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HR & Recruiting · head to head

Breathe HR vs FreshBooks

Breathe HR logo

Breathe HR

HR & Recruiting

Simple HR software for SMEs

From
£13/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
FreshBooks logo

FreshBooks

Professional Services

Accounting software that makes you look good

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only FreshBooks has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Breathe HR pricing is banded by headcount, starting at £24 per month for 1 to 10 people, £44 per month for 11 to 20 and £99 per month for 21 to 50; FreshBooks lite tier limited to 5 clients maximum
  • They diverge on capability: Breathe HR covers Employee Database, FreshBooks covers Invoicing.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Breathe HR and FreshBooks actually diverge.

Attributes where Breathe HR and FreshBooks differ
AttributeBreathe HRFreshBooks
Starting price£13/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
Free tierNoYes
CategoryHR & RecruitingProfessional Services
Founded20122003

Identical on both: platforms (Web, Ios, Android), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Breathe HR

  • Employee Database
  • Absence Management
  • Document Storage
  • HR Reporting
  • Performance Management
  • Training
  • Google Workspace
  • Microsoft 365

Only in FreshBooks

  • Invoicing
  • Expense tracking
  • Time tracking
  • Project management
  • Payments
  • Financial reporting
  • Proposals
  • Mileage tracking

Both cover

  • Slack

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Breathe HR

  • Holiday, absence and sickness tracking for a UK small businessnot FreshBooks
  • Storing HR documents, contracts and e-signaturesnot FreshBooks
  • Performance reviews and onboarding workflows for small teamsnot FreshBooks

FreshBooks

  • Invoicing and payment processingnot Breathe HR
  • Time tracking and expense managementnot Breathe HR
  • Multi-client project accountingnot Breathe HR

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Breathe HR

  • Pricing is banded by headcount, starting at £24 per month for 1 to 10 people, £44 per month for 11 to 20 and £99 per month for 21 to 50
  • Plans are capped by band up to 151 to 200 people, so it is not sold to organisations above that range on the published ladder
  • The free trial is 14 days
  • Health and safety, e-learning and other modules are sold as add-ons on top of the core HR plan
  • Pricing is quoted in pounds and the product is marketed to UK SMEs

FreshBooks

  • Lite tier limited to 5 clients maximum
  • E-signatures, proposals, and client retainers unavailable on Lite and Plus tiers
  • Advanced payment processing fee of £20/month on Plus tier (extra cost)
  • Email customization and project profitability tracking restricted to Premium tier and above
  • Offline mode not available; web-based only

Pricing, plan by plan

Breathe HR

£13/month
  • Core$13/month
    • Employee Database
    • Absence Management
    • Documents
  • People Management$18/month
    • All Core features
    • Performance
    • Goals

FreshBooks

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the FreshBooks review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Breathe HR if

  • You need employee database.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want absence management.
Breathe HR review

Choose FreshBooks if

  • You need invoicing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want expense tracking.
FreshBooks review

Questions people ask

Is Breathe HR or FreshBooks better?
Neither clearly leads. Breathe HR starts at £13/month and FreshBooks at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Breathe HR or FreshBooks?
FreshBooks has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at £13/month for Breathe HR and Free for FreshBooks.
Does Breathe HR or FreshBooks run on more platforms?
Breathe HR runs on Web, Ios, Android. FreshBooks runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use FreshBooks for free?
Yes. FreshBooks has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Breathe HR starts at £13/month.
What is Breathe HR best used for?
Breathe HR is most often used for holiday, absence and sickness tracking for a uk small business, storing hr documents, contracts and e-signatures, performance reviews and onboarding workflows for small teams. Of those, holiday, absence and sickness tracking for a uk small business and storing hr documents, contracts and e-signatures are not what FreshBooks is typically brought in for.
What can Breathe HR do that FreshBooks cannot?
Breathe HR covers Employee Database, Absence Management, Document Storage, HR Reporting. FreshBooks covers Invoicing, Expense tracking, Time tracking, Project management. Both handle Slack.
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