5 Best Free HR Software for Small Businesses
This article is part of a larger series on Payroll Services.
The best free HR software not only automates day-to-day HR tasks but also provides online solutions for managing the employee lifecycle—from hiring to retiring. Some systems include tools for tracking staff attendance and work shifts, while others allow you to pay employees and conduct performance reviews.
Although paid HR software provides similar features with added services (such as payroll tax filings and year-end tax reporting), smaller businesses may find free solutions to be more than enough for their needs. Some have limits to the number of employees or locations you can have though.
In this guide, we reviewed 10 free HR management software and narrowed it down to our top five recommendations.
- Freshteam: Best free HR software for tracking applicants
- Homebase: Best free time tracking and scheduling software for one-location businesses
- TimeTrex: Best free payroll system with basic HR tools
- Connecteam: Best free employee tasking and training software
- OrangeHRM: Best free HR software for managing employee performance reviews
If you want HR software with more functionalities but you have a limited budget, consider reasonably priced options that come with a free trial. This allows you to evaluate its features and make sure it has all of the tools you need, without having to pay subscription fees outright.
- Gusto: 30-day free trial + solid payroll and HR tools with applicant tracking and basic job postings
- Paychex Flex: Three-month free trial + dedicated payroll support and learning management tools
- BambooHR: Seven-day free trial + workforce data management solutions with employee well-being surveys
HR Software Compared
When to Consider Paid HR Software
Businesses that need more robust functionalities or a more powerful all-in-one solution may be better served by paid HR software. Apart from providing essential solutions for managing your workforce, many paid options offer advanced reporting, audit trails, and survey solutions for assessing employee engagement at work. Some even allow you to add your company’s branding elements to its platform.
For an online HR software that’s reasonably priced, consider Gusto. Its core platform may be payroll, but it has a feature-rich HR solution suite that can help you manage hiring and even learning programs. Gusto is also designed to streamline and automate processes, saving you time from having to manually track employee information, onboarding requirements, payroll tax filings, staff attendance, and more.
Freshteam: Best Free Applicant Tracking Software
What We Like
- One-click job postings
- Customizable career site, applicant forms, and workflows
- Feature-rich mobile app (for iOS and Android devices); lets you screen, email, and move candidates through recruiting stages while on the go
- Has basic HRIS tools for storing employee information and documents
What's Missing
- Customization options (i.e., career site, forms, and workflows) are available only in paid plans
- Free tier only lets you post up to three job listings
- Limited third-party software integrations
Freshteam Pricing*
- Free: $0 for up to 50 employees
- Includes three job postings, Kanban boards for applicant tracking, candidate applications via email, team collaboration tools, basic paid time-off (PTO) management, a recruitment team inbox, and a basic career site
- Growth: $1.20 per employee + $71 base fee monthly
- Free + up to 20 job postings, PTO approval workflows, vendor management, job board integrations, and a customizable career site, hiring pipeline, and applicant form
- Pro: $2.40 per employee + $119 base fee monthly
- Growth + up to 100 job postings, offer management, social recruiting, talent pool management, onboarding tools, and sponsored job postings on Indeed
- Enterprise: $4.80 per employee + $203 base fee monthly
- Pro + unlimited onboarding checklists, one-click data exports, custom user roles, and a dedicated account manager
*Annual plans with discounted pricing are also available; comes with two months free as of this writing
Freshteam is great for small businesses that want to automate hiring processes because its free plan provides you with all the tools you need to track applicants (via Kanban boards), post job listings, and manage a basic career site. Receiving candidate applications online is also easy, as it provides you with a recruitment team inbox where you can get applicant resumes via email. Homebase and OrangeHRM may also have hiring tools—but both don’t provide the integrated email inbox that Freshteam does.
Apart from recruiting tools, Freshteam offers basic employee information profiles and an employee directory that your workers can access online. While it can help manage PTO balances and approvals, it lacks the time tracking tools that all the free HR management software in this guide offer.
