Best HR Software: Which Solution Is Best for Your Business?

The best HR software is Rippling, offering a robust, all-in-one human resources solution that excels when it comes to employment management features and international payment options. Unfortunately, Rippling doesn’t list its pricing online anymore, but it is thought to start at $40 per month, plus $8 per employee, per month.

Rippling obviously isn’t the only HR solution on the market, though. Whether you’re looking for a HR tool to help you keep costs low without sacrificing functionality or you need a robust platform with hefty reporting tools to inform your growth plans, we’ve got HR software providers that can take care of it.

In this guide, you’ll learn about all the best HR software platforms, including how much they cost, what kind of features they offer and what you need to know before you choose one for your business.

In this guide:

• Top HR Software Providers
• Buying Guide: How to Choose the Best HR Software
• How Did We Compare the Best HR Software?
• Verdict: What Is the Best HR Software?

Top HR Software Providers

Whether you want to automate onboarding or manage employee perks, here’s our research-led round-up of the best HR software providers on the market:

1. Rippling: Best Overall HR Software

• Starting price: Custom
• Free plan: No

We chose Rippling as our top pick because it’s an excellent all-in-one workplace software that helps users manage HR, IT and finance processes, all from one streamlined platform.

Rippling doesn’t list its pricing online anymore, but the most recently available information suggests that it starts at $40 per month, plus $8 per employee. While this is slightly higher than others on this list, it earned our top spot because it offers just about any HR and payroll feature available — from performance management to benefits record management.

What do we like about Rippling?

Unlike other HR software platforms, that specialize in employee onboarding and management alone, you can use Rippling to manage payroll processes too, eliminating the need to outsource this task externally or integrate a separate payroll software. From sick pay and off-cycle payments to non-employee payments, Rippling offers just about every payroll trick in the book.

Unlike providers such as Paychex, Rippling also facilitates international payments within its main packages, making it ideal for businesses that employ workers overseas.

During our latest round of research, Rippling’s workflow automation feature also impressed us. This no-code tool lets you automate a wide range of processes within Rippling and third-party apps, from building workflows to sending out HR emails.

Unlike providers such as Paychex and Paycor, Rippling lets you define these automations based on custom triggers too, helping you to save more time by streamlining more processes.

Add custom triggers with Rippling’s automation feature. Source: rippling.com

Rippling’s HR platform isn’t perfect, though. The feature-rich software may be overwhelming for businesses new to HR software and, unlike systems like monday.com and Paychex, the provider does not offer round-the-clock customer support.

Also, while we think its value offering is impressive overall, its pricing system is far from transparent, as we explore later on.

Who is Rippling best for?

Because it’s an all-in-one platform, Rippling is our overall pick of the best HR platforms. On the other side of the coin, users who just need a simple payroll platform might want to look elsewhere.

Rippling is also a great solution for businesses that hire and manage employees abroad. This is because it offers an employer of record (EOR) service, which lets companies legally hire and collaborate with employees overseas without needing to open an entity in that country.

This service automates local jurisdiction compliance, ensuring that businesses adhere to regulations. It also facilitates payments in local currencies and automates relevant HR processes. If you’re interested, you can learn more in our guide to employers of record.

How much does Rippling cost?

Frustratingly, Rippling no longer lists its pricing online. The most recent information that we have access to suggests that there is a base rate of $40 per month for its Unity plan, plus an additional $8 per employee, per month.

Please note that Rippling operates on a modular cost basis, meaning that the more software packages you opt for, the more you can expect to pay. For instance, alongside the standard Rippling platform, there’s also Rippling HCM, Rippling IT and Rippling Spend.

These entry HR software prices may be head and shoulders more expensive than monday.com and Paychex, but with payroll and benefits features provided in-house, alongside other HR processes, Rippling could save you the cost of outsourcing these processes externally, or paying for additional payroll software.

Learn more about Rippling with our in-depth Rippling review.

2. monday.com: Best HR Software For Beginners

• Starting price: $12 per user, per month
• Free plan: Yes

As the easiest to use software on this list, monday.com is our pick of HR platforms for beginners.

Whether it’s project management, CRM tools or HR software, our research consistently finds monday.com to be a highly customizable platform with a user-friendly interface that’s simple enough for just about any business to get started on. In fact, it tops our list of the best project management software providers on the market.

The software offers a raft of recruitment and employee-focused features through its easy-to-use board templates. However, because monday.com isn’t a traditional HR software, it lacks a number of HR features that you’d find on dedicated HR systems like Rippling and Paychex, such as benefits administration and payroll management.

What do we like about monday.com?

monday.com makes onboarding a breeze by giving hiring managers a granular overview of the hiring process with its ‘Recruitment Pipeline,’ and offering pre-made templates for new recruits that answer commonly-asked questions and help them get up and running in a matter of minutes.

