QuickBooks® Review for Construction Businesses: Pros, Cons & Alternatives

QuickBooks processes payroll for millions of small businesses, but how well does it handle construction’s unique challenges? This review examines QuickBooks’ capabilities specifically through a contractor’s lens.

What is QuickBooks?

QuickBooks is an accounting software provider that has been operating since 1983. The company offers bookkeeping, payroll, tax filing and business management services for business owners across various industries.

While QuickBooks serves various industries, including construction through their Premier Contractor Edition, they’re primarily an accounting platform with payroll as an add-on service. The system is designed for general business accounting across multiple sectors.

QuickBooks Payroll Features for Construction Businesses

QuickBooks processes payroll as an add-on service that handles tax compliance, employee administration and basic cost tracking for construction businesses.

#1: Payroll Processing

QuickBooks’ payroll add-on is built for different business sizes, with a primary focus on small to medium-sized companies. The payroll service processes payroll through several features:

• Online payroll processing integrated with QuickBooks accounting
• Payroll tax calculations and filings
• Federal and state compliance support
• Direct deposit and check printing options

The system calculates federal and state payroll taxes automatically and handles tax filing. The payroll add-on also processes gross pay calculations, deduction management, fringe benefits tracking and basic tax reporting.

#2: Employee Management and Compliance

QuickBooks provides some HR management tools that feed into and support their payroll add-on, including:

• Time tracking with labor cost allocation that flows into payroll processing
• Employee onboarding and record keeping for payroll setup
• Benefits administration through third-party partners integrated with payroll
• Compliance services for payroll tax regulations

The system includes reporting features to track employee hours and job costs, which can be used for payroll processing.

#3: Integrations and Business System Connectivity

QuickBooks offers software integrations through their QuickBooks App Store. For payroll-related integrations, the software includes:

• Time tracking applications: TSheets (QuickBooks Time), Clockify, When I Work, Hubstaff
• HR systems: Gusto, BambooHR, Zenefits
• Benefits administration platforms: SimplyInsured, PlanSource

These integrations extend QuickBooks’ payroll capabilities by connecting time tracking data directly to payroll processing, syncing employee information across systems and streamlining benefits management alongside payroll operations.

QuickBooks Payroll Service Options

QuickBooks offers payroll as an add-on service that works with their different accounting software packages. Here’s how it breaks down:

QuickBooks Accounting Software Options

First, you need QuickBooks accounting software. They offer several versions:

• QuickBooks Online – Web-based software you access through your browser, designed for small businesses
• QuickBooks Desktop – Software you install on your computer for businesses that prefer traditional desktop programs
• QuickBooks Premier Contractor – A desktop version with construction-specific accounting features like job costing and change orders
• QuickBooks Enterprise – Their most advanced desktop software for larger businesses with more complex needs

Adding Payroll to Your QuickBooks Package

Once you have QuickBooks accounting software, you can add payroll services. The payroll options depend on which accounting software you’re using:

If you use QuickBooks Online, you can add:

• Core Payroll – Basic payroll processing, tax filing and direct deposit
• Premium Payroll – Everything in Core plus same-day direct deposit and additional support
• Elite Payroll – Everything in Premium plus HR support and tax penalty protection

If you use QuickBooks Desktop or Premier Contractor, you can add:

• Desktop Enhanced Payroll – Payroll features that integrate with your desktop accounting software

If you use QuickBooks Enterprise, you can add:

• Enterprise Payroll – Full-service payroll with dedicated support for larger businesses

Important: QuickBooks’ payroll cannot work on its own — you must have an active QuickBooks accounting subscription to use any payroll service.

Ratings and Reviews

Here’s what users in the construction industry have said about their experiences with QuickBooks Payroll:

QuickBooks for Construction: Summary Overview

QuickBooks provides accounting and payroll solutions with broad small business coverage and multiple service tiers. The software offers:

• Payroll processing with tax compliance for federal and state requirements
• Time tracking and employee management tools that connect directly with payroll
• Multiple service packages from basic payroll to enhanced business management
• Time tracking and employee management tools

The service works for construction businesses needing integrated accounting and payroll with basic project tracking capabilities.

However, QuickBooks’ construction features are accounting-focused add-ons rather than specialized payroll solutions. The brand has limitations for contractors with complex construction payroll scenarios, including:

• Limited native support for prevailing wage rate management
• Basic union payroll capabilities requiring workarounds
• Manual processes for certified payroll reporting
• Challenges with multi-classification payroll tracking

Companies should carefully evaluate whether QuickBooks’ accounting-focused approach meets specialized construction industry requirements for complex payroll scenarios, particularly around union requirements, prevailing wages and certified reporting.

