HR management covering attendance, leave, onboarding and performance.
Starts at
₹48/mo
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HR & Payroll
Employee onboarding software takes a new hire from signed offer to productive employee: collecting documents, running background checks, issuing appointment letters, provisioning laptops and accounts, and scheduling induction. In India it also means capturing PAN, Aadhaar, UAN and bank details correctly the first time, so payroll and PF work from the first month.
Top rated here
1Zoho People
HR management covering attendance, leave, onboarding and performance.
₹48/mo

Kredily
Free HR and payroll software for small businesses.
Free plan

Keka HR
Modern HRMS with payroll, attendance and performance for growing Indian companies.
₹6,999/mo

Timelabs
Attendance, payroll and HRMS.
Paid plans
sumHR
HRMS with attendance, payroll and performance for SMEs.
₹49 per user/month · Startup plan, billed annually
HR management covering attendance, leave, onboarding and performance.
Starts at
₹48/mo
Free HR and payroll software for small businesses.
Starts at
Free plan
Modern HRMS with payroll, attendance and performance for growing Indian companies.
Starts at
₹6,999/mo
Attendance, payroll and HRMS.
Starts at
Paid plans
HRMS with attendance, payroll and performance for SMEs.
Starts at
₹49 per user/month · Startup plan, billed annually
HR platform with payroll, expense and performance.
Starts at
₹2,450/mo
HRMS and payroll with employee benefits for SMEs.
Starts at
₹60/mo
HRMS and payroll for SMEs.
Starts at
₹60/mo
HR, payroll and attendance suite with mobile app.
Starts at
On request
HRMS with payroll, attendance and an employee self-service app.
Starts at
On request
Employee journey platform that helps HR deliver personalised, cross-functional onboarding at scale, with preboarding, offboarding and transitions. | employee-onboarding
Starts at
On request
AI presenter that gives each person on your list a live, private one-on-one presentation
Starts at
Free plan
Onboarding module of OrangeHRM for welcoming new hires, part of an HR platform with recruitment, leave and performance tools. | employee-onboarding
Starts at
Free plan
HR compliance software for I-9, E-Verify and employment forms, plus a WorkBright+ service that handles I-9 tasks. | employee-onboarding
Starts at
Paid plans
Onboarding app for preboarding and onboarding new employees, with templates, checklists, push notifications and reporting. | employee-onboarding
Starts at
Paid plans
Frontline HR platform whose Onboard product automates new-hire onboarding alongside core HR, engagement and time tools. | employee-onboarding
Starts at
On request
Onboarding tool within Paycom's single-database HR and payroll software, alongside applicant tracking and E-Verify. | employee-onboarding
Starts at
On request
AI-powered HRIS for growing teams that automates onboarding, manages global employee data and runs people operations. | employee-onboarding
Starts at
On request
HR software for UK businesses covering onboarding, time off, payroll, devices and app access in one platform. | employee-onboarding
Starts at
Paid plans
HR, payroll and hiring platform for small and medium businesses, with onboarding, leave management and employee records. | employee-onboarding
Starts at
Paid plans
Employee handbook builder with templates, compliance updates and e-signature acknowledgements for HR teams
Starts at
Paid plans
HR platform for payroll, people management, hiring, onboarding and time tracking. | employee-onboarding
Starts at
Paid plans
Training and process documentation platform to build a company playbook for onboarding
Starts at
Paid plans
Ordered by App Advisor rating. Nothing here is paid placement — see how we rate software.
Check that onboarding writes straight into your payroll and HRMS records; re-keying data is where joining errors come from.
Test the new-hire experience on a phone: most Indian candidates complete forms on mobile.
If you hire in batches (campus, retail, BPO), look for bulk onboarding and bulk letter generation.
Schedule a demo
Most Indian HRMS suites (Keka, greytHR, Darwinbox, Zoho People) include an onboarding module. Standalone tools make sense when you hire in high volume or need richer pre-boarding and engagement.
Typically PAN, Aadhaar, bank details, previous employment and UAN for PF transfer, education certificates, and signed policy acknowledgements, plus background-verification consent.
India buyer's guide
Employee onboarding software organises everything between an accepted offer and a productive first month: collecting documents such as PAN, Aadhaar, bank details and previous employment proof, getting forms signed, arranging a laptop and access, assigning a buddy and running induction sessions. For Indian employers it also gathers the details payroll needs for PF, ESI and tax, so the new joiner is paid correctly from the first salary cycle.
