Zoho People alternatives in India: HRMS with payroll included
Zoho People is Zoho's HR app, with Essential HR, Professional, Premium and Enterprise editions and a free edition for a small number of users. Payroll, recruitment and expenses are separate Zoho products (Zoho Payroll, Recruit and Expense), bundled together as Zoho People Plus.
That split is the main reason Indian buyers compare alternatives: many want payroll, statutory compliance and HR in a single product. Others are not on the Zoho suite and do not need its integrations, or want a different free plan.
The alternatives below are grouped by that need, with modules taken from each vendor's own pages.
The closest alternatives to Zoho People are sumHR (₹49 per user/month · Startup plan, billed annually), Kredily (Free plan), Zimyo (₹60/mo), HRStop (₹60/mo) and Keka HR (₹6,999/mo). Kredily is the top-ranked option with a free plan. Published prices in this list start at ₹40/month.
Why businesses compare Zoho People with other HRMS platforms
Payroll in the same product
Zoho sells payroll as a separate product. Many HRMS vendors include Indian payroll in the core app.
Not on the Zoho suite
Zoho People's biggest advantage is the Zoho ecosystem. Companies that don't use it lose less by switching.
Statutory compliance
If PF, ESI, PT and TDS are the priority, compare vendors that name them on their own payroll pages.
Free plans
Zoho's free edition is limited to a small number of users. Other vendors publish different free limits.
Zoho People alternatives by requirement
Is Indian statutory payroll the priority?
If PF, ESI, PT and TDS are the reason you are buying, check that the vendor names each one on its own site.
If you already run on Zoho, compare Zoho People Plus against a single-product HRMS on total cost. If you don't, weight Indian payroll and statutory compliance first, because that is where the products differ most.
Start with payroll. If the statutory side is wrong, nothing else matters — ask the vendor to run a live payroll for a sample employee in your state and show you the PF, ESI and PT calculations.
Next, check how attendance actually reaches the system. Biometric device integration, geo-tagged mobile check-in and shift rostering are three very different problems, and most vendors are strong at one and weak at the others.
Finally, look at what happens at scale. Many Indian HRMS products are priced per employee per month with a floor of fifty or a hundred employees, which makes them expensive for a twenty-person team and cheap for a five-hundred-person one.
Zoho People alternatives — FAQs
What is the best alternative to Zoho People in 2027?+
The closest matches to Zoho People on App Advisor are sumHR (₹49 per user/month · Startup plan, billed annually), Kredily (Free plan), Zimyo (₹60/mo). They are ranked by how closely their category, pricing model, platforms and target business size match Zoho People, then by rating. The best choice depends on your team size and budget.
Is there a free alternative to Zoho People?+
Yes. 4 of the 20 alternatives listed have a free plan or are free: Kredily (Free plan), GreytHR Payroll (Free plan), Empxtrack (Free plan). Free plans usually cap users, records or transactions, so check the limits against your monthly volume.
What is the cheapest alternative to Zoho People?+
Among alternatives that publish a price, Nitso HRMS starts lowest at ₹40/mo, compared with ₹48/mo for Zoho People. Kredily also has a free plan. Prices are read from each vendor's website and exclude GST.
Is there an Indian alternative to Zoho People?+
Yes. 20 alternatives are built in India, including sumHR (₹49 per user/month · Startup plan, billed annually), Kredily (Free plan), Zimyo (₹60/mo). Indian products usually handle GST, TDS and UPI natively and bill in rupees.
Zoho People vs sumHR: which is better?+
sumHR is the closest match to Zoho People in our catalogue. Key differences: No free plan, unlike Zoho People; Starts ₹1/mo higher (₹49 per user/month · Startup plan, billed annually vs ₹48/mo). Compare them side by side before you book a demo.
How were these Zoho People alternatives chosen?+
Every product listed sits in hrms software or a category Zoho People also covers, and Zoho Corporation's own products are excluded. Prices, free plans and platforms come from each vendor's official website. App Advisor does not sell any of this software.
Free shortlist
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Tell us your team size and budget and we'll send a shortlist of three.
greytHR — statutory payroll with PF, ESI and TDS reports · greytHR alternatives
factoHR — PF, ESI, PT and TDS named on its payroll pages · factoHR alternatives
Pocket HRMS — PF, ESIC, PT and TDS included in payroll · Pocket HRMS alternatives
247HRM — PF, ESI, PT and TDS across 22 states · 247HRM alternatives
Spine HR — PF, ESIC, PT, TDS and LWF in its HR suite · Spine HR alternatives
