Is CharlieHR or Subframe better?

Neither clearly leads. CharlieHR starts at £5/month and Subframe at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, CharlieHR or Subframe?

Subframe has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at £5/month for CharlieHR and Free for Subframe.

Does CharlieHR or Subframe run on more platforms?

CharlieHR runs on Web, Mobile (iOS/Android). Subframe runs on Web.

Can I use Subframe for free?

Yes. Subframe has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. CharlieHR starts at £5/month.

What can CharlieHR do that Subframe cannot?

CharlieHR covers Employee Database, Time Off Management, Onboarding, Performance Reviews.

HR & Recruiting · head to head

CharlieHR vs Subframe

CharlieHR

HR & Recruiting

HR software built for small businesses

From: £5/month
Rated: -

Full review Website

Subframe

Design Tools

The AI-native design tool built for code

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Only Subframe has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
Each has a real cost: CharlieHR limited payroll integration capabilities compared to dedicated payroll platforms; Subframe the free plan is capped at 1 project, 10 pages, and 2 prototypes with limited AI usage and only 24 hour version history, versus unlimited AI on the $29 per editor per month Pro plan, as of August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CharlieHR and Subframe actually diverge.

Attributes where CharlieHR and Subframe differ
Attribute	CharlieHR	Subframe
Starting price	£5/month	Free
Pricing model	Unknown	freemium
Free tier	No	Yes
Platforms	Web, Mobile (iOS/Android)	Web
Category	HR & Recruiting	Design Tools
Founded	2015	Unknown

Identical on both: 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 CharlieHR

Employee Database
Time Off Management
Onboarding
Performance Reviews
Team Engagement
Company Directory
Slack
Google Workspace

Only in Subframe

Nothing recorded that CharlieHR does not also cover.

Where each one falls short

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

CharlieHR

Limited payroll integration capabilities compared to dedicated payroll platforms
Pricing structure geared toward UK and Europe, with limited localization for other regions
Add-on services like Charlie Recruit and Charlie Advice incur additional costs
Smaller employee base (approximately 30 people) compared to enterprise HR competitors

Subframe

The free plan is capped at 1 project, 10 pages, and 2 prototypes with limited AI usage and only 24 hour version history, versus unlimited AI on the $29 per editor per month Pro plan, as of August 2026.

Pricing, plan by plan

CharlieHR

£5/month

Core HR (Teams 1-4)$5/month
- Employee onboarding
- Time off management
- Document storage

Subframe

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Subframe review.

Which should you pick?

Choose CharlieHR if

You need employee database.
You work on Web, Mobile (iOS/Android).
You also want time off management.

CharlieHR review

Choose Subframe if

You want to start without paying.

Subframe review

Questions people ask

Is CharlieHR or Subframe better?: Neither clearly leads. CharlieHR starts at £5/month and Subframe at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CharlieHR or Subframe?: Subframe has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at £5/month for CharlieHR and Free for Subframe.
Does CharlieHR or Subframe run on more platforms?: CharlieHR runs on Web, Mobile (iOS/Android). Subframe runs on Web.
Can I use Subframe for free?: Yes. Subframe has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. CharlieHR starts at £5/month.
What can CharlieHR do that Subframe cannot?: CharlieHR covers Employee Database, Time Off Management, Onboarding, Performance Reviews.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CharlieHR: Does CharlieHR offer a free plan?

CharlieHR does not have a free plan, but offers a 7-day free trial without requiring a credit card. Pricing starts at £5/month for teams of 1-4 employees.

Source

CharlieHR: What are CharlieHR's core features?

Core features include employee onboarding, time off tracking, performance reviews, document storage, employee engagement tools, and benefits management with access to 30,000+ discounts.

Source

CharlieHR: Does CharlieHR integrate with payroll systems?

CharlieHR integrates with major HR tech stacks and offers add-on services like Charlie Recruit for hiring automation. Payroll integration capabilities depend on the specific payroll provider you use.

Source

CharlieHR: Is CharlieHR GDPR compliant?

Yes. CharlieHR is GDPR-compliant and ISO 27001-certified, providing strong data security and privacy compliance for European businesses.

Source

CharlieHR: Does CharlieHR support multi-currency?

CharlieHR's pricing is primarily in GBP (British Pounds). International users can access the platform but currency and localization options may be limited.

Source

CharlieHR vs Subframe

CharlieHR

Subframe

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in CharlieHR

Only in Subframe

Where each one falls short

CharlieHR

Subframe

Pricing, plan by plan

CharlieHR

Subframe

Which should you pick?

Choose CharlieHR if

Choose Subframe if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on CharlieHR

More on Subframe

Keep looking

Other head to heads