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PayStream Reviews 

5,233
•
TrustScore 5 out of 5

4.8

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Review summary

Created with AI, based on recent reviews

Considering 1,052 reviews, reviewers overwhelmingly had a great experience with this company. Customers frequently praise the supportive staff and knowledgeable agents for explaining financial processes clearly and making the entire onboarding journey completely straightforward. Reviewers also highlight the highly responsive customer service teams and efficient online portal tools that make managing daily tasks simple and stress-free. Furthermore, people appreciate the dedication shown during annual reviews and welcome calls, noting that representatives always go above and beyond. However, some reviewers noted difficulties when dealing with complex payroll queries, unexpected tax code issues, or non-standard financial arrangements. A few people also experienced communication gaps and felt unsupported by customer care when attempting to resolve specific expense reimbursements.

What people talk about most

Staff

Customers expressed great satisfaction with the staff, frequently highlighting their polite, helpful, and... See more

Service

People report positive experiences with service, highlighting that the support team provides responsive,... See more

Customer service

Clients share positive opinions on customer service, frequently highlighting attentive, polite, and... See more

User experience

Consumers find user experience to be positive, highlighting a smooth onboarding process and highly supportive... See more

Response time

Customers consistently note positive experiences with response time, frequently praising the team for... See more

Reviews shaping this summary

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

All engagement with the team is useful, any questions I have are answered at a level I understand. Their advice is always excellent and understandable. I just had a an hour call with Michael and he w... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Sam provided outstanding support at the Paystream Helpdesk. From the moment I reached out, they were patient, courteous, and genuinely committed to helping me. They explained everything clearly and en... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

I can thoroughly recommend PayStream, having been with them a few times. They explain everything clearly & simply, their communication is great and customer service absolutely top notch. If I ever h... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

I spoke with Alex at Paystream today. He was very knowledgeable and patient on the call and went through things clearly, particularly as I am new to contracting processes. He was able to answer all my... See more

Company replied


Company details

  1. Accounting Firm
  2. also in
  3. Accountant
  4. Payroll Service
  5. Tax Advisor
  6. Tax Preparation
  7. Tax Preparation Service

About PayStream

Written by the company

We’re a leading umbrella company and provider of accountancy, tax, candidate screening and international payroll services services to both contractors and recruitment agencies. From the moment you sign up, you can expect nothing less than outstanding service, sound advice and straight-talking answers to your questions from a company that's run by qualified accountants.

Here are ten reasons why choosing PayStream makes Perfect Sense to contractors…

1. Brilliant customer service matters to us. A lot. We're proud to be fully accredited by Customer Service Excellence - the most reputable body in the field - as well as other key industry bodies like APSCo and FCSA. We've also been voted Best Umbrella Company (three times overall), Best Contractor Accountancy (five times overall), Best Verification & Screening Provider (two times overall for our Candidate Screening service) and Best Contractor Innovation (for our IR35 Comply review service) in The Contracting Awards over the years.

2. We're run by qualified accountants, meaning we're are always on top of industry legislation changes, ensuring that you are in the right service for your circumstance.

3. We've created our own suite of slick, efficient and user-friendly online tools that have been designed to make your life easier, and are constantly being updated by our in-house development team.

4. Our hand-picked team of experts have over 30 years' experience at the height of the legal and accountancy professions. We work relentlessly to stay at the top of our game, keeping up to date with legislation and working with our advisors and HMRC to ensure you get the best and most compliant solutions in the market.

5. Our contractors benefit from special access to our employee reward scheme, with over 2000 offers that aren't publicly available.

6. Unlike many umbrella companies, we're here to stay - with a highly motivated workforce of over 250 and counting. Our umbrella employees can also take advantage of our salary sacrifice scheme, saving them £100s each month in both PAYE and NI contributions whilst growing their private pension.

7. We offer every type of accounting and payroll service you'll ever need as a contractor. So you can keep your pay hassle-free however your career develops.

8. Whatever your industry - IT, education, construction, you name it - we've got the experience and know how to guide you.

PayStream

Written by the company

Voted the UK's Best Umbrella Company & Contractor Accountant
PayStream have been named both the UK's Best Umbrella Company & Contractor Accountant by an independent panel of judges at The Contracting Awards. Our aim, as a business, is to be the best provider of accountancy and payroll services in our market and these awards are proof that we are well on the way to achieving our goal.

Contact info

4.8

Excellent

TrustScore 5 out of 5

5K reviews

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Replied to 100% of negative reviews

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4.8

All reviews

(5,233)

1,024 reviews in the last 12 months

Write a review
Companies on Trustpilot aren't allowed to offer incentives or pay to hide reviews. Reviews are the opinions of individual users and not of Trustpilot. Read more

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

No issues

No issues, straightforward, compliant

19 August 2026
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you for the 5 stars, we really appreciate the feedback.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Great payroll company

Great payroll company. Easy to work with, clear system to file your timesheets, and when you had a question, easy to speak to a human to resolve things. Would happily use again.

19 August 2026
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you for your excellent review, we are pleased to hear the team has been so easy to work with and hope to see you again.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Great service as usual

I always use PayStream they’re organised and highly efficient

19 August 2026
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you Joyce, we really appreciate the kind words and are happy to hear how efficient your experience has been.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Efficient

Efficient, friendly, responds to queries quickly and paid on time

19 August 2026
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you for the excellent review, we are so pleased to hear the team has been efficient and friendly.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Excellent and Helpful Service from Benjamin

Benjamin was really helpful and friendly throughout the welcome call. He explained everything clearly, answered all my questions, and made the whole process feel really straightforward. Great service!

