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HR tech total cost

What is your HR tech actually costing you?

Calculate the true total cost of your current HR technology stack — licences, people time, implementation, and maintenance — then compare it against a new product. Free, no login required.

Start calculating

Free · No login · Multi-currency

Current stack cost

Licences, IT, people time, maintenance

New product comparison

Side-by-side TCO vs. replacement cost

Payback period

Time to ROI based on your actual inputs

1
Current setup
2
New product
3
Comparison

Getting started

How to use this calculator

An evidence-based cost comparison between your current HR tech setup and any product you are evaluating — no spreadsheet required. Enter your costs across three steps for an instant breakdown of software spend, people time, and total annual investment.

1
Enter your current setup
Add each system you currently run — HRIS, payroll, ATS, etc. — with annual license, maintenance, IT and implementation costs. Then list every group who touches the systems with headcount and days per year.
2
Enter the new product
Repeat the same structure for the product you are evaluating. If the new system is more efficient, lower the days-per-person figures — that is where people-cost savings really show up. Use 'Copy from Step 1' to pre-fill.
3
Review & download
Step 3 delivers your full cost comparison instantly — annual saving or extra cost, payback period, category-by-category breakdown, 3-year projection and sensitivity modelling. Download as a PDF.

Need help building your business case?

Our advisors can walk you through the numbers and help you present the ROI to leadership.

Systems & software costs
1 system
HRIS$0
$
$
$
$
$
Annual cost for this system$0
People & time investment
Days × People × Day Rate = Annual Cost
Role / Person typeNo. of peopleDays/person/yrAnnual salaryDay rate (auto)Annual cost
Internal staff — salary-based
HR & Admin staff
Process owners, administrators
$
—$0
Employees (self-service)
Input own data, view payslips, apply leave
$
—$0
Line managers
Make recommendations & decisions
$
—$0
Senior leaders
Review, calibrate & approve decisions
$
—$0
External / consultants — day rate based
Consultants & freelancers
Enter day rate directly
Day rate →
$
$0
Total annual people cost$0

* Day rate auto-calculated: Annual Salary ÷ Working Days. Adjust working days in the config bar above.

Annual total: $0

Current setup

$0

estimated annual total cost

Systems & software$0
HR & Admin$0
Employees (self-service)$0
Line managers$0
Senior leaders$0
Consultants$0
Tip: Include all people who touch the system — even employees spending 5 min/day on a 500-person workforce adds up significantly.

Why this matters

Why do you need an ROI calculation?

HR technology decisions are significant financial commitments — yet they are often made on gut feeling, vendor promises or peer recommendations rather than hard numbers. An ROI calculation changes that.

📋
Secure budget approval
Finance leaders approve investments backed by evidence. An ROI calculation gives you a concrete business case — total cost of ownership, annual saving and payback period.
👥
Convince leadership
Senior leaders think in financial terms. Showing them exactly how much the current system costs — and what the alternative costs — is a powerful argument.
🔍
Uncover hidden costs
Most organisations underestimate the true cost of their HR systems by ignoring the time employees, managers and leaders spend interacting with them.
⚖️
Minimise risk
A structured cost comparison reveals whether a new product is genuinely worthwhile before you commit. Sensitivity analysis lets you model risk properly.
🎯
Set the right priorities
When multiple HR tech projects compete for budget, ROI calculations give you an objective way to rank them. Remove politics from prioritisation.
📊
Make data-driven decisions
Decisions made with clear financial data are more defensible and more likely to be right. The 3-year projection gives you a long-term view.
🔄
Cost is one dimension — value is the full picture

A higher annual cost does not automatically make a system the wrong choice. The better question is what the investment unlocks — eliminating manual reconciliation, reducing compliance exposure, giving managers real-time visibility. These rarely show up as a line-item saving, but they compound.

Weigh cost impact alongside process efficiency, capability uplift, and the headroom a system creates to grow. Whether the total moves up or down, the real question is whether it makes you meaningfully better at managing people. This number starts that conversation; it doesn't end it.

Related

Found a cheaper option? Build the case for it.

Fit Engine turns your organisational context into weighted HRMS requirements — useful if the numbers here make a system change worth pursuing.

Explore Fit Engine

FAQ

Common questions.

Is the HR Tech ROI Calculator free?

Yes. It's free, requires no login, and is not gated behind a form.

What costs does it include?

Licence costs, IT and people time spent administering the system, implementation costs, and ongoing maintenance — for both your current stack and a prospective replacement.

Can I compare against a specific vendor?

You enter the cost figures for your current stack and for the replacement product you're considering — the calculator doesn't pull vendor pricing automatically, so you can use it for any product you're evaluating.

Does it support currencies other than USD?

Yes, the calculator is multi-currency.

How is the payback period calculated?

It's based on the difference between your current annual cost and the new product's ongoing cost, set against the new product's implementation cost — giving you an estimated time to break even.