One of fourteen models named Gusto first on the direct prompt; zero named Remote. Both were named by all fourteen models and Gusto carries 42 labels and Remote 26, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in one category this edition.
Named in one category this edition.
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the contractor payments page.
Across every category in the October 2026 Edition, Gusto and Remote were named in the same answer forty-seven times, of the 129 answers naming Gusto and the 87 naming Remote. In those answers Remote took the first choice four times and Gusto eighteen.
| Model | Direct | Paraphrase | Comparative | Budget-constrained | Scale-constrained | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | ||||||
| GPT-5.4 mini | ||||||
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | ||||||
| Perplexity Sonar | ||||||
| Grok 4.1 Fast | ||||||
| Mistral Small | ||||||
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | ||||||
| Llama 4 Maverick | ||||||
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | ||||||
| Kimi K2 | ||||||
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | ||||||
| MiniMax M2.5 | ||||||
| GPT-6 Luna | ||||||
| Muse Glimmer 30B |
Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of eight in this category shown.
“Avoid platforms with: Chronic poor customer support (Gusto, Deel Payroll, Remote)” GLM 4.7 FlashX · negative prompt · hard negative
“Worth considering if you may add employee payroll later, but likely not the cheapest for contractor-only use.” GPT-6 Luna · budget prompt · soft negative
“simple and well regarded, but typically better if you can spend a bit more than the absolute minimum” Perplexity Sonar · budget prompt · soft negative
“It's the most straightforward pick for a domestic small business; it's not the strongest choice for managing a large, varied international workforce.” GPT-6 Luna · comparative prompt · first choice
“Gusto’s contractor-only plan, depending on whether you want the cheapest standalone tool or a more polished payroll experience” GPT-5.4 mini · budget prompt · first choice
“Gusto - offers a solution tailored for small to medium-sized businesses that require efficient contractor management” Llama 4 Maverick · direct prompt · first choice
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Four of five in this category shown.
“Chronic poor customer support (Gusto, Deel Payroll, Remote)” GLM 4.7 FlashX · negative prompt · hard negative
“my default recommendation would be Remote or Tipalti... If your company is primarily paying freelancers/contractors, I'd start with Remote.” GPT-5.4 mini · paraphrase prompt · first choice
“For global contractor management: Remote (lowest cost) or Deel (most features)” Kimi K2 · comparative prompt · first choice
“Deel and Remote are strongest for international contractor management” Perplexity Sonar · comparative prompt · first choice
Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.