Best Rippling Alternatives for 2026: Top 5 Tools Compared

Rippling has established itself as a comprehensive workforce management platform, combining HR, payroll, IT management, and global employment services in a unified system. However, many IT teams look for alternatives due to pricing constraints, feature complexity, regional specialization needs, or the desire for more streamlined solutions that focus on specific use cases rather than all-in-one functionality.

Top Alternatives to Rippling

Here are five leading alternatives that IT teams are choosing over Rippling, each offering distinct advantages for different organizational needs and priorities.

Alternative #1—Gusto

Gusto has established itself as a leading alternative for domestic startups and small businesses, serving over 300,000 customers with 33% year-over-year revenue growth. The platform excels at delivering straightforward payroll and HR functionality without the complexity that makes Rippling overwhelming for smaller teams. 

Unlike Rippling's typical 12-month contracts, Gusto offers complete flexibility—teams can upgrade, downgrade, or cancel at any time, making it ideal for companies whose workforce size may change rapidly. The platform includes comprehensive startup support beyond basic payroll, featuring R&D tax credit identification and workers' compensation through AP Intego. Health insurance options are available, but brokerage services are limited and not available in 37 states.

What Does Gusto Do

Gusto provides core payroll management with automated calculations, essential HR tools, time tracking, and benefits administration. The platform handles tax filing, direct deposit, and employee self-service portals while maintaining integration with 600+ business applications.

Gusto Differentiators

• Complete pricing flexibility with no long-term contract requirements
• User-friendly interface designed specifically for non-technical users
• Contractor-only plans with base monthly fees waived for first six months
• Transparent pricing without hidden fees or complex add-ons
• Strong mobile workforce management tools for distributed teams

Gusto Pros

• Excellent payroll functionality with automated compliance
• Very affordable pricing compared to comprehensive platforms
• No learning curve for basic HR operations
• 600+ integrations rivaling larger platforms
• Dedicated US-based customer support during business hours

Gusto Pricing

• Simple plan: $40/month + $6 per person
• Plus plan: $80/month + $12 per person (adds comprehensive HR tools)
• Premium plan: $180/month + $22 per person (includes dedicated support)

How Does Gusto Work with Siit?

Siit syncs employee data from Gusto and automates the workflows that happen around payroll events. Benefits changes, time-off requests, and new hire paperwork get routed automatically—no manual data entry between systems. For startups already using Gusto, Siit connects HR actions to IT provisioning and other departments without adding enterprise complexity or cost.

Alternative #2—Deel

Deel has emerged as the specialist in global workforce management, making it the top choice for companies with distributed international teams. The platform specifically addresses the complexity of managing employees across multiple countries with localized compliance requirements, real-time guidance, and streamlined international contractor payments. 

Deel operates across numerous countries with multi-currency payroll processing, making it particularly valuable for companies expanding globally without enterprise-level budgets. The platform handles the intricate compliance requirements that general HR platforms struggle with, including local tax expertise, employment law compliance, and automated regulatory reporting.

What Does Deel Do?

Deel provides comprehensive Employer of Record services, global payroll processing, international contractor management, and compliance automation across multiple jurisdictions. The platform handles legal employment setup, benefits administration, and payment processing in local currencies.

Deel Differentiators

• Deep specialization in global employment compliance and regulations
• Real-time compliance guidance and automated regulatory updates
• Multi-country payroll processing with local tax expertise
• Streamlined international contractor payment systems
• Fast onboarding for global team members

Deel Pros

• Comprehensive global EOR capabilities across numerous countries
• Expertise in complex international employment regulations
• Streamlined contractor and employee payment processing
• Strong compliance management with automated reporting
• Specialized support for distributed team management

Deel Pricing

• Deel Global Payroll: $29 per employee per month
• Deel EOR: $599 per employee per month
• Contractor management: $49 per contractor per month, with custom pricing available for large volumes

How Does Deel Work with Siit?

Siit connects Deel's global payroll data to your internal workflows. When international hires come through Deel, Siit automatically triggers IT provisioning, routes country-specific approvals, and coordinates equipment shipping—all without manual handoffs between HR and IT. Teams using Deel's EOR services get seamless onboarding across time zones while Siit handles the cross-departmental coordination behind the scenes.

Alternative #3—Workday

Workday represents the enterprise-grade alternative for large organizations requiring comprehensive human capital management capabilities combined with integrated financial management. The platform delivers extensive functionality for organizations managing thousands of employees across complex organizational structures, offering advanced analytics, workforce planning, and business intelligence that smaller platforms cannot match. 

Workday serves as both an HRIS and financial management system, making it particularly appealing to enterprises that need unified HR and finance operations. The platform integrates with extensive business application ecosystems and serves as a central data hub for large organizations requiring sophisticated reporting and compliance management.

What Does Workday Do

Workday provides enterprise-scale human capital management, financial planning and analysis, talent management, workforce planning, and business intelligence. The platform handles complex organizational structures with advanced reporting and global operations management.

