UK Software & Technology Payroll / Accounting - PPC Market Share Analysis October 2026

Leveraging Adthena’s Whole Market View, this analysis explores recent trends in Google Ads for the UK Payroll / Accounting category from the last month. Our Data Analyst, Ask Arlo provides commentary on key findings.

Payroll / Accounting – UK

Google AI Overview visibility for Software & Technology Payroll / Accounting UK

See how often AIOs appear and how search intent is distributed across buying signals.

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AIO Frequency

How often a Google AI overview appears on search terms relevant to this category.

Frequency Percentage
Frequency 65.8197412176
34.1802587824
65%

Complex Query Frequency

A complex query is a longer, more detailed search that often contains multiple keywords, specific conditions, or multi-part questions.

Frequency Percentage
Frequency 28
72
28%

Search Intent Distribution

Breakdown of search queries by their underlying goal.

Intent Distribution
Investigational 11%
Transactional 6%
Navigational 22%
Seasonal 0%
Local 0%
Problem Solving 7%

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Market Exposure

Share of Clicks for top 10 UK Software & Technology Payroll / Accounting brands

Here are the Top 10 competitors in the industry by Share of Clicks for the last month.

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Share of Clicks - Last month
Share of Clicks - Last month
Domain Share of clicks
xero.com 65.89
quickbooks.intuit.com 12.1
sage.com 9.23
invoicehome.com 3.21
adp.com 2.73
freeagent.com 1.75
bizimply.com 0.55
getapp.com 0.4
iris.co.uk 0.26
bluej.com 0.24
others 3.64
  • xero.com - 65.89%
  • quickbooks.intuit.com - 12.1%
  • sage.com - 9.23%
  • invoicehome.com - 3.21%
  • adp.com - 2.73%
  • freeagent.com - 1.75%
  • bizimply.com - 0.55%
  • getapp.com - 0.4%
  • iris.co.uk - 0.26%
  • bluej.com - 0.24%
  • others - 3.64%

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In the PPC landscape, Xero dominates with 65.89% click share, followed by QuickBooks at 12.1%. Sage holds 9.23%, while ‘others’ collectively capture 3.64%.

Market Exposure

Share of Spend for the top 10 UK Software & Technology Payroll / Accounting brands

Curious about your market position? Here you can see the Top 10 competitors in the industry by Share of Spend for the last month. 

