Softwr

HR · head to head

Breathe HR vs Openwage

Breathe HR logo

Breathe HR

HR

Simple HR software for SMEs

From
£13/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Openwage logo

Openwage

Payroll

UK earned wage access charging a transparent 1 percent transfer fee, free for employers

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • 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; Openwage it is UK-only, tied to UK payroll cycles and regulation, so it is not usable for international workforces.
  • They diverge on capability: Breathe HR covers Employee Database, Openwage covers On-demand pay.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where Breathe HR and Openwage differ
AttributeBreathe HROpenwage
Starting price£13/monthOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer-transfer fee, paid by the employee
CategoryHRPayroll
Founded2012Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), 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
  • Slack
  • Google Workspace

Only in Openwage

  • On-demand pay
  • Transparent per-transfer fee
  • Payroll and T&A integration
  • No credit impact
  • Automatic payday reconciliation
  • Employer-free deployment

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

Openwage

  • A UK employer with shift or hourly staff wanting an on-demand pay benefit at no cost to the businessnot Breathe HR
  • An employee wanting to know the exact cost of an advance before requesting one, rather than an opaque feenot Breathe HR
  • A company already running standard UK payroll and time and attendance systems wanting straightforward integrationnot Breathe HR
  • An HR team comparing earned wage access providers on published unit economics rather than sales quotesnot 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

Openwage

  • It is UK-only, tied to UK payroll cycles and regulation, so it is not usable for international workforces.
  • Even a published, low fee still means employees effectively pay to access their own earned money, and frequent use compounds that cost over a year.
  • The 50% cap on gross (not net) earned pay can overstate what an employee can actually draw once tax and deductions are accounted for, creating confusion at the point of request.
  • As with all earned wage access, dependency on the product is a symptom of insufficient pay cadence or amount that the advance itself does not fix, and can mask a deeper compensation problem an employer should address directly.
  • Accuracy is entirely dependent on the employer's payroll and time and attendance data being current, so errors upstream produce incorrect available-balance figures for employees.

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

Openwage

On request
  • Openwage$undefined/month
    • Free for employers to offer
    • 1% fee per transfer, minimum £1, paid by the employee
    • No interest and no credit check

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 Openwage if

  • You need on-demand pay.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want transparent per-transfer fee.
Openwage review

Questions people ask

Is Breathe HR or Openwage better?
Neither clearly leads. Breathe HR starts at £13/month and Openwage at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Breathe HR or Openwage?
Breathe HR starts at £13/month and Openwage at On request.
Does Breathe HR or Openwage run on more platforms?
Breathe HR runs on Web, Ios, Android. Openwage runs on Web, iOS, Android.
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 Openwage is typically brought in for.
What can Breathe HR do that Openwage cannot?
Breathe HR covers Employee Database, Absence Management, Document Storage, HR Reporting. Openwage covers On-demand pay, Transparent per-transfer fee, Payroll and T&A integration, No credit impact.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Breathe HR: Is there a free trial available?

Yes, Breathe HR offers a free trial with no credit card required to get started.

Source
Openwage: Who pays the fee?

The employee, at 1% of the amount transferred with a minimum of £1; the employer benefit itself is free.

Breathe HR: Are there long-term contracts required?

No. Breathe HR explicitly states there are no long-term contracts, no hidden costs, and you have the freedom to cancel anytime.

Source
Openwage: Is it a loan?

No, Openwage states it is not a loan or credit product; there is no interest and no credit score impact.

Breathe HR: What company sizes does Breathe HR support?

The software is designed to support businesses with up to 250 employees. Organization size options mentioned include 1-10, 11-50, and 51-250 employees.

Source
Openwage: How much can an employee access?

Up to 50% of gross wages already earned in the current pay period.

Breathe HR: Are there different features for different plans?

Yes, flexible subscription-based plans exist with some features like Polls & Surveys available only for regular and above plans. The page does not specify plan names or detailed feature breakdowns.

Source
Breathe HR: What happens if I want to cancel my subscription?

You can cancel anytime without worrying about hidden costs. Breathe HR emphasizes no long-term commitment and the freedom to leave whenever your needs change.

Source
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