Comparison

Breathe HR vs BrightHR

A side-by-side comparison of two UK employee platforms — pricing, contract terms, feature coverage. Every claim below is sourced from each company's public website or filings, verified 2026-06-10. This page is published by WagePerks as part of our sourced-claims comparison series; you'll find a "third option" section at the end if you'd like to consider us too.

Pricing

What you'll actually pay

Breathe HR

£24–£579 / business / month

Banded per-business: Micro £24 (1–10), Starter £44 (11–20), Regular £99 (21–50), Pro £175 (51–100), Premium £419 (101–150), Plus £579 (151–200)

Contract: Rolling monthly
Pricing published: Yes
Category: UK HR-only platform for SMEs
Customer count: 17,000+ UK SME customers (self-reported)

BrightHR

£16.67–£28.20 / employee / month

Core £16.67, Enhanced £21.20, Full £28.20 — exc. VAT, 5-employee minimum

Contract: 24, 36 or 60-month fixed-term contracts
Pricing published: Yes
Category: UK HR, payroll, employment law and health & safety platform
Customer count: 120,000+ businesses globally (self-reported)

Features

Feature-by-feature comparison

All rows sourced from each company's public website, verified 2026-06-10. See the full source list at the bottom of this page.

Feature	Breathe HR	BrightHR
UK brand discounts	Not included	Bright Exchange (free perks marketplace, no cashback)
Discount voucher codes	Not advertised	Not advertised
24/7 GP access	Not included	Not advertised in any tier
Employee Assistance Programme	Not included	Full tier (£28.20) only
HR management	Yes	Yes (from Core)
Rota / shift management	Paid add-on (Rota T&A module)	Yes
GPS clock in/out	Paid add-on (Rota T&A module)	Yes (Blip)
Absence & leave	Yes	Yes
Payslip / P60 access	Via paid Xero integration	Via separate BrightHR Payroll module
Document management	Yes	Yes
Recognition & rewards	Not advertised	Not advertised
White-label branding	Logo upload only	Not advertised
Mobile app	Yes (iOS + Android shipped)	Yes (iOS + Android shipped)
Contract length	Rolling monthly	24–60 months fixed-term

Breathe HR

Where Breathe HR has depth

Sourced from https://www.breathehr.com/en-gb/, verified 2026-06-10.

Native iOS and Android apps shipped
Performance management module (reviews, appraisals, goals) included in Core HR
17,000+ UK SME customers since launch in 2012 (see renewal-pricing notes for one customer's report of a 57% rise post-acquisition)

Centric HR Ltd (trading as Breathe HR)

Incorporated 2012 (launch year). Ownership: ELMO Software (acquired Oct 2020); ELMO taken private by K1 Investment Management (2022).

BrightHR

Where BrightHR has depth

Sourced from https://www.brighthr.com/, verified 2026-06-10.

24/7 employment-law phone line via Peninsula's law team (parent group is a law/HR consultancy), from Enhanced tier (£21.20 PEPM) upward
Risk assessments and accident reporting in Full tier (£28.20 PEPM)
BrightHR Payroll module available as a separate paid add-on, including payslip generation
120,000+ business customers globally (self-reported on brighthr.com homepage)

BrightHR Ltd

Companies House 09283467

Incorporated 28 October 2014. Ownership: Peninsula Business Services Group Ltd.

A third option to consider

WagePerks: one platform that covers both categories

Breathe HR and BrightHR each cover different slices of the employee experience. WagePerks bundles eleven modules — benefits marketplace with voucher codes at purchase, HR, rotas, GPS clock-in, payslips, recognition, documents and an optional 24/7 GP + EAP add-on — at £4.50 per employee per month, rolling monthly.

£4.50 / employee / month

Published per-employee rate on the WagePerks pricing page. All eleven modules included at the headline price. Optional 24/7 GP + EAP add-on quoted on call.

Rolling monthly

Cancel with 30 days' written notice — no multi-year fixed-term contracts, no automatic renewals. Independent UK company (Wageperks Ltd, Companies House SC824820), no PE owner.

Eleven modules under one brand

Benefits marketplace, HR, rotas, GPS clock-in, payslips, documents, e-signatures, onboarding, recognition, absence, plus white-label branding — all included at the headline price.

Book a 20-minute demo vs Breathe HR vs BrightHR

Sources & verification

All claims on this page are sourced from each company's public website, App Store listing, or Companies House public filings — verified 2026-06-10. This page is published by WagePerks as part of our sourced-claims comparison series. We re-verify quarterly. Email us if anything's gone stale.