Editor Sebastiaan Smits ·
Published November 4, 2026 · Updated November 4, 2026
Small companies look past Factorial when the $8 headline price turns into a quote that depends on the modules chosen, when renewal terms and price-change notice matter, or when they want a vendor with a published price list. They usually compare HiBob, Zoho People, BambooHR and Employment Hero.
Short answer: The closest replacements for Factorial in our HR software ranking are HiBob, Zoho People and BambooHR. Choose HiBob if you want a modular HR platform with its own payroll hub and workforce planning. Each of the 11 options is a ranked entry in Best HR Software in 2026; the notes explain how it differs from Factorial and where Factorial still wins.
Vendors can pay for more visibility on this website, for example a higher place in a ranking or more room on a page. Commercial relationships can also affect which products we feature and how prominently. Every vendor link is marked the same, whatever the arrangement behind it. The first three alternatives go to challengers, vendors outside the best-known brands in a category, wherever the category has them; the established names follow in their ranked order. How it works: placement disclosure · editorial process.
Factorial's pricing page says it starts at $8 per month per user and that you ask for a tailored quote. All plans include Factorial Core, and other products such as time tracking, performance and payroll are chosen on top. The number you pay depends on that selection.
Under Factorial's terms of use, plans renew automatically for the same period, and the price may change with 45 days notice on monthly plans or 60 days on annual ones. Cancellation needs notice of 15 days for monthly and 30 days for annual plans.
Factorial's help center says that after cancellation neither admins nor employees can reach the account or download anything. Data has to be exported before the end date, function by function, so a switch needs a plan for employee, time off and time tracking records.
Ordered by how well each fits a team leaving Factorial; our own placement among 14 ranked products is in the last column.
| # | Alternative | Headquarters | Switch if | Our rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  HiBob | United Kingdom | you want a modular HR platform with its own payroll hub and workforce planning | #6 |
| 2 |  Zoho People | India | you are very small and want a free edition before paying per user | #1 |
| 3 |  BambooHR | United States | you want published per-employee tiers and are based mainly in the United States | #3 |
| 4 |  Employment Hero | Australia | you want per-employee tiers where rotas and time tracking are a separate add-on | #14 |
| 5 |  Breathe | United Kingdom | you have up to 200 staff and prefer a flat monthly price by headcount band | #13 |
| 6 |  Humaans | United Kingdom | you run a technology company and want an API and webhooks alongside HR records | #2 |
| 7 |  Deel HR | United States | you want the lowest published entry price and may later hire abroad through the same vendor | #11 |
| 8 |  Rippling | United States | you want HR, payroll and other products bought as separate modules from one vendor | #4 |
| 9 |  Namely | United States | you want an entry package with a stated price and managed services to add later | #9 |
| 10 |  Workday HCM | United States | you are growing toward an enterprise suite and accept a sales-led purchase | #12 |
| 11 |  Personio | Germany | you are willing to request a written quote before comparing it with other options | #8 |
The pricing page we opened is a demo request form, with no amounts shown. The demo menu lists Core, Compensation, Hiring, Learning, Payroll Hub, Time & Attendance, Workforce Planning and UK Payroll as separate items, so the quote is built from modules in much the same way.
Switch from Factorial if you want a modular HR platform with its own payroll hub and workforce planning.
Zoho's pricing page offers a free edition for up to five users, a 30-day trial with no card, and four paid editions from Essential HR to Enterprise. Each paid edition has a minimum of five users. Enterprise adds an HR helpdesk, a learning system and a sandbox.
Switch from Factorial if you are very small and want a free edition before paying per user.
For companies above 25 employees, BambooHR lists $10.25 for Core, $17.50 for Pro and $25 for Elite per employee per month, with volume discounts. Payroll and benefits administration are add-ons for US employees only, with a 15 percent bundle discount.
Switch from Factorial if you want published per-employee tiers and are based mainly in the United States.
The UK page lists HR Essentials at 6 pounds and HR Engage at 9 pounds per employee a month, with Elite and Unlimited on request. Rotas and time and attendance cost 2 pounds more per employee, and contracts use a monthly minimum.