With Freshteam, you can publish job postings internally, through your company website, and externally, via its network of partner job boards. (Source: Freshteam)
Freshteam Is Featured In
- Best Free Applicant Tracking Systems
- Best Applicant Tracking Software
- Best HR Apps
- Best Recruitment Software
- Best Recruiting Apps
- Best HR Software for Small Business
Freshteam Key Features
- One-click job postings: You can post job listings to your company website, career site, and via Freshteam’s integrated job boards (such as ZipRecruiter, Indeed, Glassdoor, and LinkedIn) with just one click. You can even share job postings on social media channels like Facebook and Twitter. Creating job postings is also made easy with its built-in library of over 50 job description templates.
Freshteam automatically shows job description templates that best match the position title of the job you’re hiring for.
(Source: Freshteam)
- Career site: You get a basic career site where you can post your open jobs. If you upgrade to a paid plan, Freshteam offers customization tools that allow you to add your company’s logo and branding elements. Both Homebase and OrangeHRM, which also have hiring functionalities, don’t offer a career site.
- Candidate management: Manage candidates as they go through the hiring pipeline with Freshteam’s resume screening, applicant tracking, and candidate engagement tools. You can sync your work email with Freshteam, which enables you to receive applications and correspond with candidates through its platform’s recruitment team inbox. It also parses resumes uploaded into its applicant tracking system (ATS), allowing it to scan and automatically populate relevant applicant information in candidate profiles.
- New hire onboarding: Freshteam is also great for paperless onboarding given its robust offer management and customizable online “welcome kits,” which include email notifications and online forms that need to be electronically signed (made possible through Freshteam’s integration with electronic signature tools like Signeasy). You can even create custom checklists and tasks to help you track each new hire’s onboarding progress.
- Recruitment automation: Similar to the other free HR software on our list, Freshteam comes with workflows you can customize to automate processes, such as moving candidates to the next stage if they get a certain grade in assessment tests. The recruitment workflow automation tools of Homebase and OrangeHRM aren’t as robust.
Freshteam User Reviews
Most of the Freshteam reviews on third-party review sites (such as G2 and Capterra) are positive. Many users like its user-friendly platform and efficient applicant tracking tools. Some also commented that its HR tools make it easy for them to manage PTOs, update employee information, and communicate with team members given its online employee directory.
However, a few reviewers said that while they appreciate its free plan, the features included are very limited and lack customization options. Some users also wished for additional functionalities (such as time tracking) and a wider network of third-party software integrations.
Homebase: Best Free Employee Scheduling & Time Tracking Tools
What We Like
- Feature-rich free plan; comes with time tracking, scheduling, and hiring solutions
- Easy drag-and-drop scheduling tool
- Can handle unlimited employees
What's Missing
- Free plan limited to businesses with one location only
- PTO accrual tracking, geofencing, geolocation tracking, and onboarding are included in paid plans
- Payroll is a paid add-on
Homebase Pricing*
- Basic plan: Free ($0) for one business location and unlimited employees
- Includes online time clocks, timesheets, staff scheduling, applicant tracking, job postings, and feedback tools
- Essentials: $24.95 per location monthly
- Basic + geofencing, auto-scheduling, manager approvals, communication tools, and automated employee reminders
- Plus: $59.95 per location monthly
- Essentials + PTO policies and balance tracking, labor costs controls and budgeting, and user permissions
- All-in-One: $99.95 per location monthly
- Plus + new hire onboarding, employee documents and an electronic signature tool, and expert HR/compliance support
- HR Pro advisers and resources: $99 per month (included in All-in-One package)
- Job posting boosts: Starts at $79 per post
- Promote job postings on ZipRecruiter and Craigslist
- Payroll: $39 + $6 per employee monthly
- Unlimited pay runs and payroll tax filing services in nearly all states (Nevada not included as of this writing)
*Annuals plans are available with discounted pricing
Homebase made it to our list of free HR management software mainly because of its robust free plan, which includes time tracking and scheduling tools that similar providers typically include in their paid tiers. It even offers time clock apps that allow you to capture employee clock-ins/out via computers, tablets, and smartphones. And, if you need to find qualified candidates for your open jobs, Homebase provides job posting and applicant tracking tools for free.
