Custom HR & Time Management Software for SMEs: Cost (2026)

The verdict in three sentences

For most SMEs, a market HRIS (Lucca, PayFit) at 8-15 EUR/month/employee stays the rational choice. Custom at 30,000-70,000 EUR is justified when you pile up 4-5 subscriptions that don't talk to each other, or when your rules (specific leave, inter-site rebilling, business counters) break the standard. The real gain is administrative: freeing 1 to 2 days/month of data entry and reconciliation on the HR side.

Market HRIS or custom modules

An HRIS covers leave, time, expenses, reviews and sometimes pre-payroll. With Lucca or PayFit, you pay per module per employee. For 150 employees, the bill climbs fast once you activate several bricks.

On custom, a leave + time + expenses core fits in 30,000-45,000 EUR. Adding reviews, business counters and a payroll/accounting connector pushes toward 55,000-70,000 EUR.

4-year cost: license vs build

For 150 employees, a ~13 EUR/month subscription is already 23,400 EUR/year. Over 4 years, the comparison changes face.

At 150 employees with several modules active, custom becomes cheaper from year 3. Caveat: below 60-80 employees, SaaS almost always stays more profitable — the build won't amortize on a small headcount.

The HR admin gain

The core of the ROI is HR time. Between manual leave entry, expense reconciliation and preparing payroll variables, an SME HR person easily loses 1.5 to 2 days/month. Automating these flows and killing double entry frees 18-24 days/year. Valued at a loaded cost of ~250 EUR/day, that's 4,500 to 6,000 EUR/year given back to HR — before counting fewer payroll errors, often costlier still.

Mini case study

Nadia, HR director of a 150-employee industrial SME in Lyon, juggles a leave tool, a time spreadsheet and an inbox for expenses. Three entries for the same data, and payroll variables prepared by hand. She invests 52,000 EUR over 14 weeks in a custom core connected to payroll. Result: the 3 tools merge, payroll prep drops from 2 days to 4 hours/month — ~20 HR days freed/year (~5,000 EUR). Over 4 years, the saving vs stacked subscriptions exceeds 28,000 EUR, build included.

FAQ

From what headcount is custom worthwhile?

Generally beyond 80-100 employees with several active modules. Below that, a SaaS HRIS like Lucca or PayFit at 8-15 EUR/month/employee stays cheaper.

Can it connect to our payroll software?

Yes. The connector to your payroll (Silae, Sage, or an external provider) is part of the scope, budget 4,000-10,000 EUR depending on the available API.

Does leave management handle our specific rules?

Yes, that's exactly the point of custom: RTT, seniority leave, counters by collective agreement or site are configured to match your company agreement.

Can employees access it on mobile?

Yes, a responsive employee portal (leave requests, photo expense submission, counter viewing) is standard and sharply reduces HR queries.

How long to deploy?

Budget 10 to 16 weeks for a leave + time + expenses core, plus 2-4 weeks if you add reviews and a payroll connector.

Let's scope your project. Give us your headcount, priority modules and current payroll software: we'll frame the scope and the break-even point. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.