Last updated: May 2026
What Is Employment Hero?
Employment Hero is the all-in-one HR, payroll, and recruitment platform for SMBs in Australia, New Zealand, UK, Singapore, and Malaysia. Founded in 2014 in Sydney, Employment Hero serves over 300,000 businesses with bundled HRIS, payroll (via the integrated KeyPay engine), recruiting, performance management, and employee benefits.
The pitch is all-in-one for SMBs in markets the big US providers (Gusto, Rippling, BambooHR) underserve. AU and NZ employment law differs significantly from US labor law: superannuation, awards, leave entitlements, fair work compliance. Employment Hero handles all of it natively rather than as an afterthought.
The product covers the full employee lifecycle: job posting and recruitment, onboarding workflows, payroll, performance reviews, learning management, and offboarding. The all-in-one positioning means SMBs avoid managing 4-5 separate vendors.
Try Employment HeroHow Employment Hero Works
The HRIS holds employee records, employment contracts, leave balances, performance data, and document storage. Onboarding workflows automate first-day forms, system access, and equipment provisioning. Self-service portal lets employees update personal info, request leave, and access pay slips.
Payroll (powered by KeyPay, now an Employment Hero product) handles all jurisdictional complexity: PAYG withholding, superannuation contributions, payroll tax, leave accruals, award compliance. Pay runs schedule weekly, fortnightly, or monthly with automatic STP (Single Touch Payroll) reporting to the ATO.
Recruiting features cover job posting to major boards, applicant tracking through hiring stages, interview scheduling, offer letter generation, and onboarding handoff. The pipeline visualizes candidates across roles.
Performance management includes goal setting, OKRs, 360-degree feedback, 1:1 meeting notes, and review cycles. Continuous feedback alongside formal reviews.
Employee benefits and discounts marketplace gives staff access to perks programs that smaller employers typically cannot match. This perks layer is unusual for HRIS and helps retention.
Employment Hero Pricing in 2026
Per-employee per-month tiered pricing.
Free: For very small businesses with limited features.
Standard: From AU$8/employee/month. Core HR and recruitment.
Premium: From AU$12/employee/month. Adds advanced HR features, learning management.
Platinum: From AU$15/employee/month. Full feature set including advanced reporting.
Payroll typically priced separately from HRIS. Total cost for AU SMB with 25 employees on Premium tier plus payroll might run $400-$600/month all-in.
Compared to alternatives in the AU market (MYOB, Xero Payroll, BambooHR), Employment Hero competes on the all-in-one bundle.
See Employment Hero PricingWhere Employment Hero Wins
- APAC market specialization: AU, NZ, UK, SG employment law handled natively.
- All-in-one bundle: HRIS + payroll + recruiting + performance + benefits.
- Employee perks marketplace: differentiator from generic HRIS.
- KeyPay payroll engine: battle-tested AU payroll integrated with HRIS.
- Single Touch Payroll compliant: ATO reporting automated.
Where It Falls Short
- US presence is limited: not the right choice for US-based companies.
- UI consistency varies across modules: legacy from multiple acquisitions.
- Some advanced features behind higher tiers: total cost for full functionality can climb.
- Integration ecosystem smaller than Gusto: covers basics but less depth.
Employment Hero vs BambooHR vs HiBob vs Rippling
BambooHR targets US HR-first SMBs. Stronger HRIS, weaker AU payroll integration.
HiBob targets mid-market global with stronger performance features. More expensive.
Rippling bundles HR + IT + finance for tech companies. US-first.
Xero Payroll is the AU payroll specialist. Better for businesses that just need payroll without HRIS.
Who Should Use Employment Hero
AU and NZ SMBs: this is the home market. Native compliance, support, and product fit.
UK and Singapore businesses: secondary markets with strong product support.
SMBs replacing 3-4 HR tools: bundle reduces vendor sprawl.
Skip it if: you operate primarily in the US (use Gusto or Rippling), you have under 5 employees (free tier may suffice or Xero Payroll alone may work), or your team is fully international across many countries (use Deel for EOR plus separate HRIS).
Frequently Asked Questions
Does it handle Single Touch Payroll?
Yes natively. STP Phase 2 compliant.
Can it manage superannuation?
Yes. Super contributions calculated and remitted to funds automatically.
Does it support multiple companies?
Yes on higher tiers. Multi-entity management for group companies.
What about award interpretation?
Yes for AU awards. Built-in interpretation for major awards; custom configurations possible.
Is there an HR concierge service?
Yes via partner advisors on higher tiers.
