DPDeven Pretorius
HR and Payroll Manager
Information technology
South AfricaSomerset West11 to 50 employees
South AfricaSomerset West11 to 50 employees4.0
231 verified reviews
Every published review of Sage Payroll, unedited beyond length and clarity. Vendor responses are shown alongside the review they answer.
231 reviews match · page 5 of 24
DPDeven Pretorius
HR and Payroll Manager
South AfricaSomerset West11 to 50 employeesThe tax year end is what convinced me. Nothing broke. Backed by the largest accounting software vendor in the market. That is the part that genuinely changed how we work. There are irritations, and none of them are the kind that make you look elsewhere. If you are weighing it up, do the trial with your own data and you will see it.
What works
Posts straight into Sage Accounting with no export step. ETI is calculated on the sliding scale and shows its working. Employee self service cut payslip queries almost to zero.
What does not
Reporting outside the statutory pack is thin.
MPMegan PetersenVerified
HR Business Partner
South AfricaKlerksdorpSole traderIt works. It is not enjoyable, but payroll rarely is. The Sage compliance engine without a local installation. Beyond that it is more ordinary than the marketing suggests. It sits squarely in the middle for us, useful but not something I would champion. I would shortlist it, not necessarily pick it.
What works
Posts straight into Sage Accounting with no export step. Setup was straightforward.
What does not
Support queues get long towards month end. No bargaining council support.
NVNicola van der MerweVerified
Chief Executive Officer
South AfricaSomerset West500 plus employeesI have run payroll on four different systems and this is the one I would choose again. Per employee pricing that scales with headcount. That is the part that genuinely changed how we work. Nothing has come up in the last year that I would call a real problem. Two years in and nobody has suggested we look at alternatives.
What works
Per employee pricing that scales with headcount. EMP201 and EMP501 submissions have been correct every period. Support answers in South African hours and understands the question.
What does not
The interface takes a while for a new administrator.
PDPalesa Dlamini
Payroll Administrator
South AfricaKimberley11 to 50 employeesI have run payroll on four different systems and this is the one I would choose again. Posts straight into Sage Accounting with no export step. That is the part that genuinely changed how we work. Nothing has come up in the last year that I would call a real problem. Two years in and nobody has suggested we look at alternatives.
What works
Per employee pricing that scales with headcount. Employee self service cut payslip queries almost to zero. The ACB file imports into our bank without a support call.
What does not
There is no real HR functionality, so we run a second system.
BMBoitumelo MaharajVerified
HR and Payroll Manager
South AfricaKlerksdorpSole traderWe use maybe sixty percent of what we pay for. Backed by the largest accounting software vendor in the market. Beyond that it is more ordinary than the marketing suggests. It sits squarely in the middle for us, useful but not something I would champion. It is a reasonable choice, provided you know what it does not do.
What works
Backed by the largest accounting software vendor in the market. Per employee pricing is fair for a small team.
What does not
Wage and shift payroll is weaker than salaried. The reporting cannot break cost down by department.
MTMegan Taylor
Payroll Administrator
South AfricaGeorge11 to 50 employeesI have run payroll on four different systems and this is the one I would choose again. Backed by the largest accounting software vendor in the market. That is the part that genuinely changed how we work. Nothing has come up in the last year that I would call a real problem. If you are weighing it up, do the trial with your own data and you will see it.
What works
Per employee pricing that scales with headcount. Support answers in South African hours and understands the question. The ACB file imports into our bank without a support call.
What does not
The interface takes a while for a new administrator.
WSWillem SteynVerified
Payroll Manager
South AfricaBloemfontein500 plus employeesWe use maybe sixty percent of what we pay for. The Sage compliance engine without a local installation. Beyond that it is more ordinary than the marketing suggests. It sits squarely in the middle for us, useful but not something I would champion. Good value, with some real rough edges.
What works
Per employee pricing that scales with headcount. Statutory outputs are correct.
What does not
No bargaining council support. Wage and shift payroll is weaker than salaried.
Response from the vendor27 May 2026
We appreciate you taking the time to write this up. The support delay you experienced is not the standard we hold ourselves to, and we have followed up internally. Please reach out directly and we will assist.
KZKevin ZuluVerified
Talent Acquisition Lead
South AfricaSomerset West11 to 50 employeesWe run about ninety staff on this and it has not missed a submission. Posts straight into Sage Accounting with no export step. That is the part that genuinely changed how we work. Nothing has come up in the last year that I would call a real problem. If you are weighing it up, do the trial with your own data and you will see it.
What works
Per employee pricing that scales with headcount. Support answers in South African hours and understands the question. The ACB file imports into our bank without a support call.
What does not
The interface takes a while for a new administrator.
AFAnnelize Fourie
Senior Payroll Consultant
South AfricaMidrand11 to 50 employeesWe switched after our previous provider got an ETI calculation wrong. The Sage compliance engine without a local installation. That is the part that genuinely changed how we work. There are irritations, and none of them are the kind that make you look elsewhere. Two years in and nobody has suggested we look at alternatives.
What works
The Sage compliance engine without a local installation. The ACB file imports into our bank without a support call. IRP5 files validated in e@syFile without a single rejection.
What does not
Reporting outside the statutory pack is thin.
NENirvana ErasmusVerified
HR and Payroll Manager
South AfricaCenturion201 to 500 employeesWe had to rebuild two EMP501 submissions by hand. The thing worth knowing is that the parts we were sold on never worked the way they were demonstrated. The gaps are the kind that create work rather than save it. It may suit a simpler business than ours.
What works
The payslip layout is clean.
What does not
ETI required manual correction for months. The March year end process was poorly documented. Support could not explain their own statutory outputs.