Comparison · Updated May 2026
Gusto vs My Friendly Staff
Gusto is a popular payroll-first platform for small businesses. They added hiring features in 2022, but hiring isn't the strength — payroll, taxes, and benefits are.
The short answer
Choose Gusto when: You need payroll, you've been hand-rolling it, and you want a tool that handles W-2s, 1099s, taxes, and benefits in one stack. Gusto is genuinely good at this for small business.
Choose My Friendly Staff when: You already have payroll solved (Gusto, QuickBooks, ADP), and what's killing you is the hiring intake — calls coming in during shift, applicants not being screened, no time to sort through 30 web applications.
Pricing
Gusto: $40/mo + $6/employee/mo for the Simple plan; hiring features bundled (May 2026). My Friendly Staff: $100/mo flat for hiring intake + AI screening.
Side-by-side feature comparison
| Feature | My Friendly Staff | Gusto | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | $100/mo flat (hiring only) | $40 + $6/employee (payroll + light hiring) | Tie |
| Phone-first applicant intake | Native AI voice | Web only, basic | MFS wins |
| AI applicant scoring | Built in (Claude) | Not included | MFS wins |
| Bilingual EN/ES screening | Native voice + web | Posting only | MFS wins |
| Payroll + tax filing | Not included | Industry-standard for SMB | Competitor wins |
| Benefits administration | Not included | Built in | Competitor wins |
| Best for | Hiring intake + screening | Payroll + light hiring | Tie |
Common questions about Gusto vs My Friendly Staff
Should I use Gusto's hiring features instead of MFS?
Gusto's hiring is a basic web form + applicant tracker. It's fine for occasional postings; it doesn't replace a real hiring intake system. If applicants reach out by phone (which is most of restaurant + salon hiring), Gusto doesn't help — MFS does.
Can MFS hand off to Gusto for payroll once I hire someone?
There's no formal integration today. The hand-off is manual: hire someone via MFS, add them to Gusto for onboarding + payroll. Most of our customers run this pattern.
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