Micro
24 pounds a month for up to 10 employees. Flat, not per person.
R565/mo
per month
- Employee records
- Leave and approvals
- Document storage
- Company calendar
Breathe vs CharlieHR
Verified ratings, feature-by-feature comparison and rand pricing — everything a South African business needs to pick between these two.
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Ratings
Every score, at a glance
Verified user ratings across every dimension — Breathe against CharlieHR, nothing weighted.
Dimensions won
0 – 1
Breathe vs CharlieHR, across 5 rating dimensions
Widest rating gap
+0,1
CharlieHR leads on overall
Verified reviews
349
192 for Breathe, 157 for CharlieHR
Breathe
3,9
192 verified reviews
CharlieHR
4,0
157 verified reviews
Ratings by dimension
- Breathe
- CharlieHR
Overall
3,9
4,0
Ease of use
3,9
3,9
Value for money
3,9
3,9
Customer service
3,9
3,9
Functionality
3,9
3,9
Share of verified reviews
Who South African reviewers actually write about.
- Breathe (192)
- CharlieHR (157)
Cost to get started
Cheapest paid plan, shown per month.
Breathe
R565/mo
CharlieHR
R95/mo
CharlieHR is the cheaper way in. Lower isn't automatically better — weigh it against the ratings above.
Head to head
Where each one wins
Row by row, with the stronger score highlighted. Straight from verified reviews.
| Breathe | CharlieHR | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 3,9 | 4,0 |
| Reviews | 192 | 157 |
| Ease of use | 3,9 | 3,9 |
| Value for money | 3,9 | 3,9 |
| Customer service | 3,9 | 3,9 |
| Functionality | 3,9 | 3,9 |
| Starting price | R565/mo | R95/employee/month |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
Features
Feature by feature, checked off
Everything each product ships, side by side. No marketing gloss.
| Feature | Breathe | CharlieHR |
|---|---|---|
| Employee database | ||
| Leave requests and approvals | ||
| Sickness and absence tracking | ||
| Document storage with acknowledgement | ||
| Performance check ins | ||
| Company calendar | ||
| Org chart | ||
| Reporting | ||
| Employee self service | ||
| Mobile friendly | ||
| Employee onboarding checklists | ||
| Time off requests and approvals | ||
| Policy publishing and acknowledgement | ||
| Performance review cycles | ||
| Team directory and profiles | ||
| Document storage | ||
| Engagement polls | ||
| Perks platform | ||
| Slack integration |
Pricing
Both price lists, in rand
Every plan from both vendors, priced as South African teams actually pay.
Breathe plans
Try it free
Starter
44 pounds a month for up to 20 employees.
R1 035/mo
per month
- Everything in Micro
- Two HR users
- Performance check ins
Regular
99 pounds a month for up to 50 employees.
R2 330/mo
per month
- Everything in Starter
- More HR users
- Reporting
Pro
175 pounds a month for up to 100 employees.
R4 120/mo
per month
- Everything in Regular
- Expanded reporting
- Priority support
Straight from the vendor
Get current pricing
These are list prices in rand and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Breathe (ELMO Software) for the figure you'll actually pay.
CharlieHR plans
Charlie
About 4 pounds per team member per month, scaling with headcount.
R95/mo
per employee, per month
- Self serve onboarding
- Time off management
- Policies with acknowledgement
- Review cycles
- Team directory
Charlie + Advice
Adds unlimited HR advice from UK qualified advisors.
Custom
no card needed
- Everything in Charlie
- HR advice line
- Policy templates
Straight from the vendor
Get current pricing
These are list prices in rand and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with CharlieHR for the figure you'll actually pay.
Verdict
Our verdict
CharlieHR edges this comparison on verified user ratings (4,0 vs 3,9), but the right choice depends on your workflows: Breathe remains a strong pick where its strengths — Flat per company pricing, not per seat and Leave and absence handled cleanly — match your priorities. Shortlist both, take the free trials where offered, and test against a real month of your own data.