Our best HR software for small businesses

Keeping on top of your HR duties can be time-consuming and difficult at the best of times. HR software helps businesses improve their human resources offering, with the aim of improving employee management and boosting satisfaction and productivity in the workplace. HR packages offer a wide range of features, including:

• Centralised storage of all employee data

• Recruitment and onboarding

• Day-to-day management, such as time, attendance and payroll duties

• Staff development – training and nurturing

• Benefits administration

• Reporting, analytics and compliance

HR software has played a major role in innovating new HR systems and processes thanks to its agile nature, which sees new features rolling out quickly in response to developments in the workplace. This was particularly true during the Covid-19 pandemic when businesses were shuttered, and employees were forced to work from home or go on furlough.

Whether you have a fully fledged human resources department in place or you’re a small business looking at ways to better manage your workforce, HR management system software may be a good choice for your company. Benefits include:

• Ensuring management processes remain compliant

• Reducing administrative costs

• Boosting employee satisfaction

• Improving communication and therefore productivity across the company

• Gaining a better understanding of your workforce

• Attracting, hiring and retaining new talent

This depends on several factors, the features offered in the package and the type of subscription.

Typically this is priced annually or monthly, and may be calculated one of two ways:

• Per-employee: the most common pricing option, as charged by accessPeopleHR, CharlieHR and Sage HR

• Business size and need: as charged by Breathe HR

A good rule of thumb is that pricing costs around £3-10 per month per user for a typical HR software system, while Breathe HR’s entry level Core package charges £18 per month for “micro” businesses of 1-10 people, scaling all the way to £500/month for businesses employing up to 200 people.

Examine carefully what you get for your money – many features may be restricted to higher tiers or optional add-ons. These are often charged separately at a flat additional rate, such as £10-20 per module from Breathe HR. Sage HR’s Recruitment package for in-house acquisition teams costs a further £150 per month.

Many HR providers don’t publish their prices online; instead, contact them directly with details of your business type and size for a personal quotation. Also be aware than prices typically exclude VAT.

The workplace is ever-changing, as demonstrated by the enforced switch to home working during the Covid-19 pandemic. HR teams have also had to adapt to cultural shifts like a switch to hybrid working or a focus on ensuring companies are more diverse, inclusive and equal.

And the challenges keep coming, whether it’s from an increased use of AI in the workplace or a shift towards the “employee experience” (EX) as part of improving workers’ wellbeing.

The good news is that many HR software companies have long mastered the art of agile working practices, ensuring that they can quickly translate developments in the workplace to new and improved services, so your company is ready to face change as it happens.