2026 pricing guide

HR and Payroll Software Pricing for Indian SMEs, Compared

HR and payroll software for an Indian SME runs from about ₹50 an employee a month to a few thousand rupees a month, depending on the pricing model and the modules you switch on. This guide sets the entry price, setup time and setup cost side by side for eight HR and payroll management software tools, so you can see what each one really costs.

Eight tools compared: Offrd, greytHR, Keka, sumHR, RazorpayX Payroll, Pocket HRMS, Zoho Payroll and HROne. Updated 11 September 2026.

If you run a 10 person or 250 person company, you know the bind. You carry the same statutory load as a large firm, EPF, ESI, professional tax, gratuity, and you want it handled fast, without a week long rollout. Most HR platforms are built for the buyer above you. They open at a few thousand rupees a month, add a setup fee, then bury the useful parts behind modules you will never switch on. This page compares the tools an Indian SME actually shortlists, Offrd, greytHR, Keka, sumHR, RazorpayX Payroll, Pocket HRMS, Zoho Payroll and HROne, on plain price and on what each one is really for.

Which HR software is cheapest for a small company in India?

Offrd is. It is the only tool here with no monthly minimum. You can pay ₹99 for a single offer letter and nothing else, or ₹50 an active employee a month once you run payroll. A 30 person company pays about ₹1,500 a month. Zoho Payroll is free up to 10 employees, but it covers payroll only. Every other rival here starts at ₹2,495 a month or bills you for a block of 50 seats. The trade is scope. Offrd covers documents, payroll, attendance and Form 16, not OKRs or a full recruitment suite.

HR and payroll management software pricing compared, 2026

Here is the entry price, setup time and setup cost for each tool, as published by the vendors. greytHR was rechecked in August 2026, Zoho Payroll and HROne in September 2026, the rest in April 2026. Read the free column closely. Two of these call a short trial a free plan. "Not checked" means the vendor page did not state it and we did not guess.

Tool	Entry price	Setup time	Setup cost	Free to start	Best for
Offrd	From ₹99 pay as you go, or ₹50 an employee a month	Under 2 minutes	None	50 free credits, no card	Growing companies under 250
greytHR	Rs 2,495 a month (up to 50), then Rs 45 each	Days to weeks	Not listed	7 day trial only	Deep statutory at scale
Keka	Not published, quoted on a sales call	Weeks	Often charged	Trial only	Funded startups, OKRs and ATS
sumHR	Rs 49 a user a month, billed annually	Days to weeks	Yes, by headcount	Up to 10 employees	Small teams on a full suite
RazorpayX Payroll	₹2,499 a month (up to 20)	Days	None stated	None, paid only	Automated payroll filing
Pocket HRMS	₹2,995 a month (50 employees minimum)	Weeks	Implementation fee	Demo only	50 plus, face recognition
Zoho Payroll	Free up to 10 employees, then ₹1,250 a month for 25	Not checked	Not stated	Free plan up to 10 employees	Payroll only, teams already on Zoho
HROne	₹4,950 a month for 50 users, then ₹99 each	Not checked	Enterprise plans only	Trial on request	Full HRMS priced in 50 user blocks

Competitor pricing as published by each vendor and may have changed. Zoho Payroll and HROne figures are the monthly billed prices read on 11 September 2026, exclusive of GST. Check each vendor's own site for current figures.

The eight tools, ranked for the SME buyer

OffrdBest overall for growing companies under 250

Offrd is HR document and operations software. It generates offer letters, payslips, onboarding kits, probation, increment and exit letters, and a full and final settlement with reference numbers and a proper approval trail. Indian statutory rules sit inside every calculation, EPF at 12 percent, ESI, state professional tax, gratuity from basic. Form 16 Part B generation is built in, and a pre hire screen scores candidates before you make an offer. Attendance comes free through Atndnz, with QR check in, geofencing and biometric sync. Setup runs under two minutes, with no fee and scant training. For a founder or a lone HR manager who wants the paperwork right and out the door, this is the shortest path.

Start free with 50 credits

greytHRBest for deep statutory at scale

greytHR is long established in Indian payroll and states 30,000 plus companies on its platform. Its statutory engine is the deepest here, and it handles the odd multi state case gracefully. The catch is the bill. The Essential plan opens at Rs 2,495 a month for up to 50 people, then Rs 45 for each employee above that, and the parts an SME wants, performance, richer attendance, expense, arrive as separate add ons priced per user that stack fast. The free plan is a seven day trial, not a standing tier. It is the right step once you cross a few hundred heads.

KekaBest for funded startups

Keka is polished, with strong OKRs, nine box grids and a built in recruitment suite. If you run quarterly reviews and hire in volume, it earns its keep. For a forty person company it does not. Keka publishes no price and quotes on a sales call, there is a setup fee confirmed on its own pricing FAQ, and the rollout runs into weeks. Third party figures for a 25 person team disagree with each other by roughly 40 percent, so ask for a written quote. Most SMEs end up paying for depth they never reach. Keka fits the company that has outgrown workaday HR and knows it.

sumHRClosest all in rival

sumHR is the nearest thing here to Offrd in spirit, a tidy full suite for smaller teams. The gap is the floor. It charges a ₹2,999 monthly minimum below 50 employees, plus a one time setup fee, so a ten person team pays for forty it does not have. If you send only a handful of documents a month, Offrd at ₹99 each is far lighter on the ledger.