While it seems like it has all the basic HR tools that small businesses will need to hire and manage employees, you have to upgrade to its paid plans if you want to track PTO and onboard new hires. Payroll is also an add-on solution (TimeTrex includes this in its free tier), plus, its pay processing and tax filing service don’t cover Nevada as of this writing.
Homebase has an intuitive platform that allows you to create, copy, delete, and even drag-and-drop employee work shifts.
(Source: Homebase)
Homebase Is Featured In
- Best Employee Scheduling Software for Small Businesses
- Best Free Employee Scheduling Software
- Best Time & Attendance Software
- Best Time Tracking Software
- Best Onboarding Software
- Best Free Applicant Tracking Systems
- Best HR Apps
- Best HR Software for Small Business
- Best Retail Employee Scheduling Software
Homebase Key Features
- Staff scheduling and time tracking: Unlike OrangeHRM, which only has a time tracking solution, Homebase lets you monitor employee work hours, PTO, and staff work schedules. It comes with all the tools you need to manage staff attendance, such as overtime alerts, shift swaps, and geolocation and geofencing tracking for field employees. Similar to TimeTrex, it has facial recognition tools that allow you to verify whether the correct employee is clocking in—which helps prevent buddy punching.
- Hiring: Similar to Freshteam and OrangeHRM, Homebase includes hiring tools in its free plans. You can even add applicant screener questions to job listings and boost your job posts to ZipRecruiter and Craigslist to reach a wider pool of potential candidates. The other providers in this guide (except Connecteam) may also have applicant tracking and job posting functionalities, but these features are either part of paid plans.
- Employee feedback and performance matrix tracking: While Homebase lacks the capability to run employee performance reviews like OrangeHRM and TimeTrex do, it can monitor attendance-related performance data, such as the employees’ schedule adherence, shift trades, and on-time rates. Homebase also allows your workers to provide real-time feedback on how their work shifts went, enabling you to spot operational issues (like malfunctioning equipment) and gather insights to help assess employee morale.
Homebase can help track on-time rates, missed breaks, and other attendance-related matrices. (Source: Homebase)
Homebase User Reviews
As of this writing, Homebase earned top marks in G2 and Capterra, scoring more than 4 out of 5 on both third-party review sites. Users highlighted its ease of use, robust scheduling and time tracking tools, and feature-rich free plan as its best features. Some also commended its support team for their responsiveness. Others, on the other hand, dislike the occasional software bugs and mobile app glitches.
TimeTrex: Best Free Payroll Software With Basic HR Tools
What We Like
- Free version has a wide range of HR solutions (even includes payroll)
- Time clock apps support PIN, QR code, and facial recognition time entries
- Integrates with other payroll tools like QuickBooks, ADP, and Paychex
- Offers two software deployment options (on-site and cloud-hosted)
What's Missing
- Interface looks dated
- Recruiting, applicant tracking, invoicing, and expense management solutions are available only in higher tiers
- Pricing isn’t transparent
- Doesn’t handle payroll tax filings; only generates tax forms
TimeTrex Pricing
- Free version: Open-source Community Edition with no employee minimums
- Includes scheduling, time and PTO management, payroll, performance reviews, and an employee database
- Three custom-priced product editions (Professional, Corporate, and Enterprise) that include additional tools like recruiting, invoicing, and expense tracking functionalities
- Pricing is based on the software deployment option and number of employees (wherein fees start to decrease with 26 and more workers)
- Cloud-hosted: Fees start at $3 per employee monthly
- On-site hosted: $35.88 per employee, per year
*Pricing is based on a quote we received
TimeTrex is the only HR software on our list that includes payroll processing in its free version. Homebase offers a payroll tool for an additional fee, while the other free HR software we reviewed don’t have this feature. What’s even better about TimeTrex’s free Community Edition is the inclusion of performance reviews, scheduling, PTO management, an employee database, and even time clock apps to help capture staff attendance. This makes TimeTrex great for small businesses that want robust functionalities in a free HR management software.
