Payday is a solid computerized planilla tool. cifraHQ is a complete ERP with native payroll, accounting, DGI electronic invoicing, fixed assets, inventory and more - all in a single database.
Payday is the reference payroll software in Panama. PayDayCloud, PayDayPortal and PayDayBI cover the basic payroll workflows, and for many companies it has been the de facto solution for years.
The problem is not Payday. The problem is that payroll does not live in the same place as your accounting. Every period close requires exporting data to your external "accounting program," reconciling differences, and trusting that the two databases did not fall out of sync.
cifraHQ closes that gap. Payroll and accounting share the same tenant database. The period close creates the balanced journal entry in the GL within the same database transaction - no exports, no reconciliations, no possibility of falling out of sync.
Payday integrates with external "accounting programs" through exports. That means two systems, two databases, and a synchronization layer that can fail.
cifraHQ eliminates that layer entirely. Payroll and accounting are the same system. The payroll close creates the balanced journal entry in the General Ledger within the same database transaction - not as an export file, but as a permanent record in the same tenant.
When your auditor asks for the support behind the payroll entries, they find them directly in the accounting - with the same period number, the same close date, and the same detail as the payroll report.
Most payroll software says it "calculates per Panamanian law" without citing which specific article applies to each line of the calculation.
cifraHQ cites the exact article in every calculator: Art. 699 Código Fiscal (ISR), Decreto 19/1973 (Décimo), Arts. 52 - 82 CT (Vacations), Arts. 222 - 225 CT (Settlement), Decreto 13/2025 (Minimum Wage), Art. 17 CT (90/10 Report). If a labor inspector or auditor asks for the legal basis of any line, you can point to it in the code.
cifraHQ ERP + Payroll vs Payday standalone planilla
| Capability | cifraHQ | Payday |
|---|---|---|
| Cloud-native, automatic updates | ? Yes | ? PayDayCloud (partial) |
| Native GL integration - same tenant, balanced entry at close | ? Yes - same DB transaction | ? Export to "accounting programs" |
| Multi-company / multiple legal entities | ? Native | ? Not advertised |
| Country-pack architecture (PA live; MX/CR/CO in development) | ? ICountryPack interface | ? Panamá only |
| CSS / SE (Ley 51/2005 · Ley 13/1987) | ? Cites the exact articles | ? Yes |
| ISR Art. 699 CF - annualized with YTD | ? Cites Art. 699 CF | ? Yes, without citing the article |
| Décimo Tercer Mes (Decreto 19/1973) - 3 detailed partidas | ? Detailed, cites Decreto 19/1973 | ? Yes (XIII mes). cifraHQ breaks it into the 3 partidas and cites Decreto 19/1973. |
| Vacations (Arts. 52 - 82) - engine with approvals and Art. 54.5 | ? Full engine + workflow | ? Yes (vacations). cifraHQ adds an approval-workflow engine and Art. 54.5 handling. |
| Settlement (Arts. 213, 222 - 225) with DocuSign | ? 4-step wizard + DocuSign | ? Yes (settlements). cifraHQ adds a 4-step wizard and DocuSign signing. |
| Automatic monthly BDO provisions | ? Décimo, Prima, Indemnización | ? Generates reserve (reservas) entries (via export). cifraHQ posts provisions automatically into the same-tenant GL. |
| SIPE Planilla XLSX (24 columns) + SIPE Complementaria | ? Yes + Complementaria | ? Yes (SIPE) |
| Form 03 DGI (ISR anual, e-Tax 2.0) | ? e-Tax 2.0 payload | ? Yes (Anexo 03). cifraHQ generates it with an e-Tax 2.0 payload from the same tenant. |
| MITRADEL - contract registration + Finiquito PDF | ? Registration + MITRADEL Finiquito | ? No detail on the site |
| CI validation against the official MITRADEL calculator | ? CI validation pipeline | ? Not advertised |
| 90/10 Report (Art. 17) with proximity alerts | ? Cites Art. 17 + alerts | ? Not advertised |
| ACH for Panama banks (BG, Banistmo, BAC, Global, BNP, CA, Tel-Red) | ? 7 banks | ? ACH integrations |
| Bilingual pay stub / receipt with digital signature | ? Stimulsoft, digitally signed | ? Yes (PayDay) |
| Period reopening + reversing entry + audit trail | ? Reason + reversing entry | ? Not advertised |
| Immutable 7-year retention per closed period | ? PDF + XML per period | ? Not advertised |
| Employee portal (mobile-first, 360px) | ? Mi Recibo, Vacations, Certificates, Form 03 | ? PayDayPortal |
| Inspector portal (read-only, time-limited) | ? Dedicated inspector role | ? Not advertised |
| Fixed Assets (IFRS 16, depreciation, GL) | ? Full module | ? No |
| AP / AR / Inventory in the same system | ? Complete ERP | ? No |
| DGI Electronic Invoicing (Form 430) | ? DGI certified | ? No |
| IFRS & GAAP Accounting | ? IFRS 16 + GAAP | ? No |
| BI / Dashboards | ? Reporting & Analytics | ? PayDayBI |
| Mobile sales and POS | ? Mobile app + POS | ? Not advertised |
The Payday columns are based on information published on its website. "Not advertised" means the site does not describe that capability - it does not necessarily imply it does not exist.
The four most common scenarios that lead teams to evaluate us
Payroll close generates the journal entry directly in the GL - no export, no import, no manual reconciliation.
Every calculation cites the source statute: Art. 699 CF, Decreto 19/1973, Arts. 52 - 82 CT. Your auditors and MITRADEL see the same number.
Run payroll for all your legal entities from one platform, without migrating data between systems.
Beyond payroll: invoicing, inventory, AP/AR, fixed assets, and IFRS accounting - all in cifraHQ.
For single-entity companies that only need computerized payroll in Panama, Payday is a functional solution with years of experience in the local market.
cifraHQ is the right choice when accounting integration, multi-company support, or regional growth are priorities. If your needs are exclusively payroll for a single company in Panama without accounting integration, evaluate which level of complexity makes sense for your operation.
Common questions when comparing cifraHQ with Payday
Request a personalized demo and compare cifraHQ Payroll against your current solution.