What HR Software Actually Costs in the UAE (2026)
Short version, for a company of twenty to forty employees in the UAE in 2026: a working HR and payroll setup that produces a WPS file should cost a few hundred dirhams a month, and the price should be on the vendor's website. At OfficeHR it is AED 385 a month for thirty employees on yearly billing, excluding VAT, with HR, payroll, attendance and hiring included.
The harder part is that many vendors in this market do not publish a price at all, so you cannot compare options until you have sat through a call. The rest of this page is about how to work around that and what to watch for.
What drives the price
Four things move the number more than the brand does.
The pricing model. Some vendors charge a rate per employee per month. Some charge a base fee that includes a number of employees, then a rate for each extra one. Some price in tiers by company size, and some quote only on request. Always convert to a total for your own headcount.
What is counted as an employee. Some vendors bill every login, some bill every employee record including leavers and candidates, and some bill only active employees on payroll. At OfficeHR a seat is an active employee on payroll, so HR admin logins are unlimited and candidates are never counted.
One product or several. Confirm whether the number you were given covers the salary run and the WPS file or only the employee records, and whether hiring, attendance and performance are included or sold separately.
Billing frequency. Yearly billing is usually the cheapest, and it commits you for twelve months to software you may have used for three weeks. Ask for the monthly, quarterly and yearly price side by side.
The costs that do not appear in the headline number
This is where budgets actually break. Ask about every one of these in writing.
Implementation and setup fees. Sometimes free, sometimes a one off charge, sometimes a multiple of the first year licence. Ask even if the vendor says setup is light.
Modules you will need. The quoted price is often core HR. Performance, recruitment, advanced attendance and document management can each be separate.
Minimum seats. Some plans include a base number of employees whether you have them or not. A plan with a twenty five seat minimum is a very different proposition for a twenty two person company.
5% VAT. Usually quoted excluding VAT, then added to the invoice.
Support tiers. Free support, premium support, or a response time that depends on what you pay. Payroll problems happen on the 28th, so this matters more than it sounds.
Exit costs. Not usually a fee. Usually the cost of getting your data out in a usable state, which is worth testing during the trial rather than discovering at the end.
How to get a straight number out of any vendor
Send this by email before you agree to any call.
We are a company of [X] employees in the UAE. We need leave management, employee documents, payslips and WPS SIF file generation. Please send: the monthly price for our headcount on monthly, quarterly and annual billing, which modules that includes and which it excludes, any one off implementation or setup fee, the minimum contract term, and what the price becomes at [X + 10] employees.
Vendors who can answer in writing do, and you have a comparable number in a day. Vendors who insist on a call before quoting have told you something about how they sell, which is also useful. Asking for the price at a larger headcount matters too, because pricing that looks good at your size can get unpleasant two hires later.
What OfficeHR costs at your size
AED 250 a month for up to fifteen employees, then AED 9 for each extra employee, billed yearly, excluding VAT. Published at every size up to a hundred people, with no quote only tier and a 30 day free trial.
| Team size | Yearly billing, per month | Quarterly billing, per month | Monthly billing, per month | Yearly total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 15 | AED 250 | AED 325 | AED 420 | AED 3,000 |
| 25 | AED 340 | AED 445 | AED 570 | AED 4,080 |
| 30 | AED 385 | AED 505 | AED 645 | AED 4,620 |
| 40 | AED 475 | AED 625 | AED 795 | AED 5,700 |
| 50 | AED 565 | AED 745 | AED 945 | AED 6,780 |
| 100 | AED 1,015 | AED 1,345 | AED 1,695 | AED 12,180 |
There is no implementation fee, no separate payroll subscription, and hiring is included rather than billed as its own product, which is the usual place a quoted number grows after you sign. Only employees on payroll count toward the price, so adding a second person to help with HR does not change the bill. Quarterly billing saves over 20% against monthly, and yearly saves 40%.
For comparison, a part time HR administrator in Dubai costs several thousand dirhams a month. Against that, the thing worth optimising is whether the software works, rather than whether it is the lowest number. Our free WPS file checker and gratuity calculator let you test two of the things that matter most before you spend anything.
Common questions
How much does HR software cost in the UAE?
It depends on the model, the headcount and the billing frequency. For a thirty person company that wants HR, payroll and a WPS file, expect a few hundred dirhams a month if the vendor publishes a price. OfficeHR is AED 385 a month at thirty employees on yearly billing, excluding VAT.
Is VAT added to HR software prices?
Software prices in the UAE are usually quoted excluding the 5% VAT, which is added at invoice time. Always ask whether a quoted price includes or excludes it, because on a yearly plan the difference is real money.
Is annual billing worth it?
Usually yes, if you have tested the product first. Yearly is the cheapest frequency, but it commits you for twelve months. Use a free trial and run one payroll cycle before you commit, then switch to yearly once you are confident.
Is there a setup fee?
Not at OfficeHR. Setup and data migration guidance are included, and hiring is part of the subscription rather than a separate product. Ask every vendor the same question in writing.
Does the price include Emiratisation or ILOE filing?
No vendor files these on your behalf as part of a standard HR subscription, OfficeHR included. Software can keep your records straight so you can answer questions about your workforce, but filing is a separate matter.
Keep reading
- Bayzat Alternatives for UAE Companies: What to Check Before You Switch
- Zoho People Alternatives for UAE Companies
- WPS Payroll Software for UAE Small Businesses: What to Check (2026)
- Free WPS SIF file checker
- Free UAE gratuity calculator
- Free UAE salary calculator, gross to net
- OfficeHR pricing, published at every size
- Start a free 30 day trial, no card needed
One free thing, no call required. 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.
Last checked November 2026. OfficeHR prices exclude VAT and can change. This is general commercial guidance, not legal or financial advice.
Try it on your own payroll.
AED 250 a month for up to 15 employees, billed yearly. Run last month's payroll in the free 30 day trial and compare the file against the one your bank accepted.