The provider even lets hiring managers sync their schedules with candidates, allowing for greater calendar visibility than other HR software platforms can offer.

In monday.com, subtasks are tracked in connection with each larger task that they contribute to. Image: Tech.co testing process

monday.com isn’t just a useful tool for recruiting staff. The system also offers competitive features for onboarded staffers, from employee scheduling and employee engagement, to wellbeing support.

While monday.com performed excellently in our HR research, it does have drawbacks. The platform lacks some core HR features, namely payroll processing and benefits administration, making it unsuitable for businesses looking for a one-size-fits-all employee management and payroll solution.

If it’s just payroll software you’re after, check out our guide to the best small business payroll providers.

Who is monday.com best for?

monday.com is the best HR software for novice users who require an easy-to-use, customizable platform.

After testing monday.com out for ourselves, we were particularly impressed by the software’s staff scheduling features. Its user-friendly, customizable boards allow managers to view worker availability, allocate shifts to workers and analyze the schedule through its “Formula” column.

You can also use these cards to automatically assign tasks to different workers and shifts. Because of this, monday.com is a great HR platform for retail and hospitality businesses which operate on a shift basis. For example, you can give an employee the responsibility to “Lock up” for the night on closing shifts.

Learn even more by reading our full monday.com review.

Task Comments in monday.com allow all users to tag and communicate with each other. Image: Tech.co testing

How much does monday.com cost?

Since monday.com offers affordable entry prices and is one of the only HR software providers on this list to offer a permanently free plan, it’s one of the top options out there for budget-conscious teams. Here are the four different pricing plans available from monday.com:

• Free: free
• Standard: $12 per user, per month
• Pro: $19 per user, per month
• Enterprise: custom pricing

Learn more about the platform’s costs in our full guide to monday.com pricing, or see how its pricing options compare below:

3. Deel: Best Value HR Software

• Starting price: $20 per employee, per month
• Free plan: No

Deel earns its place on this list because it combines fantastic pricing with a robust feature catalog. For instance, you’ll get a suite of built-in tools for learning management, including automated compliance training, at no added cost. By contrast, Rippling only offers this as a paid-on.

Deel used to offer a generous free plan, but that has been rolled back as of January 2026.

What do we like about Deel?

Deel is a global HR platform that lets you manage onboarding, employee management and payroll processes from one unified system. In contrast to feature-heavy platforms like Rippling, Deel prioritizes simplicity.

While its automation tools may not be quite as advanced as Rippling’s, Deel’s workflow builder lets users automate a range of processes, from synchronizing management tasks across platforms to onboarding new hires.

Aside from its decent selection of in-house features, Deel also offers seamless integrations with several major software providers, like Intuit QuickBooks, Xero and BambooHR, extending its use even further.

It also has 24/7 support, which is another reason it features in our roundup of the best EOR services.

Deel also stands out from the competition when it comes to compliance and security. From GDPR compliance to SSL and labor law compliance alerts, the HR platform offers a number of safeguards that other systems, including Paychex, lack.

The provider even has its very own Compliance Hub, which provides regular updates and risk warnings to help businesses remain in adherence with ever-changing employment laws.

In terms of limitations, Deel doesn’t offer a mobile app, unlike monday.com and Rippling. This makes it less ideal for managers who need to handle HR processes on the go.

Who is Deel best for?

Deel is the best option here for businesses looking for a capable, affordable platform for international teams. However, the price of its paid packages increases for firms that exclusively hire US workers.

This makes its value offering slightly less competitive for businesses that don’t require international payment features, but the overall cost and the free plan still make it an excellent value pick for most businesses.

Deel’s compliance documentation feature. Source: deel.com

How much does Deel cost?

Deel’s pricing structure is quite confusing. It has several different packages and price points depending on the needs of your business.

For instance, if you hire employees overseas, Deel’s Employer of Record (EOR) plan lets you payroll workers in over 100 countries and takes care of benefits, taxes, compliance and more. It starts at a high cost of $599 per employee, per month.

If you hire contractors, Deel’s Contractor Management plan starts at $49 per contractor, per month, and helps employers pay international contractors.

Deel’s Global Payroll plan is a comprehensive payroll and HR package which takes care of a range of processes, from onboarding to government declaration and employee benefits. Prices for Global Payroll start at $29 per employee, per month.

For full information on Deel’s pricing, check out its pricing page.

4. Paycor: Best for Growing Businesses

• Starting price: Custom
• Free plan: No

Paycor is a great HR platform for growing businesses, due to its extensive array of reporting features that managers can use to get deeper insight into their people data.

