Affinity vs Datacom Datapay – comparing NZ enterprise payroll platforms
For: Payroll Managers, HR Leaders, IT Decision-Makers|10 min read|Last updated: March 2026
This comparison is published by Affinity. Competitor information is based on publicly available sources. Contact each provider directly for their current capabilities.
Summary
Affinity and Datacom Datapay are both established enterprise payroll platforms serving New Zealand and Australian organisations. Both are ISO 27001 certified with NZPPA-trained payroll professionals. Affinity is a dedicated payroll specialist with a built-in intelligence layer and three flexible delivery models. Datacom brings 60+ years of broader NZ technology experience. This comparison helps you evaluate which fits your needs.
Why organisations compare Affinity and Datacom
If you are running payroll for a mid-to-large New Zealand organisation, Affinity and Datacom are likely both on your shortlist, and for good reason. Both platforms serve NZ enterprise payroll, both offer managed and outsourced payroll services, and both have deep compliance expertise across the Holidays Act, KiwiSaver, and IRD payday filing.
The difference is in what sits around the payroll engine.
Datacom is a major NZ-headquartered technology company with over 60 years in the New Zealand market. Payroll is one part of a much broader portfolio that spans IT infrastructure, cloud, security, and digital services. Within payroll alone, Datacom serves multiple market segments: Datapay for enterprise organisations and Smartly for small businesses, alongside the wider technology business. For organisations already embedded in the Datacom ecosystem, that breadth can be an advantage.
Affinity is a payroll specialist. Payroll technology, payroll services, and payroll support: that is the entire business. With 40+ years of AU/NZ payroll innovation, Affinity does not offer IT services, small business payroll products, or adjacent technology services. Every part of the business, every developer, every support person, every NZPPA-trained payroll manager, is focused on making payroll work for complex mid-to-enterprise organisations across New Zealand and Australia.
Operating model and support
The biggest difference is not features. It is whether payroll is the entire business, or one service among many.
Affinity
Payroll specialist: enterprise payroll is the entire business
Built, implemented, and supported entirely within AU/NZ
40+ years of AU/NZ payroll innovation, 10+ industry firsts
Three delivery models on one platform, one team, one AU/NZ database
500,000+ employees processed, ISO 27001 certified
Datacom Datapay
60+ years as a major NZ technology company
NZPPA-certified payroll consultants on staff
Strong Holidays Act remediation expertise
Enterprise payroll is one service within a broad IT portfolio
Serves multiple market segments: Datapay (enterprise) and Smartly (small business)
Why this matters: when a compliance rule changes, Affinity's entire team is focused on it. There is no IT services roadmap, no small business product, and no adjacent technology portfolio competing for the same development resources. Every sprint is payroll and T&A. Same platform, same database, same accountable AU/NZ vendor regardless of which delivery model you choose.
Feature comparison
The table below reflects publicly available information. Where Datacom's capabilities are drawn from their website and publicly available material rather than direct testing, that is noted. For definitive information on Datacom's current feature set, contact Datacom directly.
Feature
Affinity
Datacom Datapay
Core payroll processing
Enterprise-grade cloud payroll with configurable functionality for complex AU/NZ scenarios
Datapay — established NZ enterprise payroll engine
Holidays Act compliance
Full NZ Holidays Act support with configurable leave calculations and compliance checking
Dedicated Holidays Act compliance focus with five-step remediation process — a recognised strength
Payroll Assistant AI for payroll questions with clause-linked answers. Analytics module available. No equivalent pre-payslip anomaly detection layer documented
API-based and file-based integrations available, with managed integrations including Workday, Humanforce, and BambooHR. Datacom's broader technology portfolio may offer additional advantages for existing Datacom customers
Reporting and analytics
200+ standard reports, SQL reporting database, Power BI integration, report scheduling
Reporting suite available
Workforce management
Integrated workforce management with real-time labour costing across up to 12 cost elements
Workforce management capabilities available
Pay rule interpretation
Configurable engine handling complex modern awards (AU) and pay rules (NZ) across EBAs
Pay rule interpretation available — deep NZ-specific expertise
Employee self-service
Self-service dashboards for employees and managers with mobile app access
Employee self-service capabilities available
Managed payroll services
Fully Managed service with NZPPA-trained payroll managers, dedicated to enterprise payroll, end-to-end processing
Full AU compliance — STP Phase 2, modern award interpretation, superannuation — on the same platform
Datacom offers AU payroll through Datapay including STP Phase 2 compliance and superannuation. For cross-Tasman coverage from a single platform, Affinity handles both AU and NZ natively
Business focus
Payroll specialist — enterprise payroll technology and services is the entire business
Broad technology services company — enterprise payroll (Datapay), small business payroll (Smartly), and IT services
Where both platforms are strong, particularly NZ compliance, KiwiSaver, and payday filing, you should expect comparable outcomes. The differences become clearer around intelligence features, delivery model flexibility, cross-Tasman capability, and the question of payroll-specialist depth versus broader technology partnership.
