Introduction
“Clients don’t come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.” - Richard Branson
Your employees are the cornerstone of your business's success. They can make or break your business. So, not keeping them happy in the workplace can be detrimental. They become less productive and may even consider leaving a company where they don’t feel cared for.
HR management software is crucial to improving employee efficiency and reducing employee turnover. Yet, as a small or medium-sized business, you may not have the budget to invest in paid software.
No worries! We have curated a list of the best free HR management software.
TL;DR: Top free HR management software in 2024
What is free HR management software?
An HR management software automates and supports employee management, payroll, performance management, training, recruiting, and more. They help business owners automate repetitive tasks, improve their team's productivity, and manage employee data better. Free HR software comes with a free plan or trial of its services or features.
Top free HR management software 2024
Let’s look at the best free HR management software for small business owners. Read on to learn about them in detail.
1. Scribe
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G2 rating: 4.8/5
Capterra rating: 4.9/5
Scribe pricing:
- Scribe Basic: free
- Scribe Pro: $23/user/month
- Scribe Enterprise: Customized quote
Scribe overview:
If you're looking for a tool to help document your HR processes, then Scribe is the best option for you. It can help you create visual guides in a few seconds.
All you need to do is record yourself performing the process, and Scribe will turn your workflow into a guide, complete with text and screenshots. For example, you can create an onboarding document for new hires or build training material, job aids, and instructions.
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Ask the AI to write your documentation with a few simple prompts, then use Scribe Pages to combine multiple guides, videos, images, GIFs and more.
- New hire onboarding: Help new hires ramp up faster by sharing how-to guides and SOPs for everything they need to know.
- Quick process documentation: Say goodbye to manually copying and pasting screenshots into training guides. Scribe auto-generates step-by-step guides as you go through a process or workflow.
- Customizable templates: Whether it's crafting an employee handbook, an employee development plan, or employee offboarding procedures, Scribe offers a range of customizable templates to meet your requirements.
- Easy and quick knowledge sharing: Everyone can use Scribe for asynchronous communication and knowledge-sharing. You can send a Scribe to teammates via a URL. You can also embed it in your documentation or knowledge system so that anyone in your team can easily access it.
2. Zoho People
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G2 rating: 4.4/5
Capterra rating: 4.3/5
Zoho People pricing:
- 30 day free trial.
- Essential HR: $0.83/employee/month
- Premium: $2.5/employee/month
- Professional: $1.66/employee/month
- Enterprise: $4.16/employee/month
Zoho People overview:
Zoho People is an all-in-one HR software that offers several core HR solutions. These are onboarding, time tracking, document management tools, performance management, learning, and development. It also has a 30-day free trial, which is ideal for businesses who want to test-drive the software.
Overall, Zoho People is a great platform that offers several features, including a mobile app.
3. ChartHop
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G2 rating: 4.2/5
Capterra rating: 4.6/5
ChartHop pricing:
- Basic: free for first 150 employees
- Standard: $8 per employee per month
- Premium: $16 per employee per month
ChartHop overview:
ChartHop is another free HR management software. Its generous free plan allows businesses of any size to manage and visualize employee data and develop employee engagement. The org chart feature provides a real-time view of the organizational structure. You can include additional details like hobbies, location, etc, to achieve transparency. Also, the free plan allows integration with HRIS, Carta, and Slack.
Overall, ChartHop has a simple and interactive interface that makes it easy to learn and set up.
4. Freshservice HR Service Management
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G2 rating: 4.4/5
Capterra rating: 4.4/5
Freshservice pricing:
- Free trial.
- Growth: $1.00/employee + $59.99 platform fee/month
- Pro: $2/employee + $99 platform fee/month
- Enterprise: $4/employee + $169.99 platform fee/month
Freshservice overview:
Developed by Freshworks, Freshservice HR Service Management is an affordable option for business owners looking to automate HR processes and services. Freshservice allows you to automate tasks like workflows, self-serve document generation and cross-functional approvals. A mobile app for iOS and Android is also available.
If you're looking for cost-effective recruitment software, then Freshservice is for you.