It’s a reliable payroll system that offers several powerful human resources tools, as well as its own HR resource center. The platform offers extremely competitive reporting and compliance features, including real-time analytics dashboards, reports on overtime, absenteeism, and more, and a number of sturdy compliance certifications.

However, some basic capabilities like time tracking are only available as paid add-ons, making it less affordable than other pieces of software, including monday.com and Deel.

What do we like about Paycor?

Paycor is a payroll system first, but it can be used to handle a variety of HR processes, from onboarding and talent management to expense management and benefits requests.

The provider even offers a self-serve portal for employees, where they can view internal announcements, manage their own benefits and request time off. This helps to improve the experience of workers while freeing up time for HR professionals — a win-win for any business.

Who is Paycor best for?

With its top-tier reporting features, Paycor is a great solution for growing businesses. Managers can use the platform to visualize a wide range of HR data, including turnover rates and pay gaps.

You’re also able to interpret this data in a range of formats, from charts and tables to less traditional options like bubble grids. This will give you all the information you need to scale your business.

A screenshot of Paycor’s overtime insights. Source: paycor.com

How much does Paycor cost?

Paycor offers four main pricing plans: Basic, Essential, Cor and Complete. The provider’s plans operate on a sliding scale, with its priciest package, Cor, offering its full suite of HR and payroll features.

See how Paycor’s pricing plans compare below:

5. Paychex: Best for Employee Management

• Starting price: Custom
• Free plan: No

Paychex is a versatile payroll and HR software that excels at healthcare and benefits management, which is why we dubbed best for employee management.

It gives you more tools that most to keep your employees happy, including wellbeing check and tracking to encourage your team to flourish in and outside the workplace.

However, like Paycor, Paychex doesn’t list its prices online and its interface is slightly less user-friendly than our frontrunners, Rippling and monday.com, making it less appealing if you’re new to HR software.

What do we like about Paychex?

Paychex offers just about any feature you’d expect from a dedicated HR and payroll system. The software lets you screen and conduct background checks on potential candidates, create custom messages to send out to recruits and reach out to seasoned human resources professionals if you need advice in a pinch.

Paychex’s advanced HR functions mean that the interface can be a bit complicated, without the more intuitive, comprehensive functionality of monday.com or Deel. With this in mind, if you’re looking for a shallow learning curve, we’d recommend trying out monday.com.

Who is Paychex best for?

Paychex really shines when it comes to employee management. Unlike project management platforms like monday.com, the provider gives managers a granular level of control over healthcare and staff benefits.

From health savings accounts and health insurance to financial wellness programs, you can manage a range of programs with the software, eliminating the need to rely on separate services.

Paychex Flex payroll dashboard. Source: paychex.com

How much does Paychex cost?

Paychex has five plans to choose from, with two “small business essentials” plans and three “full-service HR & payroll” plans. However, it has no public pricing for any of them, so you’ll need to get in touch for more information if you’re interested.

Learn more about the provider’s costs in our full guide to Paychex pricing, or compare plans using our table below:

Buying Guide: How to Choose the Best HR Software

When browsing the market for your next HR solution, don’t go in blind. Make sure you invest in a piece of software that complements you and your team, by considering the following factors. Otherwise you could end up making some common hiring mistakes that throw off your whole process.

Type of HR software

There are multiple different types of HR software to choose between, each with its distinct purpose. The main types are:

• Human resources management systems (HRMS), which handle generic HR functions
• Human capital management (HCM), which is more employee-focused
• Human resources information systems (HRIS), which prioritize information management

HR software features

Before choosing a platform you should ask yourself what processes you’re looking to manage, and then look for features that correspond to your needs. For example, do you need a system that offers international payment features? Or systems with extensive onboarding and recruiting features?

Integrations

Software integrations offer valuable ways to synchronize data across existing platforms. So, before investing in a solution, you need to make sure the provider is compatible with your current workplace software. 

Pricing

Allocate a budget for the software before shopping for solutions and make sure you choose one within your means. Remember that lots of HR software providers will charge a per employee fee on top of their base rate, so bear this in mind when making calculations. 

Ease of use for HR managers

User experience can vary wildly across HR platforms. To make your life easy, pay attention to systems that are easy to navigate. Finding a platform with a shallow learning curve is especially important if you’re new to HR software in general. It’s also worth looking into the software onboarding support and training offered by the provider.

Ease of use for employees

Lots of HR platforms also offer employee-focused apps to give workers more control over important workplace practices and free up time for your HR managers. If this is the case, make sure you only consider software with user-friendly, decently-rated employee apps.

Security

Security is of the utmost importance when handling sensitive employee data. To make sure your information is kept secure, we recommend looking out for protocols like multi-factor authentication, automatic data backups and strict password controls.

Check out our HR software guide for more information.

How Did We Compare the Best HR Software?