# HR Software for a 20 to 40 Person Company in Dubai

> The 20 to 40 employee band is the most awkward size to buy HR software at in the UAE. What changes at this size, what you actually need, and what it costs.

Source: https://officehr.ae/blog/hr-software-20-40-employees-dubai
Published by OfficeHR (https://officehr.ae). Author: The OfficeHR team. Buyer guides · November 2026 · 6 min read
Topics: hr software small company dubai, hr software 20 to 40 employees, hr software dubai

This is the most awkward size to buy HR software at in this country, and it is awkward for a structural reason. Below about fifteen people, a spreadsheet genuinely works. Above about a hundred, you are a real customer to a real vendor and you will be sold something built for you. In between you are too big for the spreadsheet and too small to be interesting, so you get offered platforms designed for companies ten or twenty times your size, with a price shaped accordingly.

OfficeHR is built for exactly this band: AED 250 a month for up to fifteen employees, then AED 9 for each extra employee, billed yearly. That is AED 340 at twenty five people and AED 475 at forty, published, with a 30 day free trial.

Here is what actually changes at this size, and how to choose.

## What changes when you cross twenty people

Three things, and they usually arrive within a few months of each other.

**The spreadsheet stops being funny.** At twelve people, one person holds the leave balances in their head and the sheet is a formality. At twenty eight, somebody takes leave that was already approved by someone else, the sheet has two versions, and the end of service calculation for a leaver has to be reconstructed from WhatsApp.

**You acquire obligations you did not have before.** MOHRE's Emiratisation framework reaches companies with 20 to 49 employees in specified economic sectors, which must hire at least one UAE national and retain the Emirati staff they already employ. Companies of 50 or more are on a growth target for Emirati staff in skilled roles, checked each year (see [MOHRE's Emiratisation targets](https://mohre.gov.ae/en/guidance-and-awareness-portal-new/emiratisation-targets)). None of this is filed by HR software, including ours. But answering questions about your own workforce accurately becomes something you have to be able to do, and that is a records problem.

**One person is now doing a real job badly.** At this size HR is almost never a dedicated role. It is the office manager, or the finance person, or the founder's first hire, doing HR alongside two other jobs. The three evenings a month spent assembling the salary file are invisible until that person leaves.

## What you actually need at this size

Five non negotiables. Judge every option on these before anything else.

**Leave that one person can approve from their phone,** with balances that update themselves.

**A place employee documents live** that is not somebody's laptop. Passports, visas, Emirates IDs and contracts, with expiry dates visible before they expire rather than after.

**Payslips that generate themselves** and reach people without being emailed one at a time.

**A WPS SIF file that your bank accepts** without being hand fixed every month. Test it with our free [WPS file checker](https://officehr.ae/tools/wps-file-checker).

**Gratuity and end of service that shows its working,** because this is the most contested conversation in UAE employment and you want to point at how the number was reached rather than assert it. Check any figure with our free [gratuity calculator](https://officehr.ae/tools/gratuity-calculator).

Then there is a second tier that matters at this size more than people expect, because twenty to forty is exactly when you start hiring regularly and when one bad hire is a measurable percentage of your payroll. **Hiring,** somewhere to run a repeatable process rather than a mailbox full of CVs. **Attendance,** if any part of your team is shift based or site based. **Performance,** once you have enough people that the founder can no longer hold everyone's progress in their head.

## How to evaluate any vendor at this size

The thing to be sceptical about is not any particular feature, it is sequence. If a demo opens on engagement surveys before it has shown you a SIF file for your own headcount, you are being sold the thing the vendor is proudest of rather than the thing you came for. Ask to see payroll and leave first, every time.

Then email each vendor before agreeing to anything: our headcount is X, we need leave, documents, payslips and WPS SIF generation, please send the monthly, quarterly and annual price, what is included and excluded, any setup fee, the minimum term, and the price at X plus ten employees. The ones who answer in writing have saved you a week. Our guide to [what HR software actually costs in the UAE](https://officehr.ae/blog/hr-software-pricing-uae) explains the costs that sit outside the headline price.

