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Breathe HR vs Google Calendar

Breathe HR logo

Breathe HR

Software

Simple HR software for SMEs

From
£13/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Google Calendar logo

Google Calendar

Software

Smart scheduling for the modern workforce

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Google Calendar 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; Google Calendar no AI-driven scheduling assistance or automatic meeting time optimization
  • They diverge on capability: Breathe HR covers Employee Database, Google Calendar covers Event scheduling.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Breathe HR and Google Calendar actually diverge.

Attributes where Breathe HR and Google Calendar differ
AttributeBreathe HRGoogle Calendar
Starting price£13/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows
Founded20121998

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Google Calendar

  • Event scheduling
  • Multiple calendars
  • Reminders and notifications
  • Event sharing
  • Video conferencing integration
  • Gmail
  • Google Meet
  • Google Tasks

Both cover

  • Slack
  • Web support
  • Ios support
  • Android support

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 Google Calendar
  • Storing HR documents, contracts and e-signaturesnot Google Calendar
  • Performance reviews and onboarding workflows for small teamsnot Google Calendar

Google Calendar

  • Schedulingnot Breathe HR
  • Appointment bookingnot Breathe HR
  • Time trackingnot Breathe HR
  • Resource managementnot Breathe HR
  • Team coordinationnot 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

Google Calendar

  • No AI-driven scheduling assistance or automatic meeting time optimization
  • Lacks built-in appointment booking pages or payment integrations for scheduling
  • Limited mobile support for shared calendars and unreliable push notifications on phones
  • No native task management or project tracking features within the calendar interface
  • Limited offline functionality on the web (read-only mode only)
  • Strict usage limits (maximum 60 calendars, 750 shares per time period)

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

Google Calendar

Free
  • PersonalFree
    • Event scheduling
    • Sharing
    • Notifications
  • Google Workspace Business Starter$7/month
    • All personal features
    • Team collaboration
    • 30GB storage

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 Google Calendar if

  • You need event scheduling.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want multiple calendars.
Google Calendar review

Questions people ask

Is Breathe HR or Google Calendar better?
Neither clearly leads. Breathe HR starts at £13/month and Google Calendar at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Breathe HR or Google Calendar?
Google Calendar has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at £13/month for Breathe HR and Free for Google Calendar.
Does Breathe HR or Google Calendar run on more platforms?
Breathe HR runs on Web, Ios, Android. Google Calendar runs on Web, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows.
Can I use Google Calendar for free?
Yes. Google Calendar 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 Google Calendar is typically brought in for.
What can Breathe HR do that Google Calendar cannot?
Breathe HR covers Employee Database, Absence Management, Document Storage, HR Reporting. Google Calendar covers Event scheduling, Multiple calendars, Reminders and notifications, Event sharing. Both handle Slack, Web support, Ios support, Android support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Google Calendar: Can I use Google Calendar offline?

Yes. On the web, Google Calendar works in read-only mode offline for cached events. On iOS and Android, the Google Calendar app automatically caches recent events and lets you create, edit, and respond to events offline. Changes sync automatically when you reconnect to the internet.

Source
Google Calendar: Can I export my calendar data?

Yes. Google Calendar exports as ICS files through Settings > Import & export > Export. ICS files are readable by Outlook, Apple Calendar, Thunderbird, and most other calendar applications.

Source
Google Calendar: Does Google Calendar integrate with video conferencing?

Yes. Google Calendar integrates natively with Google Meet and Zoom. When you create an event, you can add a video conference link directly. Other platforms like Webex and GoTo Meeting can be integrated via Zapier or third-party automation.

Source
Google Calendar: Can I share my calendar with teams?

Yes. You can share individual calendars with specific people or make them publicly viewable. However, accessing shared calendars on mobile devices has limitations, and push notifications for shared calendars may not work reliably on phones.

Source
Google Calendar: Does Google Calendar work with Outlook?

No direct integration. You can manually import/export using ICS files or use third-party tools like Zapier to sync events. This is different from Outlook, which integrates seamlessly within Microsoft 365.

Source
Google Calendar: Is there a cost to use Google Calendar?

Google Calendar is free for personal use. Google Workspace plans (which include Calendar) start at $7 per user per month for business use.

Source
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Related pages

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