What Zeal does

Zeal is an embedded payroll and workforce payments infrastructure platform that serves U.S. staffing platforms, labor marketplaces, employer-of-record and professional employer organization (EOR/PEO) providers, and workforce management tools. Founded in 2019 in San Francisco by Kirti Shenoy (CEO) and Pranab Krishnan (CTO), the company originated as Puzzl, a gig staffing operator; after a regulatory reclassification event forced thousands of 1099 contractors to be treated as W-2 employees, the founders identified a gap in fit-for-purpose payroll tooling for complex workforces and built Zeal to fill it. Zeal is an API-first platform organized around three core product modules — Onboard (worker onboarding with digital documents, e-Sign, and remote Form I-9 with E-Verify), Pay (automated payroll, tax withholding, and payments across 11,000+ U.S. tax jurisdictions), and Bill (accounts-receivable conversion of worker pay with integrated invoicing and collections) — augmented by a no-code white-label mobile staffing app, pre-built embeddable components, and paycard and digital wallet products issued through partner banks.

The platform is differentiated by a proprietary tax engine built in-house rather than licensed from third-party infrastructure, providing Zeal with full control over gross-to-net calculation, multi-jurisdiction withholding, filing, and reporting. Zeal also operates under SOC 2 Type II, NMLS money services licensing (Puzzl Group Inc., NMLS ID 2277841), and FDIC pass-through banking via Bangor Savings Bank, and acts as Power of Attorney and Reporting Agent, assuming payroll liability on behalf of partner employers. The company monetizes through subscription/quote-based platform fees billed to enterprise workforce platforms on multi-year contracts, with ancillary revenue from interchange and interest on paycards and digital wallets. Customers cited across source materials include Wonolo, Lawtrades, WorkGenius, Backlit, Qwick, Traba, NurseIO, Humla Health, ACE FMS, RollCredits, CinemaHive, Eats2Seats, Jyve, Veryable, Band of Hands, Lead and Gain, and Acrobat Staff, spanning healthcare, legal, events, industrial, and professional services staffing. Zeal had raised approximately $28.4 million of venture funding across Y Combinator (2019), a 2020 seed, a 2021 Series A led by Spark Capital, and a 2024 Series B led by Portage Ventures.

Name

Zeal

Legal name

Puzzl Group Inc.

Website

https://zeal.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Zeal is an API-first embedded payroll and workforce-payments platform that enables U.S. staffing platforms, labor marketplaces, EOR/PEO providers, and workforce-management tools to onboard, pay, and bill workers using a proprietary tax engine.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Embedded Payroll Infrastructure

NAICS

Payroll Services (541214), Professional Employer Organizations (561330)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)

akta.pro primary industry

Payroll Software & Payroll-as-a-Service (SaaS) (BPACAIAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Global Payroll & Multi-Country Payroll Coordination (EOR/PEO Interface) (BPAAAHAE), Global/Multi-Country Payroll & Cross-Border Payments (BPACAIAD), Professional Employer Organization (PEO) / Co-Employment Services (BPACAHAB), Payroll Tax Filing, Compliance & Regulatory Reporting (BPAAAHAB)

Keywords

• Embedded payroll infrastructure
• Workforce payments platform
• Staffing onboarding automation
• Payroll tax engine
• API payroll compliance

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Platform/SaaS Fees: Zeal charges workforce platforms subscription fees for access to its embedded payroll infrastructure, including onboarding, payroll processing, tax compliance, payments, and billing APIs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Zeal provides API-first embedded payroll and workforce payments infrastructure that enables staffing platforms, labor marketplaces, EOR/PEO organizations, and workforce management tools to onboard, pay, and bill workers under their own brand. Its three core modules — Onboard (digital worker onboarding with e-Sign, certifications, and remote Form I-9/E-Verify), Pay (automated payroll, multi-jurisdiction tax withholding, payments, paycards, and digital wallets), and Bill (invoicing, collections, and integrated capital) — run on a proprietary in-house tax engine with full Power of Attorney and Reporting Agent liability.