Workday Differentiators

• Integrated finance management software alongside comprehensive HR
• Enterprise-scale global operations with complex workflow support
• Advanced analytics and business intelligence capabilities
• Sophisticated reporting for compliance and strategic planning
• Built specifically for large organizational structures

Workday Pros

• Comprehensive enterprise-grade HR and financial management
• Advanced analytics and workforce planning capabilities
• Proven scalability for organizations with 10,000+ employees
• Strong integration ecosystem with enterprise business applications
• Dedicated account management and enterprise support

Workday Pricing

• Custom enterprise pricing based on employee count and modules
• Implementation costs vary based on organizational complexity
• Minimum annual contract value required

How Does Workday Work with Siit?

Siit pulls employee data from Workday and turns HR events into automated actions across your entire stack. When someone gets promoted, transfers, or leaves, Siit triggers the downstream work—equipment provisioning, system access changes, workspace updates—without HR manually chasing IT, facilities, or finance. For large organizations running Workday, this eliminates the coordination overhead that typically follows every employee lifecycle change.

Alternative #4—Papaya Global

Papaya Global appeals to data-driven organizations operating in complex international environments, offering more robust workforce analytics and global payroll capabilities than Rippling. The platform maintains enterprise-grade compliance infrastructure with SOC 2 certification, GDPR compliance, and 100+ in-house legal and tax experts across major regions. This level of compliance expertise makes it particularly suitable for highly regulated industries and enterprises with stringent security requirements. 

Papaya Global integrates with major enterprise systems including Workday, NetSuite, and SAP, enabling seamless data flow across complex technology stacks while providing 24/7 support with dedicated success managers.

What Does Papaya Global Do

Papaya Global provides advanced workforce analytics, global payroll processing, comprehensive compliance management, and enterprise-grade reporting. The platform specializes in complex international operations with sophisticated data analysis capabilities.

Papaya Global Differentiators

• Superior workforce analytics compared to general HR platforms
• 100+ in-house legal and tax experts for major regions
• Enterprise-grade security certifications and compliance management
• Advanced integration with major enterprise systems (Workday, SAP, NetSuite)
• 24/7 support with dedicated enterprise success managers

Papaya Global Pros

• Most comprehensive workforce analytics and reporting capabilities
• Extensive in-house compliance and legal expertise
• Enterprise-grade security and certification standards
• Deep integration with major enterprise business systems
• White-glove service with dedicated account management

Papaya Global Pricing

• Custom enterprise pricing based on employee count and requirements
• Premium pricing reflects comprehensive compliance and analytics capabilities
• Implementation and ongoing support included in enterprise packages

Alternative #5—Multiplier

Multiplier has developed particular strength in APAC regions, offering stronger coverage and expertise in Asian markets than Rippling. The platform emphasizes ease of use and quick deployment, specifically resonating with companies that found Rippling's extensive module offerings overly complex. 

Multiplier provides SOC 2 certification and GDPR compliance with business-hours support, generally aligned with local time zones in its served regions, ensuring organizations operating in Asian markets receive support during typical business hours rather than delayed responses from globally distributed teams. The platform intentionally focuses on simplicity while maintaining the compliance and security standards that growing companies require.

What Does Multiplier Do

Multiplier provides EOR services, payroll processing, and compliance management with specialized focus on APAC markets. The platform handles employment setup, benefits administration, and regulatory compliance across Asian countries.

Multiplier Differentiators

• Specialized expertise in APAC markets and regional compliance
• Simplified platform design focused on ease of use and quick deployment
• 24/5 support with emphasis on APAC time zone coverage
• Regional compliance knowledge for Asian employment regulations
• Streamlined approach that avoids unnecessary complexity

Multiplier Pros

• Deep regional expertise in APAC employment and compliance
• Quick deployment and user-friendly platform design
• Time zone-appropriate support for Asian operations
• Strong compliance certifications with simplified user experience
• Cost-effective solution for APAC-focused expansion

Multiplier Pricing

• Competitive EOR rates for APAC region operations
• Transparent pricing without percentage-based hidden fees
• Scalable pricing that grows with regional team expansion

How Siit Supports Workforce Management Tools

Siit works as a unified layer across all of these HR and workforce management platforms, regardless of which alternative your organization chooses. The platform provides centralized dashboards that aggregate data from your chosen HR system, enabling unified visibility into employee requests, onboarding workflows, and cross-departmental processes. 

Siit's automation and smart routing features connect seamlessly with Deel's global compliance processes and Workday's enterprise workflows. This means internal service teams don't need to choose between tools—Siit connects them all, creating intelligent workflows that span your entire technology stack while maintaining the specialized strengths of each platform. 

The best tool is the one that fits your specific workflow requirements, and Siit helps make any of them smarter by providing the missing piece: automated business process orchestration that eliminates manual coordination between departments.