The honest answer is that “setting up” payroll is the cheap part. The ongoing costs of running payroll are what you really need to budget for. Here is what the full picture looks like for a small business in California.

Payroll software is your first recurring cost. QuickBooks Online Payroll runs between $45 and $125 per month for the base subscription, plus $5 to $10 per employee per month depending on which tier you choose. The lower tiers handle basic payroll and tax filings. The higher tiers add features like time tracking, next-day direct deposit, and HR support. For a business with 1 to 5 employees, you are looking at roughly $70 to $175 per month just for the software.

Then come employer taxes, which most new business owners underestimate. You are responsible for the employer portion of FICA at 7.65% of each employee’s wages. That covers Social Security and Medicare. On top of that, federal unemployment tax (FUTA) applies to the first $7,000 of each employee’s wages annually. California adds its own state unemployment insurance (SUI), which for new employers typically starts around 3.4% on the first $7,000 per employee, plus a small Employment Training Tax (ETT). These amounts aren’t optional. They are due every quarter or more frequently depending on your deposit schedule.

Workers’ compensation insurance is required in California with no exceptions. The cost varies significantly by industry. An office-based business might pay $0.50 per $100 of payroll, while a construction or restaurant operation could pay $5 or more per $100. For a small team, this might run anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars per year.

If you want someone to configure the payroll system correctly the first time, a professional payroll system setup typically costs a few hundred dollars. This covers things like entering employee information, configuring tax withholdings, setting up direct deposit, and making sure your California-specific requirements are handled properly. Getting this wrong at the start creates problems with tax deposits and filings that are expensive to fix later.

Add it all up and the rule of thumb holds true. For a small business with 1 to 5 employees, total payroll overhead (employer taxes, workers’ comp, and software) typically adds 20% to 30% on top of gross wages. If you are paying an employee $50,000 a year, budget $60,000 to $65,000 as your real cost for that person.

California also has strict rules around pay frequency, final paycheck timing, and sick leave accrual that can trigger penalties if you get them wrong. Working with bookkeepers in Buena Park who understand California payroll requirements can save you from costly mistakes that go well beyond the setup cost itself.