--- title: "Sage Payroll: search popularity in the United Kingdom" description: "Sage Payroll is cloud payroll software for small businesses. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time." canonical: "https://gobrandwave.com/demand/uk/brands/sage-payroll" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Sage Payroll: search popularity in the United Kingdom Sage Payroll is cloud payroll software for small businesses. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time. ## Key facts - **Brand**: Sage Payroll - **Owned by**: Sage Accounting - **Market**: United Kingdom - **Measured month**: Sep 2026 - **Share of Search among payroll software**: 13.3% ## Where the brand sits | Competitive set | Rank | Share of Search | Estimated monthly branded searches | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Payroll software | 3 | 13.3% | 9.9K | - [Payroll software in the UK](/demand/uk/categories/uk-payroll-software) ## Top payroll software in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, Sage Payroll appeared in all five answers. Sage Payroll is the most recommended of the six. Brands get a higher AI rank if they are mentioned earlier in the answers that list options. | Brand | AI rank | ChatGPT answers that named it | Google AI Overviews that named it | All answers that named it | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Sage Payroll | 1st | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Xero | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | BrightPay | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Moneysoft | 4th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | QuickBooks Online | 5th | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | IRIS Payroll | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about payroll software - Asked ChatGPT "Which payroll software should my small business use in the UK?": 1. Sage Payroll, 2. BrightPay, 3. Xero, 4. QuickBooks Online - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best payroll software platforms in the UK?": 1. BrightPay, 2. Xero, 3. Sage Payroll, 4. QuickBooks Online, 5. Moneysoft - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best payroll software in the UK for a small business with ten employees?": 1. Sage Payroll, 2. Moneysoft, 3. Xero, 4. BrightPay, 5. QuickBooks Online - Searched Google, AI Overview "payroll software": 1. Sage Payroll, 2. Xero, 3. BrightPay, 4. QuickBooks Online - Searched Google, AI Overview "payroll software uk": 1. Sage Payroll, 2. Xero, 3. Moneysoft, 4. QuickBooks Online Not named in any answer: IRIS Payroll. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United Kingdom on October 22, 2026. ## How has branded search demand for Sage Payroll changed in the United Kingdom over the last 12 months? - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, estimated monthly branded searches for Sage Payroll in the United Kingdom held steady at 9.9K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Sage Payroll’s share of searches among payroll software in the United Kingdom decreased from 17.1% to 13.3%. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Sage Payroll’s share of searches among payroll software in the United Kingdom peaked at 17.8% in November 2025 and was lowest at 11% in July 2026. ## How did search popularity change for United Kingdom payroll software in September 2026? - In September 2026, QuickBooks Online overtook Moneysoft to rank 5th among payroll software in the United Kingdom, with 1.8% of the searches. - In September 2026, Sage Payroll gained share of searches among payroll software in the United Kingdom, from 11.3% to 13.3%. - In September 2026, BrightPay lost share of searches among payroll software in the United Kingdom, from 69.3% to 66.7%. - Estimated monthly branded searches for Moneysoft in the United Kingdom fell 37.5% over 12 measured months, from 1.6K to 1K in September 2026. ## Historical estimated branded-search demand | Month | Competitive set | Estimated monthly branded searches | Share of Search | Rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | Payroll software | 9.9K | 17.1% | 3 | | Nov 2025 | Payroll software | 9.9K | 17.8% | 2 | | Dec 2025 | Payroll software | 8.1K | 15.3% | 3 | | Jan 2026 | Payroll software | 9.9K | 15.2% | 3 | | Feb 2026 | Payroll software | 9.9K | 17% | 3 | | Mar 2026 | Payroll software | 9.9K | 13% | 3 | | Apr 2026 | Payroll software | 12.1K | 11.7% | 2 | | May 2026 | Payroll software | 8.1K | 11.2% | 3 | | Jun 2026 | Payroll software | 9.9K | 13.5% | 3 | | Jul 2026 | Payroll software | 8.1K | 11% | 3 | | Aug 2026 | Payroll software | 8.1K | 11.3% | 3 | | Sep 2026 | Payroll software | 9.9K | 13.3% | 3 | ## How are Sage Payroll’s branded searches counted? Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Sage Payroll’s name. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for this branded term can be used to understand whether interest in the brand is growing, holding steady, or fading. - “sage payroll” ## Which payroll software compete with Sage Payroll? - [BrightPay](/demand/uk/brands/brightpay): Head-to-head: /demand/uk/compare/brightpay-vs-sage-payroll - [IRIS Payroll](/demand/uk/brands/iris-payroll): Head-to-head: /demand/uk/compare/iris-payroll-vs-sage-payroll - [Xero](/demand/uk/brands/xero): Head-to-head: /demand/uk/compare/sage-payroll-vs-xero - [QuickBooks Online](/demand/uk/brands/quickbooks-online): Head-to-head: /demand/uk/compare/quickbooks-online-vs-sage-payroll - [Moneysoft](/demand/uk/brands/moneysoft): Head-to-head: /demand/uk/compare/moneysoft-vs-sage-payroll ## Who owns Sage Payroll? Sage Payroll is owned by Sage Accounting. Brandwave also tracks Sage Accounting and Sage HR, owned by the same company, in the United Kingdom. - [Sage Accounting](/demand/uk/companies/sage-accounting): Owns 4 tracked brands. ## Methodology - [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Frequently asked questions ### Who owns Sage Payroll? Sage Payroll is owned by Sage Accounting. Brandwave also tracks Sage Accounting and Sage HR, owned by the same company, in the United Kingdom. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Sage Payroll: search popularity in the United Kingdom". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/uk/brands/sage-payroll This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/uk/brands/sage-payroll. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.