Delivery model comparison
Affinity — one platform, three models
Affinity offers three delivery models from a single platform, a single database, and a single vendor. You choose how much you want to manage yourself, and you can move between models as your needs change without re-implementing.
Everything in SaaS plus a dedicated support person, system configuration and admin validation, ad hoc reporting, training and comprehensive online help.
Everything in Supported plus NZPPA-trained payroll managers, end-to-end payroll processing, third-party payments and tax filing, employee and manager support, full reporting and insights.
The ability to move between these models without changing platforms, migrating data, or switching vendors is a structural advantage for organisations whose needs evolve over time. You can compare all three models in detail.
Datacom
Datacom offers Datapay as their enterprise payroll software platform alongside managed payroll services staffed by NZPPA-certified payroll consultants. Datacom also offers Smartly, a separate payroll product for the small business market. As a broader technology services company, Datacom customers may benefit from their wider IT ecosystem, particularly where payroll integrates with other Datacom-managed infrastructure. For specific delivery model options, we recommend contacting Datacom directly.
Payroll intelligence: what happens before the payslip
Most payroll platforms are reporting tools. They tell you what happened after the run, after the payslips, after the payments have left your accounts. By that point, fixing an error means correction payments, back pays, and a conversation with affected employees.
Automated variance checking and anomaly detection run before the payslip. If something looks wrong, an unusual uplift, a missing allowance, or a pay rule that may not have applied correctly, Payroll IQ flags it before it reaches an employee and explains what changed and why. That hidden checking effort most payroll teams carry every pay run gets reduced at the source.
The difference
Most payroll platforms tell you what happened. Payroll IQ tells you what is about to go wrong.
Datacom Datapay
Datacom provides a Payroll Assistant AI tool and reporting capabilities. No equivalent pre-payslip anomaly detection layer is documented in publicly available feature information.
Payroll IQ exists because Affinity does not split product investment across IT services, small business payroll, and adjacent technology. That focus goes into accuracy tooling instead.
NZ compliance depth
This is where both platforms are genuinely strong. New Zealand's regulatory environment is complex, and any enterprise payroll platform serving this market needs to handle it well.
Parity areas — both platforms cover these:
Holidays Act NZ
KiwiSaver
IRD payday filing
ACC levies
NZPPA-trained professionals
Differentiated areas:
Holidays Act remediation
Datacom has a dedicated five-step Holidays Act remediation process. This is a recognised strength and reflects their deep NZ market experience. Affinity provides configurable leave calculations and compliance checking across the full Act.
Intelligence layer
Affinity's Payroll IQ flags compliance anomalies and variance before the payslip is produced, an automated safety net that explains what changed and why. This is a differentiator not publicly matched by Datapay.
Cross-Tasman compliance
If your organisation operates in both New Zealand and Australia, Affinity handles full AU compliance, including STP Phase 2, modern awards, and superannuation, from the same platform. One vendor, one database, one set of compliance rules across both countries. Datacom offers AU payroll through Datapay. For organisations wanting both AU and NZ on a single platform with one database and one vendor, evaluate the depth of Datacom's cross-Tasman integration against Affinity's native dual-country approach.
Where Datacom leads
Holidays Act remediation process and broader NZ technology ecosystem. If your organisation already uses Datacom for IT infrastructure, cloud, or security, keeping payroll within the same provider relationship can reduce vendor management overhead.