5. Connecteam
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G2 rating: 4.3/5
Capterra rating: 4.8/5
Connecteam pricing:
- Free Plan
- Basic: $29/month for 30 users ($0.5/month for each additional user)
- Advanced: $49/month for 30 users ($1.5/month for each additional user)
- Expert: $99/month for 30 users ($3/month for each additional user
Connecteam overview:
Connecteam is another HR free software with a 14-day free trial of all its products and features. They also have a free forever plan for up to 10 employees. The free plan gives access to operation features such as job scheduling and communication. These include employee surveys and invitations, a chat tool, and the company directory.
Overall, the software is intuitive, easy to navigate, and set up.
6. Sage HR
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G2 rating: 4.3/5
Capterra rating: 4.4/5
Sage HR pricing:
- Core HR: free
- Leave Management: $5.50/person/month
- Performance Management: $3.30/person/month
- Shift schedule: $3.30/person/month
- Timesheets: $3.30/person/month
- Expenses Management: $1.50/person/month
Sage HR overview:
A user-friendly HR software for small businesses, Sage HR helps automate HR processes so that business owners can focus on building a productive workforce. It supports core functions such as appraisal, performance management, offboarding, onboarding, etc. Plus, it offers a free 30-day trial of its features.
Its intuitive dashboard gives employees a telescopic view of their tasks, leaves, etc. In addition, its automation features will reduce human errors and reduce repetitive tasks. For example, while offboarding an employee, Sage HRM provides them with a set of tasks they'll need to complete.
They also have a mobile app that lets you manage tasks from anywhere.
7. Homebase
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G2 rating: 4.2/5
Capterra rating: 4.6/5
Homebase pricing:
- Basic: free
- Essentials: $19.95/month/location
- Plus: $49.95/month/location
- All-in-One: $99.95/month/location
- Full-service payroll: add payroll to any plan for $35/month + $5/active employee
Homebase overview:
Homebase is an HR tool that helps small businesses with employee scheduling, tracking, payroll, and communications. It has a generous free plan that doesn't limit the number of users. However, you can only use it for one location. The software is user-friendly, and you can access it through a mobile app, desktop, and tablet. It also integrates with other tools such as Gusto and Payroll. Also, you can integrate it with payroll and export timesheets to payroll software.
A drawback of Homebase is that the payroll feature only allows payments in USD. However, if you're a small business looking for free HR software that syncs time tracking with payroll, this is for you.
8. Orange HRM
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G2 rating: 4.1/5
Capterra rating: 4.1/5
Orange HRM pricing:
- Starter Plan: Free
- Advanced: Customized Price
Orange HRM overview:
Orange HRM is an open-source HRIS that helps businesses with people management, compensation, culture, and talent management. They have a Starter plan, which is free. Companies with 50 or fewer employees will find the software useful. Their time tracking feature is best since it shows how your employees spend their time and how to be more productive.
The free plan also offers a corporate directory, employee database, job posting feature, performance reviews, and a mobile app.
9. Breezy HR
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G2 rating: 4.4/5
Capterra rating: 4.5/5
Breezy HR pricing:
- Bootstrap: free
- Startup: $143/month
- Growth: $249/month
- Business: $399/month
Breezy HR overview:
Breezy HR is a recruiting and applicant tracking system (ATS) that helps businesses modernize and streamline hiring. Its drag-and-drop and automation features will help you quickly find the right candidate. For example, Breezy automates manual tasks such as posting jobs on portals, interview scheduling, etc. This way, you can focus more on strategic tasks.
Moreover, Breezy will help show your job opening to millions of candidates. It will post your job opening to over 50 job portals, like Indeed, LinkedIn, etc. Also, it will help you create beautiful-looking career websites that'll attract candidates. In addition to hiring, Breezy also onboards new hires. For example, it will send offer letters to selected candidates and add them to your HRIS, such as Bamboo HR, Rippling, etc.
Empower your business with free HR software
Did you know that 81 percent of respondents to a survey use an HR tool, and 63 percent of businesses plan to use AI for HR analytics? It’s time you do too!
Clunky spreadsheets, inadequate performance feedback, lack of engagement, and culture can reduce the morale of your employees. However, if you provide them with regular feedback, maintain data transparency, and foster positive engagement, then they will gain confidence in your company.
You can use the free HR management software listed above. They will empower your HR team to build a productive and happy workforce. In addition, if you want to structure your HR processes and policies, use Scribe. It creates auto-generated step-by-step documents with text and annotated screenshots you can share with one click. So, sign up for Scribe and start documenting your HR processes.