RazorpayX PayrollBest for automated filing

RazorpayX Payroll is the strongest pure payroll play in this group. It sits on Razorpay's banking rails, so it files PF, ESI, professional tax and TDS directly and disburses salary in the same run. If payroll automation is your whole problem, it is the honest pick. It is thinner on the document side, with a narrower letter engine and no policy builder, and Prime opens at ₹2,499 a month for up to 20 employees. Many teams pair it with a tool that owns their paperwork.

Pocket HRMSBest for 50 plus with face attendance

Pocket HRMS has been around since 2002, with mature face recognition attendance and Tally and Sage integrations. Its structural quirk matters most for you: it will not sell below 50 employees. The Standard plan is ₹2,995 a month for 50, with an implementation phase on top. Below that headcount it is not an option at all, which clears a good part of the SME field for the tools that will take a five person account.

Zoho PayrollCheapest payroll only tool for very small teams

Zoho Payroll is a separate product from Zoho People, and payroll is not included in any Zoho People plan. On its own it is free for up to 10 employees. The Standard plan is ₹1,250 a month for 25 employees, ₹50 for each employee above that, with Professional at ₹3,750 for 50 and Premium at ₹5,000 for 50. Prices exclude GST. It generates ready to file statutory reports, it does not file them. If your team is already on Zoho Books and you only need payslips and statutory reports, it is worth a look. It does not produce offer letters, onboarding kits or exit documents, so most companies pair it with something else for the paperwork.

HROneFull HRMS sold in 50 user blocks

HROne is a full HRMS built for Indian companies. Its Basic plan is ₹4,950 a month for 50 users, with extra users at ₹99 each, and Professional is ₹6,500 a month for 50 with extra users at ₹130. There is no fixed lock in, exit needs two months notice, and the pricing page says implementation cost applies only to enterprise clients. A free trial is available on request. The 50 user block is the point to weigh. A 15 person company pays for 50 seats. For a company under 50 that wants documents and payroll done, Offrd at ₹50 an active employee is a fraction of that.

Built for Indian statutory rules, not bolted on

Compliance is where small teams get burned, because the rules do not scale down. Every calculation in Offrd already carries the Indian defaults. EPF at 12 percent from employer and employee, ESI where it applies, professional tax by state, gratuity worked from basic pay. The Labour Codes took effect on 21 November 2025, and appointment letters are mandatory, so the offer and joining paperwork is not housekeeping, it is a legal record. Offrd hands your CA clean, export ready payroll data each month, and now generates Form 16 Part B for the team, so the year end is less of a scramble.

When another tool is the better call

Plain candor, because it builds trust. Offrd is not trying to be everything.

Choose Keka or greytHR if you run formal performance cycles, OKRs or 360 reviews, or you hire at a scale that needs a full applicant tracking system. Offrd does not go there.

Choose RazorpayX Payroll if you want payroll filed to the government portals and salary disbursed automatically, with no manual step. That is its home ground, not ours.

Choose greytHR if you are past 250 employees with a full HR team and an unusual multi state setup.

For everyone else, companies of up to 250 that want documents, payroll, attendance and leave done well and cheap, Offrd is the tighter fit.

Frequently asked questions

What is the cheapest HR and payroll software for an Indian SME?

Offrd. It is the only tool here with no monthly minimum. You pay ₹99 for a single document, or ₹50 an active employee a month for payroll, with 50 free credits on signup. A 30 person company pays about ₹1,500 a month, below every rival on this list that covers HR documents as well as payroll.

How much does Offrd cost?

₹99 a document on pay per use, or ₹50 an active employee a month on subscription. Signup includes 50 free credits and needs no card. There is no setup fee and no monthly minimum.

Does Offrd handle payroll and statutory compliance?

Yes. EPF, ESI, professional tax and gratuity are built into every payslip, and Offrd generates Form 16 Part B for your team. It exports clean, filing ready data for your CA each month.

How fast can I send an offer letter?

Under two minutes from signup. There is no implementation project and no training call. You fill a short form and the letter, with annexures, is ready to download or email.

Is Offrd payroll management software or HR software?

Both, for a company under 250 people. Offrd runs monthly payroll with EPF, ESI, professional tax and gratuity built in, sends payslips by email and exports EPF data. It also generates the offer, onboarding, probation, increment, exit and full and final documents that sit around payroll. Attendance is included through Atndnz. It does not do performance reviews or recruitment pipelines.

Is there a free way to try Offrd?

Yes. Every new account gets 50 free credits, with no card and no trial clock. You can generate real documents and test the full flow before you pay anything.