SFDIFY
If you bid prevailing wage or union work, choose construction payroll software built for it. FOUNDATION's payroll module can create certified payroll reports "for numerous state, federal or local agencies" [1], Payroll4Construction runs that payroll for you as a service ("You submit time. We do the rest.") [2], and eBacon generates "the WH-347 and state certified payroll reports" from field time [3]. For mostly private work, QuickBooks can download a WH-347 spreadsheet you finish by hand [4], and Gusto covers multi-state payroll on Plus [5] but its reports help page lists no certified payroll report [6].
Construction payroll differs from office payroll: one worker can carry three pay rates in a week, union fringes sit on top of wages, federally funded jobs call for a certified payroll report every week [7], and labor has to land on the right job. General payroll tools handle paychecks and taxes well; the gaps show up in certified payroll, fringes and job costing.
How we chose
We compared six products a contractor is likely to shortlist: three built for construction (FOUNDATION, Payroll4Construction, eBacon) and three general platforms with construction features (ADP, QuickBooks, Gusto). We read each vendor's product, pricing and help pages, checked on November 8, 2026, and looked for certified payroll output, prevailing wage and union fringe handling, multi-state timecards, job costing and field time tracking. We did not run payroll in any of them, and we only credit certified payroll support where a vendor page says so. Gusto is an affiliate partner; that did not change its position or what we say about it.
Construction payroll software at a glance
| Product | Best for | Starting price | Notable |
|---|---|---|---|
| FOUNDATION Payroll | Payroll inside construction accounting | Custom quote [8] | Certified payroll reports in print or electronic form [1] |
| Payroll4Construction | Outsourcing payroll | Custom quote after a form [9] | 40+ construction reports, including certified payroll [2] |
| eBacon | Open-shop contractors on public jobs | Not published; demo [3] | WH-347 plus state reports and a fringe trust [3] |
| ADP Workforce Now for Construction | Larger firms wanting payroll plus HR | "Get Pricing" quote form [10] | Construction team supports certified payroll reporting [10] |
| QuickBooks Workforce | QuickBooks users with occasional federal jobs | $50 + $7/employee; $88 + $13/employee on Premium [11] | WH-347 downloads as a spreadsheet you complete [4] |
| Gusto | Small crews doing private work | $49/mo + $6/mo per person [5] | No certified payroll report listed [6] |
FOUNDATION Payroll — certified payroll inside construction accounting
FOUNDATION is construction accounting software, and its payroll module is aimed at crews with "multiple prevailing wage, union, fringe and tax rates on each construction project" [1].
Verified features: FOUNDATION says you can "process multi-state, multi-union and multi-trade timecards without reentering rates" [1]. It can create print or electronic certified payroll reports "for numerous state, federal or local agencies" [1]. Payroll posts to job cost reporting and the general ledger in a single transaction, without re-entry [1].
Pricing: Foundation does not publish prices. Its pricing page says pricing "is customizable based on what your business requires" [8].
Strengths: Payroll, job costing and accounting share one set of data, so labor cost is not keyed in twice, and certified reports cover state and local agencies, not only federal ones.
Limitations: You are buying an accounting system, not just payroll, and you need a sales call to get a number. Mobile Time Tracking is listed as an add-on module [8]. You also run payroll yourself; Payroll4Construction below is the hands-off option from the same company.
Best fit: Contractors with regular prevailing wage or union work and an office person to own payroll.
Payroll4Construction — outsourced contractor payroll services
Payroll4Construction is a payroll service rather than software you operate: "You submit time. We do the rest." [2] The name is a registered trademark of Foundation Software, LLC [9], and the service is "Powered by FOUNDATION" [2].
Verified features: The service "automatically creates more than 40 detailed construction reports," including certified payroll, union reporting and tracking, job costing and workers' compensation [2]. Certified payroll comes in print and electronic formats, with report formats for "DiR, LCPTracker, eMARS and others" [12]. Its mobile time tracking uses GPS stamps and biometric facial recognition [12].
Pricing: Quote-based. Payroll4Construction says its pricing "includes everything you need to run payroll — no à la carte or add-ons needed," and that you see your custom price right after submitting a form [9].
Strengths: Specialists do the processing and certified reports, so nobody in your office has to become the prevailing wage expert.