What its Community Edition doesn’t have are the applicant tracking tools that Homebase, Freshteam, and OrangeHRM offer in its free plans. You have to upgrade to its paid version if you want hiring features. Plus, TimeTrex doesn’t handle payroll tax filings for you—it only generates the tax forms, which you have to file yourself. However, if you have the budget to spend and don’t want the stress of handling tax form submissions, consider Gusto. It offers unlimited pay runs and payroll tax filings and has similar HR tools as TimeTrex’s, but for a reasonable fee (starts at $39 plus $6 per employee monthly).
TimeTrex has an online payroll wizard to help guide you through the process. (Source: TimeTrex)
TimeTrex Is Featured In
TimeTrex Key Features
- Feature-rich free HR software: TimeTrex’s free-to-use Community Edition may have been developed by a network of volunteers from 50+ countries, but it has a feature-rich platform that provides nearly end-to-end HR management—from staff scheduling and tracking time to processing employee payments and conducting performance reviews. The closest free HR software on our list that it can compare to is OrangeHRM, although OrangeHRM lacks payroll capabilities (but its system can integrate with third-party payroll software).
- Multiple time clock apps: Similar to Homebase, TimeTrex has time clock apps that are compatible with computers, tablets, and smartphones. This enables you to capture staff clock-ins/outs from multiple devices—you can even control which devices employees can use, including the geolocation. What also sets TimeTrex apart from the other providers in this guide is its advanced facial recognition time clock solution, which can recognize and clock-in/out your employees even if they wear glasses, a hat, or have facial hair.
With TimeTrex’s advanced facial recognition time clock, employees only need to stand directly in front of the device’s camera to clock in/out. (Source: TimeTrex)
- Employee information management: Apart from providing you with a secure online database to store your workforce’s basic information, TimeTrex lets you attach documents to your workers’ profiles and create an employee hierarchy that shows reporting lines of supervisors and subordinates. While it may not have Connecteam’s training management solution with customizable course quizzes, TimeTrex can track your employees’ qualifications, skill proficiencies, and professional licenses (including identification numbers and issued/expiration dates).
TimeTrex User Reviews
TimeTrex reviews on G2 and Capterra are mostly positive. Users describe its platform as a simple yet powerful solution for tracking attendance and managing employees. They like that it is generally easy to use, although some commented that setting it up and navigating through its features can be intimidating. A few reviewers also noted that its interface looks outdated.
Connecteam: Best Free Employee Tasking & Training Software
What We Like
- User-friendly
- Robust task management and delegation tools
- Certification and training tracking
- Learning management with customizable course quizzes
What's Missing
- Lacks auto-scheduling and payroll tools
- Limited reports
- Doesn’t have phone support; you can only contact its support team via email or by completing an online support form
- You need to upgrade to at least its Expert plan if you want users to edit their online profiles
Connecteam Pricing*
- Free: $0 for the first 50 users
- Includes time tracking, scheduling, surveys, tasks and checklists, communication tools, trainings with one course category, course quizzes two possible answers per question, and five task tags for easy filtering
- Basic: $47 monthly for the first 50 users; plus six cents for each additional user monthly
- Free + payroll integration, timeline tracking, team chat, unlimited task tags, trainings with three course categories, and course quizzes with eight possible answers per question
- Advanced: $95 monthly for the first 50 users; plus $1.80 for each additional user monthly
- Basic + shift replacements, advanced customizations, and unlimited course categories
- Expert: $191 monthly for the first 50 users; plus $3.60 for each additional user monthly
- Advanced + process automation and users can view/edit personal profile
- Enterprise: Custom-priced
- Expert + private branding app option and access to a personal account manager
*Annuals plans are available with discounted pricing
Connecteam is our top pick for managing employee tasks because its communication tools, online checklists, and task automation keep everyone on top of work assignments while digitizing routine tasks with just a few clicks. In addition to creating and assigning tasks, you can add subtasks, due dates, and detailed task descriptions, as well as attach files and images if you need to. You can even use its “Timeline” tool to track employee roadmaps, such as the dates for performance reviews and salary changes.
