Best HRMS Software for Small Business: Find the Right System

You're probably wondering whether investing in HRMS software is worth it for your business. With dozens of options on the market—from free tools to enterprise systems costing thousands monthly—choosing feels overwhelming.

The best HRMS software for small businesses should simplify scheduling, time tracking, and payroll without requiring a dedicated IT team or months-long implementation. This guide compares the top five HRMS systems for small businesses with hourly teams, covering features, pricing, pros and cons, so you can make an informed decision fast

TL;DR Best HRMS software

The best HRMS software for small businesses with hourly teams is Homebase, which combines employee scheduling, time tracking, and payroll in one mobile-first app. But the right choice depends on what you need most.

• Best overall for small business: Homebase. Built specifically for hourly teams with scheduling, time tracking, and payroll integrated. Free plan available. Set up in under an hour.
• Best for general HR management: BambooHR. Good for employee records and basic HR functions. Time tracking and scheduling cost extra. Better for office environments than shift work.
• Best for payroll accuracy: Gusto. Strong payroll processing and tax compliance. Basic scheduling features. Good if payroll is your main concern.
• Best for mid-size companies: ADP Workforce Now. Comprehensive features for growing businesses with 100+ employees. Higher price point and steeper learning curve.
• Best for enterprise: Workday. Enterprise-grade system for large organizations with dedicated HR teams. Six-figure implementations.

What is HRMS software?

HRMS software (Human Resource Management System) is an app that helps small businesses manage their teams in one place. It handles employee scheduling, time tracking, payroll, and HR tasks, replacing spreadsheets and paper timecards with automated tools accessible from phones and computers.

For small businesses with hourly teams, HRMS software means no more Sunday night schedule rebuilding, no more timecard math mistakes, and no more payroll anxiety. Your team clocks in from their phones, requests time off through the app, and you run payroll with a few clicks. Everything in one spot.

What problems does HR software solve?

HR software solves the daily chaos of managing teams: scheduling conflicts, time tracking errors, payroll mistakes, compliance violations, and communication breakdowns. Automated tools handle these tasks in minutes instead of hours of manual work.

Modern HRMS eliminates:

• Schedule chaos. No more phone tag for shift coverage. Post open shifts, let employees claim them.
• Time tracking nightmares. Photo verification and GPS prevent 'forgot to clock out' excuses.
• Payroll anxiety. Automatic calculations mean accurate paychecks.
• Compliance confusion. Automated break reminders and overtime alerts keep you legal.
• Communication disasters. Built-in messaging keeps work separate from personal texts.

HRMS features you actually need

Employee scheduling

Build schedules in minutes. Post open shifts employees can claim. Enable shift swaps. Send instant notifications.

Why it matters: Stop Sunday night phone tag filling shifts. Let your team handle coverage themselves.

Time and attendance tracking

Track who worked when with photo verification and GPS tracking. Auto-calculate hours, breaks, overtime.

Why it matters: No more timecard disputes or 'forgot to clock out' padding payroll.

Payroll processing

Convert timecards to paychecks automatically. Handle tax calculations and filing. Direct deposit.

Why it matters: Run payroll without math anxiety or deadline stress. Homebase integrates time tracking directly to payroll—no separate exports.

Compliance tracking

Navigate federal, state, and local labor laws. Break reminders. Overtime alerts. Documentation storage.

Why it matters: Stay compliant without becoming a legal expert or facing violations.

Team communication

Built-in messaging keeps work separate from personal texts. Automatic shift reminders. Emergency coverage tools.

Why it matters: Reach your whole team instantly. No more messages lost in group chats.

{{banner-cta}}

8 best HRMS software systems for small business

Homebase: Best HRMS for hourly teams

Best for: Small businesses with hourly employees (restaurants, retail, healthcare, hospitality)

Starting price: Free plan available; paid plans from $20/location/month

Stand-out features:

• Scheduling, time tracking, and payroll in one platform
• Photo and GPS verification prevents time theft
• Built specifically for shift-based hourly work
• Free plan (competitors charge from day one)
• Same-day setup

Why Homebase wins:

Unlike competitors that treat scheduling as an add-on, Homebase built everything around shift-based hourly work. When employees clock in, hours flow directly to payroll. When you post an open shift, team members claim it from their phones. When someone requests time off, the schedule updates automatically.

No stitching together separate tools. No export-import-reconcile. One system.

What customers say:

"Homebase has made it very easy for my employees to pick up shifts and take charge of their own schedules. It's reduced a lot of scheduling overhead for us so we can spend our time more wisely."

"Before Homebase I was manually tallying up my team's work hours and entering them into payroll, crossing my fingers I hadn't made any mistakes. Now our entire team logs in and out quickly and easily."

"Schedule communication with employees works flawlessly with Homebase. We very rarely have an employee tell us that they didn't know they were supposed to work that day."