14 August 2026
Unprompted review
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you for your kind words, we really appreciate the 5 stars and are happy to hear how clear and friendly the team has been.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

It is quite the mess.

It is quite the mess. There also appears to be a concerning lack of knowledge about routes for external redress.
In response to my asking about external complaint options, I received the following from PayStream:
“Umbrella Companies are an unregulated industry so any complaints will be dealt with directly by us, I’m therefor unable to provide any information or guidance on external complaint bodies.”
This is a rather sweeping statement. I appreciate that there is no dedicated statutory regulator for umbrella companies in the same way that, for example, the FCA regulates financial services. However, that does not mean umbrella companies operate outside regulation or that there are no external rights, legal obligations or potential avenues of redress.
Umbrella companies remain subject to applicable employment, tax, pensions, contractual and data-protection requirements, among others. Depending on the nature of a complaint, there may therefore be relevant external bodies or routes for escalation.
I do not think it is appropriate to suggest that the absence of a dedicated umbrella-company regulator means complaints can simply only be dealt with internally by PayStream.

This response is particularly surprising given the significant legislative changes that took effect on 6 April 2026. New rules now impose joint and several liability within relevant labour-supply chains for PAYE liabilities associated with umbrella companies, including potential liability for recruitment agencies or end clients. The absence of a single dedicated umbrella-company regulator therefore plainly does not mean that umbrella companies operate outside a substantial legal and regulatory framework

18 August 2026
Unprompted review
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Hi Liv, we’re sorry to read your review. We understand that a Team Leader from our Contractor Care department has reached out to you directly to discuss your concerns. Please do not hesitate to contact them directly.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Easy set up

Easy to set up an account. Everything is clearly explained and easy to get through to the customer care team.

31 July 2026
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you Hannah, we are so pleased to hear how easy and clear the team has been to work with.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Benjamin from Paystream was amazing

Benjamin from Paystream was amazing. He explained the process clearly leaving room for any questions. Amazing service

17 August 2026
Unprompted review
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you for the excellent review, we really appreciate your kind words and will be sure to pass them on to the rest of the team.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Thank you for rectifying the initial issue

Nice staff - Aidan was actually really lovely HOWEVER Paystream charging a full month's margin for 24 hours of employment is an exploitative practice. If a manager cannot manually adjust this to a pro-rata rate, I will be logging a formal complaint with the FCSA and sharing this specific exit experience on Trustpilot to warn other contractors.

Edit - The team at Paystream, rectified the issue. Special thanks to Daniel and team!

14 August 2026
Unprompted review
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Hi RG, we’re sorry to read your review. We understand that a Team Leader from our Contractor Care department has reached out to you directly to discuss your concerns.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Sean was great on my welcome call

Sean was great on my welcome call. Clear messaging, went through key areas of contractual relationship with good depth and checked for understanding. Impressively said we would be done in 10mins...and in 10 mins we were done. :).

Great work Sean

14 August 2026
Unprompted review
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you for the excellent review, we really appreciate the kind words and are so pleased to hear how great the team has been.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Really easy process to join

Really easy process to join, super helpful staff. I’m hoping the ongoing service will be as good.

12 August 2026
Unprompted review
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you Martin, we really appreciate the excellent review and are happy to hear how helpful the team has been.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

Not Customer-focussed.

Was with Paystream for 2025/2026 tax year - Experienced 2 key issues - 1. Payroll service was poor in terms of managing my tax code - as a result I have a large tax liability - excuse was it "wasn't their responsibility" - given they have access to my annual rem and access to HMRC - how can I as a lay-person be expected to manage my tax code? - customer care simply hold the company line "not our job". 2. They hold the salary sacrifice to Pension for 6 weeks before transfer - that is 6 weeks of no growth and if you factor that by the number of contractors is huge amount of money to be held in situ. Poor Process. Customer care response was "nothing we can do - that is our process." Well - Change the Process Paystream! I am really not an advocate (you may have worked that out!)

1 April 2026
Unprompted review
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Hi, we’re sorry to read your review. As a fully compliant umbrella company we do pride ourselves on ensuring that we follow HMRC’s legislation closely. We have no way of ascertaining the full extent of an individual’s financial situation outside of their income with PayStream, which is why we are not best placed to provide advice of whether a tax code is correct for your personal circumstances; this is usually a role for a financial advisor and does not fall on the employer.

In regards to Salary Sacrifice with PayStream, funds are transferred to your pension provider monthly in arrears in line with pension guidance. As each provider and their different branches have varying requirements which often require manual processes to administer, our set date ensures the accuracy of all transfers and a clear audit trail.

We understand a Contractor Care team leader has tried to contact you regarding your review and if there is any further assistance you do require with this, please do not hesitate to get back in touch with them directly.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Very good service

Very good service

7 August 2026
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you for the excellent review, we really appreciate it.

- The PayStream Team.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Great Customer Service

Matt was very helpful in answering all of my questions and guiding me through all the details I needed to know to start my new contract.

12 August 2026
PayStream logo

Reply from PayStream

Thank you Charlotte, we are pleased to hear how helpful and kind the team has been.

- The PayStream Team.

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