BrightPay vs Sage Payroll
Verified ratings, real UK pricing and the compliance detail, weighed side by side — with a written verdict at the end.
BrightPay
Payroll Software
- United Kingdom
- Ireland
- Phone
- Knowledge Base
- Forum
Sage Payroll
Payroll Software
- United Kingdom
- Ireland
- Phone
- Live Chat
- Knowledge Base
- Forum
Evenly matched on verified reviews — 4.1 against 4.0. Price and fit will decide this one, not the score.
The short version
What each one costs and how each one rates, side by side. Only the rows where leading means something are marked; vendor and availability are in the overview above.
| Detail | BrightPay | Sage Payroll |
|---|---|---|
| What it costs | ||
| Starting priceLowest paid tier, excluding VAT | On request | £12/mo |
| Free version | NoNo | NoNo |
| Free trial | YesYes | YesYes |
| How it rates | ||
| Overall ratingMean of verified Assaylist reviews | 4.1 | 4.0 |
| Verified reviewsVolume is evidence, not a score — this row is not a contest | 235 reviews | 266 reviews |
How reviewers score them
Across the four dimensions we ask every reviewer about — and, below, the star split each average is built from.
- BrightPay
- Sage Payroll
| Dimension | BrightPay | Sage Payroll | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ease of use | 4.0 | 4.0 | Level |
| Value for money | 3.9 | 3.9 | Level |
| Customer support | 4.0 | 4.0 | Level |
| Functionality | 4.0 | 3.9 | 0.1 to BrightPay |
What each average is made of
Two products can share an average and not share a reputation. These bars show the star split behind each score.
| Product | 5 star | 4 star | 3 star | 2 star | 1 star |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BrightPay | 44% (104 reviews) | 31% (72 reviews) | 14% (34 reviews) | 9% (20 reviews) | 2% (5 reviews) |
| Sage Payroll | 41% (110 reviews) | 33% (88 reviews) | 15% (41 reviews) | 7% (19 reviews) | 3% (8 reviews) |
Feature by feature
Everything either vendor publishes, split into what separates them and what they share.
- Both products
- 15%
- Only BrightPay
- 947%
- Only Sage Payroll
- 947%
19 features listed across both products.
What only one of them does
BrightPay
9- Automatic enrolment and assessment
- Automatic legislative updates
- Batch and multi employer processing
- Bureau and practice workflows
+ 5 more in the table below
Sage Payroll
9- Automated HMRC notices
- Employee records
- Four step pay run
- Holiday and sick leave tracking
+ 5 more in the table below
Showing 19 of 19 features
| Detail | BrightPay | Sage Payroll |
|---|---|---|
| Where they differ · 18 | ||
| Automatic enrolment and assessment | YesYes | NoNo |
| Automatic legislative updates | YesYes | NoNo |
| Batch and multi employer processing | YesYes | NoNo |
| Bureau and practice workflows | YesYes | NoNo |
| CIS where relevant | YesYes | NoNo |
| Employee payslip and document app | YesYes | NoNo |
| Multi user collaboration | YesYes | NoNo |
| Secure cloud hosting | YesYes | NoNo |
| Statutory sick and parental pay | YesYes | NoNo |
| Automated HMRC notices | NoNo | YesYes |
| Employee records | NoNo | YesYes |
| Four step pay run | NoNo | YesYes |
| Holiday and sick leave tracking | NoNo | YesYes |
| Payroll anomaly detection | NoNo | YesYes |
| Pension auto enrolment | NoNo | YesYes |
| Sage Copilot | NoNo | YesYes |
| Scales to 150 employees | NoNo | YesYes |
| Self serve payslips | NoNo | YesYes |
| Where they match · 1 | ||
| RTI submissions to HMRC | YesYes | YesYes |
A dash means the vendor has not published a feature list — which is not the same as the feature being unavailable.
How they handle UK obligations
Checked against the vendor's own documentation or HMRC's published list. A dash means we have not verified it — never that it is missing.
| Detail | BrightPay | Sage Payroll |
|---|---|---|
| Verified against vendor documentation | ||
| RTI-compliant payroll | YesYes | YesYes |
| Pension auto-enrolment | YesYes | YesYes |
| CIS support | YesYes | Not listedNot listed |
| UK-based support | UK and Ireland support | Telephone support from Sage UK |
What each tier costs
Both line-ups on one ladder, so the middle tier on one side sits next to the middle tier on the other.
BrightPay
Sage Payroll
BrightPay Cloud
Contact vendor
- Cloud only from the 2026/27 tax year
- HMRC recognised
- Multi employer and bureau workflows
Payroll Essentials
£12/mo
- 5 employees included
- 4 step pay run
- HMRC compliance and notices
No comparable tier listed
Payroll Standard
£23/mo
- 5 employees included
- Core HR capabilities
- Enhanced pay run
No comparable tier listed
Payroll Premium
£34/mo
- 5 employees included
- Comprehensive payroll and HR
- For more complex requirements
Rungs are matched by position in each vendor’s own line-up, not by what the tiers include — an entry plan on one side may cover more than the other. Prices exclude VAT unless stated, and per-seat plans are quoted per seat. Always confirm on the vendor’s own site.
Which should you choose?
Two answers, because there are two right ones depending on what you need.
Choose BrightPay if
- It lists 9 features Sage Payroll does not, including automatic enrolment and assessment.
- It covers more of the UK obligations we check — 4 of them against 3.
Choose Sage Payroll if
- It lists 9 features BrightPay does not, including automated hmrc notices.
BrightPay is the specialist's payroll, favoured by bureaus and deeper for complex pay runs, while Sage Payroll is the more approachable cloud tool for a small employer running payroll themselves. Choose BrightPay if payroll is your profession, Sage Payroll if you want it handled without becoming a specialist.
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