Its learning management tools also allow you to create courses with multiple course categories. You can even add custom quizzes and embed YouTube videos to a course. However, it doesn’t let you post jobs like Homebase, Freshteam, and OrangeHRM do, nor can it process employee payroll (TimeTrex offers this in its free plan). Connecteam also doesn’t have the performance review tools that both OrangeHRM and TimeTrex offer for free—but its timeline tool can help you track when the reviews happen, including upcoming schedules.
You can manage tasks, attach photos, complete online forms, and more either through Connecteam’s online dashboard or mobile app. (Source: Connecteam)
Connecteam Is Featured In
Connecteam Key Features
- Task management: Connecteam offers more than just an employee tasking solution, it comes with automation tools so you can easily set up recurring tasks, checklists, and even online forms. This is helpful for HR professionals who need to manage onboarding and training requirements. Business owners can also benefit from this if they want to stay on top of operational processes, such as morning shift preparations and inventory checklists. None of the free HR software we reviewed offers robust task management tools.
With Connecteam, you can create single or multiple tasks for one or more users. (Source: Connecteam)
- Scheduling and time tracking: Similar to Homebase, it has drag-and-drop functionality for moving planned work shifts from one employee to another. Tracking time is also made easy with its time clock app that supports PIN code time entries. For your remote and field workers, Connecteam’s mobile app comes with live GPS tracking, including geofencing that can be set to specific work locations, job types, projects, and clients.
- Learning while on the go: Aside from allowing you to create online courses, surveys, and quizzes, Connecteam lets your workers access training programs through their mobile devices. If you have new hires, you can add the required learning courses to their onboarding checklists. It even has a “Library” feature, which provides you and your employees with a fully-searchable database of your company policies, business forms, and staff handbook.
Connecteam User Reviews
Users who left Connecteam reviews on G2 and Capterra find its platform highly intuitive. They also said that it is easy to set up and comes with online tools that are great for scheduling work shifts and communicating with employees. However, some users commented that its mobile app can be glitchy at times and that its paid plans can be pricey for small businesses.
OrangeHRM: Best Free HR Software for Managing Employee Performance Reviews
What We Like
- Free-to-use open-source HR software has robust features (hiring, time and PTO tracking, employee information management, and performance reviews)
- Generally easy to learn and use
- Offers a cloud-hosted and an on-premise version (you can download and install it in a computer)
What's Missing
- Pricing isn’t transparent
- Onboarding, learning management, goal tracking, and career development tools are only available in the paid version
- Lacks a payroll solution (only integrates with third-party payroll software)
OrangeHRM Pricing
- Starter: $0
- Includes custom user roles, employee profiles, applicant tracking, basic job postings, time and PTO tracking, and 180-degree performance reviews
- Advanced: Custom priced
- Starter + asset tracking, audit trails, document management, onboarding, learning management, career development tools, payroll integrations, and 360-degree performance reviews
Unlike Homebase, which only monitors attendance-related performance matrices, and Connecteam, which tracks quarterly/annual review timelines, OrangeHRM lets you conduct 180-degree performance reviews at no cost. Apart from evaluating your staff’s work performance, its free Starter package comes with essential solutions for managing hiring, attendance, and employee data.
180-degree vs 360-degree Performance Reviews: 180-degree performance reviews combine an employee’s self-assessment with their manager’s assessment. A 360-degree performance review maintains those two elements, while adding assessments from an employee’s direct reports, peers, and/or clients.
