Zoho People alternative for UAE HR and payroll: DenwaysHR and Zoho,
line by line.
A Zoho People alternative with UAE HR, attendance and WPS payroll in one product. Zoho sells People and Payroll separately, with prices published in AED.
The short answer
DenwaysHR is a Zoho People alternative for UAE employers who want HR, attendance and WPS payroll in one product rather than two. It connects terminals directly and adds a desktop tracker, with white-label on Enterprise. Zoho People and Zoho Payroll publish prices in AED, connect to Zoho Books and run payroll in all six GCC states. DenwaysHR's payroll covers the UAE and India.
DenwaysHR is our product, and this page argues for it. You can check Zoho's column on the Zoho pages listed below. DenwaysHR is one product, with HR, attendance and UAE payroll on the same employee record. Zoho sells HR and payroll as two products, Zoho People and Zoho Payroll, inside a suite of more than sixty. If you do not already run on Zoho, one record means one less thing to connect.
How do DenwaysHR and Zoho compare?
| DenwaysHR | Zoho People + Zoho Payroll | |
|---|---|---|
| Products | One: HR, attendance and payroll on one record | Two, priced separately; also sold in bundles such as People Plus |
| UAE payroll | WPS salary file per establishment, gratuity and DIFC DEWS, inside the one product | WPS SIF with bank-specific formats, gratuity in final settlements, GPSSA, ADPF and DIFC DEWS |
| Attendance | Direct connections to ZKTeco, eSSL and Hikvision terminals; GPS and selfie check-in in a phone browser, with geofencing | Web and mobile check-in with location limits from the Professional plan; biometric devices through a plugin or the API |
| Filing | The WPS file is produced from the approved run | Files and contribution values are exported for the employer to submit |
| Arabic | Arabic across the interface, with Arabic or bilingual payslips | Arabic in People and Payroll; payslips in English and Arabic |
| Trial | Free on two plans, Basic Tracking and Basic Payroll | People: 30 days and a free plan up to 5 users. Payroll: 14 days |
| Prices | A quote per organization, with no published list | People from AED 5 per user a month; Payroll from AED 35 a month including 5 employees, then AED 7 each (annual billing, VAT extra) |
| Mobile | One web app in any phone browser; native app in development | Zoho People app, and a Zoho Payroll employee portal app |
| Other GCC payroll | HR, attendance and leave run for Saudi and Qatari teams; payroll there is not built yet | Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait; also India, US, UK and Canada |
Why choose DenwaysHR over Zoho People?
Zoho People and Zoho Payroll are two products. In DenwaysHR, attendance, leave and payroll sit on one record, so nothing has to sync.
- One product and one record: attendance, leave and approved overtime are already in the payroll run, with no sync between two systems
- The WPS file comes out of the approved run, one per establishment, with no separate payroll product to feed
- ZKTeco, eSSL and Hikvision terminals connect directly, and older devices use a connector. Zoho reaches biometric devices through a plugin or its API
- Hours at a desk on the same record as payroll: a Windows tracker with idle detection, and monitoring only during a running timer
- White-label branding on your own subdomain, on Enterprise
- One catalogue to read: all 131 modules and 810 features belong to the same product. Our features page lists them
Should you choose DenwaysHR or Zoho?
If your accounts and expenses already run on Zoho apps, that weighs heavily. If they do not, look at where your payroll is.
- Choose DenwaysHR if your payroll is in the UAE and you would rather run HR, attendance and payroll as one product than connect two
- Choose Zoho if you already run Zoho Books or other Zoho apps, need payroll elsewhere in the GCC, or want a published price before you talk to anyone
What should you check before switching from Zoho?
Zoho's strength is its other apps, so start with what connects to them.
- Your Zoho apps: if payroll posts journals to Zoho Books or pays Zoho Expense claims, decide how that reaches your accounts after the move
- Your licences: each legal entity has its own Zoho Payroll licence, so check the renewal date of each one, and of Zoho People
- Your other countries: if Zoho runs payroll for you in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain or Kuwait, DenwaysHR cannot take that over yet
- Your two exports: employee records and attendance sit in Zoho People, and past payslips in Zoho Payroll. Check what each one lets you take out, and in what format
Then prove the first month, one legal entity at a time, since each has its own Zoho Payroll licence. Run that entity's payroll in both systems and compare every net figure. Have your bank check a test salary file, and confirm each attendance device. Moving to DenwaysHR sets out the rest.
Where do the facts about Zoho come from?
Zoho's column was read on 29 October 2026 on the Zoho Payroll UAE pricing and features pages and its GCC editions post. We also read the Zoho People pricing and attendance pages, and Zoho's note on its UAE data centres. If a line on this page is out of date, write to info@denways.com and we will correct it.
See a UAE payroll month run from attendance to the WPS file in one product.
Book a demoSources
- Zoho Payroll UAE: Pricing
- Zoho Payroll UAE: Features (SIF, gratuity, Zoho Books)
- Zoho Payroll: GCC editions (GOSI, GRSIA, SIO, SPF, PIFSS)
- Zoho People: Pricing
- Zoho People: Attendance management
- Zoho: UAE data centres (January 2026)
- DenwaysHR: Pricing and plans
- DenwaysHR: Payroll (UAE)
- DenwaysHR: Mobile and desktop apps
Zoho's pages and ours, as they stood when we read them. Zoho People and Zoho Payroll are priced separately, so check both pricing pages before you decide.
Questions
Switching from Zoho: your questions.
How long are the Zoho People and Zoho Payroll trials?
Zoho People has a 30-day trial and a free plan up to 5 users; Zoho Payroll has 14 days. The DenwaysHR trial is free on the two plans marked on the pricing page.
Which GCC countries does Zoho Payroll cover?
Zoho Payroll covers Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait as well as the UAE. DenwaysHR's Gulf payroll covers the UAE, with Saudi and Qatari HR, attendance and leave running today.
Which mobile apps does Zoho offer?
Zoho offers a Zoho People app and a Zoho Payroll employee portal app. DenwaysHR has one web app that works on any phone, with a native app in development.
Who publishes prices?
Zoho does. People starts at AED 5 per user a month. Payroll starts at AED 35 a month including 5 employees, then AED 7 each, on annual billing with VAT extra. DenwaysHR quotes per organization.
How do we move from Zoho to DenwaysHR?
Decide first how payroll reaches Zoho Books and Zoho Expense, and note the renewal date of each entity's Zoho Payroll licence. Our migration steps cover the import and the month run alongside Zoho.
Keep reading
Bring your whole workforce onto one platform.
See how DenwaysHR handles HR, attendance and leave across the GCC, and payroll with the WPS file in the UAE.