BambooHR: Best for general HR management

Best for: Small to medium businesses focused on employee records and basic HR (not scheduling-intensive operations)

Starting price: Contact for pricing (typically $150+/month minimum)

Stand-out features:

• User-friendly interface for HR recordkeeping
• Good for performance reviews and employee data
• Onboarding workflows

Pros:

• Intuitive for basic HR functions
• Strong employee database
• Good reporting for office environments

Cons for hourly teams:

• Time tracking and scheduling are add-ons (not included in base price)
• No built-in scheduling for complex shift work
• Payroll limited to U.S. only
• Add-on features increase total cost significantly
• Better suited for salaried office workers than shift-based hourly teams

Bottom line:

Great general-purpose HR tool for companies that don't need robust scheduling. But if you're managing shifts, handling time-off swaps, and running payroll for hourly workers, BambooHR's add-on costs add up quickly—and you're still connecting separate tools.

Gusto: Best for payroll-first approach

Best for: Small businesses where payroll accuracy is the top priority and scheduling needs are simple

Starting price: $40/month + $6 per employee/month

Stand-out features:

• Strong payroll processing and benefits administration
• Excellent tax compliance and filing
• Good for straightforward pay schedules

Pros:

• Best-in-class payroll accuracy
• Automatic tax filings
• Benefits management

Cons for hourly teams:

• Basic scheduling features—not built for complex shift work
• Time tracking less robust (no photo verification)
• No GPS tracking for field or multi-location teams
• Limited shift management tools (no open shifts, basic swap features)

Bottom line:

If you only need payroll and have simple scheduling needs, Gusto is solid. But for juggling shifts, callouts, and coverage, an integrated approach that handles scheduling, time tracking, and payroll together saves hours of work every week.

ADP Workforce Now: Best for growing mid-size companies

Best for: Companies with 100+ employees and dedicated HR staff

Starting price: Custom pricing (requires sales quote)

Stand-out features:

• Comprehensive feature set
• Strong payroll capabilities
• Good for scaling businesses

Pros:

• Robust features for larger teams
• Established brand with extensive experience
• Handles complex payroll scenarios

Cons for small business:

• Complex interface with steep learning curve
• Designed for larger organizations with HR departments
• Higher price point than small business solutions
• Inconsistent customer support (per user reviews)
• Overkill for teams under 50 employees—too many features you won't use
• Custom pricing (no transparent costs)

Bottom line:

Powerful for mid-size companies with dedicated HR teams. But small businesses with fewer than 50 employees often find it unnecessarily complex and expensive. Solutions built for small businesses offer the features you actually need without the enterprise bloat.

Workday: Best for enterprise

Best for: Large enterprises (500+ employees), global companies with complex needs

Starting price: Custom pricing (six-figure implementations common)

Stand-out features:

• Enterprise-grade capabilities
• Global payroll support
• Advanced workforce analytics

Pros:

• Comprehensive for large organizations
• Handles complex global operations
• Advanced reporting and analytics

Cons for small business:

• Extremely expensive—prohibitive for small business budgets
• 6+ month implementation timeline
• Requires dedicated IT resources and implementation consultants
• Built for enterprise, not small business needs
• Massive overkill for teams under 100 employees

Bottom line:

Enterprise-grade power at enterprise prices. Unless you're managing thousands of employees across multiple countries, you don't need this level of complexity—and same-day setup beats six-month implementations.

Rippling: Best for all-in-one automation

Best for: Tech-savvy businesses wanting HR, IT, and finance in one platform

Starting price: Custom pricing (typically starts around $8 per employee/month)

Stand-out features:

• Combines HR, IT, and finance management
• Extensive automation capabilities
• 600+ integrations with other tools
• Global payroll (185+ countries)
• Device and app management included

Pros:

• Powerful automation for onboarding/offboarding
• Scalable for growing companies
• Strong integration ecosystem
• Comprehensive feature set

Cons for small business:

• Opaque pricing—requires sales calls for quotes
• Steep learning curve for advanced features
• Can be overwhelming for simple needs
• More expensive than simpler alternatives
• Support can be slow (per user reviews)
• Complex setup despite "quick implementation" claims

Bottom line:

Rippling offers impressive automation and breadth, but it's built for companies that want to manage HR, IT, and finance together. For small businesses focused on scheduling hourly teams and running payroll, you're paying for features you don't need. Simpler platforms offer faster setup and clearer pricing without the complexity.

