The True Cost of Micro-Business Payroll: e-PayDay Go® vs. Payroller Minimum Spends

For growing Australian micro-businesses running lean operations, selecting a software platform marketed as "cheap" or "free" requires a thorough reading of the fine print. Many small business owners adopt simple apps hoping for a permanent zero-cost entry point, only to hit sudden cost walls as soon as they transition from mobile devices to desktop web browsers or expand their team beyond a single person.

When comparing cost-effective Cloud Single Touch Payroll (STP) Phase 2 software, evaluating how subscription costs scale across real-world team sizes reveals significant structural differences.

Side-by-Side Pricing & Feature Architecture

Feature Set & Parameters	e-PayDay Go® (FREEPAY® Plan)	Payroller Standard Plan
1 Active Employee	$0.00 / month (Full Web & Mobile)	$0.00 (Mobile Only / Restricted)
2 to 3 Active Employees	$0.00 / month (100% Free Tier)	Subject to Minimum Subscription Caps
Enforced Minimum Monthly Spend	$0.00 (No credit card required)	$11.99/mo (Annual) or $16.00/mo (Monthly)
Desktop Web Access	Included Free	Premium Plan Required
STP Phase 2 Lodgements	Unlimited & Free	Limited on Free Tier
4 Employees Scalability	Flat Micro-Plan: $99.00 / Year	Charged Per Employee + Base Fees

Analysing the True Cost Barriers

Decoding the Payroller Minimum Spend Threshold

While standard tier options list a low nominal fee per employee ($2.99/mo on annual billing or $4.00/mo on monthly billing), their licensing agreement enforces a strict minimum monthly spend barrier.

The Structural Math: If a micro-business employs 2 or 3 people, a per-employee calculation suggests a cost of $6 to $12. However, Payroller automatically rounds this bill up to their mandatory $11.99 per month minimum floor (for annual commitments) or $16.00 per month (for month-to-month usage) to access the platform via a web browser.

The e-PayDay Go® FREEPAY® Guarantee

In contrast, e-PayDay Go® offers a genuine FREEPAY® tier designed to support small enterprises:

• True Zero-Cost Base: If you employ 1, 2, or 3 active workers, your monthly subscription fee is exactly $0.00.

• Zero Artificial Feature Walls: You receive unrestricted web access, unlimited compliant STP Phase 2 payroll events, Payday Super processing and automated tax withholding calculations without entering a credit card.

• Frictionless Growth Path: If your company scales to 4 employees, the system shifts to a flat, low-cost micro-plan of just $99.00 per year (averaging out to $8.25 per month), avoiding volatile monthly per-capita spikes.

Summary: For micro-businesses managing tight cash flows, choose a payroll engine that offers a transparent, genuinely free operational foundation over platforms that impose artificial pricing minimums.