Sage HR

Sage HR takes a modular approach that suits how South African businesses actually grow. You start with the core module, which covers the employee database, leave management and approvals, then switch on extra modules only when the team needs them. Nothing forces you into a bloated suite on day one.

The South African pricing is published openly on Sage's own calculator and is charged per employee per month, excluding VAT. Core HR with leave management costs R28. Timesheets add R14, performance management adds R14, shift scheduling adds R14 and expenses add R10, each per employee per month. Recruitment is the exception: it is a flat R1,850 per month for the module regardless of headcount, covering job ads, an applicant pipeline and interview scheduling. So a 20 person company running core HR with performance lands at R840 per month before VAT, which undercuts most international rivals at current exchange rates.

Employee self service is the heart of the product. Staff request leave, view documents, submit expenses and complete reviews from the mobile app, while managers get org charts, workflows and approvals without the email chains. It sits naturally beside Sage Accounting and Sage Business Cloud Payroll, and there is a 30 day free trial to test it with your own team.