## What OfficeHR includes and what it costs at your size

Core HR, leave and attendance, payslips, the WPS file, hiring and performance in one subscription, with gratuity that shows the working and a runway tool that projects what a hire does to your cash before you make it.

| Team size | Yearly billing, per month | Quarterly billing, per month | Monthly billing, per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | AED 295 | AED 385 | AED 495 |
| 25 | AED 340 | AED 445 | AED 570 |
| 30 | AED 385 | AED 505 | AED 645 |
| 35 | AED 430 | AED 565 | AED 720 |
| 40 | AED 475 | AED 625 | AED 795 |

Prices exclude 5% VAT. Published at every size, no quote tier, no setup fee, and only employees on payroll are counted. For comparison, a part time HR administrator in Dubai costs several thousand dirhams a month, so the thing worth optimising is whether the software works rather than which one is lowest.

**Where it falls short.** OfficeHR is a younger product with a shorter track record. There is no accounting or inventory behind it, no insurance brokerage and no visa or PRO service, and no live integration with accounting systems. It does not file Emiratisation or anything else with MOHRE. If you need those from the same vendor as your HR system, say so early.

## Common questions

**What is the best HR software for a small company in Dubai?**
The one that gets leave, documents, payslips and the WPS file right for your own headcount, shows its price before the call, and lets you test it. For a company of twenty to forty, that means running a real month through a free trial and comparing the SIF file with the one your bank accepted.

**Do I need HR software at 25 employees?**
You need somewhere other than a spreadsheet for leave balances, document expiry dates and the WPS file. Whether that is software or a very disciplined person depends on how much that person's time is worth.

**Does HR software handle Emiratisation for me?**
No. Standard HR subscriptions, ours included, keep your employee records in order so you can answer questions about your workforce. They do not file anything with MOHRE. Confirm your own obligations with MOHRE or a qualified advisor.

**What should a 30 person company expect to pay?**
At OfficeHR, AED 385 a month on yearly billing, which is AED 4,620 a year excluding VAT, with HR, payroll, attendance and hiring included. Quarterly and monthly billing cost more per month, and every vendor should give you the same comparison in writing.

**How long does it take to set up?**
A week of light work, if you migrate at a month end and run one payroll cycle in parallel. The companies that lose a month are the ones that cut over mid month. Our guide on [how to switch HR software without losing a month](https://officehr.ae/blog/switch-hr-software-without-losing-a-month) has the sequence.

## Keep reading

- [Bayzat Alternatives for UAE Companies: What to Check Before You Switch](https://officehr.ae/blog/bayzat-alternatives-uae)
- [Zoho People Alternatives for UAE Companies](https://officehr.ae/blog/zoho-people-alternatives-uae)
- [What HR Software Actually Costs in the UAE (2026)](https://officehr.ae/blog/hr-software-pricing-uae)
- [WPS Payroll Software for UAE Small Businesses: What to Check (2026)](https://officehr.ae/blog/wps-payroll-software-uae)
- [Free WPS SIF file checker](https://officehr.ae/tools/wps-file-checker)
- [Free UAE gratuity calculator](https://officehr.ae/tools/gratuity-calculator)
- [Free UAE salary calculator, gross to net](https://officehr.ae/tools/salary-calculator)
- [OfficeHR pricing, published at every size](https://officehr.ae/pricing)
- [Start a free 30 day trial, no card needed](https://officehr.ae/signup)

---

**A free starting point.** Email three of your employment contracts, with employee names and ID numbers removed, to hello@officehr.ae and we will send back a short read on what they say against the Labour Law's default positions. No call, no obligation, and you do not need to be evaluating OfficeHR to ask.

*Last checked November 2026. Emiratisation requirements are summarised from MOHRE's published guidance and are not legal advice. Confirm your own obligations directly.*

---

**Try OfficeHR free for 30 days, no card needed:** https://officehr.ae/signup. Prefer a walkthrough? [Book a demo](https://cal.com/officehr/30min).