Everything you need to know about PayKonnect

PayKonnect is a B2B integration platform that automates data flows between payroll systems and retirement recordkeepers. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Franklin, Tennessee, PayKonnect connects 100+ payroll companies to 80+ recordkeepers and 130+ retirement plan providers. It handles 180° (one-way) and 360° (bidirectional) 401(k) payroll integrations, is SECURE 2.0-ready, and supports all data formats used in the payroll-to-retirement ecosystem.

360° payroll integration adds a return data path to the standard 180° flow. When participants change their deferral rate, initiate a loan, or make other elections at the recordkeeper level, those changes flow back to the payroll system — either via direct API write-back (where the payroll platform supports it) or via structured notification. This eliminates the manual step of logging into payroll to key in recordkeeper-initiated changes.

180° payroll integration is a one-way automated data flow from a payroll system to a retirement recordkeeper. Each pay cycle, PayKonnect automatically delivers employee census data (demographics, employment status) and contribution data (deferral amounts, employer match, loan repayments) to the recordkeeper in their required format. It eliminates manual file exports, reformatting, and uploads.

SECURE 2.0 requires payroll-to-recordkeeper data flows to include: (1) prior-year Social Security wages — to determine whether participants earning $145,000+ must designate catch-up contributions as Roth; (2) YTD Social Security wages — for in-year tracking; (3) Roth catch-up designation flag for participants age 50+; and (4) super catch-up designation flag for participants aged 60–63 (limit: $11,250 for 2026). PayKonnect has supported all four fields since January 2026 per IRS final regulations (September 2025).

PayKonnect supports every format used in the payroll-to-retirement ecosystem: CSV/delimited files, fixed-width flat files (COBOL-style), XML (including SPARK Protocol variants), JSON/REST API, SOAP/WSDL, Excel/XLSX, SQL database queries, PDF (read and write), and POS/timekeeping data from systems like Toast, Square, and Aloha. Both ingest and delivery formats are configurable per integration.

Yes. PayKonnect is listed in the Gusto App Marketplace and connects Gusto payroll data to major retirement recordkeepers including Ascensus, Empower, Fidelity, and Transamerica. Over 3,000 companies have connected the Gusto-PayKonnect integration. The integration is 180°-based with SECURE 2.0 Roth catch-up fields supported as of January 2026.

Yes. Ascensus's May 2026 payroll integration partner directory lists PayKonnect across a large swath of payroll vendors — one of the most comprehensive public confirmations of PayKonnect's recordkeeper network presence. Ascensus notes that additional fees may apply when working with a payroll aggregation firm.

PayKonnect is hosted on Microsoft Azure with enterprise SSO and organization-level identity management. It handles payroll and retirement data (SSNs, compensation, contribution amounts, participant elections) — the highest financial data sensitivity category. Azure provides enterprise-grade cloud infrastructure with US data residency. As of mid-2026, PayKonnect has not published a SOC 2 Type II attestation — contact PayKonnect directly for detailed security documentation.

Most integrations are live within 2–6 weeks from the discovery call. Simple connections to major recordkeepers (Ascensus, Empower, Fidelity) using standard formats are typically 2–4 weeks. More complex implementations with custom field mappings, multiple recordkeepers, or legacy file formats take 4–8 weeks. The process includes a discovery call, integration design, build and test, and go-live with monitoring.

PayKonnect uses a partner-led B2B licensing model. Payroll vendors pay a licensing fee to PayKonnect; the fee depends on the payroll-vendor relationship and the scope of the integration. PayKonnect is not a self-serve SaaS product — pricing is discussed during the discovery and integration design process. John Hancock intermediary materials note that PayKonnect charges payroll vendors a licensing fee and fees depend on the payroll-vendor relationship.