Paycor: Best for workforce management and compliance

Best for: Growing businesses (50-500 employees) focused on compliance and workforce analytics

Starting price: Custom pricing (contact for quote)

Stand-out features:

• Strong compliance features for multi-state operations
• Workforce analytics and reporting
• Talent management tools
• Time and attendance tracking
• Benefits administration

Pros:

• Good for companies operating in multiple states
• Robust compliance tools
• Solid reporting capabilities
• Handles complex pay structures well

Cons for small business:

• Built for mid-size companies, not small teams
• Custom pricing (no transparency)
• Can be complex for basic needs
• Better suited for 50+ employees
• Scheduling features less robust than specialized platforms
• Implementation takes longer than simple solutions

Bottom line:

Paycor excels at compliance and workforce analytics for mid-size companies with complex needs. But if you're a small business under 50 employees managing hourly shifts, you'll pay for enterprise-level features you don't need while still lacking the scheduling-first approach that makes daily operations easier.

Zenefits: Best for benefits administration

Best for: Small businesses prioritizing employee benefits and basic HR needs

Starting price: $10 per employee/month (Essentials plan)

Stand-out features:

• Simple benefits administration
• Health insurance marketplace integration
• Basic HR and compliance tools
• Mobile app for employees
• Onboarding workflows

Pros:

• Affordable entry-level pricing
• Easy benefits enrollment
• User-friendly interface
• Good for office-based teams
• Quick setup

Cons for hourly teams:

• Time tracking and scheduling are basic
• No photo verification or GPS tracking
• Limited shift management capabilities
• Better for salaried employees than hourly workers
• Customer support has mixed reviews
• Lacks advanced scheduling features like open shifts

Bottom line:

Zenefits works well if benefits administration is your main priority and scheduling needs are minimal. But for businesses managing complex shift schedules, callouts, and hourly team coordination, dedicated scheduling and time tracking tools offer more robust daily operations support.

Best HRMS for small business: What makes them different

Enterprise HRMS = six-month implementations, dedicated IT teams, unlimited budgets.

Small business HRMS = set up in hours, works on phones, affordable, no training manuals.

If you manage hourly teams with shifts and time clocks, you need features enterprise systems often overlook.

Setup: Days not quarters

Enterprise HRMS takes 6+ months to implement. Small businesses need to start now. Look for systems that set up in under a day—import your team, build your first schedule, and you're running.

Mobile-first for hourly workers

Hourly teams aren't at desks. They clock in from phones, check schedules on the move, swap shifts from home. Mobile isn't optional—it's essential. If your team can't easily use the system from their phones, they won't use it.

Shift-based scheduling, not 9-to-5

You need rotating shifts, overnight coverage, open shift posting, and last-minute callout handling. Scheduling isn't an add-on feature—it's the foundation. Enterprise HR systems assume everyone works Monday-Friday, 9-to-5. That's not your reality.

Realistic budgets

You can't justify $20,000/year when your payroll is $300,000. Small business HRMS should save you money, not become your second-biggest expense. Look for transparent pricing and free plans that let you start without commitment.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 55.6% of American workers—80.3 million people—are paid hourly rates. They deserve tools built for their reality, not scaled-down enterprise software.

HRMS software: Frequently asked questions

What problems does HR software solve?

HR software solves the daily chaos of managing teams: scheduling conflicts, time tracking errors, payroll mistakes, compliance violations, and communication breakdowns. Instead of spending hours manually building schedules, calculating timecards, and tracking labor law requirements, automated tools handle these tasks in minutes—freeing you to focus on running your business rather than managing spreadsheets.

Which HR system is easiest for employees to use?

Systems designed with mobile-first simplicity work best for hourly workers. Look for apps where employees can clock in from their phones, swap shifts with coworkers, and request time off in seconds—no training required. The interface should feel like apps they already use daily, because if it's confusing, your team won't use it and you'll still be managing everything manually.

What's the difference between HRIS, HRMS, and HCM?

HRIS (HR Information System) stores basic employee records—think digital filing cabinet. HRMS (HR Management System) includes HRIS plus payroll, time tracking, and benefits management—what most small businesses need. HCM (Human Capital Management) includes HRMS plus strategic workforce planning and talent development—enterprise-level features. For small businesses with hourly teams, HRMS platforms provide the right functionality without enterprise complexity or cost.

Is HRMS software worth it for small businesses?

Yes. Managers save an average of 5+ hours per week with automated scheduling and time tracking—that's over 250 hours annually. Beyond time savings, you get payroll error reduction, compliance tracking that helps avoid violation fines, and better scheduling that reduces turnover. Many platforms offer free plans, so you can start without spending anything and upgrade only when you're ready.

Ready to end the scheduling chaos?

Stop rebuilding schedules from scratch every week. Stop chasing down employees about their hours. Stop crossing your fingers that payroll is right. Run your team without the chaos.

Homebase brings scheduling, time tracking, and payroll together in one app your team will actually use. Start with our free plan today—no credit card, no commitment, no Sunday night stress.

Over 100,000 small businesses trust Homebase to make work radically easier. Join them!