HR · head to head
Breathe HR vs Zoho People
The short version
- Only Zoho People 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; Zoho People slow response times and slow loading on the platform affecting user efficiency
- They diverge on capability: Breathe HR covers Absence Management, Zoho People covers Time Off.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Breathe HR and Zoho People actually diverge.
| Attribute | Breathe HR | Zoho People |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | £13/month | Free |
| Pricing model | subscription | Unknown |
| Free tier | No | Yes |
| Platforms | Web, Ios, Android | Web |
| Founded | 2012 | 1996 |
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (HR).
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
- Absence Management
- Document Storage
- HR Reporting
- Performance Management
- Training
- Xero
- QuickBooks
Only in Zoho People
- Time Off
- Time Tracking
- Attendance
- Performance
- Onboarding
- Self-Service
- Zoho CRM
- Zoho Books
Both cover
- Employee Database
- Slack
- Google Workspace
- Microsoft 365
- 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 Zoho People
- Storing HR documents, contracts and e-signaturesnot Zoho People
- Performance reviews and onboarding workflows for small teamsnot Zoho People
Zoho People
- Automating recruitment workflows from application through onboardingnot Breathe HR
- Managing performance evaluations and compensation decisions centrallynot Breathe HR
- Tracking employee time, attendance, and leave in real-timenot Breathe HR
- Generating HR analytics to measure employee satisfaction and retentionnot 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
Zoho People
- Slow response times and slow loading on the platform affecting user efficiency
- Limited customization options for leave and performance management workflows
- Mobile app is missing key features available in desktop version, like timesheets and reporting
- Customer support is ticket-based only with no live chat unless on premium plan
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
Zoho People
FreeNo published plan breakdown. See the Zoho People review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Breathe HR if
- You need absence management.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want document storage.
Choose Zoho People if
- You need time off.
- You want to start without paying.
- You also want time tracking.
Questions people ask
- Is Breathe HR or Zoho People better?
- Neither clearly leads. Breathe HR starts at £13/month and Zoho People at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Breathe HR or Zoho People?
- Zoho People has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at £13/month for Breathe HR and Free for Zoho People.
- Does Breathe HR or Zoho People run on more platforms?
- Breathe HR runs on Web, Ios, Android. Zoho People runs on Web.
- Can I use Zoho People for free?
- Yes. Zoho People 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 Zoho People is typically brought in for.
- What can Breathe HR do that Zoho People cannot?
- Breathe HR covers Absence Management, Document Storage, HR Reporting, Performance Management. Zoho People covers Time Off, Time Tracking, Attendance, Performance. Both handle Employee Database, Slack, Google Workspace, Microsoft 365.
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.
SourceZoho People: Does Zoho People have a free tier?
Yes, the Free plan supports up to 5-10 users with essential HR tools, email support, and 30-day free trial available on all paid plans with no credit card required.
SourceBreathe 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.
SourceZoho People: What is the pricing for Zoho People?
Pricing starts at $1.25 per user per month when billed annually. The Essential HR plan costs $1.50 monthly per user, dropping to $1.25 annually with five tiers available: Free, Essential HR, Professional, Premium, and Enterprise.
SourceBreathe 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.
SourceZoho People: Does Zoho People work with other Zoho applications?
Yes, Zoho People integrates with the Zoho ecosystem including Zoho CRM, Zoho Books, and other Zoho applications for unified business management.
SourceBreathe 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.
SourceBreathe 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.
SourceRelated pages
More on Zoho People
Other head to heads
- Breathe HR vs Freshteam
- Breathe HR vs Cezanne HR
- Breathe HR vs Workday
- Breathe HR vs BambooHR
- Breathe HR vs Culture Amp
- Breathe HR vs People HR
- Breathe HR vs CharlieHR
- Breathe HR vs Personio
- Breathe HR vs HiBob
- Breathe HR vs Nectar
- Breathe HR vs Recruiterbox
- Breathe HR vs Darwinbox
- Breathe HR vs Employment Hero
- Breathe HR vs greytHR
- Breathe HR vs Guild
- Breathe HR vs Homebase
- Breathe HR vs Humaans
- Breathe HR vs Sesame HR
- Breathe HR vs Officevibe
- Breathe HR vs Lattice
- Breathe HR vs 15Five
- Breathe HR vs SmartHR
- Breathe HR vs Kudos
- Zoho People vs Freshteam
- Zoho People vs Cezanne HR
- Zoho People vs Workday
- Zoho People vs BambooHR
- Zoho People vs Culture Amp
- Zoho People vs People HR
- Zoho People vs CharlieHR
- Zoho People vs Personio
- Zoho People vs HiBob
- Zoho People vs Nectar
- Zoho People vs Recruiterbox
- Zoho People vs Darwinbox
- Zoho People vs Employment Hero
- Zoho People vs greytHR
- Zoho People vs Guild
- Zoho People vs Homebase
- Zoho People vs Humaans
- Zoho People vs Sesame HR
- Zoho People vs Officevibe
- Zoho People vs Lattice
- Zoho People vs 15Five
- Zoho People vs SmartHR
- Zoho People vs Kudos