Limitations: There is no public price, and you give up some day-to-day control. A service is only as quick as your timecards, so foremen still have to get hours in on time.
Best fit: Small and midsize contractors with prevailing wage, union or multi-state work and no dedicated payroll specialist.
eBacon — certified payroll for open-shop and merit-shop contractors
eBacon calls itself an all-in-one platform "for contractors with 15 to 500 employees" [3].
Verified features: eBacon says it "runs prevailing wage payroll, annualizes fringe automatically, and generates the WH-347 and state certified payroll reports from the same time your crews clock in the field" [3]. Field time comes in through "mobile GPS clock-in and geofencing" [3]. It also runs a bona fide fringe trust that lets open-shop and merit-shop contractors put prevailing wage fringe into benefits instead of paying it out as taxable cash [3].
Pricing: eBacon's homepage does not list prices; it points buyers to a 30-minute demo instead [3].
Strengths: Time capture, certified reports and fringe handling run on the same data, so the hours captured in the field are the hours on the report. The fringe trust is unusual among these options.
Limitations: eBacon says the fringe trust "is for non-union work; union fringe stays with the union fund" [3], so union contractors get less from its signature feature. Pricing is not public, and the stated range starts at 15 employees.
Best fit: Open-shop and merit-shop contractors with steady public work who want certified payroll, field time and fringe management in one platform.
ADP Workforce Now for Construction — payroll plus HR for larger crews
ADP markets "all-in-one construction payroll and HR software," built around ADP Workforce Now for Construction [10].
Verified features: ADP's construction page lists the ability to "auto-assign union wage and benefit rates, including prevailing or fringe rates for Davis-Bacon projects" [10]. Its Construction Center of Excellence, offered as part of ADP Workforce Now, provides "support for prevailing wages, unions, job costing, and certified payroll reporting" [10].
Pricing: The page shows no prices; each package routes to a "Get Pricing" form [10].
Strengths: Payroll and HR sit with one vendor, backed by a construction-specific team.
Limitations: ADP notes that "available features will depend on the ADP solution(s) purchased" [10], so get in writing which package includes certified payroll and union rates. The construction support is tied to Workforce Now, a full HR suite that may be more than a small contractor needs.
Best fit: Midsize and larger contractors that want payroll, HR and benefits in one system and will work through a quote.
QuickBooks Workforce — a WH-347 starting point for QuickBooks users
QuickBooks payroll users can follow an Intuit help article that explains how to "create your federal certified payroll report (WH-347) in Intuit QuickBooks Workforce" [4].
Verified features: After you run payroll, you choose the pay period and project in Standard reports, and "your certified payroll report will be generated in a spreadsheet" [4]. That help article is labeled for QuickBooks Online Payroll Premium and Elite [4].
Pricing: Intuit lists Workforce Payroll at $50 + $7/employee, Workforce Premium at $88 + $13/employee and Workforce Elite at $134 + $17/employee [11].
Strengths: If your books already live in QuickBooks, payroll and project data stay in one place and you avoid adding a second vendor.
Limitations: The WH-347 is a starting point, not a finished filing. Intuit says "you'll need to manually enter some info on the report before you can send it in," including the wage determination number and the signed statement of compliance [4]. The article covers the federal form only and does not mention state certified payroll formats [4].
Best fit: QuickBooks users with an occasional federal job and time to finish each weekly report by hand.
Gusto — simple payroll for private-work crews
Gusto is general small-business payroll with a few features that help construction crews, but it is the weakest fit here for public work.
Verified features: The Plus plan adds "time tracking and scheduling" and "multi-state payroll," and Premium adds "project based rules and costing" [5].
Pricing: Simple costs $49/mo + $6/mo per person and runs "basic payroll in one state"; Plus costs $80/mo + $12/mo per person; Premium costs $180/mo + $22/mo per person [5]. Our Gusto pricing breakdown covers the add-ons in more detail.
Strengths: Prices are published, so you can work out the monthly cost before talking to anyone, and adding a second state is a plan change rather than a new system.
Limitations: Gusto's reports help article lists workforce costing, time-tracking and workers' comp audit reports but no certified payroll or WH-347 report [6]. If you bid prevailing wage work, plan to build those reports elsewhere or confirm with Gusto before you sign. Project-based rules and costing sit on Premium, its most expensive plan [5].
