Gusto is a payroll, benefits, and HR platform built for small and mid-sized businesses in the United States. For most people reading Moroccopreneur, that “United States” part matters more than any feature list: Gusto is not a tool for running payroll in Morocco, and it only becomes relevant once you have a US-registered entity, are hiring US-based staff, or are paying contractors internationally through its separate global payments product.
Key features
- Automatic federal, state, and local payroll tax calculation, filing, and payment for US employees
- Unlimited monthly payroll runs, with next-day or four-day direct deposit depending on plan
- Health insurance, 401(k), and other benefits administration for US-based teams
- Time tracking and PTO policy management on Plus and Premium plans
- Contractor payments and 1099 creation and filing for US-based contractors
- Global Contractor Payments (GCP), for paying contractors in other countries, including Morocco, without a monthly platform fee
- Gusto Global, an employer-of-record option powered by Remote, for hiring full-time employees abroad without opening a foreign legal entity
- HR advisor access and compliance support on the Premium plan
Pricing
Gusto prices in USD, with a monthly base fee plus a per-person fee added for each active employee or contractor:
- Contractor Only: currently offered at $0/month as a limited-time promotion (regular price $35/month), plus $6/month per contractor. Covers domestic contractor payments, 1099 creation, and filing.
- Simple: $49/month plus $6/month per person. Single-state payroll, unlimited payroll runs, tax filing, and basic PTO tracking.
- Plus: $80/month plus $12/month per person. Adds multi-state payroll, next-day direct deposit, and time tracking. Gusto markets this as its best-value plan.
- Premium: $180/month plus $22/month per person. Adds a dedicated service advisor, HR expert access, performance and compensation tools, custom reports, and priority support.
Global Contractor Payments and Gusto Global carry their own separate fee structures on top of a base plan, so get a live quote for your specific country and headcount before committing rather than assuming it slots into the numbers above.
Prices change over time. Figures above are based on Gusto’s own pricing page (Gusto.com/product/pricing).
Pros and cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Consistently rated easy to set up and use, both on G2 and Capterra | US-only payroll and tax filing, no support for running local payroll in Morocco or any other non-US country |
| Handles federal, state, and local tax filing automatically for US employees | Customer support quality is a recurring complaint in reviews, especially reaching a human outside business hours |
| Global Contractor Payments reaches contractors in 120+ countries with no separate monthly platform fee | Signing up assumes a US Federal Employer Identification Number, so the account holder needs a genuine US business, not just a bank account |
| Transparent, published pricing with no long-term contract | Some reviewers report confusion around tax withdrawal timing and amounts |
| Month-to-month billing, and you are only charged for active employees or contractors | Time tracking and reporting features are described as limited compared to dedicated tools |
Who it’s best for
Gusto is a solid fit if you already run, or are actively setting up, a US-registered entity, such as a Delaware or Wyoming LLC or C-corp, and you have US-based employees on payroll or US-based contractors to pay. This describes a specific but real slice of Moroccopreneur’s audience: diaspora entrepreneurs running a US company alongside operations in Morocco, or Moroccan founders who have incorporated in the US to access American clients, investors, or payment infrastructure. For that group, Gusto’s Global Contractor Payments feature is also genuinely useful, since it lets a US entity pay a Morocco-based freelancer or team member directly in their local currency without opening a foreign bank account or building a separate payroll process.
Skip Gusto if your business is registered in Morocco and you need to pay employees who are legally based and taxed in Morocco. Gusto has no capability to run Moroccan payroll, file Moroccan social security (CNSS) contributions, or handle Moroccan labor law compliance, and nothing in its country coverage changes that. If your only need is to send occasional payments to one or two Morocco-based freelancers and you have no US entity, a simpler international payment tool or invoicing platform will likely cost less and involve less setup than opening a Gusto account you cannot fully use.
How to get started
- Confirm you have (or are willing to set up) a registered US business entity with a Federal Employer Identification Number, since Gusto’s sign-up flow is built around this.
- Decide which plan fits your situation: Contractor Only if you’re only paying contractors, Simple or Plus if you’re running US payroll, Premium if you need HR advisor support.
- Create your Gusto account and enter your company details, US bank account, and tax information.
- If you need to pay people outside the US, choose the right product for the relationship: Global Contractor Payments for contractors, or Gusto Global (powered by Remote) if you need to hire someone as a full employee without opening a local entity.
- Add your team members or contractors, confirm their pay details, and run your first payroll or contractor payment.
FAQ
Can a company registered in Morocco use Gusto to pay Moroccan employees? No. Gusto only runs payroll and tax filing for US-based employees under a US business entity. It has no Moroccan payroll, tax, or labor-law compliance capability.
Can I use Gusto to pay a freelancer or contractor based in Morocco? Yes, this is possible through Gusto’s Global Contractor Payments feature if the paying business is set up on Gusto (generally meaning a US entity with the required tax setup). The contractor completes onboarding and a W-8BEN form and gets paid in local currency, with no separate monthly fee for this feature.
Do I need a US LLC to sign up for Gusto? You need a US Federal Employer Identification Number and a US business bank account, which in practice means a registered US entity such as an LLC or C-corp. A US LLC owned by a Moroccan founder qualifies, as long as it has its own FEIN and bank account.
Does Gusto let me hire someone in Morocco as a full-time employee without a local entity? Gusto Global, its employer-of-record option powered by Remote, is built for this kind of hire in supported countries, but Morocco-specific coverage is not confirmed in Gusto’s own published materials as of this review. Check current country coverage directly with Gusto before assuming Morocco is included.
Disclosure: Moroccopreneur may earn a commission if you sign up for Gusto through the links in this article. This does not change what you pay, and it does not influence which tools we choose to cover.
