HiBob vs Zoho People
We give HiBob a 2.0 GPA and Zoho People a 2.4, out of 4.0. Zoho People grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Zoho People
Low-cost HR records, attendance, shifts and reviews from Zoho
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAHiBobFair | 2.4GPAZoho PeopleFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CNo price is published: the pricing page is a demo form, and each company is quoted for the suites it picks on top of the required Core. So we can't say what a ten-person company pays, and with no figure to compare, it's a C. | CWorkforce is $5 a user a month on yearly billing, the cheapest plan with time off, so a ten-person company pays $50. It adds attendance and timesheets too. That's under this category's middle; Essential HR is $3 but leaves time off out. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan and no trial. The pricing page is a demo request form. | CFree for up to 3 users, with records, time off and documents. Fine for a look around, but a ten-person team is well past it. There's also a 30-day trial. |
| Features | BRecords, org charts and self-service, time off and clock-ins, reviews, learning, hiring, analytics, and US and UK payroll. That's the whole HR job and more, though outside the US and UK it hands pay data to another provider. | BRecords, onboarding, documents, an HR help desk, time off, attendance by kiosk or biometric device, shift rosters, timesheets, goals, appraisals and courses. The whole job, though payroll and hiring are separate Zoho apps. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record, and choosing suites on top of Core and setting up workflows comes with a sales process. | CNo App Store rating on record, and with features split between Workforce and Talent, you'll need to think before you pick a plan. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Slack, Google Workspace, ADP Workforce Now, Paylocity, TriNet and Xero. No desktop app. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, QuickBooks, Slack and Zoho's own apps. No desktop app. |
| Best for | mid-sized teams with staff in several countries | low-cost HR for small businesses |
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: HiBob and Zoho People. How we grade
Where they differ
- Zoho People has a free plan. HiBob does not.
- HiBob also covers payroll and applicant tracking.
- Zoho People also covers shift scheduling and time clock.
At a glance
| HiBob | Zoho People | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free plan |
| Starts at | Not published | $3 per user / month, billed annually ($4 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | Free for up to 3 users: employee database, time off and vacation planning, and document management. |
| Free trial | None listed | 30-day free trial |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | HiBob | Zoho Corporation |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | zoho.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
HiBob
- Mid-sized companies with staff in several countries
- HR teams that want one record behind hiring, reviews and payroll
- US or UK employers wanting HR and payroll in one system
Zoho People
- Small businesses that want HR at a low price per user
- Companies already using Zoho apps such as Recruit, Expense or Payroll
- Employers that track attendance with kiosks or biometric devices
Worth knowing
HiBob
- No prices are published: the pricing page is a demo request form, and each company is quoted for the suites it picks.
- Core is required, and Talent, Payroll, Planning and Finance are bought as separate suites on top of it.
- Runs its own payroll only in the US and the UK; in other countries it passes data to an outside payroll provider.
Zoho People
- The free plan stops at 3 users in the US (5 elsewhere) and covers only records, time off and documents.
- Payroll and recruiting are separate Zoho products; the People Plus bundle with Recruit, Expense, Sign and others is $9 per user a month billed annually.
- Workforce and Talent each cover half the toolset: getting both attendance and performance reviews means Enterprise.
- Companies with more than 500 users are asked to request a quote.
Key features
HiBob
- Core HRIS and self-service
- Every customer starts with Core: people data, org charts, requests and approvals, and employee self-service, with localized workflows for global teams.
- Time off and attendance
- Policies for PTO and sick leave, timesheets and clock-in and clock-out, with hours and leave flowing straight into payroll.
- US and UK payroll
- US payroll files taxes in all 50 states on Gusto's embedded engine; UK payroll handles HMRC tax codes, P11Ds, P60s and IR35 contractors.
- Payroll Hub for other providers
- Syncs pay changes to outside payroll systems such as ADP Workforce Now, Paylocity, TriNet and Xero, with a no-code setup for others.
- Hiring, reviews and learning
- An applicant tracking system with access to over 2,300 job boards and a branded careers page, plus 360-degree reviews, goals and courses.
- Bob AI and analytics
- Ask Bob to find pages or answer questions, draft feedback and goals, and summarize reviews; analytics offer over 150 metrics and 35 dashboards.
Zoho People
- Employee records and documents
- A central employee database with self-service profiles, multi-entity management, onboarding and offboarding flows, exit interviews and document storage.
- Attendance and time off
- Staff check in on the web, the mobile app, a face-recognition kiosk or a biometric device, with IP and location limits, leave policies and accruals.
- Shift rosters and timesheets
- Create shifts, rotate them automatically, take shift-change requests, and log time against jobs and clients for approval.
- Goals, appraisals and training
- The Talent plan adds OKRs, appraisals with feedback, and a learning management system for courses.
- Zia AI
- Zoho's assistant answers employees' questions, carries out HR tasks and analyzes people data.
- HR help desk and surveys
- Employees raise cases with HR in a help desk, and HR runs eNPS, pulse and engagement surveys.
Plans
HiBob
Pricing could not be confirmed. See hibob.com.
Zoho People
Free$0
Up to 3 users, with the employee database, time off and documents.
Essential HR$3
per user / month, billed annually ($4 billed monthly)
AI agent, onboarding and offboarding, documents, benefits and compensation planning, engagement surveys, HR help desk and reports.
Workforce$5
per user / month, billed annually ($6 billed monthly)
Essential HR plus time off, attendance for full-time staff and timesheets with overtime rules.
Talent$5
per user / month, billed annually ($6 billed monthly)
Essential HR plus OKRs, performance evaluations and a learning management system.
Enterprise$8
per user / month, billed annually ($10 billed monthly)
Essential HR, Workforce and Talent together, plus a sandbox and premium support.
Ways to pay less
HiBob
No public discounts listed.
Zoho People
- Annual discount
Over 20% off with yearly billing
Zoho says yearly billing saves more than 20%: Essential HR is $3 a user a month billed yearly against $4 monthly.
