Breathe vs Rise People (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Breathe grades higher than Rise People: 2.6 against 1.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Breathe grades higher on value for money, the free plan, features and platforms. They get the same grade on ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Breathe
UK HR software for small firms, priced per business, not per person
Rise People
Canadian HR, payroll, time tracking and benefits in one system
Which one is for you
Pick Breathe if
- Fits if you're a UK small business that wants one fixed monthly fee
- Works for teams whose main job is knowing who's off and when
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if your company is outside the UK, as it's built for UK businesses
- Skip it if you want payroll built in, since it hands that to Xero
- Pricey if you take every add-on, at £11 to £16 a month each
- Watch out: add-ons stay on after the 14-day trial and are charged unless you switch them off
- Too light for companies over 200 staff, where the plans stop, or anyone needing links beyond Xero
Pick Rise People if
- Fits if you run a Canadian business and want HR and payroll in one system
- Works for a team that needs T4s and CRA remittances handled inside the product
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you pay staff outside Canada, because payroll is Canadian
- Watch out: every tier carries a base fee the page does not state
- Pricey if you want more than Start, as Grow and Optimize have no published price
- Watch out: time tracking, scheduling, managed payroll and benefits are add-ons
- Skip it if you want to try first, since no free plan or trial is listed
How we grade them
| 2.6GPABreatheGood | 1.6GPARise PeopleWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BMicro is £245 a year paid yearly, about £20 a month, in pounds before VAT, for up to 10 staff. That buys records, holiday and absence, documents and reviews. It's in the cheaper quarter of this category, though rotas and recruitment cost extra. | CC$8 per employee a month for Start plus a base fee that the page does not state. Grow and Optimize are quoted, so the real cost is unknown. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan, but a 14-day trial of every feature and add-on with no card. Turn the add-ons off before it ends, or they're billed. | FNo free plan and no trial on record in the listing, and a money-back guarantee would not count as one. |
| Features | BHoliday and absence, records and documents with e-signatures, reviews, onboarding and reports, with rotas, recruitment, expenses, courses and health and safety as add-ons. The whole job, with payroll left to Xero. | CPeople management, Canadian payroll, onboarding, time off and a mobile app. Time tracking, scheduling, managed payroll and benefits are add-ons, so the whole job is not in one price. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record, and you'll load staff records and set holiday rules before it's any use. | CNo store rating on record. Payroll with CRA remittances and T4s has setup work before the first pay run. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, linked to Xero Payroll. That's thin on integrations, and there's no desktop app. | CThe listing records web only, and no integrations are named. |
| Best for | UK small businesses on a fixed monthly price | Canadian HR and payroll with a base fee |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Breathe and Rise People. How we grade
Where they differ
- Breathe also covers reports and expense tracking.
- Rise People also covers payroll.
At a glance
| Breathe | Rise People | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Paid |
| Starts at | £24 per month for up to 10 employees, billed monthly (pounds, excluding VAT) | C$8 per employee / month, plus a base fee |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of every feature and add-on, no credit card required | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Centurion | Rise People, Inc. |
| Price read from | breathehr.com | risepeople.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Breathe
- Built for UK businesses: prices are in pounds excluding VAT, data sits in a UK data centre, and plans stop at 200 employees.
- Add-ons cost extra each month: rotas and attendance from £11, health and safety £12, expenses £14, learning £15 and recruitment £16.
- Add-ons stay switched on after the trial and are charged unless you turn them off.
- There is no payroll of its own; it connects to Xero Payroll.
Rise People
- Pricing is in Canadian dollars and every tier carries a base fee that the page does not state.
- Only the Start tier has a published price; Grow and Optimize are quoted on request.
- The page covers Canadian payroll (CRA remittances, T4s), so it is not a fit for payroll outside Canada.
- Time tracking, scheduling, managed payroll and benefits are add-ons; benefits give 30% off Rise platform fees.
Key features
Breathe
- Holiday and absence
- Staff book leave and report sickness, managers approve it, and a staff holiday planner shows who is off across the business.
- Records, documents and e-signatures
- Employee files, policies and contracts in one place, with documents sent out for electronic signature.
- Performance, onboarding and reports
- Performance management, dashboards and reporting come with every plan, and onboarding workflows sit among its people tools.
- Rotas, time and attendance
- An add-on builds weekly rotas, records clock-ins and clock-outs, generates timesheets, tracks overtime and lets staff swap shifts.
- Recruitment, expenses and learning
- Add-ons track applicants from application to shortlist, collect expense claims, and run bite-size courses for training and onboarding.
- Health and safety
- A newer add-on keeps risk assessments, logs accidents and near misses, and tracks safety roles and certifications.
Rise People
- People management
- A people directory with HR documents, custom roles and permissions, on-demand pay stubs and people reports.
- Canadian payroll
- Automated payroll with direct deposit, automatic tax remittance and automatic T4 generation.
- Onboarding and time off
- Self-onboarding, offer letters and task lists, and custom time off policies with multi-step approvals.
- Recruiting and performance
- An applicant tracking system with a careers page, plus performance reviews, 360-degree feedback and templates.
- Time tracking and scheduling
- Add-ons for timesheets, geofenced mobile punches, shift scheduling and one-click syncing to payroll.
- Benefits and managed payroll
- Digital health benefits enrollment and a managed payroll service, both sold as add-ons.
Plans
Breathe
Micro£24
per month for up to 10 employees, billed monthly
Core HR: holiday and absence, dashboards and reports, documents and policies, and performance management. £245 a year if paid yearly.
Starter£44
per month for up to 20 employees, billed monthly
Core HR for 11 to 20 people, adding time logs. £449 a year if paid yearly.
Regular£99
per month for up to 50 employees, billed monthly
Core HR for 21 to 50 people, adding financial user permissions. £999 a year if paid yearly.
Pro£175
per month for up to 100 employees, billed monthly
Core HR for 51 to 100 people. £1,790 a year if paid yearly.
Premium£419
per month for up to 150 employees, billed monthly
Core HR for 101 to 150 people. £4,519 a year if paid yearly.
Plus£579
per month for up to 200 employees, billed monthly
Core HR for 151 to 200 people. £6,255 a year if paid yearly.
Rise People
StartC$8
per month, plus a base fee, per employee
People management, payroll, onboarding, time off and the mobile app. All tiers are subject to a base fee.
GrowCustom
Described as solutions that work together. Quoted on request; no price is published.
OptimizeCustom
Marked most popular and described as a full employee experience. Quoted on request; no price shown.
Ways to pay less
Breathe
- Annual discount
About 15% off core HR with yearly billing
Paying yearly saves about 15% on Micro, Starter, Regular and Pro plans and about 10% on Premium and Plus; add-ons are not discounted.
Rise People
- Other savings
30% off platform fees with benefits
The pricing page says adding Rise employee benefits takes 30% off the Rise platform fees.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Breathe or Rise People?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Breathe starts at £24 per month for up to 10 employees, billed monthly (pounds, excluding VAT), and Rise People starts at C$8 per employee / month, plus a base fee.
Which has a free plan, Breathe or Rise People?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Breathe nor Rise People has a free plan. Breathe has a free trial.
Which platforms do Breathe and Rise People run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Breathe lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.