Get started with QuickBooks Online Payroll
by Intuit•247• Updated 2 weeks ago
Learn how to set up your new QuickBooks Online Payroll Core, Premium, or Elite payroll service.
You’ll need to complete a few tasks before you can pay your team. Here’s a handy guide and videos to help you get set up.
Tip: If you're not sure which QuickBooks Online Payroll plan you have, sign in to your account. Then, refresh this page for personalized steps, or follow these steps if you're the primary admin:
- Go to Settings and select Subscriptions and billing.
- The name of your payroll plan is in the second box.
For a better experience, open this article in QuickBooks Online. Launch side-by-side view
Start your payroll setup
To launch the payroll setup:
- Sign in to your account as the primary admin.
- Go to Payroll, then select Overview.
If you have QuickBooks Online Payroll Elite, you can opt to have one of our experts set up payroll with you, or do it for you. Check out the Expert setup section to call or schedule an appointment.
- Select Get started.
- Select if you (or someone else) paid employees in the current year.
- Select the date when you want to start paying your employees through QuickBooks.
- Enter your main business address.
- Enter a physical address (not a PO Box). The work location determines your tax responsibilities.
- If you have multiple work locations, you can add those later when you add your employees.
- Enter your main payroll contact info.
- This is generally the person responsible for paying your employees. The payroll contact will get important payroll notifications from us, and may speak with our payroll experts about your payroll account.
- Select how you’ve run your payroll in the past.
- Depending on your answer, you may be able to import employee and pay history info instead of entering it manually.
- Now you’ll start adding your employees. See Add your team below for details.
- If you haven’t paid any of your employees this year, you can opt to pay them now by paper check if needed. Or you can continue the setup and finish the remaining setup tasks. See Set up tasks below.
- Note: If you opt to pay your employees now, you’re responsible for any payroll taxes due until you complete the payroll setup.
- If you have paid employees this year, you’ll have more tasks to complete before you can run payroll. See Set up tasks below.
Set up tasks
The remaining setup tasks are bucketed into 3 sections: Get ready to pay your team, Let’s handle your taxes, Take care of your team.
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