BrightHR and Breathe are two of the most popular HR software platforms for UK small businesses. Both handle the basics – absence management, holiday planning, and employee records – but they’re built on different models. BrightHR bundles HR advice and employment law support into its plans. Breathe focuses on clean, simple HR admin with optional paid add-ons.
BrightHR starts from £16.67/month for up to 5 employees and includes shift scheduling and performance management as standard. Breathe starts from £24/month for up to 10 employees with a simpler feature set but lower per-head cost as you scale. The right choice depends on whether you need HR advice or just HR admin.
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We verified all pricing from brighthr.com and breathehr.com in February 2026. This comparison covers pricing tiers, core features, add-ons, and the specific business sizes each platform suits best.
- BrightHR wins on price at £3 - per employee monthly versus Breathe’s £4.95 for basic HR
- Breathe offers 60% more features - including performance management, expenses, and document management capabilities
- BrightHR provides 24/7 phone support - while Breathe limits to business hours email and chat assistance
- Teams over 100 employees favour Breathe - for advanced reporting and performance tracking requirements
- BrightHR charges £1 extra monthly - for each add-on like rota management or advanced reporting
Quick Comparison
BrightHR bundles HR advice and compliance tools from £16.67/month. Breathe offers straightforward HR admin from £24/month for up to 10 people, with add-ons for rota, learning, recruitment, and expenses.
| BrightHR | Breathe | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From £16.67/month (5 employees) | £24/month (1-10 employees) |
| Pricing model | Tiered plans (Core, Enhanced, Full) | Headcount bands (Micro to Plus) |
| Absence management | Yes | Yes |
| Holiday planner | Yes | Yes |
| Shift scheduling | Included (all plans) | Add-on (£11/month) |
| Performance management | Included (all plans) | Included |
| 24/7 HR advice line | Enhanced plan and above | Not available |
| Recruitment | Not included | Add-on (£16/month) |
| Expenses | Included (all plans) | Add-on (£14/month) |
| Employee database | Yes | Yes |
| Document storage | Yes | Yes |
| Annual billing discount | Not published | ~15% off (Micro–Pro), ~10% off (Premium/Plus) |
Pricing Breakdown
BrightHR uses tiered plans with different feature levels. Breathe uses headcount bands where all features are included on every plan, with specialist tools as paid add-ons.
| Plan / Band | Monthly Cost | What’s Included |
|---|---|---|
| BrightHR Core | From £16.67/month | Holiday planner, shifts, rotas, absence, performance, overtime, expenses |
| BrightHR Enhanced | From £21.20/month | Core + 24/7 HR advice line, employment law updates, HR templates |
| BrightHR Full | From £28.20/month | Enhanced + health & safety advice, EAP wellbeing portal, NHS programmes |
| Breathe Micro | £24/month | All core features for 1-10 employees |
| Breathe Starter | £44/month | All core features for 11-20 employees |
| Breathe Regular | £99/month | All core features for 21-50 employees |
| Breathe Pro | £175/month | All core features for 51-100 employees |
For a business with 5 employees, BrightHR Core costs £16.67/month. Breathe’s Micro plan costs £24/month. BrightHR is cheaper and includes shift scheduling and expenses as standard – features that cost extra on Breathe.
At 20 employees, the maths shifts. Breathe’s Starter plan is £44/month flat. BrightHR’s per-employee pricing would scale higher. At 50 employees, Breathe charges £99/month – likely competitive against BrightHR’s scaled pricing, though BrightHR doesn’t publish exact per-head rates for larger teams.
The hidden cost with Breathe is add-ons. If you need rota management (£11/month), recruitment (£16/month), and expenses (£14/month), that’s £41/month on top of your base plan. BrightHR includes rotas and expenses in every plan, which means the headline price comparison isn’t the whole story.
BrightHR is cheaper for small teams (under 10) and includes more features as standard. Breathe becomes more cost-effective for larger teams (20+) where the flat monthly fee outweighs BrightHR’s per-employee scaling – provided you don’t need many add-ons.
