PrimePayPayroll that's built for you.
vs
WaveClear books. Confident decisions.
Comparison · Payroll · weekly run Nov 3
PrimePay vs Wave
Which one do AI engines recommend, and how do they differ on price, fit and features?
The short answer
Wave is the stronger AI pick in Payroll: it has a visibility score of 2.3 versus 0 for PrimePay.
Choose PrimePay if…
- You prefer a larger, established vendor (501–1,000 employees)
- Per seat pricing suits your budget better than flat tiers
Choose Wave if…
- You want the brand AI engines rank higher (2.3 vs 0)
- You want a free plan to start
- Flat tiers pricing suits your budget better than per seat
- Free accounting and invoicing for micro-businesses
AI visibility side by side
Latest weekly run · Nov 3
| Metric | PrimePay | Wave |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility score | 0% | 2.3% |
| Change vs last week | New | New |
| Rank in Payroll | #43 | #23 |
| Share of voice | 0% | 0.9% |
| Mentions this run | 0 | 4 |
| Positive in AI answers | — | 38% |
The stronger value in each row is marked with a ✓.
Visibility score trend
Weekly runs over the last 60 days
PrimePay 0pp · Wave 0pp over 0 weekly runs.
Engine by engine
Wave leads on 3 of 3 engines
ChatGPT
AI Mode
Perplexity
PrimePayWave
Head to head in AI answers
0 engine answers name both brands
0PrimePay ranked higher
0Wave ranked higher
Features, pricing & fit
| Dimension | PrimePay | Wave |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per seat | Flat tiers |
| Entry price | $55 per seat / mo | Free; paid from $19 / mo |
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Onboarding fee | Included | — |
| Deployment | — | Cloud-based web application with a mobile app |
| Support | Phone and chat support on Base and Pro, On-demand HR advisor on Pro, Dedicated account manager on Custom plans | Live chat and email support, Monday to Friday 9 AM to 4:45 PM Eastern, Wave Advisors bookkeeping and coaching (paid add-on) |
| Founded | 1986 | 2009 |
| Headquarters | Bradenton, Florida | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Employees | 501–1,000 | 201–500 |
| Funding | Investment from Aquiline Capital Partners | Series D |
| Best for | Small businesses that want to run payroll themselves, with unlimited payroll runs and tax filing included. | Freelancers, solopreneurs, contractors and consultants who run small businesses and want simple books and invoicing without accounting expertise |
Plans side by side
PrimePay
Base$55month plus $5 per employee
Pro$85month plus $6 per employee
CustomCustomcustom, based on selected components and employee count
Wave
Starter$0month
Pro$19month per business (billed monthly); $190/year billed annually
Wave Advisors$149month (starting at)
Pros and cons
Themes from the AI answers that mention each brand
PrimePay
Profile in progress.
Wave
- Free accounting and invoicing for micro-businesses
- Well suited to freelancers and very small businesses
- Ongoing free plan rather than a time-limited trial
- Affordable and reliable for small businesses
- Clear public pricing
- Free plan mainly suits a single user, not teams
- Free products offer fewer controls and growth features
Data collected ·ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Mode·coverage 100%·next run
Cite as: SlateIndex, “PrimePay vs Wave”, https://slateindex.ai/compare/primepay-vs-wave, data of Nov 3, 2026. Licence: CC BY 4.0.