Switch from Factorial if you want per-employee tiers where rotas and time tracking are a separate add-on.
Priced per business, not per employee, in six headcount bands from 1-10 people at 24 pounds a month to 151-200 people at 579 pounds. Holiday and absence, documents and performance come with every plan. Breathe offers a 14-day trial with all features.
Switch from Factorial if you have up to 200 staff and prefer a flat monthly price by headcount band.
Two plans, Growth and Enterprise, both marked talk to sales, with no amounts shown. Growth covers directory, documents, absence, timesheets and onboarding. Performance management, headcount planning and the AI Companion are separate add-ons, and Enterprise adds SSO and webhooks.
Switch from Factorial if you run a technology company and want an API and webhooks alongside HR records.
Deel's HR page says Core starts at $5 per employee per month, covering profiles, org chart, time off and workflows. Advanced adds performance and learning, Elite adds workforce planning and compensation, and recruiting is an add-on.
Switch from Factorial if you want the lowest published entry price and may later hire abroad through the same vendor.
Rippling says plans start at $8 per employee per month with a monthly base fee, and that most products are priced per employee. The total depends on the products selected, and a custom quote is requested from sales.
Switch from Factorial if you want HR, payroll and other products bought as separate modules from one vendor.
Four packages: NamelyNow, NamelyPlus, NamelyPlus People and NamelyComplete. The pricing page says Namely Now starts at $9 per employee per month, while pricing for the others follows a needs assessment based on modules and services.
Switch from Factorial if you want an entry package with a stated price and managed services to add later.
Workday's HCM page lists seven products, from human resource management to payroll and vendor management, and points visitors to sales and a demo. It publishes no prices and describes customers from midsize businesses to large enterprises.
Switch from Factorial if you are growing toward an enterprise suite and accept a sales-led purchase.
Personio is a rival HR suite for growing companies. Ask its sales team for the current plan structure and renewal terms, then set them against the published prices of Factorial before deciding whether a move is worth the work.
Switch from Factorial if you are willing to request a written quote before comparing it with other options.
Stay with Factorial if a quote tailored to the modules you pick suits you, and you want time off, time tracking, documents and e-signature under one contract. The pricing page names Factorial Core as part of every plan, with products such as shift management, expenses and recruitment added as needed.
Factorial's help center says nothing can be downloaded after cancellation takes effect. Under Organisation, use Export data, choose Employees and download an Excel file. Export the time off report and the time tracking report separately, and save payroll documents and reports.
Only the platform administrator can cancel, from Settings or the customer portal. Monthly plans need notice 15 days before renewal and annual plans 30 days, and the terms give no refund for the unused period. Plan the switch so the new system is running before that date.
In the sidebar go to Organisation, click Export data, select Employees and click Download. The result is an Excel file with name, contract dates, job title, address, manager, compensation, working schedule and custom fields, for current and past employees.
Monthly plans need notice at least 15 days before the next renewal date and annual plans at least 30 days. The cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing cycle, and only the platform administrator can request it.
Yes, the terms of use say the subscription renews automatically for identical periods unless you give notice in the platform. If renegotiation runs past the term, the most recent signed proposal rates apply, without expired discounts.
Yes, the terms of use allow Factorial to change the price. It must tell you at least 45 calendar days ahead for monthly plans and 60 days ahead for annual or other non-monthly plans, before the new price takes effect.
Access to the account and its data ends when the cancellation takes effect. The terms say data stays blocked for one year after 30 days from cancellation, then is destroyed. You can also ask for deletion at any time.
No, the terms say early termination does not entitle you to a refund of the unused part of the monthly or annual fee, and plans are prepaid. Reducing seats is also not refunded and applies from the next renewal term.
Figures for Factorial and the alternatives come from the vendors' public pages, read on November 4, 2026. Treat them as a snapshot; rates and caps get revised often.
Sebastiaan Smits, Founder, wrote, edited and fact-checked this page.
Founder of The Interregnum and of 2 Steps Ahead, an AI search visibility agency. Editorially responsible for every page here; research and drafting are AI-assisted. Last reviewed November 4, 2026.
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