Fortunately, there are specialized alternatives designed to handle the unique challenges of construction payroll, union requirements and certified reporting.

Payroll4Construction: Specialized Construction Payroll Solution

Payroll4Construction is a construction payroll service built exclusively for contractors, helping construction businesses overcome union, prevailing wage and certified reporting challenges.

Construction Industry-Specific Payroll Features

Unlike general accounting-based payroll providers, Payroll4Construction is designed to help contractors handle the complex requirements that construction companies face daily:

• Union Payroll: Manages union contracts, calculates benefit contributions and processes complex reporting requirements specific to construction trades
• Prevailing Wage Rates: Automated compliance tracking for government contract work with real-time rate updates, ensuring Davis-Bacon Act compliance
• Multi-State Processing: Seamless payroll processing for construction crews working across state lines with proper tax compliance
• Certified Payroll Reporting: Automated generation of Form WH-347 and other certified payroll reports for Department of Labor (DOL) compliance, including weekly payroll certifications and fringe benefit tracking

Advanced Integrations

Payroll4Construction integrates with your existing accounting, HR and time tracking systems for complete construction workforce management:

• Accounting: Connects with popular accounting software, including QuickBooks, Sage 300 CRE, FOUNDATION® and Viewpoint for seamless data flow
• Time Tracking: Links with field time collection apps and systems to automatically import hours into payroll
• HR Systems: Integrates with HR platforms to streamline employee data management

Dedicated Construction Industry Support

Payroll4Construction provides contractors with specialized support from an in-house team of construction payroll experts who understand the unique challenges of contractor payroll.

How Contractors Can Choose the Best Payroll Solution

The right payroll solution doesn’t just process paychecks. It provides visibility into your operations, helps control project costs, ensures compliance with complex regulations and improves overall project management capabilities.

Before choosing a payroll provider, ask yourself:

• Does the provider specialize in construction payroll or offer it as an accounting add-on?
• Can the system handle complex union requirements and benefit calculations?
• Are prevailing wage and certified payroll capabilities built-in or additional services?
• Can the system handle multi-state payroll processing for traveling crews?
• Does the provider offer construction industry expertise or general business support?
• What level of automation does the platform provide for compliance reporting?

If you’d like to explore how specialized construction payroll services could benefit your construction company, Payroll4Construction experts are ready to help you find the perfect fit for your unique requirements.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What Are the Pros and Cons of Using QuickBooks for Payroll?

Pros: QuickBooks offers comprehensive accounting software with payroll add-on services, user-friendly interfaces, automated tax calculations and multiple pricing tiers. The platform provides reliable processing for basic payroll needs with seamless integration between accounting and payroll functions.

Cons: QuickBooks’ construction features are limited add-ons to their accounting platform rather than purpose-built construction payroll solutions. The system is not specifically designed for construction payroll complexities, which can create challenges when handling construction-specific requirements like complex prevailing wages, union reporting, fringe benefits tracking, certified payroll compliance and multi-state processing.

What Should Construction Businesses Look for in a Payroll Provider?

Construction businesses should prioritize providers that specialize in construction payroll and offer:

• Built-in prevailing wage compliance
• Union payroll capabilities
• Certified payroll reporting (Form WH-347)
• Multi-state processing
• Fringe tracking
• Dedicated construction industry support

The provider should also understand Davis-Bacon Act requirements and state prevailing wage laws.

What Makes Payroll4Construction Different From QuickBooks?

Payroll4Construction is designed exclusively for construction companies, offering specialized features like:

• Automated prevailing wage compliance
• Union reporting
• Certified payroll reporting in print or electronic formats

Unlike QuickBooks’ accounting-focused platform with construction add-ons, every feature in Payroll4Construction is built specifically for contractors’ unique payroll needs.

What Are Some Alternatives to QuickBooks?

Construction businesses have several alternatives to QuickBooks for payroll processing:

Specialized Construction Payroll Providers:

• Payroll4Construction – Purpose-built for construction with union payroll, prevailing wage compliance and certified reporting
• FOUNDATION – Construction-specific accounting and payroll solution

General Payroll Providers with Construction Features:

• ADP – Large payroll provider offering construction payroll services
• Paychex – Multi-industry payroll with construction-specific options
• Gusto – Small business payroll with basic construction features

Industry-Specific Considerations: When evaluating alternatives, construction businesses should prioritize providers that offer native support for prevailing wage tracking, union benefit calculations, certified payroll reporting and multi-state compliance rather than general business payroll platforms that require workarounds for construction-specific requirements.