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Share of Spend - Last Month
Share of Spend - Last Month
Date xero.com sage.com quickbooks.intuit.com netsuite.com invoicehome.com floqast.com freeagent.com adp.com dext.com getapp.com
2026/10/01 42.69% 19.93% 13.48% 1.28% 3.14% 0% 3.41% 2.4% 0.67% 0.05%
2026/10/02 44.36% 19.35% 14.02% 1.57% 4.56% 0.01% 1.79% 1.51% 0.39% 0.02%
2026/10/03 39.26% 20.67% 14.11% 1.04% 4.44% 0.01% 3.06% 2.23% 1.6% 0.02%
2026/10/04 39.6% 20.71% 13.8% 0.27% 5.06% 0.01% 2.47% 1.63% 1.3% 0.04%
2026/10/05 40.31% 20.26% 13.66% 1.56% 3.9% 0.14% 1.33% 2.39% 1.27% 0.11%
2026/10/06 42.06% 21.66% 11.72% 2.05% 5.43% 0.02% 1.47% 2.38% 1.64% 0.1%
2026/10/07 43.44% 18.32% 11.77% 3.29% 4.25% 0.01% 0.71% 2.46% 0.67% 0.75%
2026/10/08 38.72% 23.02% 12.9% 3.52% 2.8% 0.02% 3.03% 2.35% 0.46% 0.11%
2026/10/09 33.44% 27.47% 12.86% 4.79% 2.96% 0.09% 1.94% 2.2% 1.11% 0.62%
2026/10/10 30.56% 32.62% 12.36% 2.29% 2.96% 0.02% 2.35% 2.17% 1.99% 0.16%
2026/10/11 29.77% 32.71% 12.71% 0.6% 2.88% 0.02% 3.02% 2.26% 1.32% 0.59%
2026/10/12 30.35% 29.18% 10.13% 3.48% 3.29% 0.02% 1.73% 2.3% 1.4% 1.02%
2026/10/13 36.71% 23% 10.14% 3.09% 3.76% 0.02% 2.87% 2.18% 1.13% 1.91%
2026/10/14 36.75% 21.69% 10.38% 2.57% 3.59% 0.11% 5.46% 1.99% 0.86% 1.75%
2026/10/15 36.12% 18.33% 12.25% 4% 5.07% 0.03% 4.61% 2.34% 1.2% 2.01%
2026/10/16 38.23% 18.98% 15% 2.51% 4.53% 0.02% 5.37% 1.89% 0.71% 0.35%
2026/10/17 35.83% 21.74% 16.64% 1.47% 3.49% 0.03% 5.59% 1.66% 0.77% 1.48%
2026/10/18 39.35% 21.59% 17.64% 0.49% 2.96% 0.04% 4.65% 1.94% 0.56% 1.05%
2026/10/19 38.38% 19.76% 16.24% 1.61% 4.2% 0.04% 3.49% 1.85% 0.42% 1.12%
2026/10/20 38.75% 19.14% 12.19% 2.7% 4.01% 0.05% 5.14% 2.82% 1.19% 1.06%
2026/10/21 37.83% 20.96% 12.72% 2.65% 4.42% 0.05% 4.83% 2.35% 1.1% 0.77%
2026/10/22 33.71% 24.42% 10.19% 3.3% 3.87% 1.8% 6.72% 2.89% 1.67% 0.69%
2026/10/23 29.62% 21.45% 12.76% 2.01% 5.83% 8.29% 6.27% 1.71% 0.91% 0.24%
2026/10/24 34.6% 20.36% 16.46% 1.26% 3.62% 7.47% 1.39% 2.03% 0.39% 2.08%
2026/10/25 33.42% 17.98% 16.28% 0.06% 3.11% 9.31% 2.5% 1.96% 0.38% 1.94%
2026/10/26 37.32% 17.51% 14.28% 2.43% 3.55% 7.8% 1.75% 1.24% 0.27% 0.6%
2026/10/27 32.81% 20.25% 14.79% 3.81% 4.05% 7.8% 1.45% 1.38% 0.3% 1.02%
2026/10/28 29.79% 20.19% 15.56% 5.23% 4.1% 7.09% 1.95% 0.96% 0.52% 0.91%
2026/10/29 33.9% 19.69% 11.77% 4.89% 4.45% 8.11% 1.18% 0.85% 0.2% 1.01%
2026/10/30 33.61% 21.46% 11.49% 4.84% 4.41% 4.84% 0.82% 1.11% 0.5% 1.2%
2026/10/31 30.47% 25.96% 14.3% 5.56% 3.59% 1.63% 1.35% 0.76% 0.49% 0.14%
  • xero.com
  • sage.com
  • quickbooks.intuit.com
  • netsuite.com
  • invoicehome.com
  • floqast.com
  • freeagent.com
  • adp.com
  • dext.com
  • getapp.com

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Xero’s spend share fluctuated, peaking early, then declining. Sage surged mid-month, while QuickBooks saw a late rise. Netsuite and InvoiceHome showed steady growth. Floqast spiked late, ending strong.

Market Exposure

Competitor Count for UK Software & Technology Payroll / Accounting

Ever wondered how many competitors you’re up against in your industry? Well look no further, here we can see the number of advertisers bidding over the last month. 