Strong onboarding tools make the pre-joining period feel organised for the candidate and visible to HR, IT, admin and the hiring manager, with tasks assigned to each and reminders when something slips. Weak ones are little more than a document upload page; candidates drop off before day one, IT learns about new joiners on their first morning, and HR re-types data from uploaded files into payroll by hand.
The best onboarding software in India reduces both candidate drop-off before joining and the admin load after. Look for a branded pre-boarding portal on mobile, structured collection of statutory details like UAN, PAN and bank account with validation, e-signatures on appointment letters and policies, task lists that route to IT, admin and managers automatically, and a direct push of verified data into HRMS and payroll without re-entry.
| Product | Lowest published price | Free plan | Free trial | Demo |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ₹48 per user/month source | Yes source | 30 days source | On request source | |
KredilyMade in India | ₹0 per month source | Yes source | — | On request source |
Keka HRMade in India | ₹90 per additional employee source | — | — | On request source |
TimelabsMade in India | ₹3,250 per month for 50 employees (+₹50/emp beyond 50) source | — | 7 days source | On request source |
| ₹1,428 per employee/year source | — | — | On request source | |
| Not published | — | — | On request source | |
ZimyoMade in India | ₹80 per user/month (min 50 users) source | — | 14 days source | On request source |
factoHRMade in India | ₹0 per month (up to 20 employees) source | Yes source | Yes source | On request source |
HROneMade in India | ₹4,950 per month (50 users) source | — | Yes source | On request source |
Enboarder | Not published | — | — | On request source |
Checked on each vendor's official website (September 2026). A dash means the vendor does not publish it or we could not verify it — not that the feature is missing. Prices exclude GST unless the source says otherwise. App Advisor publishes no user ratings.
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Tell us your team size, city and budget. An advisor sends a shortlist that fits and arranges demos; vendors quote you directly. Compare prices for your team size before you commit.
Small businesses need a lightweight checklist-driven tool: send a welcome link, collect documents and bank details, get the appointment letter signed and remind the owner to set up email and a workstation. Choose something that can run from a phone and that exports joiner data in a format your payroll provider accepts. Complex journey builders are unnecessary at this size.
Onboarding tools built for India usually include forms for PF nomination, ESI declarations and previous employment UAN, with PAN and bank account validation. Many support Aadhaar-based e-signature, regional-language welcome content, background verification partners and document checklists that reflect Indian practice, such as relieving letters and salary slips. INR billing with GST invoices and local support hours are standard.
Zoho PeopleKredilyKeka HRTimelabssumHRQandleZimyoHRStop
App Advisor publishes no user ratings. Onboarding reviews tend to reflect the HR team's experience, not the new joiner's. In a trial, go through the joiner flow yourself on a basic Android phone, upload a blurred document to see if it is caught, sign a letter electronically, and check whether IT receives its task automatically. Then confirm the data arrives in payroll correctly. How App Advisor rates software.
Compare onboarding tools on the pre-boarding candidate portal, document collection with validation, e-signature options, statutory forms for PF and ESI, task automation across HR, IT, admin and managers, induction scheduling, buddy assignment, policy acknowledgement tracking, background verification integration, asset allocation, integration with ATS and HRMS, reporting on drop-offs and task delays, and document storage security.
Onboarding software is usually priced per employee per month as part of an HRMS, or per new hire onboarded when sold standalone. Some vendors charge per e-signature or per background verification check, often passed through from partner services. Enterprise plans may be priced on headcount bands with journey customisation included, while a few charge a flat fee for a fixed number of joiners each year.
Every published plan, its billing term and whether GST is extra is on the employee onboarding software price list for India, each price linked to the vendor's own pricing page.
Free onboarding plans generally allow basic checklists and document uploads for a small number of employees. E-signature, PF and ESI forms, custom workflows, HRMS integrations and branded candidate portals are usually paid. Storage limits for scanned documents may be low, and automated reminders to joiners or task routing to IT and admin may be missing entirely, leaving HR to chase everything by phone.
Trial lengths as each vendor states them are listed on the free employee onboarding software page.
Ask the vendor to show the candidate's view on a mobile phone, how incomplete or unreadable documents are flagged and chased, which statutory forms are included, how e-signatures are recorded with an audit trail, and how tasks are assigned to IT and managers. Also ask how background verification is triggered and what happens to uploaded data if the candidate withdraws before joining.
