HollyHR vs CharlieHR
CharlieHR is a well-liked, founder-friendly HR tool for UK startups. Here's an honest look at how HollyHR compares — including where Charlie is still the better choice.
Key takeaways
£0 for invited five-person teams
A 5-person team is £45/month on Charlie and £0 on HollyHR Free for invited early-access teams. Standard is £2 per active person before tax when offered, with no bands.
Your export includes eligible files
One action prepares 14 named CSV areas, eligible uploaded files and manifests within stated limits.
Governed developer routes
Approved API reads are on every plan; signed webhooks are Standard and hosted MCP is a developer preview.
Charlie wins on perks & advice
A built-in perks marketplace, an HR-advice add-on, and performance and engagement tools HollyHR hasn't built.
Both are modern HR tools for small UK teams, covering time off, people records, documents and onboarding. For invited early-access teams, HollyHR Free is £0 for up to 10 active people; Standard is £2 per active person per month before tax when offered, with every active person counting. CharlieHR's current 1–4-person promotion is £5/month for six months and £20/month afterwards; five to fourteen people is £45. Charlie brings a polished startup feel, a built-in employee-perks marketplace and paid HR-advice and recruitment add-ons; HollyHR competes on focused scope, per-person pricing and a bounded archive.
The structural difference is focus and openness. HollyHR documents a governed beta REST API with approved reads on every plan, signed-webhook management on Standard and a developer-preview hosted MCP route. Its organisation archive bundles 14 named CSV areas, eligible uploaded files and manifests within stated limits; it is not a full backup or lossless round trip. Charlie publishes an API, direct integrations and third-party unified-API routes. We found no public Charlie native-webhook or MCP documentation on 18 July 2026. Charlie pulls ahead today on perks, advice, performance and engagement.
CharlieHR facts checked 18 July 2026Spotted a change? Tell us
At a glance
The whole comparison in thirty seconds — details in the sections below.
| Comparison dimension | HollyHR | CharlieHR |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | ✓Invited Free ≤ 10 | ✗7-day trial only |
| Pricing model | ✓£2 per active person | ±Headcount bands |
| Core HR (leave, records, documents) | ✓Included | ✓Included |
| Regular-hours part-time pro-rata | ✓Current-FTE automatic | ✓Automatic from effective date |
| Self-serve export incl. eligible files | ✓One action | ±Export available |
| Public API | ±Approved reads, every plan | ±Limited |
| Native webhooks | ±Signed, on Standard | ±No public docs found |
| AI-assistant access (MCP) | ±Hosted developer preview | ±No public MCP docs found |
| Employee perks marketplace | ✗Not offered | ✓Built in |
| Performance & engagement | ✗Not yet | ✓Included |
| HR advice line | ✗Not offered | ±Paid add-on |
What does each one cost?
HollyHR bills per active person; Charlie bills in headcount bands, with perks included and advice/recruitment as paid add-ons. Worked examples below, monthly, ex VAT.
| Comparison dimension | HollyHR | CharlieHR |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | £2 per active person (Standard)Every active person counts, from your first. Free is a separate plan for up to 10. | Headcount bands1–4: £5 for six months, £20 afterwards · 5–14: £45 · 15–29: £105 · 30–49: £180 · 50–99: £315. |
| Free option | ✓Invited teams: £0 ≤ 10 activeControlled early access; joining the list creates no account or trial. | ✗7-day free trialNo card. No free tier after. |
| A team of 4 | ✓£0 | £5 promo; £20 afterwardsCurrent 75% promotion lasts six months for new 1–4-person customers. |
| A team of 5 | ✓£0 | £45Crossing into the 5–14 band more than doubles the bill. |
| A team of 10 | ✓£0 on Free | £45 |
| A team of 25 | £50 on Standard | £105 |
| A team of 50 | £100 | £315 |
| Very large teams | £2 per person, uncapped | ✓£735 flat at 250+Above ~370 people, Charlie's flat top band beats per-person pricing. |
| Extras | One price for core HRWorkforce modules arrive as one Plus tier — coming soon. | Perks included; advice & recruit paidCharlie Advice from £179/mo · Charlie Recruit from £55/mo. |
How do they compare day to day?
