The best certified payroll software depends on your role. Subcontractors filing their own reports can start with CertifiedPayrollPro ($49 a month), WeeklyCertified (free to start) or LCPcertified ($12 a report). Contractors who also run payroll look at eBacon, Miter or Payroll4Construction. General contractors collecting every sub's payroll compare LCPtracker Pro, eMars and Buildalytic, which also chases missing weeks by call and text.
What to take away
- Decide first whether you file your own payroll, collect subcontractors' payrolls, or need payroll run for you.
- Only some tools publish prices; most quote after a demo.
- Check which state e-filing formats each tool documents before you buy, not after.
- Ask each vendor to show fringe, apprentice, overtime and split-classification checks on your own payroll.
Start with your role
Certified payroll software comes in three shapes. Reporting tools turn payroll you already ran into a WH-347 and state reports. Payroll systems run prevailing wage payroll and produce the reports from it. Collection and review platforms let a general contractor or agency gather and check every subcontractor's payroll on a project.
Prices and features below were copied from each vendor's own website on November 11, 2026. The order groups tools by role and is not a ranking. Buildalytic makes one of the options and is listed with its own limits.
Nine options at a glance
“Not stated” means the vendor's pages we read don't say; ask them.
| Software | Built for | Published price | Runs payroll? | State e-filing it documents | One limit to check |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WeeklyCertified | Small subcontractors | Free for 3 WH-347s a month; $29 a month (Solo) | No, prepares forms from your data | Not stated; “state format add-ons as released” | Few state formats today |
| CertifiedPayrollPro | Contractors filing their own reports | $49, $99 or $249 a month, no per-report fee | No, “no payroll system needed” | California A-1-131 and DIR eCPR XML, Illinois, New York, New Jersey | Its pages disagree on which plan includes state filings |
| LCPcertified (LCPtracker) | Self-performing contractors | $12 a report, or $145 a month for up to 5 projects | No | California, Washington and Maryland XML | Wage determinations maintained for California only |
| eBacon | Open-shop and merit-shop contractors, 15 to 500 employees | Demo | Yes | State forms and uploads; states not named on pages read | Price not published |
| Miter | Contractors certifying their own employees | Demo | Yes | Portal submission in 11 states including California, New York, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington | “Not a portal for collecting reports from subcontractors” |
| Payroll4Construction | Contractors who want a payroll service | Quote after a form | Yes, a payroll service | California DIR and Maryland electronic; others in print formats | Price not published |
| eMars | Agencies, GCs managing subs, and subs | Set per project after a demo | No | California DIR, Washington L&I, New York XML; Oregon WH-38 | Price not published |
| LCPtracker Pro | Public agencies and prime contractors | Demo | No | Not stated on the Pro page | Price not published |
| Buildalytic | General contractors collecting and reviewing subs' payrolls | Quoted per project | No, reviews payrolls your subs submit | Prepares the reporting handoff; confirm your agency's format during setup | Price not published; payroll is quoted separately from Brody's plan |
Sources: WeeklyCertified: pricing (checked November 11, 2026); CertifiedPayrollPro: pricing (checked November 11, 2026); LCPtracker: LCPcertified (checked November 11, 2026); eBacon: prevailing wage payroll (checked November 11, 2026); Miter: certified payroll (checked November 11, 2026); Payroll4Construction: certified payroll (checked November 11, 2026); eMars: certified payroll software (checked November 11, 2026); LCPtracker: LCPtracker Pro (checked November 11, 2026); Buildalytic: collect subcontractor payrolls
Which Davis-Bacon checks each tool documents
These are the checks that catch the expensive mistakes in our worked payroll example. A blank in a vendor's documentation doesn't mean the feature is missing; ask for a demonstration on your own payroll.