Startups onboarding many people quickly need a repeatable pre-boarding journey that reflects company culture: welcome videos, reading material, team introductions and a first-week plan, alongside document collection. Integration with email, chat and device provisioning tools means a laptop and logins are ready on day one. Pricing that scales with hiring bursts after a funding round is helpful.
MSMEs want onboarding that captures statutory details correctly from the start, avoiding PF and ESI registration errors, wrong UANs and missing bank details that delay the first salary. A simple mobile flow for joiners who may not use email, digital signing of appointment letters and a clear checklist for the owner or single HR person are the essentials at this size.
Manufacturers onboard operators, contract workers and staff, often in batches after a drive. Onboarding software should handle bulk joiners, safety induction with signed acknowledgement, medical fitness records, PPE and uniform issue, ESI and PF forms, and plant-wise training schedules. Assisted enrolment at an HR kiosk helps where workers lack smartphones or are uncomfortable filling forms themselves.
Retailers onboarding store staff need fast mobile document collection, store-wise joining schedules, product and customer service training modules, uniform issue and POS login creation before the first shift. With high attrition, the ability to re-onboard returning staff quickly from their earlier record, and to track completion by store and region, keeps new outlets from opening short-staffed.
Agencies onboard employees and sometimes freelancers or contractors on retainer. Useful features are separate journeys for each type, NDA and IP assignment signing, access provisioning for client tools and shared drives, and first-week project allocation. Staff deployed at client sites may need that client's policies acknowledged and security checks completed as part of the same onboarding flow.
Onboarding software subscriptions are charged GST at 18%, and a proper tax invoice showing your GSTIN and the vendor's GSTIN lets you claim input tax credit. The software does not touch your GST filings. If background verification checks or e-signature credits are billed separately by partner services, make sure those invoices are GST-compliant as well so the credit is not lost.
Consider switching when joiners regularly drop off before day one, HR still re-enters data manually into payroll, or statutory forms are missing. Before moving, export all employee documents, signed letters and their audit trails, and confirm the evidential value of past e-signatures is preserved. Check contract notice periods and plan the migration between hiring waves, not during one.
Zoho People alternativesKredily alternativesKeka HR alternativesTimelabs alternativessumHR alternativesQandle alternatives
Affiliate programmes for onboarding software usually pay for referred customers who subscribe, sometimes on a recurring basis while the account stays active. Check attribution windows, payout rules and restrictions on paid search. HR content creators should recommend tools that genuinely handle Indian statutory onboarding, such as PF and ESI forms, rather than generic task checklists.
Partner programmes often suit HR consultants and HRMS implementers who configure onboarding journeys for clients. Check the training offered, sandbox access, support escalation paths, co-selling opportunities and who is responsible for protecting joiners' Aadhaar and bank data. Some partners also bundle background verification or device provisioning services into their implementation work. Ask whether partners can reuse journey templates across clients to cut setup time.
Resellers typically buy licences at a discount and bundle onboarding with payroll outsourcing or HR services. Review pricing freedom, white-label options for the candidate portal, contract length, renewal ownership and data processing obligations for sensitive documents. GST-compliant invoicing to end customers is the reseller's responsibility, as is first-line support when a joiner cannot upload files.
All verified programs across categories are in the software partner program directory. More India software guides: business software in India.
Electronic signatures are recognised under the Information Technology Act, including Aadhaar-based eSign. Simple click-to-accept methods are widely used for employment documents, but check with your legal adviser for specific agreements, and make sure the software keeps an audit trail showing who signed, when and from which device.
Many Indian onboarding tools include PF nomination forms, UAN capture for previous employment and ESI declarations. This helps payroll register new joiners correctly in the first month. Confirm that the fields collected match exactly what your payroll system or payroll provider expects to import.
Regular engagement through the pre-boarding portal helps: welcome messages, team introductions and clear information about the first day. The software can show which candidates have not opened links or completed tasks, an early signal of possible drop-off, so HR or the manager can call them.
Some onboarding tools integrate with verification providers to start education, employment and address checks once the candidate submits documents. Costs are usually charged per check. Make sure the candidate gives explicit consent before verification begins and can see which checks are being run.
Look for encryption, role-based access limiting who can open Aadhaar or bank details, and audit logs of every view. Ask where data is stored and how long it is retained. Masking all but the last four Aadhaar digits is good practice and some tools do it automatically.
Many tools let you create separate journeys for contract or temporary workers with a shorter document list. Check whether they count towards licence costs, and whether you can share their records with the contractor who employs them for PF and ESI compliance.
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