Best free HR software for teams under 10 employees (2026)
Several vendors now publish a free HR plan with no time limit, so a team under 10 no longer has to choose between spreadsheets and a paid subscription. The catch is that "free" means different things: a product that is free for now (HourSquare), a free plan with a seat cap (TalentHR, Zoho People), a short trial (CharlieHR), or a demo request with no published price at all (Personio, HiBob). This page lists what each option gives you, where the limits sit, and which one fits which kind of small team. Every figure here comes from the vendor's own pricing page or, where the vendor does not publish, from a third-party guide, and we say which.
Who this is for: Founders and office managers running 3–10-person teams who are past spreadsheets but do not want to pay per seat while the team is this small. Most of you can run HR on one of these free plans today.
About Free HR software for ≤10 employees
The category of HR tools with a free plan for teams under 10 employees — what is on offer in 2026, what is free versus a trial, and which one fits which team shape.
Where Free HR software for ≤10 employees is genuinely strong
Several vendors publish a free plan with no time limit, so the category is real, not a marketing label Free plans now cover core HR, leave and basic onboarding, not just a directory Most of the free plans here are self-serve with no card and no sales call
Where it tends to fall short for our typical buyer
Many "free" offers are 7- to 30-day trials or demo requests, not free plans — read the pricing page Free-plan scope varies a lot; payroll is rarely included Seat caps are 5 or 10 users, and some vendors set a minimum seat count the moment you go paid
Side by side
| Feature | HourSquare | Free HR software for ≤10 employees |
|---|---|---|
| HourSquare (free for now) | Free for now, every module, no card to sign up | — |
| TalentHR | See the TalentHR comparison | Free plan up to 10 users, no time limit; paid from USD 2/user/month with a 15-user minimum |
| Zoho People | See the Zoho People comparison | Free plan up to 5 users (3 in the USA); paid from USD 1.25/user/month billed annually (third-party figures; the vendor page draws prices by script) |
| Deel HR | See the Deel comparison | No free plan on deel.com as of 2026-10-05; the HR page lists Core at USD 5/employee/month. Older guides that call it free under 200 employees are out of date |
| BambooHR | See the BambooHR comparison | No free plan or trial stated; from USD 10/employee/month, flat rate from USD 250/month for 25 or fewer |
| Personio | See the Personio comparison | No published pricing; no free plan stated |
| CharlieHR | See the CharlieHR comparison | No free plan; 7-day trial, then banded GBP pricing from £5/month (promotional) for 1–4 people |
| HiBob | See the HiBob comparison | No free plan; pricing page is a demo request |
Choose HourSquare if…
Self-serve setup: register and configure your whole team yourself, with no demo or sales call needed The only free option on this list with native payroll: pay runs, payslips, payment and accountant exports Payroll tax packs for 24+ countries, with holidays, the work week and date formats set per company, rather than one home market Every module included, with no feature tiers to compare Anonymous whistleblowing, SSO, 2FA with passkeys and an audit log included
Choose Free HR software for ≤10 employees if…
You need an ATS on a free plan; HourSquare has no applicant tracking You need performance reviews; HourSquare has no performance module You already run Zoho CRM or Zoho Books and want HR in the same suite You hire across several countries and want EOR or contractor payments from the same vendor; Deel, which is paid You need a native mobile app; HourSquare is a responsive web app with a phone layout
What "free" means in 2026
Vendors use the word four ways. Free for now: HourSquare. A free plan with a seat cap and no time limit: TalentHR up to 10 users, Zoho People up to 5. A free trial: CharlieHR gives 7 days. A demo request: Personio and HiBob do not publish prices, and BambooHR states no free plan or trial on its pricing page. Deel HR is no longer on the free list: its own pages show no free plan, although older guides still call it free. Always check which one a vendor means before you evaluate it.
Free plans worth evaluating
HourSquare: every module free for now
HourSquare is free for now with every module, no card to sign up and no trial expiry. You register and set it up yourself; no demo or sales call is needed. It includes the employee directory and org chart, documents, leave policies with accrual, timesheets and shift patterns, native payroll with payslips and tax packs for 24+ countries, onboarding and offboarding templates, surveys and pulse surveys, an anonymous whistleblowing channel, a reports hub with exports, SSO, 2FA with passkeys and an audit log. Gaps to know about: no performance reviews, no applicant tracking, a public API that covers time clocks, employees and time entries only, and no native mobile app (the web app has a phone layout).
TalentHR: free up to 10 users, 15-seat minimum on paid
TalentHR (from Epignosis, the maker of TalentLMS) has a free plan for up to 10 users with no time limit that includes an ATS, onboarding and time off, plus a native anonymous whistleblowing channel from the Essential tier. Paid plans are USD 2 and USD 4 per user per month but require a 15-user minimum, so an 11-person team pays for 15. There is no payroll, and time tracking, performance and surveys are on the Premium tier only.
Zoho People: free up to 5 users
Zoho People has a free plan for up to 5 users (3 for visitors in the USA) covering the employee database, leave and documents, and paid tiers from USD 1.25 per user per month billed annually; the vendor page draws its prices by script, so that figure comes from a third-party summary. The cap is tight, and payroll is a separate Zoho product limited to India, the USA, Canada and the GCC. It makes most sense if you already run Zoho CRM or Zoho Books.
Trials, demo requests and paid-only (not free plans)
Deel HR is not free any more: its own HR page lists Core at USD 5 per employee per month, with Advanced and Elite tiers above it, and no free plan is named on deel.com as of 2026-10-05, although older guides still call it free under 200 employees. It is the entry point to paid products priced per worker per month: contractors from USD 49, EOR from USD 599, ATS from USD 14, and it fits teams that hire across several countries. CharlieHR offers a 7-day trial and then banded GBP pricing from £5/month (promotional) for 1–4 people. BambooHR states no free plan or trial on its pricing page and starts at USD 10 per employee per month, with a flat rate from USD 250/month for companies with 25 or fewer employees. Personio and HiBob do not publish prices; HiBob's pricing page is a demo-request form. If you have under 10 employees and want to evaluate without commitment, the free plans above are the shortlist.
Decision framework
- Need pay runs and payslips inside the free plan? HourSquare is the only option on this list that includes them.
- Need an ATS on a free plan? TalentHR.
- Already run Zoho CRM or Zoho Books? Zoho People.
- Hiring across several countries and planning to buy payroll or EOR? Deel, which is paid.
- Need payroll tax packs for 24+ countries, with public holidays and the work week set per workplace? HourSquare.
- Want every employee free above 10 users? HourSquare is free for now. TalentHR stops at 10 users and Zoho at 5. TalentHR's paid plans start at USD 2 per user with a 15-user minimum.
Frequently asked
What is the best free HR software for a 5-person team?
Is BambooHR free?
What is the catch with free HR software?
Can I run payroll on free HR software?
Will HourSquare still be free in a year?
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