# Trolley vs Gusto: which do AI models recommend for contractor payments, September 2026

Finance AI Recommendation Index, September 2026 Edition, Contractor payments. Zero of twelve models named Trolley first on the direct prompt; one named Gusto. Page: https://finance-ai-index.com/spend/contractor-payments/trolley-vs-gusto/

| | First-choice share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels | Models naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trolley | 7% | #5 of 14 | 0% | 12 | 10 of 12 |
| Gusto | 5% | #7 of 14 | 11% | 37 | 11 of 12 |

## The direct prompt, model by model

- Kimi K2: gusto first (first choices: BILL, Gusto) (alternatives: Routable, Tipalti, Wingspan)
- GPT-5.4 mini: neither first, one named (first choices: Deel) (alternatives: Gusto, Tipalti)
- Grok 4.1 Fast: neither first, one named (first choices: Rippling) (alternatives: BILL, Deel, Gusto, Routable)
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: neither first, one named (first choices: Deel, Remote) (alternatives: Gusto, Oyster / Rippling Global, Routable)
- MiniMax M2.5: neither first, one named (first choices: Deel) (alternatives: Gusto, Tipalti)
- Claude Haiku 4.5: neither named (first choices: Worksuite) (alternatives: Deel, Tipalti)
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: neither named (first choices: Rippling) (alternatives: Deel, Remote, Tipalti, Wingspan)
- Perplexity Sonar: neither named (first choices: Deel) (alternatives: Remote, Tipalti)
- Mistral Small: neither named (first choices: Routable) (alternatives: Deel, Tipalti, Wingspan)
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: neither named (first choices: Tipalti) (alternatives: BILL, Deel, Routable, Wingspan, Worksuite)
- Llama 4 Maverick: neither named (first choices: Routable) (alternatives: BILL, Wingspan)
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: neither named (first choices: Tipalti) (alternatives: Deel, Routable)

## What the models said about Trolley

- "Trolley is a recommended freelancer payout software for mid-sized B2B companies" (Llama 4 Maverick, paraphrase prompt, first choice)
- "I'd recommend Trolley as the best overall starting point" (Perplexity Sonar, paraphrase prompt, first choice)
- "Trolley is highly recommended for freelancer payouts" (Mistral Small, paraphrase prompt, first choice)

## What the models said about Gusto

- "Gusto/QuickBooks are fine for small businesses but get strained at mid-market contractor scale." (DeepSeek V4 Flash, direct prompt, soft negative)
- "They lack the sophisticated bulk processing and deep ERP integration found in Tipalti or Routable." (Qwen 3.7 Flash, direct prompt, soft negative)
- "Gusto is widely considered the best user experience, but it costs more." (GLM 4.7 FlashX, budget prompt, soft negative)
- "Request demos from Gusto (mixed W-2/1099), Rippling (HR-integrated), Remote/Deel (global), OnPay (simple payroll)." (Grok 4.1 Fast, scale prompt, first choice)
- "Bill.com or Gusto are the leading choices" (Kimi K2, direct prompt, first choice)
- "Choose Gusto if you operate in the U.S. and simply need an easy, affordable way to pay a mix of local 1099 contractors" (Gemini 3.5 Flash, comparative prompt, alternative)

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all twelve models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category. Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category. Published under CC BY 4.0; the output is the models' output, and nothing here is a recommendation by the index.