Quick-Lohn

What Quick-Lohn does

Quick-Lohn Software GmbH is a privately held German payroll software company headquartered in Britz (Brandenburg) with a customer support office in Berlin. The company was founded as a program in 1987 by civil engineer Stephan Herber, who could not find suitable payroll software for his family's construction business; the Quick-Lohn Software GmbH legal entity was incorporated in summer 2010 with Stefan Förder (who joined in 2008) as Managing Director, completing a generational succession. Helmut Förder serves as Prokurist and joined in 1996. The company has remained bootstrapped throughout its history with no institutional investors or external funding.

The core product is a Windows-based, client-installed payroll application targeted at German small and medium businesses, with a deep specialization in the construction industry (Bauhauptgewerbe, Maler, Dachdecker, GaLaBau, Gerüstbau). It also serves general trades, services, and tax consultants/payroll offices through separate sub-products. Its technical differentiator is the Meldecenter, a certified electronic reporting hub with direct authorized integrations to the GKV (statutory health insurance funds), SOKA-Bau, SOKA-Dach, Malerkasse, and SOKA-Gerüst, as well as the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Kurzarbeitergeld) and Finanzamt (ELStAM). These certifications allow one-click submission of complex German payroll declarations that would otherwise require multiple specialized tools or manual processes.

The commercial model is annual subscription priced at €18/month (general industries) or €26/month (with Baulohn module), with a 3-month free trial distributed via self-serve download. Distribution is entirely digital — direct website sales, SEO-optimized vertical landing pages, Vimeo explainer videos, free Google Meet-based webinars, phone-based sales assistance, and Calendly-scheduled live demos. Supplemental revenue comes from individually priced remote training sessions (€100/hour, €80 for Komfortkunden). The company has grown to over 2,500 paying customers, several of whom have been subscribers since 1987, indicating very high retention in a fragmented SMB base.

Name

Quick-Lohn

Legal name

Quick-Lohn Software GmbH

Website

https://quick-lohn.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Quick-Lohn Software GmbH is a bootstrapped German provider of Windows-based payroll software specializing in construction industry payroll (Bauhauptgewerbe, Maler, Dachdecker, GaLaBau, Gerüstbau). It serves over 2,500 SMB customers via annual subscriptions priced at €18–26/month, distinguished by certified electronic integrations with German social funds and health insurers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Payroll Software (Construction Industry / Bau)

NAICS

Payroll Services (541214), Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services (54121)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

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

akta.pro secondary industries

Contractor Payroll, Invoicing & Payment Services (BPACAGAD), Time, Expense & Timesheet Management for Contractors (BPACAGAK)

Keywords

• Payroll software
• Construction payroll
• Baulohn software
• Payroll bureau software
• German payroll compliance

Headquarters

HQ city

Britz

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Software License Subscription: Annual subscription license for payroll software, with pricing based on number of employees per company. Renews automatically each year unless cancelled with 3-month notice to year-end. Includes all software updates (at least annually in January, plus quarterly/monthly updates as needed).
2. Individual Training: Individual training sessions conducted via remote support (TeamViewer) at €100 net per 60 minutes (€80 for Komfortkunden), billed in 15-minute increments. Topics derived from customer questions; includes professional tips.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Quick-Lohn is a German payroll software company (Quick-Lohn Software GmbH) founded in 1987 that develops Baulohn (construction payroll) and general payroll software for small and medium-sized businesses. The company offers trade-specific editions (e.g., main construction trades, painters, roofers, landscapers, scaffolding) plus a general industry edition and a special edition for tax consultants and payroll offices. The product line covers payroll calculation, social-security reporting, and a Meldecenter (reporting center) that handles electronic submissions to SOKA-Bau, BG Bau, Krankenkassen, Finanzämter, and DATEV.