Core HR Features
Both platforms cover the HR admin basics well. The differences emerge in scheduling, compliance support, and how each platform handles features beyond the core.
Absence and holiday management – both handle this equally well. Employees can request time off, managers approve via app or dashboard, and remaining allowances update automatically. This is table stakes for any HR platform in 2026.
Shift scheduling – BrightHR includes rota planning on all plans. Breathe charges £11/month extra for its Rota, Time & Attendance add-on. If you run a business with shift workers (retail, hospitality, healthcare), BrightHR’s bundled scheduling is a genuine cost saver.
Performance management – both include this as standard. Set goals, schedule reviews, track progress. Neither platform offers the depth of a dedicated performance tool like Lattice or 15Five, but both cover the basics that UK SMEs actually need.
Document storage and employee records – both provide centralised digital storage for contracts, policies, and employee documents. Breathe’s interface is widely praised for being clean and intuitive. BrightHR’s is functional but more feature-dense.
HR Advice and Compliance
BrightHR’s Enhanced and Full plans include a 24/7 HR advice line staffed by employment law specialists. Breathe doesn’t offer HR advisory services – it’s software only. This is the single biggest differentiator between the two platforms.
BrightHR is owned by Peninsula, one of the UK’s largest employment law consultancies. The HR advice line gives you access to qualified advisors who can help with disciplinary procedures, redundancy processes, contract queries, and day-to-day employment law questions. For small businesses without an in-house HR person, this is genuinely valuable.
The Full plan adds health and safety advisory services, accident reporting, and an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) with NHS-approved wellbeing programmes. If you’re in a sector with H&S obligations (construction, manufacturing, hospitality), this bundle could replace a separate H&S consultant.
Breathe takes a different approach: give you the tools to manage HR yourself. It assumes you either have some HR knowledge or will source advice elsewhere (an HR consultant, ACAS, or your accountant). The trade-off is a cleaner, simpler interface with less complexity.
Add-Ons and Extras
Breathe offers four paid add-ons for specialist functions. BrightHR bundles more into its base plans but has fewer options for expanding into recruitment or learning.
| Feature | BrightHR | Breathe |
|---|---|---|
| Rota & time tracking | Included | £11/month add-on |
| Expenses | Included | £14/month add-on |
| Recruitment (ATS) | Not available | £16/month add-on |
| Learning (LMS) | Not available | £15/month add-on |
| HR advice line | Enhanced plan (24/7) | Not available |
| Health & safety | Full plan | Not available |
| EAP / wellbeing | Full plan | Not available |
If you’re growing and plan to hire, Breathe’s recruitment add-on (£16/month) gives you an applicant tracking system within the same platform – post jobs, track candidates, and onboard new hires without switching tools. BrightHR doesn’t offer this.
Breathe’s Learn add-on (£15/month) provides an LMS for training and compliance courses. Again, BrightHR doesn’t have an equivalent. For businesses in regulated sectors where training records matter, this is a useful addition.
BrightHR vs Breathe: Strengths Compared
BrightHR wins on bundled value and HR advisory support. Breathe wins on simplicity, scalability, and specialist add-ons for recruitment and learning.
Our Verdict
BrightHR is the better choice for small businesses that need HR guidance alongside the software. Breathe is better for businesses that just need clean, straightforward HR admin and want to add specialist tools as they grow.
Choose BrightHR if you don’t have an HR person and need someone to call when an employee raises a grievance, you’re unsure about a disciplinary process, or you need help writing a contract. The 24/7 advice line is worth the price difference alone for businesses navigating employment law without in-house expertise.
Choose Breathe if you’re comfortable handling HR processes yourself and want a clean tool that stays out of your way. Breathe’s interface is simpler, its headcount pricing is transparent, and the recruitment and learning add-ons give you room to grow without switching platforms.
For teams under 10, BrightHR Core offers more for less. For teams of 20-100, Breathe’s flat pricing often works out cheaper – especially if you don’t need the advisory services that justify BrightHR’s premium.
Considering other options? Best HR software for small business compares 10+ UK platforms. Deel vs Remote covers international HR platforms, and our HR software costs guide breaks down what you should expect to pay.
