PeopleMuster

Cheapest HR software

Zoho People ranks first on published entry price: Essential HR is $1.50 per user a month, or $1.25 billed yearly, on a five-user minimum. WebHR follows at $2 a head before add-ons. PeopleMuster is our pick at $3 per person a month, because that one figure is the whole bill: every module, no tier above it, no seat minimum and no base fee.

How this was judged

Ranked on the lowest per-person monthly price each vendor publishes on its own pricing page, with a note on what that price buys and what sits above it.

Seven HR products were compared on 24 September 2026. Each price was read from the vendor's own pricing page that day and is quoted as the vendor prints it: the monthly figure first, the yearly figure beside it where one is published. Deel and HarmonyHR tie at $5 and appear in alphabetical order. Rippling, HiBob, Darwinbox and Resourceinn publish no price, so a ranking by published price has nowhere to put them. Calamari sells HR by the module, which makes its bill a sum you assemble rather than one figure, and it is left out for the same reason. Disclosure: PeopleMuster is our product, and it sits where the method puts it.

The ranking

01

Zoho People

Essential HR $1.50 per user a month, $1.25 billed yearly. Professional $2.50, Premium $3.50, Enterprise $5 and People Plus $10 monthly. Paid plans start at five users. Verified 24 September 2026.
Who it suits
A team of five or more that wants the lowest entry figure and expects to climb a tier as it grows.
Where it wins
The lowest published entry price in this set, a free edition for up to five people, and a 30-day trial.
Where it falls short
Five paid tiers, so $1.50 is the bottom rung. Paid plans need five users, and the figure you're shown depends on your region.
02

WebHR

$2 per employee a month for the base product. Add-ons from $0.50 to $2 per employee a month, each priced on its own. Verified 24 September 2026.
Who it suits
A company that wants a cheap core record and will bolt on modules one at a time.
Where it wins
A published $2 base and a free sign-up option, so you can look at the product before you pay.
Where it falls short
The base is the base. Every add-on carries its own per-employee price, so the bill is assembled module by module.
03

PeopleMuster

$3 per person a month, every module included, no tiers. $30 per person a year on annual billing, which is two months free.
Who it suits
A team that runs people and client projects together and wants one bill that never climbs a tier.
Where it wins
The $3 is the whole price. Attendance, leave, timesheets, capacity planning, client projects, the org chart and every other module are in it, with no seat minimum, no setup fee and no base fee. Every new customer gets 14 days free with no card before the first charge.
04

Deel

HR Core from $5 per employee a month. Deel's other products carry their own prices. Verified September 2026.
Who it suits
A company with people or contractors in several countries that wants HR beside global hiring.
Where it wins
A low published HR core from a vendor that also runs contractor management and employer-of-record hiring.
Where it falls short
Each product is a separate purchase, so HR Core is one line on a longer bill.
05

HarmonyHR

HRIS and Survey from $5 per employee a month, with 20 percent off on annual billing. Verified 24 September 2026.
Who it suits
A small company that wants a plain HRIS with the migration and onboarding work included in the price.
Where it wins
Publishes its figure, includes free migration and onboarding, and takes a fifth off for paying yearly.
Where it falls short
Recruiting is a separate product, priced per recruiter rather than per employee.
06

Factorial

From $8 per user a month, with add-on modules priced on request. Verified September 2026.
Who it suits
A European firm that would rather buy modules than a tier.
Where it wins
Modular, so the bill follows what's switched on, and the starting figure is on the page.
Where it falls short
The $8 is a starting point. The full price needs a conversation with sales.
07

BambooHR

Core $10, Pro $17, Elite $25 per employee a month. Teams of 25 or fewer pay a flat rate from $250 a month. Verified September 2026.
Who it suits
A US company that wants an established HR system and can carry the highest entry price here.
Where it wins
Every tier is printed on the page, with a flat floor for very small teams and a discount for nonprofits.
Where it falls short
The dearest entry figure in this set, and a team under 26 people pays the flat rate rather than $10 a head.

Questions people ask

Is PeopleMuster the cheapest HR software?

On published entry price this ranking places Zoho People at $1.50 first and WebHR at $2 second. PeopleMuster's $3 comes third, and it's the whole bill: every module, no tier above it, no seat minimum and no base fee. A 14-day free trial with no card comes before the first charge.

Why is Rippling not on a cheapest HR software list?

Rippling publishes no price. Its pricing page describes the structure, products sold separately on top of a required core platform and billed per employee per month, and stops there. HiBob, Darwinbox and Resourceinn also hold their figures behind a quote form, so a ranking by published price cannot place any of the four.

Does a low per-person price mean a low bill?

A low per-person price is a low bill only when nothing else is attached to it. Check the vendor's page for a seat minimum (Zoho People's paid plans start at five users), a base fee on top of the per-person figure (Gusto's Simple plan is $49 a month plus $6 per person), and what the entry tier leaves for a higher one. PeopleMuster's $3 carries none of those.

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