Product overview

Quick-Lohn is a Windows-based payroll software suite for small and medium-sized enterprises, offering industry-specific versions for construction, trades, and general businesses. The core product is Quick-Lohn with specialized sub-products for different sectors: Bauhauptgewerbe (construction main trade), Maler (painters), Dachdecker (roofers), GaLaBau (landscape gardening), Gerüstbau (scaffolding), and general branches for trade/services. A separate version exists for Steuerberater & Lohnbüros (tax consultants and payroll offices). The software includes the integrated Meldecenter for automated statutory reporting. Pricing starts at €18/month for general branches or €26/month including construction payroll. Support is provided through Online-Hilfe, Erklärvideos, Webinare, and individual training sessions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% legally compliant payroll (gesetzeskonform)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• SOKA-Bau (Urlaubs- und Lohnausgleichskasse der Bauwirtschaft)coreTechnology or IntegrationQuick-Lohn is officially authorized and certified by SOKA-Bau to electronically transmit payroll declarations directly through its Meldecenter to the SOKA-Bau system. This eliminates the need for additional software or manual processes for construction industry companies.
• SOKA-Dach (Sozialkasse des Dachdeckerhandwerks)coreTechnology or IntegrationQuick-Lohn is certified and authorized by SOKA-Dach to submit electronic declarations for roofing companies directly from the software, including support for the 13th month income and Dachdeckerausfallgeld.
• Malerkasse (Urlaubsgeldkasse des Maler- und Lackiererhandwerks)coreTechnology or IntegrationQuick-Lohn is certified for electronic submission of monthly declarations to the Malerkasse (Unterstützungskasse/Zusatzversorgungskasse) for painters and lacquerers, enabling automated vacation pay calculations and reporting.
• SOKA-GerüstbaucoreTechnology or IntegrationQuick-Lohn generates electronic files with declaration lists for SOKA-Gerüstbau at month-end, which are uploaded to the SOKA-Gerüst portal. Includes support for Sommerausfallgeld (summer layoff compensation).
• GKV / Spitzenverband der gesetzlichen KrankenkassencoreTechnology or IntegrationQuick-Lohn is regularly tested and certified by the statutory health insurance funds (GKV) to ensure the software meets all requirements for correct payroll processing with health insurance contributions.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Personio: Personio is a leading European cloud HR + payroll platform for SMBs, headquartered in Germany/Munich. It represents the cloud-native threat to Quick-Lohn's desktop architecture — same SMB persona, no construction-vertical depth but modern UX and venture funding.
• HRworks: HRworks is a German cloud HR and payroll platform for SMBs. Comparable on target customer (German SMB) and pricing tier, but lacks the construction-vertical specialization and SOKA certifications that differentiate Quick-Lohn.

Broad incumbents

• Lexware (Haufe Group): Lexware is the dominant German SMB payroll and accounting software suite, including lexoffice (cloud) and Lexware lohn+cloud. It is the most direct competitor on German SMB payroll and operates at far larger scale with broader functionality, though it lacks Quick-Lohn's depth in construction-trade (Baulohn) specialization and SOKA certifications.
• DATEV: DATEV is the cooperative payroll-and-tax software provider used by the majority of German Steuerberater and Lohnbüros. It directly competes with Quick-Lohn's Steuerberater & Lohnbüros version and dwarfs it on scale, but Quick-Lohn's deep Bau-/SOKA specialization gives it a niche wedge within DATEV-using payroll offices.
• Sage (Germany / Sage 50 Lohn): Sage offers German payroll solutions (e.g., Sage 50 Lohn, Sage HR) targeting SMBs and Mittelstand. It is a broad incumbent with overlapping payroll functionality but is a generalist without Quick-Lohn's depth in construction-trade SOKA reporting and German SMB price positioning.
• Wolters Kluwer (Lohn und Gehalt, Addison): Wolters Kluwer offers German payroll software ('Lohn und Gehalt' / Addison) primarily serving tax consultants and mid-market. Overlaps with Quick-Lohn's Steuerberater & Lohnbüros version on multi-client payroll, with significantly larger scale and tax-advisor ecosystem integration.
• ADP (Germany / ADP iHCM): ADP operates in Germany offering payroll and HR outsourcing plus cloud payroll software. Competes more on outsourced payroll services than self-serve SMB software, but increasingly relevant as German SMBs consider switching from in-house to outsourced payroll.

Direct peers

• PERSIS (PERSIS GmbH / P&I AG heritage): PERSIS is a German HR and payroll software provider with strong presence in Mittelstand and trade industries. Comparable on German payroll localization and trade-vertical support, though at a larger customer tier than Quick-Lohn's micro-SMB focus.
• Agenda Software (Agenda Software GmbH): Agenda Software is a German payroll/accounting software provider with strong trade and construction-vertical coverage, including datev-voucher interfacing. Closely comparable to Quick-Lohn on German SMB and trade payroll positioning, with similar pricing tier and customer segments.
• BRZ Deutschland (Bau Rechenzentrum): BRZ is the German construction-industry IT specialist providing payroll, accounting, and ERP software to Bauhauptgewerbe and trade firms. Direct competitor in Baulohn with comparable SOKA-Bau integration and vertically specialized products, though typically serving larger construction firms than Quick-Lohn's SMB base.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/quick-lohn-software-gmbh
• Instagraminstagram.com/quicklohn

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Quick-Lohn