Softwr

HR & Recruiting · head to head

Oyster vs Personio

Oyster logo

Oyster

HR & Recruiting

Hire globally, compliantly

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Personio logo

Personio

HR & Recruiting

All-in-one HR software for SMEs

From
$5/employee-per-month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Oyster has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Oyster employer of Record is $699 per employee per month, with the discount tied to annual billing; Personio payroll processing only available in Germany, UK, and Ireland, limiting multi-country deployment
  • They diverge on capability: Oyster covers Global Employment, Personio covers HR Management.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Oyster and Personio actually diverge.

Attributes where Oyster and Personio differ
AttributeOysterPersonio
Starting priceFree$5/employee-per-month
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, Mobile (iOS, Android)
CategoryUnknownHR & Recruiting
Founded20202015

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 Oyster

  • Global Employment
  • Benefits
  • Compliance
  • Contractor Management
  • Time Off
  • Expenses
  • BambooHR
  • Greenhouse

Only in Personio

  • HR Management
  • Recruiting
  • Time Tracking
  • Performance Management
  • Onboarding
  • Offboarding
  • Microsoft 365
  • Google Workspace

Both cover

  • Payroll
  • Slack
  • Web support
  • Ios support
  • Android support

What people use each for

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

Oyster

  • Hiring employees abroad without setting up a local legal entitynot Personio
  • Onboarding and paying international contractorsnot Personio
  • Getting country specific employment compliance advice for distributed teamsnot Personio

Personio

No use cases recorded yet. See the Personio review.

Where each one falls short

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

Oyster

  • Employer of Record is $699 per employee per month, with the discount tied to annual billing
  • A refundable deposit is required before an EOR engagement starts
  • Contractor management is free for 30 days then $29 per contractor per month
  • HR advisory through People Partner Services is billed at $300 per hour on top of the subscription
  • A currency conversion fee applies when you pay Oyster in a currency other than the contract currency
  • Payments are accepted only by direct debit or wire in USD, EUR, GBP or CAD

Personio

  • Payroll processing only available in Germany, UK, and Ireland, limiting multi-country deployment
  • Recruiting module lacks advanced reporting and LinkedIn integration functionality
  • Limited reporting customization requires manual exports and workarounds
  • Mobile app has reduced capabilities compared to desktop experience

Pricing, plan by plan

Oyster

Free
  • Contractor$29/month
    • Contractor Payments
    • Compliant Contracts
    • Invoicing
  • Employee$599/month
    • Global Employment
    • Payroll
    • Benefits

Personio

$5/employee-per-month

No published plan breakdown. See the Personio review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Oyster if

  • You need global employment.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want benefits.
Oyster review

Choose Personio if

  • You need hr management.
  • You work on Web, Mobile (iOS, Android).
  • You also want recruiting.
Personio review

Questions people ask

Is Oyster or Personio better?
Neither clearly leads. Oyster starts at Free and Personio at $5/employee-per-month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Oyster or Personio?
Oyster has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Oyster and $5/employee-per-month for Personio.
Does Oyster or Personio run on more platforms?
Oyster runs on Web, Ios, Android. Personio runs on Web, Mobile (iOS, Android).
Can I use Oyster for free?
Yes. Oyster has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Personio starts at $5/employee-per-month.
What is Oyster best used for?
Oyster is most often used for hiring employees abroad without setting up a local legal entity, onboarding and paying international contractors, getting country specific employment compliance advice for distributed teams. Of those, hiring employees abroad without setting up a local legal entity and onboarding and paying international contractors are not what Personio is typically brought in for.
What can Oyster do that Personio cannot?
Oyster covers Global Employment, Benefits, Compliance, Contractor Management. Personio covers HR Management, Recruiting, Time Tracking, Performance Management. Both handle Payroll, Slack, Web support, Ios support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Personio: Does Personio offer payroll processing in my country?

Personio provides native payroll support in Germany, UK, and Ireland, with limited support in other European markets through integrations. Coverage varies by country.

Source
Personio: What is Personio's pricing model?

Personio uses a per-employee-per-month (PEPM) model starting at $5-15/employee/month depending on the plan and features. There is no public pricing page, and exact pricing requires a sales consultation.

Source
Personio: Can Personio integrate with other tools?

Yes. Personio provides a public API and maintains a marketplace of pre-built integrations. The Core Pro plan is required for API access and custom integrations.

Source
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Oyster

More on Personio

Keep looking

Other head to heads