Picture an Indian company with 90 employees. The founders managed HR themselves until about 40 people, then hired one HR executive. Today that executive handles PF and ESI returns, professional tax in three states, a first appraisal cycle, and a growing pile of leave and attendance requests, all in spreadsheets. A client in Dubai has just asked whether the company can hire two people there.
That is the moment most companies start shopping for HR software in India for 50 to 200 employees. The stakes are higher than they look. Choose too small and you will migrate payroll within two years. Choose too big and you will pay for an enterprise rollout you do not need. This guide compares the HRMS for SMEs in India that growth-stage companies shortlist most often, starts with the one built for this stage, and shows what to check on price before you sign.
Four compliance triggers between 50 and 200 employees
Headcount in this band brings obligations that a 20 person team can ignore. They arrive in a particular order, so plan for them before the software decision.
- PF and ESI registration: PF applies once an establishment crosses 20 employees, and ESI applies at 10 or more employees for those earning up to ₹21,000 a month.
- A higher EPF wage ceiling: Since 17 September 2026, the ceiling is ₹25,000, which pulls many mid-level salaries into a bigger PF base and changes employer cost.
- The four labour codes: In force since 21 November 2025; they require basic pay of at least half of total remuneration for wage calculation, which reshapes PF, gratuity, and overtime for many CTC structures.
- State rules: Professional tax, labour welfare fund, and shop and establishment rules differ by state, so a second office means a second rulebook.
The payroll system you choose must handle all four natively, not as a manual workaround. An Internal Committee under the POSH Act and gratuity provisioning also apply once a workplace has 10 or more employees, so both are usually in place by the time a company reaches this stage.
Also read: Best HR software in India.
HR software in India for 50 to 200 employees at a glance
| Platform | PF, ESI, TDS, PT | Multi-entity | Performance and learning | Multi-country | Best fit |
| Akrivia HCM | Native | One dashboard | Included, with LMS | Yes | 100 to 500, growing or regional |
| greytHR | Native | Premium plan or add-on | Add-on performance | No | 50 to 150, compliance first |
| Keka | Native | Workarounds as it grows | Strong performance, native LMS | No | 50 to 300, India only |
| Zoho People | Via payroll tier | Complex at scale | Higher tiers | Limited | Teams already on Zoho |
| RazorpayX Payroll | Native payroll | Limited | Not core | No | Payroll only, early stage |
Akrivia HCM: the system you do not outgrow
Among HR software in India for 50 to 200 employees, Akrivia HCM comes first on this list because it is built for the company that expects to be bigger in two years. It is a unified hire-to-retire HRMS for SMEs in India. Recruitment, onboarding, core HR, leave and attendance, payroll, performance, learning and analytics share one employee record, so nothing is entered twice.
For an Indian company with 50 to 200 employees, that means:
- PF, ESI, professional tax across applicable states, labour welfare fund, TDS under both regimes, and gratuity provisioning handled natively in payroll.
- The four labour codes are reflected in the engine from November 2025.
- Multiple Indian entities, each with its own PF registration and state rules, managed from one dashboard without per-entity pricing penalties.
- OKR-based performance management, 360-degree feedback, and a native learning system in the same platform.
- Akrivia CoPilot analytics for attrition, cost by entity, and headcount trends.
- WhatsApp-based self-service, which suits employees who rarely open another app.
- Payroll for the UAE, Malaysia, Singapore, and the wider region on the same platform so that the Dubai client is not a second vendor.
- A dedicated support contact rather than an email queue, which matters in payroll week.
greytHR
greytHR is one of the most established HR names in India, with a long statutory track record and published pricing. Essential covers payroll, leave and core HR, and Growth adds attendance and shift management. A 7 day free trial lets you test it without commitment.
Where to look closer:
- Recruitment, performance, and analytics are thinner than the payroll core, and performance management is a paid add-on.
- Reviewers mention strain on configuration and support as companies approach 100 to 150 employees with custom policies.
- It is an India-focused product, so regional payroll needs another vendor.
Keka
Keka is widely praised as an HRMS for SMEs in India for design, employee adoption and performance management, with OKR based goals, continuous feedback and 360 degree reviews. Its published pricing lets finance teams model costs before talking to sales.
Where to look closer:
- Multi-entity payroll starts to need workarounds as organizational structure grows.
- Support during payroll week is a recurring reviewer concern, and annual plans carry a 2% setup fee.
- Payroll is India only.
Zoho People
Zoho People works best for companies that already run their business on Zoho. Its tiers add attendance and shift scheduling, performance appraisals and 360 degree feedback, and then learning. Zoho Payroll for India is listed with the top tier.
Where to look closer:
- Because the payroll you need sits in a higher tier or a separate subscription, the real price is the combined bundle.
- Multi-entity payroll gets complicated as headcount grows.
- Outside the Zoho ecosystem, the integration advantage shrinks.
RazorpayX Payroll
RazorpayX Payroll is the tool many Indian startups adopt first, and it suits young companies that mainly need salaries, compliance filings and payslips to run smoothly. Its simplicity is its strength.
Where to look closer:
- HR depth, such as performance, recruitment, and learning, is limited.
- Companies commonly hit an HR wall within 12 to 18 months as they add people and processes.
- There is no multi-country payroll.
The first HR hire wall
Growth-stage companies rarely outgrow a platform on headcount alone. They outgrow it when the first dedicated HR person is hired and discovers how much work the system is not doing. The wall shows up as:
- Appraisal data kept in a shared sheet because the HR tool has no performance module.
- A second spreadsheet for contract and consultant payments.
- Separate trackers for ESI-eligible employees and for state-wise professional tax.
- An expensive add-on every time a new module is needed.
- A manager asking for a headcount and attrition report that takes a day to assemble.
Two of these means your next HR software in India for 50 to 200 employees should be chosen for the company you will be in 24 months.
Read more: Best HR software in India for 200 to 500 employees.
A one hour demo script for a 50 to 200 person company
Bring the same list to every vendor when comparing HR software India has on offer.
- Process one real payroll month with your PF, ESI, and professional tax rules in the demo.
- Show the revised wage definition and the ₹25,000 EPF ceiling applied to a real salary structure.
- Add a second legal entity and show how it appears in reports.
- Run an appraisal cycle end to end and show the output.
- Ask for the total price, including every module you need, in writing.
Conclusion
The best HR software in India for 50 to 200 employees handles PF, ESI, TDS and the new wage definition correctly today and still fits when you add an entity, a state or a country. Choosing a platform your growing team will not outgrow is the real task. For a single entity with no growth plans, greytHR and Keka are strong, honest options. For companies heading towards multiple entities, regional hiring or a full talent suite, a unified HRMS for SMEs in India avoids a mid-growth migration.
FAQs
Is PF mandatory below 20 employees in India?
Not by law, but an establishment can register voluntarily, and many do. Check whether your state or client contracts expect it.
Is gratuity payable only after five years?
For permanent employees, generally yes. Under the new codes, fixed-term employees can claim it after one year of continuous service.
Can an Indian company switch payroll mid-year?
Yes, but the cleanest point is the start of a quarter or financial year. Carry over year-to-date TDS and PF data so Form 16 stays correct.
