Sage HR vs Workday — Pricing, Plans, and Verified Costs (2026)
Sage HR starts at $5.5/mo. Workday uses custom pricing — request a quote to compare.
How pricing works
These two tools don't price the same way, so the headline numbers below aren't directly comparable until you plug in your own volume.
- Sage HR (Per Seat) — Sage HR bills on a fixed plan from $5.5/mo, so the listed price is what you pay regardless of volume.
- Workday (Per Usage) — Workday bills purely on usage — employees + modules. There is no fixed per-seat fee, so the monthly cost depends entirely on how much you consume.
Per-minute, per-credit and per-token rates exclude any downstream model, speech or telephony costs unless the vendor states otherwise.
Sage HR (formerly CakeHR) is Sage's cloud HR platform for SMBs. Core HR ~$5.50/employee/mo; add-on modules (Leave, Performance, Timesheets, Shift Scheduling, Recruitment, Expenses) priced separately per employee. 30-day free trial. UK-headquartered.
The dominant enterprise HR + Finance ERP, publicly traded (WDAY), ~$70B market cap. Positioned as the alternative to Oracle HCM Cloud and SAP SuccessFactors for large enterprises. Distinctive for its all-in-one HCM + Finance suite (Workday Financial Management) that few competitors match at scale. Pricing opaque, quote-only, typically $100-$400/employee/year with $500K-$5M+ implementation fees. Best fit for 1000+ employee organizations; overkill for anyone smaller.
All plans compared
| Tier role | Plan | Sage HR monthly | Sage HR annual | Workday monthly | Workday annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry paid | + Expenses / — | $1.5 | $1.5 | — | — |
| Mid tier 1 | + Performance / — | $3 | $3 | — | — |
| Mid tier 2 | + Shift Scheduling / — | $3 | $3 | — | — |
| Mid tier 3 | + Timesheets / — | $3 | $3 | — | — |
| Mid tier 4 | Core HR + Leave Management / — | $5.5 | $5.5 | — | — |
| Mid tier 5 | + HR Advice Essentials / — | $100 | $100 | — | — |
| Pro / power | + Recruitment / — | $200 | $200 | — | — |
Tier names differ across vendors. Rows are aligned by tier role, not name. Full tier structures on each tool's page.
What each is best for
Sage HR is worth it if… Sage HR is ideal for UK/EU small-to-mid businesses (5-200 employees) that want modular HR without US-heavy pricing tiers.
Workday is worth it if… large enterprises (5,000+ employees) that need cloud HRIS + payroll + financials + planning as a unified suite — particularly if you're a Fortune 500 running complex global HR operations. Custom-quoted per employee + modules; typical mid-market to enterprise contracts $200K-$5M+/year.
Bottom line: Choose based on how you want to pay — Sage HR is per seat, Workday is per usage.
Choose Sage HR over Workday if…
Choose Sage HR if…
- You want fixed-price predictability (per seat, from $5.5/mo).
- You match the profile Sage HR is built for: ideal for UK/EU small-to-mid businesses (5-200 employees) that want modular HR without US-heavy pricing tiers.
- You need a general-purpose hr & people option rather than a vertical-specific one.
Choose Workday if…
- You want to pay only for actual usage (per usage, custom pricing).
- You match the profile Workday is built for: large enterprises (5,000+ employees) that need cloud HRIS + payroll + financials + planning as a unified suite — particularly if you're a Fortune 500 running complex global HR operations.
- You need a general-purpose hr & people option rather than a vertical-specific one.
At a glance
| Sage HR | Workday | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | No | — |
| Entry price | $5.5/mo | Custom pricing |
| Enterprise available | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing model | Per Seat | Per Usage |
| Verification | Pricing under review | Verified September 26, 2026 |
| Full pricing | View full pricing | View full pricing |
Pricing last verified September 27, 2026. Tracked daily.