While these features make OrangeHRM optimal for budget-constrained business owners who want to automate basic HR tasks and employee work evaluations, it lacks the free payroll tool that TimeTrex offers and staff scheduling capabilities that the other providers (except Freshteam) in this guide have. You also can’t onboard new hires, track learning sessions, and create career development plans for employees unless you upgrade to its paid version.
With OrangeHRM, you can track work goals, create custom review questions, and even conduct 360-degree performance reviews.
(Source: OrangeHRM)
OrangeHRM Key Features
- Feature-rich free HR software: OrangeHRM provides nearly everything that you need to manage basic day-to-day HR processes (except payroll, although it integrates with pay processing solutions like PayPro and Definitiv). It also comes with workflow automation tools to help you streamline tasks. You can even create custom roles for users (such as system administrators). Plus, you can select its cloud-hosted version or choose to install its software on-site—provided you have an in-house IT team to manage it.
- Hiring: Create, manage, and distribute job listings to multiple job boards with OrangeHRM’s recruiting tools. You can even design custom applicant forms and create ready-to-use templates. What sets OrangeHRM apart from the other providers in this guide includes its “Interview Assistant” feature that helps you identify which questions to add from the list of online pooled questions.
- Performance reviews: TimeTrex may offer a similar feature, but its performance reviews module isn’t as robust as OrangeHRM. And while its free version only comes with 180-degree performance reviews, this is sufficient enough for small businesses to conduct employee evaluations. One drawback is that you need its paid plan if you want to add custom review questions, track goals, conduct 360-degree evaluations, and electronically sign off performance reviews.
- Career development planning: Available in OrangeHRM’s paid version, this feature comes with a 9-box matrix that you can use to evaluate and see who your top performers are, including those who are underperforming or at risk of leaving the company. Apart from using this data to create a career path for your staff, you can use OrangeHRM’s “Individual Development Plan” to track development goals designed to help identified employees get ready for potential future roles in the company. Examples of development-related goals include attending certification courses and on-the-job exposure to specific tasks.
With OrangeHRM, you get an online 9-box matrix to help you identify top performers and create employee career paths.
(Source: OrangeHRM)
OrangeHRM User Reviews
Many users who left positive OrangeHRM reviews on G2 and Capterra appreciate its wide range of HR solutions that make time tracking, learning management, and performance reviews easy for them. Others also like its ease of use and well-organized interface. However, some said that it looks a bit dated and has occasional glitches, such as software lags and password issues.
Alternative Free HR Software
The five free HR management systems in this guide have the tools you need to manage essential HR processes. However, if you’re a very small business looking for an online solution to run basic HR functions at no cost, consider Zoho People. Its free plan lets you store and manage employee information and documents in an online database. Approving and tracking time off transactions are also made easy with its PTO management solution.
The downside is that its free plan is limited to only five users. If you have more than five employees, then you have to upgrade to Zoho People’s paid plans (monthly fees start at $1.50 per user), which also grants you access to additional solutions like new hire onboarding and time tracking.
How We Evaluated the Best Free HR Software
To evaluate the best free HR software, we started with 10 providers that offer either free-to-use HR systems or have free forever plans. Then, we looked at ease of use and the depth of features—whether it offers basic tools like time tracking and an employee database or even advanced HR functionalities such as performance reviews and learning management. We also considered user reviews from popular third-party sites (like G2 and Capterra).
Bottom Line
Free HR software provides budget-conscious small businesses with online tools they can use to streamline HR tasks. Not only does it save them money, but it also helps save time since most of the free HR management systems on our list have workflow automation tools to automate processes.
In choosing the right free HR software for your business, consider your needs and whether it can handle your essential HR functions. If you have plans to grow, take a look at its platform’s scalability and pricing in case you decide to shift from using its free version into its paid plan. You can read our buyer’s guides where we compare many of these software’s pricing and functionalities to help you find the right option for you.