For a small team, leave tracking usually starts in a shared spreadsheet or a group chat — and works fine, right up until two people request the same week off, or a leave balance turns out to be wrong at payroll time. That's usually the point a small business starts looking for actual leave management software, and the first question is almost always: is there a free option that isn't a stripped-down trial?
Here's what's actually available, and what to check before picking one.
What to Look For Before Comparing Vendors
Not all "free" plans mean the same thing. Before comparing features, check:
- Is it free-forever, or a time-limited trial? A genuine free tier lets you validate the tool with real usage before paying anything.
- Are core features included, or gated behind an add-on? Some platforms sell basic leave tracking free, but charge extra for multiple leave types or accrual automation — exactly the features that solve the spreadsheet problem in the first place.
- Is payroll integration included, or a separate purchase? For a small business, leave and payroll are usually run by the same one or two people — a tool that doesn't connect the two just recreates the manual reconciliation problem.
- Is there a real mobile app? Small teams are more likely to have field staff or founders who aren't at a desk.
Comparing Leave Management Options for Small Business
OfficePortal
OfficePortal offers a free plan for up to 5 users, forever — not a trial. Leave approval workflow, multiple leave types, leave balance tracking, and holiday calendar management are all included at that free tier, not sold separately. Leave accrual automation, sandwich leave policy configuration, and leave encashment processing are included as well, and leave data syncs directly into payroll without a separate integration step. The paid plan starts at roughly ₹60/user/month (about $4) once a team grows past 5 users.
Zoho People
Zoho People also offers a 5-user free plan, but with limited features at that tier — multiple leave types and leave balance tracking are sold as add-ons rather than included in the base plan. Its paid tier starts at $75/month, priced flat rather than per-user.
greytHR
greytHR doesn't offer a free plan. Multiple leave types and leave balance tracking are included, but individual cycle and approval customization tends to be more limited than on more flexible platforms. Paid pricing starts at $42/month.
Keka
Keka also has no free plan, and multiple leave types are offered on a limited basis compared to unrestricted custom leave type creation. Starting price is the highest in this comparison, at $84/month.
What to Prioritize at Different Team Sizes
Under 10 employees: Start with a genuinely free tier and actually run a full leave cycle through it — application, approval, balance update — before paying for anything. At this size, the priority is removing spreadsheet chaos, not advanced configuration.
10–50 employees: This is usually where multiple leave types, accrual automation, and payroll integration stop being "nice to have" and start being necessary — check specifically whether these are included in the base price or billed as add-ons, since that gap widens quickly at this headcount.
50+ employees: Multi-level approval with auto-escalation and location-specific holiday calendars become more important, especially for hybrid or multi-office teams. This is also the point where manual encashment and accrual calculation genuinely become a payroll risk if the platform doesn't automate them.
Conclusion
The real cost difference between these platforms rarely shows up in the free-tier headline — it shows up in what's still free once your team actually needs multiple leave types, automated accrual, and payroll sync, which is exactly the point most small businesses were trying to solve for in the first place.
OfficePortal keeps leave approval workflows, multiple leave types, accrual automation, and direct payroll sync included from the free tier up, rather than gating them behind an add-on once a team grows. If leave is still being tracked in a spreadsheet, the fastest way to know if it's worth switching is to run one real leave cycle through the free plan. Start free for up to 5 users, or see full pricing as your team grows.