Both are clean, modern products — Charlie's polish is real, and HollyHR treats ease of use as the bar, not the target.
| Comparison dimension | HollyHR | CharlieHR |
|---|---|---|
| Time off & approvals | ✓Full flow, plus bulk approvalRequests, overlap detection, live balances — and approve a backlog in one go. | ✓Time off included |
| Regular-hours part-timers | ✓Current-FTE pro-rataContracted hours set current FTE and allowance; the effective pattern sets request duration. | ✓Effective-date pro-rataCharlie says custom working weeks automatically pro-rate allowance from their effective date. |
| Who's away | ✓Shared calendar + iCal feedLeave and sickness with UK public holidays; subscribe from any calendar app. | ✓Team calendar included |
| Documents & onboarding | ✓Private files, acknowledgements & onboardingProfile files and HTTPS-linked requirements are separate; no unified library or e-signature today. | ✓Documents & onboarding included |
| Performance & engagement | ✗Not yetNot part of the core product today. | ✓Reviews & surveys includedA genuine Charlie strength for teams that want them today. |
| Employee perks | ✗Not offered | ✓Built-in marketplaceDiscounts across thousands of brands — a real Charlie draw. |
Which is easier to leave?
We think you should judge HR software by how it treats you on the way out — it's the honest test of how it treats you while you stay.
| Comparison dimension | HollyHR | CharlieHR |
|---|---|---|
| Broad organisation export | ✓Bounded archive, one action14 named CSV areas, eligible uploaded files and manifests within published limits. | ±Export available |
| Getting data in | ✓CSV import with smart mappingBring your export from Charlie or a spreadsheet. | ✓Import supported |
| Contract & cancelling | ✓Monthly/yearly; period-endStripe-billed customers cancel in-app; export before workspace closure. | ✓No long-term contract |
Which works with your other tools — and with AI?
This is the widest gap between the two products, and it compounds: every year, more of your tools will want to talk to your HR system.
| Comparison dimension | HollyHR | CharlieHR |
|---|---|---|
| Public API | ±Documented REST + OpenAPI + SDKGoverned beta; approved organisation-scoped reads are on every plan. | ✓Published API + integrationsCharlie documents API keys, selected direct integrations and third-party unified-API routes. |
| Webhooks | ±Signed, on StandardSigned-webhook management is a Standard entitlement; event scope is documented. | ±No public native docs foundNo public native webhook documentation found on 18 July 2026. |
| AI assistants | ±Hosted MCP developer previewApproved projected reads; writes need Standard, explicit approval and confirmation and are off by default. | ±No public MCP docs foundNo public first-party MCP documentation found on 18 July 2026. |
| Payroll & calendars | ✓Clean payroll export + iCal | ✓Integrations available |
Who's behind it, and what happens when you need help?
| Comparison dimension | HollyHR | CharlieHR |
|---|---|---|
| Support & advice | Founder-ledQuestions go to the small team building the product. | ✓Support + paid HR adviceCharlie Advice adds real employment-law guidance — a genuine strength. |
| Track record | ±New in 2026This page distinguishes shipped from coming-soon capability. | ✓Established UK startup HR |
| Sign-in & security | ✓Magic links, Google sign-in, MFAThe first-login journey is tested automatically on every release. | ✓Standard sign-in |
| Your data's home | ✓UK/EU hostingDurable records in the UK/EU; sub-processor list published. | ✓UK-based, GDPR compliant |
Which one fits your team?
An honest read of where each product is the better choice today.
Choose HollyHR if…
- You have 10 or fewer people and are invited into controlled early access — Free is £0; Charlie's current 1–4 promotion is £5 for six months and £20 afterwards.