Product overview

Zeal is an embedded payroll and workforce payments platform that operates as a unified platform-plus-modules architecture. The core platform provides onboarding, payroll, payments, and billing infrastructure purpose-built for staffing companies, labor marketplaces, EOR/PEO organizations, and workforce management tools. The three primary product modules—Onboard (worker onboarding), Pay (automated payroll and taxes), and Bill (cash flow and invoicing)—work together as an integrated system. Additional offerings include a Mobile Staffing App for no-code branded worker apps, a proprietary tax engine for multi-jurisdiction compliance, embeddable components and APIs for developer integration, and Paycards & Digital Wallet products for monetizing worker payments. Zeal built its own tax engine rather than relying on third-party infrastructure, giving it full control over the compliance stack.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Onboard Fully compliant and automated worker onboarding solution providing digital documents, e-Sign, certifications, remote Form I-9 with E-Verify, and a simple onboarding flow to get workers started faster. Built for staffing platforms and labor marketplaces.
• Pay Automated payroll, payments, taxes, and compliance platform for workforce platforms. Handles gross-to-net calculation, multi-jurisdiction tax withholding, payroll filing and reporting, fast worker payments, and revenue opportunities through interest and interchange on paycards and digital wallets.
• Bill Cash flow management solution that turns worker pay into accounts receivable, automates invoicing, manages customer payment collection, and provides integrated capital and routing for cash flow management. Built for staffing platforms.
• Platform Overview Automation and compliance platform purpose-built for staffing that powers Onboard, Pay, and Bill with embedded compliance and payroll capabilities.
• Mobile Staffing App Custom branded worker mobile app with no-code launch capability that allows staffing platforms to provide workers with a mobile-first experience for managing their work and pay.
• Paycards & Digital Wallet Worker payment cards and digital wallet products that generate net new revenue for workforce platforms through interchange and interest, powered by Mastercard debit cards issued through Bangor Savings Bank, Member FDIC.
• Employment Verification Employment verification service for workforce platforms and HR service providers, introduced to extend Zeal's payroll infrastructure with identity and employment verification capabilities.
• Benefits Administration Benefits administration capability added to Zeal's payroll infrastructure, enabling workforce platforms and HR service providers to offer benefits alongside payroll.
• Zeal API & Embeddable Components API-first integration with embeddable components including Company Onboarding, Employee & Contractor Onboarding, Employer Dashboard, and Employee & Contractor Dashboard for building native payroll experiences. Distributed via API Reference, API Documentation, and Changelog.

Quantifiable outcome

• The U.S. Department of Labor collected $318 million in back pay and penalties in fiscal year 2025, highlighting the cost of payroll non-compliance that Zeal helps platforms avoid.

Named customers17 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

AI capability4 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Treasury PrimecoreTechnology or IntegrationTreasury Prime is Zeal's backend software provider, partnering with financial institutions to provide custodial accounts for client deposits and FDIC insurance. Treasury Prime's API enables disbursements and payments.
• Astra (AstraFi)coreTechnology or IntegrationAstra partners with financial institutions to provide push-to-card and RTP (Real-Time Payments) transactions, enabling disbursements and payments for Zeal's platform.
• Bangor Savings BankcoreTechnology or IntegrationBanking services for Zeal's paycards and digital wallets provided by Bangor Savings Bank, Member FDIC. FDIC insurance coverage protects against failure of the FDIC insured depository institution.
• WonolocoreTechnology or IntegrationWonolo is a customer and integration partner that uses Zeal's payroll infrastructure for automated onboarding, payroll, and payments on their workforce platform.
• MastercardcoreTechnology or IntegrationMastercard debit cards are issued through Bangor Savings Bank for Zeal's paycards, accepted anywhere Mastercard is accepted.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Check: Check is an embedded payroll infrastructure platform purpose-built for software platforms, offering APIs and embeddable components for tax filing, payments, and compliance - directly comparable to Zeal's API-first payroll infrastructure model.
• Pinwheel: Pinwheel provides payroll API infrastructure including income and employment data, payroll deductions, and paystub connectivity, enabling platforms to embed payroll-linked services. Closely aligned with Zeal's API-first, integration-oriented payroll infrastructure play.
• Finch: Finch is an employment API infrastructure platform that connects HR, payroll, and benefits systems, enabling developers to read and write employment data across providers. Comparable to Zeal as developer-focused payroll/employment infrastructure for software platforms.
• Atomic: Atomic provides payroll connectivity and embedded financial services APIs (including direct deposit switching, paycards, and earned wage access), serving a similar API-first, infrastructure-for-platforms niche as Zeal.

Broad incumbents

• Gusto: Gusto is a leading full-service payroll, HR, benefits, and compliance platform for SMBs and now partners via its platform/embedded APIs. Overlaps Zeal on payroll, tax, and partner enablement, but serves a broader employer base with a portal-led UX.
• Rippling: Rippling unifies HR, IT, payroll, and spend management for businesses of all sizes and is expanding its partner/embedded surface. Comparable to Zeal as a payroll and workforce platform serving complex employer needs, with much broader scale.
• Workday: Workday is an enterprise HR, finance, and payroll cloud suite that increasingly targets workforce platforms and complex pay scenarios. Comparable on payroll, compliance, and workforce management, but serves much larger customers with a portal-led model.

Emerging players

• Justworks: Justworks is a PEO providing payroll, benefits, HR, and compliance to SMBs, with growing technology/API offerings. Overlaps Zeal on payroll infrastructure and the PEO/EOR customer segment, but delivers via a portal-first model.

Regional players

• Deel: Deel is a leading global EOR, contractor management, and payroll platform primarily serving cross-border and international hiring, complementing Zeal's domestic U.S. focus. Comparable on the payroll and EOR axis but competes in a different (international) geography.
• Remote: Remote is a global EOR and international payroll platform enabling companies to hire and pay employees and contractors worldwide. Comparable to Zeal's EOR/PEO customer segment but anchored in cross-border use cases outside Zeal's U.S. footprint.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks3 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ZealAPI
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/zealdotcom

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds5 records

Investors8 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Zeal