For most enterprise organisations, payroll does not operate in isolation. It connects to HR, finance, time and attendance, rostering, and reporting systems, and how those connections work matters.
Affinity offers real-time APIs with documented integration capabilities, including a two-way sync with ELMO and configurable connections to HRIS, ERP, T&A, rostering, and finance systems. Because Affinity is a payroll specialist, integration development is focused entirely on making payroll connect cleanly to whatever systems your organisation uses.
Datacom's advantage sits elsewhere: as a broad NZ technology services company, existing Datacom customers may find integration synergies across Datacom's wider technology portfolio. For organisations connecting payroll to non-Datacom systems, or where you want flexibility to choose best-of-breed partners across your stack, Affinity's open API approach may offer more flexibility. Check Datacom's specific integration capabilities for your stack.
Who is each platform best for?
Choosing the wrong payroll platform is expensive in ways that go beyond licensing. A poor fit means reimplementation within a few years, compliance gaps during transition, and split accountability when something goes wrong.
Choose Affinity if you:
Want a dedicated payroll specialist where payroll is the entire business, not one product among many
Operate across both New Zealand and Australia and want one platform for cross-Tasman payroll
Need real-time API integrations with HRIS, ERP, or finance systems outside the Datacom ecosystem
Want a built-in intelligence layer, Payroll IQ, for automated variance detection before every pay run
Consider Datacom if you:
Already use Datacom for other technology services and want payroll within the same provider relationship
Prefer a single technology partner across IT infrastructure, cloud, and payroll
Operate primarily in New Zealand without cross-Tasman payroll requirements
Want to leverage Datacom's established Holidays Act remediation expertise
Value Datacom's broader NZ technology ecosystem alongside your enterprise payroll
Frequently asked questions
How do Affinity and Datacom compare on Holidays Act compliance?
Both platforms handle Holidays Act compliance, and both have NZPPA-trained payroll professionals on staff. Datacom offers a dedicated five-step remediation process, which is a genuine strength. Affinity provides configurable leave calculations and compliance checking across the full Act, with Payroll IQ flagging anomalies before the payslip is produced.
Can I switch between delivery models with Affinity?
Yes. Affinity offers SaaS, Supported, and Fully Managed from a single platform. You can move between models as your needs change without data migration, re-implementation, or switching vendors.
Does Affinity handle both NZ and AU payroll?
Yes. Affinity handles full NZ and AU compliance from the same platform, including Holidays Act, KiwiSaver, and IRD payday filing in New Zealand, and STP Phase 2, modern awards, and superannuation in Australia. One database, one vendor, one set of compliance rules across both countries.
What is Payroll IQ and does Datacom offer something similar?
Payroll IQ is Affinity's intelligence layer. It provides automated anomaly detection, variance checking, and pre-payslip risk flagging, explaining what changed and why before the pay run is finalised. Datacom provides a Payroll Assistant AI tool for payroll questions with clause-linked answers from legislation, and an analytics module. Based on publicly available information, Datapay does not appear to offer an equivalent automated pre-payslip anomaly detection layer — the specific capability of flagging variance and award interpretation issues before the payslip runs.
Is Datacom better for organisations already using Datacom services?
Potentially. Datacom is a broad technology services company, and organisations already using Datacom for IT infrastructure, cloud, or security may find operational advantages in keeping payroll within the same provider relationship. If your technology stack is independent of Datacom, this advantage may not apply.
How do integration capabilities compare?
Affinity offers real-time APIs with documented integrations including ELMO two-way sync, HRIS, ERP, T&A, and finance connectors. Datacom's broader technology portfolio may offer integration advantages for existing Datacom customers. For non-Datacom systems, check their specific API and integration documentation.
Ready to compare in detail?
Choosing a payroll platform is a significant decision. The right choice depends on your organisation's complexity, team structure, and technology strategy.
1
Review the facts
You have done this. The comparison above gives you the foundation.
2
Map your requirements
Talk to our team. We will map your specific NZ payroll needs against both platforms.
3
See it with your data
Run Affinity against your own scenarios: pay rules, integrations, pay cycles. Make the decision based on evidence, not slides.