Gusto launches limited-time free Contractor Only plan for 1099-only teams
What happened
Between the Sep 21, 2026 and Sep 28, 2026 captures of Gusto's pricing page, Pulse recorded one change: New "Contractor Only" plan card now appears in the main pricing grid for businesses without W-2 employees, shown as a limited-time offer at $0/mo (regular $35/mo) plus $6/mo per person; previously only mentioned in FAQ text, not shown as a selectable plan card. Pulse files it as a packaging change (new plan) with an upward direction. Pulse's latest capture (Oct 12, 2026) lists Simple at $6, Solo at $6, Plus at $80, Premium at $180 and Tax-Advantaged Benefits at $200 per year.
It lands 21 days after Gusto's previous change, "Gusto re-gates custom admin roles to Premium, bundles Next-Day pay into Plus and Premium" (Sep 7, 2026). Before that Pulse recorded "Gusto: Workers' compensation add-on price now disclosed ($14/mo)" (Jul 3, 2026). Gusto has been tracked since 2024-10-01.
In the same window BambooHR and Paychex also changed their Workforce Management pricing pages. Those moves are listed further down, and the Pulse Agent can compare them side by side.
- Plus · PlanNew planNot listed$0/mo
| Plan | Field | Before | After | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plus | Plan | Not listed | $0/mo | New plan |
Values as written on Gusto's public pricing page in the two captures Pulse compared; where the page states no number, the cells give the wording before and after.
Evidence
The two captures Pulse comparedFull-page captures of Gusto's pricing page (gusto.com) from Sep 21, 2026 and Sep 28, 2026; the change is marked near the top of the page, where "Not listed" becomes "$0/mo".
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The two full-page captures with this change marked up are free with an account.
Gusto, the last 90 days
Full history- Oct 12, 2026packagingGusto launches HR Partners add-on with fractional compliance support
- Oct 5, 2026improvedGusto drops Contractor Only plan, adds $85 Business Compliance add-on
- Sep 28, 2026packagingGusto launches limited-time free Contractor Only plan for 1099-only teams · this change
- Sep 7, 2026packagingGusto re-gates custom admin roles to Premium, bundles Next-Day pay into Plus and Premium
- Jul 3, 2026packagingGusto: Workers' compensation add-on price now disclosed ($14/mo)
Across Workforce Management in the same window
All Workforce Management changes- BambooHRJul 6BambooHR renames EOR add-on to Global Employment, swaps in Contractor Management
- BambooHRJul 3BambooHR: On-Demand Pay, Recognition & Rewards, Shift Scheduling added
- PaychexOct 19Paychex offers 6 months free, no payments until April 2027, through Oct. 31
- PaychexJun 2Paychex rebrands Select plan, strips feature lists from Pro tier
- BambooHRApr 27BambooHR Adds Shift Scheduling to Revamped Time & Attendance
Questions about this change
Did Gusto raise prices in September 2026?
No list-price increase was recorded between Sep 21, 2026 and Sep 28, 2026. The change Pulse detected was a packaging change: new plan.
What changed on Gusto's pricing page between Sep 21, 2026 and Sep 28, 2026?
Plus plan: Not listed → $0/mo. Pulse compared the captures it took on Sep 21, 2026 and Sep 28, 2026; the before/after table above lists each item as written on the page.
How often does Gusto change its pricing?
Pulse recorded 2 other pricing-page changes for Gusto in the 90 days before this one; the previous change was "Gusto re-gates custom admin roles to Premium, bundles Next-Day pay into Plus and Premium" on Sep 7, 2026; Gusto has been tracked since 2024-10-01.