QuickBooks Payroll is the default payroll engine for most HVAC contractors already running QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Desktop, which is the vast majority of the industry. Because Intuit owns both the accounting ledger and the payroll engine, wages, taxes, and benefits post automatically to the correct GL accounts, and owners can see labor as a line on the P&L without a separate sync job. For HVAC shops that already live in QuickBooks, this is the lowest-friction way to run payroll.
The product comes in three tiers - Core, Premium, and Elite. All three include unlimited payroll runs, automatic federal/state tax calculation and filing, 1099 and W-2 handling, direct deposit, and the QuickBooks Workforce app for employees. Premium adds same-day direct deposit, HR support, expert setup review, and workers' comp administration. Elite adds tax penalty protection, a dedicated payroll expert, 24/7 support, and project tracking that is useful for HVAC install jobs. QuickBooks Time (formerly TSheets) is bundled or available as an add-on, pulling GPS-verified hours straight into payroll.
Where QuickBooks Payroll falls short is complexity. Prevailing-wage, certified-payroll, and heavy union scenarios usually require pairing it with Points North or moving to Paychex/ADP. Very large HVAC contractors often outgrow QuickBooks itself. But for residential and light-commercial HVAC shops, the integration with FieldEdge, ServiceTitan (via partners), Housecall Pro, Jobber, Workyard, Busybusy, and ClockShark makes QuickBooks Payroll the path of least resistance - and the monthly cost is predictable and published.