Quick summary
- greytHR Essential includes the first 50 employees in a flat monthly base price, then charges per employee above that.
- OfficePortal Standard is free for the first 5 users and charges per user after that; Premium and Elite unlock more of the suite.
- Both run Indian statutory payroll — PF, ESI, Professional Tax and TDS.
- Below about 50 employees the flat base price decides it. Above that, compare per-employee rates and add-ons — the pricing section below shows both in your currency.
Why teams compare OfficePortal and greytHR
Both products serve the same buyer: an Indian company that wants HR and payroll in one place, with statutory calculations handled for it rather than in a spreadsheet. Teams usually put the two side by side at a moment of change — the first payroll run that spans multiple states, a headcount jump that changes the bill, or a renewal that prompts a look at what else is available.
The clearest difference is how each one charges. greytHR sells plans with a flat monthly base that already includes 50 employees. OfficePortal charges per user from the first one, with the first five free. That single difference decides most of the cost comparison below.
Pricing compared
Because greytHR includes 50 employees in its base price, a team of ten pays the same as a team of fifty. On OfficePortal the first five users are free and you pay per user after that, so a ten-person team pays for five — a large gap at that size.
Around fifty employees the two land within a rounding error of each other. That is the crossover point, and it is worth modelling against your real headcount twelve months out rather than today's.
Past that point the per-employee rate decides it, and it can favour either side: at two hundred employees greytHR Essential works out cheaper than OfficePortal Standard, and OfficePortal's yearly billing narrows the gap. The pricing table below shows all three team sizes, in rupees for visitors in India and in dollars elsewhere.
Compare the add-ons too. Performance management, timesheets, expenses and GPS tracking are separately priced modules on greytHR; on OfficePortal the tier you choose decides which of the 82 features you get.
Payroll and statutory compliance
Both handle the statutory core, so this is rarely the deciding factor. greytHR documents PF calculations with ECR generation, ESI computations and challans, Professional Tax with state-specific rules, TDS with eTDS returns, one-click Form 24Q with FVU validation, and digitally signed Form 16 and 12BA. OfficePortal covers PF, ESI, TDS and Professional Tax.
If a specific artefact matters to your finance team — a particular return, challan format or state rule — ask both vendors to show it in a demo against your own data. A payroll parallel run for one month is the only reliable test.
Where greytHR may suit you better
- You already have 50 or more employees and prefer a flat monthly base price to per-user billing.
- You want its separately priced modules, such as GPS live tracking or recruitment, and are happy to pay per module.
- You want a vendor with a large installed base — greytHR says over 10,000 businesses use it.
Where OfficePortal fits better
- You are under 50 employees, where per-user pricing avoids paying for seats you do not have.
- You want to start free: Standard covers 5 users with no time limit, rather than a 7-day trial.
- You would rather pick a tier that bundles features than assemble add-on modules.
- You bill yearly and want the lower rate on every tier.
How to choose
- Model both prices at your headcount twelve months out, not today's.
- List the statutory artefacts you must produce, and ask for each one in a demo.
- Run one month of payroll in parallel before you switch.
- Add up the modules you need — an add-on-priced feature can change the ranking.
- Check data export and exit terms before signing.
- Confirm current prices with both vendors: published prices change.