| Software | Fringe annualization | Apprentice ratios or rates | Split classifications | Wage determinations kept current |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| eBacon | Yes, “annualizes fringe automatically” | Not stated | Yes, recalculates when a worker switches mid-shift | Yes, “tracks wage determinations for you” |
| Miter | Fringe and benefit offsets calculated | Yes, Apprentice Ratio Report | Yes | You update them once in Miter |
| eMars | Not stated | Yes, ratio and error reports | Not stated | Yes, maintained by eMars |
| Points North | Fringe formulas (WageIQ) | Yes, ratios and wage progressions (WageIQ) | Not stated | Not stated |
| LCPcertified | Not stated | Apprentice fields on the WH-347 | Not stated | California maintained; other states uploaded |
| CertifiedPayrollPro | Not stated | Not documented as a check | Not settable per day today | You import from SAM.gov |
| WeeklyCertified | Per-hour fringe credits | Not stated | Not stated | You use the contract's determination |
| Buildalytic | Fringe treatment reviewed against the determination | Apprentice notices, dispatch and hours tracked | Classifications checked against the work performed | Governing determination stored with the job |
Sources: eBacon: prevailing wage payroll (checked November 11, 2026); Miter: certified payroll (checked November 11, 2026); eMars: client FAQs (checked November 11, 2026); Points North: WageIQ (checked November 11, 2026); LCPtracker: LCPcertified (checked November 11, 2026); CertifiedPayrollPro: pricing (checked November 11, 2026); WeeklyCertified: pricing (checked November 11, 2026); Buildalytic: prevailing wage compliance software
For general contractors: collecting every sub's payroll
A general contractor on a Davis-Bacon job needs every subcontractor's weekly payroll, on time and correct. Most tools above help the sub produce the report. Fewer help the GC get it.
LCPtracker Pro and eMars give agencies and primes a portal that subcontractors submit to. Buildalytic adds the follow-up: Brody tracks which employer and week is missing, calls or texts the subcontractor's payroll contact, and keeps the original, the correction and the reviewer's decision together.
Sources: LCPtracker: LCPtracker Pro (checked November 11, 2026); eMars: certified payroll software (checked November 11, 2026); Buildalytic: collect subcontractor payrolls; Buildalytic: certified payroll audit
How to choose
Run one real week through each finalist: a worker with overtime, one with two classifications in a day, an apprentice and a fringe-plan contribution. Check the report against the wage determination line by line, as in our worked example, and confirm the state file your agency accepts.
Common questions
What is the best certified payroll software for a small subcontractor?
If you only need reports from payroll you already run, compare WeeklyCertified (free for 3 WH-347s a month), CertifiedPayrollPro ($49 a month) and LCPcertified ($12 a report). If you also want payroll run for you, look at eBacon, Miter or Payroll4Construction.
What certified payroll software do general contractors use to collect subcontractor payrolls?
LCPtracker Pro and eMars offer portals for primes and agencies. Buildalytic collects and reviews subs' payrolls and has Brody follow up on missing or corrected weeks by call and text. Miter says it is not a portal for collecting subcontractor reports.
Which certified payroll software files California DIR eCPR?
Vendors that document California DIR XML include CertifiedPayrollPro, LCPcertified, eMars, Payroll4Construction and Miter (portal submission), according to their own sites on November 11, 2026.
How much does certified payroll software cost?
Published prices start at free (WeeklyCertified, 3 forms a month), $12 a report (LCPcertified) and $49 a month (CertifiedPayrollPro). Most payroll systems and GC platforms quote after a demo.
Sources and editorial notes
- WeeklyCertified: pricing (checked November 11, 2026)
- CertifiedPayrollPro: pricing (checked November 11, 2026)
- LCPtracker: LCPcertified (checked November 11, 2026)
- LCPtracker: LCPtracker Pro (checked November 11, 2026)
- eBacon: prevailing wage payroll (checked November 11, 2026)
- Miter: certified payroll (checked November 11, 2026)
- Payroll4Construction: certified payroll (checked November 11, 2026)
- eMars: certified payroll software (checked November 11, 2026)
- eMars: client FAQs (checked November 11, 2026)
- Points North: certified payroll reporting (checked November 11, 2026)
- Points North: WageIQ (checked November 11, 2026)
- Buildalytic: collect subcontractor payrolls
- Buildalytic: certified payroll audit
- Buildalytic: prevailing wage compliance software
Prepared with AI assistance. Reference date: 2026-11-11. Worked examples are illustrative and are not customer results. Product details can change; confirm the current scope and terms before rollout.
How we prepare and update field notesCollect every sub's payroll without the chase.
Bring one project's subcontractor list and a sample week. See Brody follow up on missing payrolls and how each finding is reviewed and corrected.
Start with the call, text or record your team already handles. Review the expected outcome and the human handoff before choosing a rollout.
Talk to the payroll team Explore the relevant capability
