons

Only manages leave for casuals & fixed hour employees. Can’t accrue hours for variable employees
Desktop based software (runs on Windows). Updates must be installed
Written in FoxPro. This database is no longer supported by Microsoft
Payrolls can become corrupted. Restoring from backup may be necessary
Reports not available in Excel format
PayDay filing is done via file transfer (not via Gateway which is what Essentials Payroll does)

Conclusion:

MYOB Payroll has worked reliably for many businesses for 20 years. It has most features and reports an organisation would need. Its suited for those needing department or cost centre reporting. However, due to the age of the database used we no longer recommend purchasing this payroll.

MYOB IMS Payroll

IMS Payroll has been relied on by thousands of NZ businesses over many years. It's suitable for employers of any size - especially those with more complex requirements. It is 100% owned by MYOB and support comes from the Hasting support centre. IMS Payroll can be purchased with useful add-ons; IMS Express (leave portal) and IMS Max (leave and timesheet portal). IMS can be hosted in the cloud or on the Desktop.

Pros

Easy to use but initial setup and training is a must for new users
Well designed with a series of 9 steps so you know exactly where you’re up to
Integrates to most accounting software including MYOB
Very comprehensive set of reports most of which can be saved in Excel
Checks & balances as you process pays
Good exception reporting
Transfer of 52 weeks leave earnings history from other payrolls available
Multi-user access with different access levels for different users
Deals with many advanced features not available in other payrolls
Very well supported from the Hastings contact centre

Cons

IMS Payroll screens a bit antiquated & need a facelift
Some terminology used can be confusing (hover help needed)
IMS Payroll support notes need updating with screen diagrams
PayDay filing happens via file transfer (not via Gateway which is what Essentials Payroll does)

Conclusion:

IMS Payroll is one of our favourites and one we regularly implement for clients. It’s bullet proof software & once users are familiar, they like it. Feature rich and very well supported.

MYOB EXO Payroll

EXO Payroll has been used successfully by thousands of NZ businesses for many years. It is recommended for both large and medium employers. Support comes from the MYOB directly or from an Enterprise partner. EXO Payroll can be purchased with a multitude of add-ons: MyStaff Info; Time & Attendance (to poll time clocks); Health & Safety to name a few.

Pros

Easy to use but initial setup and training is a must for new users
Well designed with an easy setup and processing flow chart to follow
Integrates to most accounting software with a pay journal
Very comprehensive set of reports - many can be saved in Excel or as a PDF
Very good lookup for employees and timesheet history
Transfer of 52 weeks leave earnings history from other payrolls available
Multi-user access with different access levels for different users
Has many advanced features not available in other payrolls
Department & Cost Centre reporting
PayDay filing is via file transfer, but good reports are supplied to match to IRD
Software & support covers many payrolls (the license is by number of employees)

Cons

Desktop or server based (not available via a web browser)

Conclusion:

EXO Payroll is highly recommended for medium and large sized businesses. It’s bullet proof software & once users are familiar, they like it. It’s feature rich and comes with a good suite of reports.

Need Help?

Still not sure which of the above payroll software packages is best for you? Contact us and we'll make choosing the right software easy. We have over 20 years hands-on experience with payroll software and our consultants are experts with all the MYOB packages.

We can also help if you need any of these services:

Our 'go to'

AccountAgility is our ‘go to’ when we have clients getting messed up with their MYOB files. Lynley will go in, health check the file, correct the errors and train the bookkeeper to follow best practice.

We look after the client’s tax requirements, but she will dig deep into the software to ensure the reports are reliable.

Margot Leigh ... Chartered Accountant Margot Leigh & Associates

Really appreciated the support

We choose Lynley because she has many years experience on payroll setup & training. Over the years Lynley has always been available to assist online with questions on both the payroll software and on payroll legislation. We really have appreciated the support.

Sharleen Murray ... Office Manager – Stauff Corporation

Streamlined our systems

Gow Langford Gallery is NZ’s largest privately owned art gallery. The Gallery represents over thirty established New Zealand and international artists. The accounting systems need to be able to accommodate complex transactions.

AccountAgility have worked closely with us, supporting both AccountRight and Payroll since 2012. We have streamlined our systems to eliminate additional spreadsheets and paper documents and now make maximum use of AccountRight.

Shona Irwin ... Chief Financial Officer Gow Langsford Gallery