CharlieHR vs Workday
Last updated October 2026
Looking for a European alternative to Workday? Here's how CharlieHR compares, on EU hosting, GDPR and what it does.
Our pick for a European buyer: CharlieHR. We weight data residency, GDPR and EU jurisdiction above everything else — that is the constraint this directory exists to solve.
What it is
UK HR software for small businesses with EU-hosted data
Cloud-based enterprise software for finance, HR, and analytics.
Headquarters
🇬🇧 GB
🇺🇸 US · 2005
EU data residency
Yes, for all customers
Available on some plansEU data residency is available on request for certain modules and regions.
DSGVO / GDPR
Yes
Yes
Certifications
ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials
ISO 27001, SOC 2 Type II
Price from
£5/user/mo
No
Free plan
No
No
Open Source
No
No
Integrations
AccessOwl, Apideck, Assembly, Bonusly, Cakewalk +36
SAP, Oracle, Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, ServiceNow
Where each one wins
CharlieHR
Strengths
- +Simple and intuitive interface for non-HR specialists
- +Centralizes leave, holiday, and sick leave tracking effectively
- +Streamlined onboarding workflows for new hires
- +Slack integration for absence notifications
- +Responsive and helpful customer support
- +Ideal for small businesses and first-time HR software users
- +Clear visibility of employee incentives and time-off balances
Limitations
- −Basic reporting tools lacking depth for advanced HR needs
- −Limited integration options compared to larger platforms
- −No native payroll functionality
Workday
Strengths
- +Strong analytics and reporting capabilities
- +Scalable for large enterprises
- +Unified platform for HR and finance
- +Robust compliance and security features
Limitations
- −High implementation and maintenance costs
- −Steep learning curve for administrators
- −Complex customization requirements
- −Long implementation timelines
Data residency & compliance
CharlieHR
Workday
EU data residency
Yes, for all customers
Available on some plansEU data residency is available on request for certain modules and regions.
Transfer mechanism
Not required — data stays in the EU
not established
DPA
not established
not established
Sub-processors
not established
not established
Certifications
ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials
ISO 27001, SOC 2 Type II
Pricing
CharlieHR
- Core (Charlie) £5/month (first 6 months, 1–4 team members), then £20/month per team / month7-day free trial, no credit card required · Pricing scales with team size (e.g., 5–9 members: £45/month, 15–29: £105/month, 250+: £735/month) · Limited-time offer for small teams
- Charlie Recruit (Add-on) From £55/month per monthAutomates manual hiring tasks · Improves recruitment decisions · Requires a Charlie subscription
- Charlie Advice (Add-on) From £179/month per monthExpert HR guidance · Legal compliance support · Requires a Charlie subscription
Pricing varies by team size; add-ons billed separately. Limited-time offer for 1–4 team members.
Workday
No published pricing we could verify.
Pricing is customized and available on request; typically involves multi-year contracts with license costs varying by module and scale.
Features
CharlieHR
- Onboarding
- One-click collection of new hire information, Automated profile creation for new starters
- Time Off Management
- Automated leave requests and approvals, Sync with Google Calendar, Outlook, iCal, Slack integration for leave notifications, Custom leave types and public holiday sync
- Performance Management
- Performance review workflows, Team growth tracking
- Employee Engagement
- Team sentiment analysis, Engagement tools and surveys
- Perks and Benefits
- Perks and benefits administration, Employee discount programs
Workday
- Human Capital Management
- Employee lifecycle management, Talent acquisition and onboarding, Compensation and benefits administration, Time and attendance tracking
- Financial Management
- General ledger and accounting, Expense management, Revenue management, Procurement and sourcing
- Analytics and Reporting
- Customizable dashboards, Predictive analytics, Ad-hoc reporting, Data visualization