Paychex + Nectar Integration

Connect Paychex Flex to Nectar through the Paychex Flex Marketplace and keep your employee directory in sync with your payroll records.

Overview

Paychex Flex runs payroll and HR for hundreds of thousands of businesses, and Nectar is a Paychex Flex Marketplace partner for recognition and rewards. Connecting the two means the employees you pay in Paychex are the employees you recognize in Nectar. New hires get access automatically, changes in Paychex carry over, and departing employees are deactivated, so your recognition program stays accurate without a second list.

Ideal for:

• Small and mid-sized businesses running payroll and HR in Paychex Flex
• HR teams that want recognition connected to their payroll records
• Multi-location businesses that need accurate location and department data
• Organizations that want a Marketplace-listed, Paychex-approved connection

How It Works

Nectar reads employee data from Paychex and uses it to create, update, and deactivate Nectar accounts. Data flows one way, from Paychex into Nectar, so Paychex stays your single source of truth.

What data syncs

• First name, preferred first name, and last name
• Work email (personal email is used only if no work email exists)
• Employee ID
• Job title and department
• Manager
• Office location and country
• Hire date and birthday
• Phone number
• Employment status (active or terminated)

Every field has a job inside Nectar. Manager relationships assign manager roles and Team Insights automatically. Hire dates and birthdays drive work anniversary and birthday celebrations in Nectar Recognition. Departments and locations power analytics filters, Group Give, and audience targeting in Nectar Comms, Nectar Engage, and Nectar Flows. Hire dates and work anniversaries can also trigger Nectar Flows, and manager relationships assign reviewers in Nectar Perform and build the org view in Nectar Signals. Country keeps the rewards catalog relevant for each employee, and phone numbers enable SMS delivery in Nectar Comms.

Sync behavior

• Syncs automatically every day after the first import
• New hires are added, profile changes carry over, and terminated employees are deactivated
• Each Paychex company you include is enabled separately

New users are created quietly by default. When you are ready to launch, turn on "Send Nectar platform email invitations to new users" so every future hire gets an invite automatically.

Authentication method

An administrator enables Nectar in Paychex Flex and accepts the Paychex API license agreement. Access uses Paychex-issued credentials with read-only permissions to company and worker data, and Nectar never sees your Paychex password.

Where users interact

Admins connect, monitor, and pause the integration in Nectar under Workspace Settings, then Integrations. Employees never touch it: they just find an accurate profile, the right manager, and their teammates already in Nectar when they log in.

Key Features + Benefits

• Automatic provisioning: new hires in Paychex get Nectar accounts without a manual upload
• Always-current profiles: title, department, manager, and location changes flow into Nectar
• Automated offboarding: terminated employees are deactivated, not deleted, so access ends and records stay intact
• Celebrations on autopilot: birthdays and work anniversaries are recognized automatically from synced dates
• Controlled launch: accounts are created quietly, and invitations go out only when you turn them on
• Selective sync: choose exactly which departments and employee types are included

Setup and Implementation

Setting up the Paychex integration follows four steps: Connect, Authorize, Map, and Enable. Your Nectar Customer Success Manager guides you through each one.

High-level setup steps

1. Connect: Find Nectar in the Paychex Flex Marketplace and request the integration.
2. Authorize: Approve read-only access to company and worker data in Paychex Flex, then connect from Workspace Settings, then Integrations, in Nectar.
3. Map: Choose which companies, departments, or employee types to include and review the preview.
4. Enable: Start the sync, confirm your users, and turn on invitations when you are ready to launch.

Requirements

• Paychex Flex administrator access (Super Admin or Security Admin for multiple companies)
• Nectar admin access
• API access enabled for your Paychex account (Paychex may charge for its payroll API add-on; check with your Paychex representative)

Estimated setup time

Enabling API access with Paychex can take a few business days. After that, connecting in Nectar takes under 30 minutes.

Your integration should never delay your launch. If the connection is not live yet, Nectar's Bulk Upload loads your employees from a spreadsheet so you can launch on schedule and switch to the automated sync when it is ready.

Detailed, step-by-step instructions are available in the Nectar Help Center.

Use Cases

• Onboard new hires into Nectar straight from Paychex Flex
• Keep locations and departments accurate for targeted Nectar Comms
• Celebrate birthdays and work anniversaries from payroll dates
• Deactivate terminated employees automatically
• Run recognition across several Paychex companies in one Nectar workspace

Security & Compliance

Nectar protects employee data at every step of the Paychex connection.

• Nectar is listed in the Paychex Flex Marketplace, and access is limited to the read-only company and worker data you approve.
• Nectar never asks for or stores your Paychex password
• Data is encrypted in transit
• Nectar only uses the profile fields listed above and never syncs compensation, bank details, or benefits elections
• Only Nectar admins can connect, pause, or remove the integration
• Nectar maintains a SOC 2 Type II report, audited annually, with security documentation available in the Nectar Trust Center

Learn more on the Nectar Security page and in the Nectar Trust Center.

Support & Resources

• Nectar Help Center
• Bulk upload users (to launch before your sync is live)
• Nectar Trust Center
• Email Nectar Support at [email protected], or contact your Customer Success Manager