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Competitor Count - Last month
Competitor Count - Last month
Date Competitor Count
2026/10/01 273
2026/10/02 267
2026/10/03 261
2026/10/04 264
2026/10/05 269
2026/10/06 260
2026/10/07 263
2026/10/08 270
2026/10/09 263
2026/10/10 254
2026/10/11 262
2026/10/12 262
2026/10/13 269
2026/10/14 275
2026/10/15 278
2026/10/16 282
2026/10/17 270
2026/10/18 280
2026/10/19 286
2026/10/20 282
2026/10/21 288
2026/10/22 297
2026/10/23 293
2026/10/24 304
2026/10/25 308
2026/10/26 320
2026/10/27 316
2026/10/28 312
2026/10/29 301
2026/10/30 306
2026/10/31 292

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October saw a dynamic rise in distinct advertisers, starting at 273 and peaking at 320 mid-month, before settling at 292.

Campaign Efficiency

Market Loss & Market Gains for UK Software & Technology Payroll / Accounting

Here we’re looking at the Top 10 biggest industry movers by market share gains and losses for the last 30 days.

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Market Loss & Market Gains - Last month
Market Loss & Market Gains - Last month
Name Market Trend
floqast.com 0.42%
getapp.com 0.24%
xero.com 0.23%
netsuite.com 0.17%
capterra.com 0.12%
iris.co.uk -0.1%
quickbooks.intuit.com -0.16%
adobe.com -0.19%
freeagent.com -0.51%
adp.com -0.82%

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Floqast.com surged with a 0.42 increase, while adp.com faced a significant drop of -0.82.

Campaign Efficiency

UK Software & Technology Payroll / Accounting Share of Impressions

Take a look at the Top 10 competitors in the industry by Share of Impressions over the last month.

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Date xero.com quickbooks.intuit.com sage.com invoicehome.com netsuite.com freeagent.com getapp.com brighthr.com adp.com bluej.com
2026/10/01 49.97% 11.49% 11.07% 3.09% 0.3% 4.03% 0.05% 1.51% 2.23% 2.96%
2026/10/02 50.92% 16.17% 9.68% 3.46% 0.41% 2.25% 0.01% 1.19% 1.42% 0.51%
2026/10/03 44.52% 20.21% 11.74% 3.32% 0.25% 3.42% 0.01% 1.22% 1.97% 0.02%
2026/10/04 42.96% 21.31% 10.46% 3.71% 0.04% 2.8% 0.03% 1% 1.46% 0.01%
2026/10/05 49.17% 19.83% 8.84% 2.79% 0.34% 1.55% 0.06% 0.62% 1.72% 0.02%
2026/10/06 51.31% 14.65% 10.55% 4.05% 0.52% 1.75% 0.05% 0.93% 2.09% 0.26%
2026/10/07 52.83% 11.6% 10.2% 3.1% 0.74% 0.89% 1.21% 0.97% 2.32% 0.13%
2026/10/08 48.09% 16.03% 12.73% 2.26% 0.81% 2.28% 0.08% 1.56% 2.2% 0.11%
2026/10/09 46.86% 14.17% 15.08% 2.68% 1.22% 2.16% 1.16% 0.6% 1.95% 0.01%
2026/10/10 45.84% 12.73% 17.4% 2.61% 0.55% 3.45% 0.11% 0.71% 1.94% 0.01%
2026/10/11 44.53% 14.16% 17.81% 2.51% 0.11% 2.38% 1.05% 0.61% 1.62% 0.01%
2026/10/12 44.74% 10.89% 16.52% 2.52% 0.81% 1.6% 1.86% 0.92% 1.89% 0.02%
2026/10/13 49.43% 11.18% 12.31% 2.9% 0.73% 1.71% 2.4% 0.51% 1.87% 1.14%
2026/10/14 42.1% 11.96% 16.07% 2.87% 0.63% 3.39% 1.95% 0.8% 1.76% 4.54%
2026/10/15 44.54% 14.71% 10.79% 3.98% 0.98% 2.91% 2.71% 1.11% 2.18% 3.31%
2026/10/16 43.7% 17.22% 11.01% 3.56% 0.66% 4.1% 0.34% 1.18% 1.8% 2.67%
2026/10/17 40.79% 21.92% 13.75% 2.73% 0.4% 3.4% 2.14% 1.17% 1.29% 1.19%
2026/10/18 43.43% 24.93% 11.9% 2.22% 0.11% 3% 1.42% 1.02% 1.61% 0.04%
2026/10/19 41.53% 21.32% 11.03% 3.19% 0.39% 2.09% 1.9% 1.21% 1.61% 3.89%
2026/10/20 46.68% 14.05% 11.93% 3.1% 0.74% 3.15% 1.62% 1.52% 2.85% 1.92%
2026/10/21 47.11% 13.69% 11.31% 3.62% 0.71% 4.36% 1.01% 1.01% 2.59% 1.99%
2026/10/22 42.05% 12.01% 14.22% 3.53% 0.92% 3.88% 0.86% 1.1% 5.9% 2.36%
2026/10/23 43.51% 16.16% 15.11% 4.62% 0.55% 3.34% 0.13% 0.5% 1.68% 0.58%
2026/10/24 36.87% 21.47% 12.31% 2.8% 0.34% 0.71% 4.38% 1.02% 3.07% 0.57%
2026/10/25 39.36% 22.52% 9.21% 2.52% 0.02% 1.34% 3.05% 1.37% 3.09% 0.01%
2026/10/26 44.27% 14.59% 10.1% 2.82% 1.45% 1.21% 1.25% 1.46% 2.3% 0.91%
2026/10/27 43.16% 13.44% 13.94% 3.09% 3.02% 0.79% 1.85% 1.32% 2.19% 2.55%
2026/10/28 38.9% 14.79% 16.55% 3.18% 3.98% 1.51% 1.48% 1.12% 1.09% 1.25%
2026/10/29 46.2% 12.72% 15.24% 3.51% 2.54% 0.47% 1.31% 0.7% 1% 1.23%
2026/10/30 43.8% 11.29% 11.19% 3.37% 5.26% 0.45% 2% 1.38% 1.74% 1.71%
2026/10/31 46.9% 16.11% 13.39% 2.76% 1.83% 1.54% 0.83% 0.82% 0.49% 0.02%
  • xero.com
  • quickbooks.intuit.com
  • sage.com
  • invoicehome.com
  • netsuite.com
  • freeagent.com
  • getapp.com
  • brighthr.com
  • adp.com
  • bluej.com

