--- title: "Gusto vs Patriot Software: Which is searched more in the United States?" description: "Is Gusto or Patriot Software more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Payroll software set in the United States. 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/us/categories/us-payroll-software/compare/gusto-vs-patriot-software" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # Gusto vs Patriot Software: Which is searched more in the United States? Is Gusto or Patriot Software more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Payroll software set in the United States. 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 - **Compared**: Gusto and Patriot Software - **Competitive set**: Payroll software - **Market**: United States - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **Gusto Share of Search**: 12.8% - **Patriot Software Share of Search**: 9% ## Is Gusto or Patriot Software more popular in search? - In September 2026, Gusto had more branded searches than Patriot Software among payroll software in the United States. Gusto had about 39,900 branded searches, while Patriot Software had 28,000. Gusto made up 12.8% of all payroll software searches we track, and Patriot Software accounted for 9%. - Gusto was ahead of Patriot Software in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Gusto’s share of searches among payroll software in the United States moved from 15.1% to 12.8%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 48.8K to 39.9K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Patriot Software’s share of searches among payroll software in the United States moved from 6.6% to 9%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 21.4K to 28K. ## Top payroll software in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, both Gusto and Patriot Software showed up in all five answers. Gusto was listed before Patriot Software in every answer. 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 | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Gusto | 1st | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | OnPay | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | QuickBooks Payroll | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | Patriot Software | 4th | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | RUN Powered by ADP | 5th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Rippling | 6th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Square Payroll | 7th | 2 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 3 of 5 | | Paychex | 8th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Deel | 9th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 1 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about payroll software - Asked ChatGPT "Which payroll software should I use in the US?": 1. Gusto, 2. QuickBooks Payroll, 3. RUN Powered by ADP, 4. OnPay, 5. Rippling, 6. Patriot Software - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best payroll software options in the US?": 1. Gusto, 2. RUN Powered by ADP, 3. QuickBooks Payroll, 4. OnPay, 5. Rippling, 6. Paychex, 7. Square Payroll, 8. Patriot Software, 9. Deel - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best payroll software in the US for a small business?": 1. Gusto, 2. OnPay, 3. QuickBooks Payroll, 4. Patriot Software, 5. Square Payroll - Searched Google, AI Overview "payroll software": 1. Gusto, 2. OnPay, 3. Patriot Software - Searched Google, AI Overview "small business payroll": 1. Gusto, 2. QuickBooks Payroll, 3. OnPay, 4. Patriot Software, 5. Square Payroll, 6. Paychex Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in United States on October 19, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for United States payroll software in September 2026? - In September 2026, Patriot Software overtook OnPay to rank 3rd among payroll software in the United States, with 9% of the searches. - In September 2026, Gusto lost share of searches among payroll software in the United States, from 14.6% to 12.8%. ## Month by month | Month | Gusto estimated searches | Gusto Share of Search | Gusto rank | Patriot Software estimated searches | Patriot Software Share of Search | Patriot Software rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 48.8K | 15.1% | 2 | 21.4K | 6.6% | 5 | | Nov 2025 | 47.1K | 15.2% | 2 | 17.5K | 5.7% | 5 | | Dec 2025 | 49.7K | 13.5% | 2 | 24.7K | 6.7% | 4 | | Jan 2026 | 69.2K | 17.3% | 2 | 30.2K | 7.5% | 3 | | Feb 2026 | 64.7K | 19% | 2 | 24.7K | 7.2% | 3 | | Mar 2026 | 71K | 19.3% | 2 | 28K | 7.6% | 3 | | Apr 2026 | 67.8K | 19.3% | 2 | 28K | 8% | 3 | | May 2026 | 61.4K | 18.1% | 2 | 26.2K | 7.7% | 3 | | Jun 2026 | 59.5K | 17.5% | 2 | 24.7K | 7.3% | 3 | | Jul 2026 | 50.1K | 15.2% | 2 | 24.7K | 7.5% | 3 | | Aug 2026 | 46.4K | 14.6% | 2 | 22.9K | 7.2% | 4 | | Sep 2026 | 39.9K | 12.8% | 2 | 28K | 9% | 3 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Gusto’s and Patriot Software’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading. - **Gusto**: Measured on the search terms “gusto accounting software”, “gusto app”, “gusto benefits”, “gusto company”, “gusto contractor”, “gusto embedded payroll”, “gusto for payroll”, “gusto hr”, “gusto hr software”, “gusto international contractors”, “gusto pay”, “gusto paycheck”, “gusto payment”, “gusto payroll”, “gusto payroll app”, “gusto payroll company”, “gusto payroll processing”, “gusto payroll provider”, “gusto payroll services”, “gusto payroll software”, “gusto payroll solutions”, “gusto payroll system”, “gusto platform”, “gusto software”, “gusto time clock”, “gusto time tracking”, “gusto timetracking” and “gusto zen payroll”, summed into one figure. - **Patriot Software**: Measured on the search terms “patriot payroll” and “patriot software”, summed into one figure. - [Gusto profile](/demand/us/brands/gusto) - [Patriot Software profile](/demand/us/brands/patriot-software) - [All payroll software in the United States](/demand/us/categories/us-payroll-software): The set both shares are measured inside, 9 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 ### Is Gusto or Patriot Software more popular in search? In September 2026, Gusto had more branded searches than Patriot Software among payroll software in the United States. Gusto had about 39,900 branded searches, while Patriot Software had 28,000. Gusto made up 12.8% of all payroll software searches we track, and Patriot Software accounted for 9%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "Gusto vs Patriot Software: Which is searched more in the United States?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/categories/us-payroll-software/compare/gusto-vs-patriot-software This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/us/categories/us-payroll-software/compare/gusto-vs-patriot-software. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.