Best fit: Small contractors and trades doing mostly private work, with a handful of employees and maybe a second state ahead.
How to choose construction payroll software
Start with your bid list, not the feature list.
- How often do you work public jobs? Federal projects need certified payroll every week [7]. If that is most of your work, a construction-specific tool or service saves the most office hours. If it happens once a year, the QuickBooks spreadsheet WH-347 may be enough.
- Union or open shop? Multi-union timecards and union fringe reporting point to FOUNDATION, Payroll4Construction or ADP. Open-shop contractors with heavy prevailing wage work should look at eBacon's fringe trust.
- Which agencies do you report to? Ask each vendor to show the exact state form or upload your agency wants. Payroll4Construction, for example, lists DiR, LCPTracker and eMARS formats [12].
- How does time get in from the field? Clean certified reports start with clean timecards. If you are still on paper, see our time clock app roundup for GPS and geofenced options that export to payroll.
- Software or service? In-house payroll gives you control; contractor payroll services take the processing off your desk. Price both, because a service quote often covers work you would otherwise pay staff to do.
- Do you also need HR? If onboarding and benefits matter as much as payroll, compare ADP with the platforms in our small business HR software guide.
How SFDIFY can help: SFDIFY designs and builds websites, web apps and custom software for growing businesses, and the first consultation is free. See all SFDIFY services.
FAQ
What is certified payroll, and when do contractors need it?
Certified payroll is a weekly report showing you paid prevailing wages on a public job. Gusto's guide says it applies to "any federally funded project with a payout of over $2,000" and that contractors may use Form WH-347 to report payroll every week [7]. State projects can set their own rules, so check with the awarding agency.
Can general payroll software for construction handle prevailing wage?
Partly. QuickBooks Workforce downloads a federal WH-347 spreadsheet, but you complete fields such as the wage determination number and sign the statement of compliance yourself [4]. Gusto's reports help article does not list a certified payroll report [6]. Construction-specific tools such as FOUNDATION and eBacon generate federal and state certified reports from payroll data [1, 3].
Should I use contractor payroll services or run payroll in-house?
Use a service if no one on staff knows prevailing wage and union rules well; Payroll4Construction's model is "You submit time. We do the rest." [2] Run payroll in-house with software like FOUNDATION if you want it tied to job costing and the general ledger [1].
Which construction payroll tools track time in the field?
eBacon uses mobile GPS clock-in and geofencing [3], and Payroll4Construction's mobile time tracking adds GPS stamps and facial recognition [12]. FOUNDATION sells Mobile Time Tracking as an add-on module [8].
Our recommendation
If you regularly do prevailing wage or union work, shortlist FOUNDATION for payroll inside construction accounting, or Payroll4Construction to hand payroll off. Open-shop contractors with heavy public work should add eBacon, and larger firms that want a full HR suite should get an ADP quote. If public jobs are rare, QuickBooks Workforce can produce a starting WH-347, and Gusto is a clearly priced choice for private work only. Before you sign, ask for a sample certified payroll report built from one of your real jobs.
Sources
- Construction Payroll Software | FOUNDATION® — checked 2026-11-08
- #1 Construction Payroll Service | Payroll4Construction — checked 2026-11-08
- eBacon | Certified Payroll Software for Construction Contractors — checked 2026-11-08
- Create and review your certified payroll report in QuickBooks Online Payroll — checked 2026-11-08
- Gusto Pricing, Plans & Fees (2026) | How Much Does Gusto Cost? — checked 2026-11-08
- Gusto Help Center - View, download, and customize reports in Gusto (for admins) — checked 2026-11-08
- What is Certified Payroll? | Gusto — checked 2026-11-08
- Construction Accounting Software Pricing | FOUNDATION® — checked 2026-11-08
- Request a Free Payroll Pricing Quote - Payroll4Construction — checked 2026-11-08
- Construction payroll and HR software | ADP — checked 2026-11-08
- Add Payroll - Payroll Services Pricing | QuickBooks — checked 2026-11-08
- Essential Payroll Processing Features for Contractors — checked 2026-11-08