Copyright © Adthena. All rights reserved.

In October 2026, Xero led with fluctuating impressions, peaking at 52.83%. QuickBooks saw a mid-month surge, reaching 24.93%. Sage’s impressions varied, peaking at 17.81%. InvoiceHome remained steady, while NetSuite spiked late month. The month concluded with Xero maintaining dominance.

Campaign Efficiency

Google Text Ad Copy Insights & Creative Trends for UK Software & Technology Payroll / Accounting

Ever wondered how your rivals’ ads are doing? Here we can see the top-performing ads in the industry over the last month.

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Google Text Ad Copy Insights & Creative Trends for UK Software & Technology Payroll / Accounting - Last month
  1. 1
    Calculate Payrolls Easily - Check Your Paycheck Deductions https://www.getapp.com › software_info › businesses

    Compare a List Of Popular Paycheck Tools and Bookmark the Ones That Best Meet Your Needs!

  2. 2
    HR Payroll Software You Need - HMRC-Ready Payroll Software https://www.hibob.com

    HiBob payroll software integrates with your HR system. HMRC recognised, April 6 ready.

  3. 3
    All-In-One Accounting Software - New All in One Platform https://quickbooks.intuit.com › accounting › software

    Accounting Software - Keep Your Books Accurate and Have More Time For What Matters.

  4. 4
    HMRC-Recognised - Software That Grows With You https://www.sage.com › sage™ › intacct

    Manage your entire asset lifecycle in one system and automate processes.

  5. 5
    Xero https://www.xero.com › xero › accounting

    Accounting for Small Business — Xero accounting software is made for SMBs. Automate admin and work from anywhere, anytime.

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In the competitive landscape of payroll and accounting software, five top-performing ads shine. GetApp entices with a comparison of paycheck tools, while HiBob highlights its HMRC-ready integration. QuickBooks and Sage emphasize comprehensive solutions, and Xero targets SMBs with automation and flexibility.

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