Payroll for mid-sized companies, large companies & SMEs
Whether 1 or well over 100 employees: cleverlohn takes over your monthly payroll completely. With a dedicated payroll manager who knows your business and an HR platform that grows with you.
The cleverlohn team could tell us exactly where information was missing and what we needed to add. The team was really great. The support from our personal contacts was especially valuable.
SME payroll at a glance: payroll requirements by company size
Small businesses need speed and certainty. Growing companies need a solution that understands integrations. Mid-sized companies need a reliable partner who takes complexity off their hands. cleverlohn covers all three phases.
Micro businesses (1–10 employees)
SME payroll: an easy start
- A personal payroll accountant as your contact for questions
- Reliably avoid errors in social security and wage tax
- A fixed monthly process with no effort for you
Growing companies (11–40 employees)
SME payroll: scaling cleanly
- Accounting connection without manual transfers
- Manage employee data, absences and time tracking in one place
- Always the same contact, even as the team grows
Mid-sized companies (41–100 employees)
Payroll for mid-sized companies: outsourcing with structure
- Handle more complex payroll structures professionally
- Test payrolls before finalisation, digital approval process
- All notifications and certificates handled by cleverlohn
Large companies (100+ employees)
Payroll for large companies: reliable at scale
- Process high payroll volumes without loss of quality
- All reporting obligations and certificates handled centrally by cleverlohn
- Scalable prices from €13 per payslip
Payroll in transition: SMEs vs. large companies
Many businesses start with a simple model: the tax advisor does payroll on the side or someone in the office takes care of it. That works up to a certain point.
The problem for small companies:
From the second or third employee, the effort rises noticeably: sick notes, parental leave, changing hours, mini-job limits. Anyone who manages this without expert knowledge risks back payments, fines and frustrated staff.
The problem with growth:
Between 15 and 50 employees, the makeshift setup breaks down. Data sits in different tools. The tax advisor has no time for monthly questions. Hiring your own payroll accountant doesn't pay off yet. This is exactly where the integration dilemma begins.
The integration dilemma: Time tracking in tool A, employee data in tool B, payroll runs through the tax firm, accounting entries happen manually. That costs hours every month and produces errors.
The problem for mid-sized companies
Companies with 50 to 100 employees struggle with system silos: notifications don't run automatically, approval processes are unclear and the overview is missing. An external provider without a suitable system won't solve this.
Four payroll problems almost every mid-sized company knows
Extra manual work
Merging data from time tracking, HR tools and accounting by hand costs your team hours it doesn't have. With every error, you start over.
Missing integrations
Payroll software that doesn't talk to your accounting creates duplicate work. For mid-sized and larger businesses this adds up to a real risk factor.
No fixed contact
At tax firms and large providers, the person handling your account changes constantly. Explaining your company structure from scratch every time costs time and nerves.
Lack of legal certainty
Wage tax, social security law and reporting obligations change regularly. If this is handled internally on the side, errors often only show up once they get expensive.
The cleverlohn principle for SMEs: platform and personal support in one system
At cleverlohn, software and service belong together. You get an HR platform that holds all relevant data in one place. You also get a dedicated payroll manager who reliably creates your payroll every month.
The platform
- ✓Employee data management: All employee data in one place, always up to date
- ✓Time tracking & absences: Holidays, sick leave and overtime directly in the system
- ✓Test payroll: Check the payroll before it is finalised. Errors are caught early
- ✓Digital approval process: No fax loops, no email chains
- ✓Document management: Payslips, contracts and certificates available in one place
The service
- ✓Dedicated payroll manager: The same person who knows your business, every month
- ✓Monthly payroll: Fully created, checked and delivered
- ✓All notifications handled: Contribution statements, annual reports, A1, AAG and more
Payroll software for SMEs and mid-sized companies: the criteria that matter
Anyone looking for payroll software for a growing business is quickly flooded with options. Pure software solutions push the work back into the company. Large providers are built for corporations and oversized for smaller businesses. What really counts:
Checklist 1: system integration
- Connection to your accounting
- Interfaces to time tracking and HR data
- Data flow between payroll and accounting
Checklist 2: quality of support
- A fixed contact, no ticket system
- Proactive communication about legal changes
- Test payroll as quality assurance before finalisation
Checklist 3: scalability
- A pricing model that grows with your headcount, without jumps
- Onboarding for new employees without switching systems
- Support for more complex payroll structures with more than 40 employees
Transparent prices for SMEs and mid-sized companies: you only pay for what you need
With cleverlohn you pay per payslip per month. No flat fees, no hidden costs. The model grows with your company.
| Team size | Price per employee/month |
|---|---|
| 1–5 employees | from €25 |
| 5–15 employees | from €16 |
| 16–40 employees | from €15.50 |
| 41–99 employees | from €15 |
| ≥ 100 employees | from €12.50 |
There is a one-time company setup fee of €30 plus €15 per employee. Actual terms may vary by industry. For a specific price that fits your business, we recommend a short consultation.
Frequently asked questions about payroll for small and large companies
Our answers to the most important questions about SME payroll
From how many employees is cleverlohn worth it?
cleverlohn makes sense from your first employee. Most errors happen in the early phase, because social security notifications and wage tax are error-prone without expert knowledge. The sooner a clean process is in place, the fewer corrections you need later.
How does the monthly process work?
You maintain employee data and monthly changes in the HR platform. Your payroll manager creates the test payroll. You approve it digitally. The finished payroll including all notifications is then submitted on time. You get everything documented in one place.
What happens when my company grows?
Nothing you need to organise yourself. The pricing model scales automatically with the number of employees. Your payroll manager stays the same and knows how your company has grown.
How long does it take to get started?
Setup usually takes a few days. After a short onboarding call, the import of your employee data and the setup of your preferences, the first payroll can start.
Which integrations are available?
cleverlohn connects to the common accounting and HR systems, including DATEV, Agenda, Personio, Lexware and Addison. If needed, we also connect industry-specific tools, for example gastromatic for hospitality. If you're unsure whether your setup fits, just get in touch.
Can I try cleverlohn first?
Yes. You can explore the platform yourself in a demo and click through it with us. That gives you a realistic feel for how cleverlohn works day to day before you decide.