- You want pricing that scales exactly with your team, with no band cliff (Charlie moves to £45 at your fifth hire).
- You want a bounded self-service archive with eligible document files, manifests and published exclusions.
- You want governed API reads on every plan, signed-webhook management on Standard and optional developer-preview MCP access.
- You need repeating multi-week schedules; Charlie says it cannot track irregular working weeks.
Choose CharlieHR if…
- You want a built-in employee-perks marketplace — Charlie's discounts across thousands of brands are a real draw for retention.
- You need performance reviews or engagement surveys today, which HollyHR hasn't built yet.
- You want an HR-advice line for employment-law questions and don't mind paying for the add-on.
- You have a very large team (roughly 370+), where Charlie's flat top band can beat per-person pricing.
Don't take our word for it — check the sources: CharlieHR's current pricing page · CharlieHR's API documentation · CharlieHR's integrations and API help · CharlieHR's custom working-week guide · CharlieHR's company working-week guide · CharlieHR reviews on G2 · CharlieHR reviews on Capterra
Continue the decision: Compare more CharlieHR alternatives · inspect the HollyHR export boundary
Switching from CharlieHR?
Export people data from Charlie as CSV, then map the supported 12-field people shape in HollyHR. Leave, balances, history, managers, working patterns, documents and configuration need separate reconciliation; there is no one-click migration or universal timeframe.
HollyHR is in controlled early access. Joining the list creates no account or trial. Invited teams of up to 10 active people can use Free; the bounded self-service organisation archive remains available if the fit is wrong.
Questions people ask
Is HollyHR a good alternative to CharlieHR?
It can be for invited UK teams that want focused core HR, per-person pricing, a bounded self-service archive and governed developer routes. HollyHR covers time off, people records, documents, onboarding and who's away; Free is £0 up to 10 active people and Standard is £2 per active person per month before tax when offered. Charlie remains a strong choice if you want its perks marketplace, performance and engagement tools, or an HR-advice add-on today.
Is HollyHR cheaper than CharlieHR?
At the published prices checked on 18 July 2026, invited HollyHR teams of up to 10 active people pay £0. Charlie's current new-customer promotion is £5/month for 1–4 people for six months and £20/month afterwards; five to fourteen people is £45. At 25 people HollyHR Standard is £50 before tax when offered and Charlie is £105. Compare availability, scope and the signed term—not only the headline.
Does CharlieHR have a free plan?
No — CharlieHR offers a 7-day free trial with no card, then moves to paid headcount bands. For invited early-access teams, HollyHR Free is £0 for up to 10 active people and is not time-limited. Joining HollyHR's list does not itself create an account or start a trial.
Does CharlieHR have an API or webhooks?
Charlie publishes API documentation, API-key setup, selected direct integrations and third-party unified-API routes. We found no public Charlie native-webhook or MCP documentation on 18 July 2026, which is not proof that no private or partner route exists. HollyHR documents a governed beta REST API with generated OpenAPI and a public-preview TypeScript SDK; approved organisation-scoped reads are on every plan, signed-webhook management is Standard and hosted MCP is a developer preview.
What does CharlieHR do that HollyHR doesn't?
Charlie includes an employee-perks marketplace, performance reviews and engagement surveys, and an optional HR-advice line — areas HollyHR has not built. Charlie also automatically pro-rates regular custom working weeks from an effective date. HollyHR's focused core includes time off with bulk approval, records, documents, onboarding, one-to-twelve-week working patterns, current-FTE pro-rata for regular-hours staff, sickness and a bounded self-service archive; its governed developer routes have different plan and approval boundaries.
How do I move my data from CharlieHR to HollyHR?
Export people data from Charlie as CSV and map HollyHR's supported 12-field people shape, up to the documented row and file limits. Leave, balances, history, managers, working patterns, documents and configuration need separate reconciliation. HollyHR is controlled early access, so joining the list does not create a workspace or start a trial, and no one-click migration or universal timeframe is promised.