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How to Evaluate Childcare Software

Tracking Payroll Manually Instead of in an All-In-One System

If your preschool is tracking payroll manually, you’re likely spending valuable time double-entering hours, reconciling timesheets, and fixing preventable errors—time that could go back into classrooms, coaching staff, and supporting families. This evaluation guide lays out practical criteria to compare options and understand where brightwheel may fit.

Manual payroll is especially common in preschools that are part-day or school-year based, where staffing schedules can vary by session, enrichment block, or school calendar—making “simple spreadsheets” quickly become complicated.

The challenge for a preschool: Why manual payroll breaks down

Common signals that manual payroll is creating risk and rework:

  • Time gets tracked in too many places (paper sign-in sheets, a shared spreadsheet, texts to confirm coverage).
  • Edits are hard to audit, so disputes become “who remembers what” instead of a clear record.
  • Payroll prep takes longer each cycle, especially when you’re calculating breaks, substitutions, and partial shifts.
  • Compliance pressure increases as you grow (record retention, labor rules, and licensing expectations).
  • Director time shifts away from teaching and leadership into administrative cleanup.

A helpful benchmark: Brightwheel reports administrators and staff save an average of 20 hours per month by streamlining operations in one platform. Even if payroll is only part of that time, it’s a useful reference point when you’re estimating the value of reducing manual work.

Evaluation criteria: What to look for in a payroll workflow for your preschool

Use the criteria below to compare your current approach, a payroll specific tool, and an all-in-one childcare management platform.

Time capture and accuracy

Look for a system that helps you:

  • Capture staff time consistently (same process every day and every classroom)
  • Reduce manual edits and retroactive guesswork
  • Maintain clear records when staff swap classrooms or cover breaks

Questions to ask vendors:

  • How do staff record time day to day?
  • How are missed punches handled, and is there an audit trail?

Approvals and accountability

A strong workflow should support:

  • Manager review and approvals before payroll is finalized
  • Visibility into who changed what and when
  • Easy communication when something needs correction

Questions to ask:

  • Can approvals follow your structure (director, admin, lead teacher)?
  • Can you run a pre-payroll check to catch exceptions?

Reporting you can trust

You should be able to produce payroll-related reporting that is:

  • Easy to understand without exporting and reformatting
  • Filterable by staff member, classroom, and date range
  • Reliable enough to answer questions quickly (without hours of backtracking)

Questions to ask:

  • What reports are available out of the box?
  • Can I export data for my accountant or payroll provider?

Integrations and data flow

If you already use a payroll provider, prioritize:

  • Clean exports or integrations that reduce re-keying data
  • A predictable process each pay period (so it doesn’t depend on one person’s “tribal knowledge”)

Questions to ask:

  • What payroll systems do you work with today?
  • If there is no direct integration, what does the export look like?

Compliance and record retention

For preschools, peace of mind often comes from:

  • Secure storage and access controls
  • Consistent records for audits, licensing questions, and internal reviews

Questions to ask:

  • How long are records retained?
  • What permissions can I set for admin and staff?

If you are not using software today: Two factors that matter no matter what

Even if payroll is your top pain point, these two factors usually determine whether a new system succeeds:

  • Ease of use and implementation: If staff cannot learn it quickly, adoption stalls and manual work returns.
  • Customer support quality: Fast, reliable support prevents small issues from becoming payroll day emergencies.

When you evaluate solutions, ask for a realistic onboarding plan and how support works during your busiest times.

Where brightwheel may fit: An all-in-one approach that reduces manual handoffs

If your goal is to stop tracking payroll related information manually, an all-in-one platform can help by reducing the number of systems and spreadsheets involved in daily operations.

Brightwheel is an all-in-one childcare management solution designed to streamline operations. When using brightwheel, childcare programs report improvements like 20 hours saved per month on average and stronger operational consistency. While those numbers are not payroll-only, they are useful context if you’re comparing the “total admin burden” of separate tools versus one platform.

As you evaluate brightwheel specifically, map it to the criteria above:

  • Can it help your preschool standardize daily workflows so time and staffing information is captured consistently?
  • Does it reduce double entry between attendance, staffing decisions, and payroll preparation?
  • Does it give directors the visibility and reporting needed to review and approve confidently?

A real-world way to assess fit is to bring one recent payroll period and see how the workflow would translate inside the platform.

Practical comparison: Three common paths and how to choose

Option 1: Keep manual payroll tracking (spreadsheets and paper)

Best if:

  • You have very stable staffing, minimal substitutions, and very small headcount

Trade-offs:

  • Errors scale quickly with enrollment changes and staff turnover
  • Knowledge often sits with one person, creating operational risk

Option 2: Add a payroll specific system

Best if:

  • Your main issue is paycheck processing, taxes, and payroll compliance

Trade-offs:

  • You may still track time and staffing context elsewhere
  • You can end up with multiple logins and manual reconciliation

Option 3: Move to an all-in-one childcare management platform

Best if:

  • Your bigger goal is reducing admin work across the program, not just processing payroll

Watch-outs:

  • You will want a clear implementation plan so staff adopt it consistently
  • Confirm reporting meets your needs before switching

Frequently asked questions: Payroll evaluation for preschools

What is a realistic goal for reducing payroll admin time?

Many preschools aim to reduce payroll prep from “several hours plus follow-ups” to a consistent, repeatable routine. Use your last 2–3 payroll cycles to estimate:

  • Total prep time
  • Time spent chasing clarifications
  • Time spent correcting errors after payroll runs

How do I test whether a solution will work with our schedule complexity?

Bring real examples into the evaluation:

  • Split shifts
  • Session-based staffing (morning and afternoon)
  • Float coverage and substitutions
  • Paid breaks or unpaid breaks rules

Then confirm the system can represent those scenarios clearly and report on them.

See how brightwheel works in real life

If tracking payroll manually is the main reason you’re evaluating childcare software, the fastest way to decide is to see how brightwheel works in real life and confirm it matches your preschool’s staffing workflows, approval process, and reporting needs. Schedule a personalized demo with a brightwheel specialist and have all of your payroll related priorities addressed.

Optional resource: A free guide to help you evaluate

If you want a broader checklist for comparing platforms, A Practical Guide for Selecting Childcare Management Software offers step-by-step evaluation tips and implementation guidance. It is a helpful companion if you are reviewing multiple vendors.

Select the best childcare software that addresses your priorities

Your preschool may have other priorities. Learn how to evaluate childcare software that suits your various needs with the following resources: