MHR Payroll: Everything You Need To Know Before Buying

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If your business’s payroll needs are different from those of most other companies, MHR could be the only place you need to look.

MHR not only provides tailored payroll, HR, and finance software solutions, but also niche features like real-time processing, fully customisable interfaces, and AI-driven security protocols, as well as a fully managed payroll service.

In our MHR payroll review, we found that its flexible pricing and end-to-end management structure make it ideal for growing businesses with unique reporting and processing needs, and so it ranks highly on our list of best payroll solutions for small businesses.

MHR offers three plans. Each plan consists of payroll, finance, and HR management software as a bundle, with features ranging from basic payroll processing and reporting to full-on enterprise resource management. Pricing is fully bespoke for all three plans.

Best for	Businesses of all sizes and industries looking for highly flexible reporting
Cost	Bespoke
Features	Real-time processing and fully customisable interfaces
Data security	High-level data security with the AI-powered iTrent Shield
Support resources	Resource library, including guides, case studies, and live events
Scalability	Bespoke pricing and tiered plans make scaling relatively easy
Customer support	Phone, live chat, and dedicated account manager
Pros	Highly flexible reporting Payroll data can be shared across different systems Customer service is available via phone and live chat CIPP Payroll Assurance Scheme (PAS) accreditation
Cons	No live training available Pricing is bespoke only No email customer support

What Is MHR Payroll?

MHR provides payroll, HR, and finance software for businesses of all sizes and industries. It’s a highly flexible, highly configurable platform that tailors its services to meet the unique needs of complex businesses, such as industry-specific compliance or advanced data security requirements.

Besides its software solutions, MHR also offers fully outsourced payroll services for businesses looking for a cleaner, hands-off solution.

How Much Does MHR Cost?

MHR’s payroll software comes in three separate tiers, each one catering to a slightly different market. Unlike competitors such as 12 Cloud Payroll, MHR doesn’t reveal its pricing upfront.

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Plan People First	Plan iTrent	Plan MHR ERP
Best For Startups and small businesses	Best For Large and medium-sized businesses with unique needs	Best For Large, complex enterprises
Number of Users ~1-99	Number of Users ~100-499	Number of Users ~500+
Price Bespoke	Price Bespoke	Price Bespoke
Key Features Real-time reporting HR & finance software included Check-in features allow communication with employees directly in the software	Key Features Fully customisable interfaces Cloud-based analytics Salary modelling for precise budgeting and forecasting	Key Features Full business management solution Top-tier tax compliance and reporting automation MHR Talent Management assists in recruitment

Note: ‘Number of users’ is an estimate from our payroll experts. These figures haven’t been sourced from MHR.

People First

The People First plan is MHR’s core payroll, HR, and finance software. Its focus is on real-time payroll processing and automation, allowing you to stay up-to-date on tax compliance and run payroll with reduced errors.

People First is ideal for startups and small businesses that need a bit more than a standalone payroll software solution. Pricing is fully bespoke.

iTrent

The iTrent plan has essentially the same offerings as the People First plan, only with a much higher degree of configuration and flexibility. You can use iTrent to customise your own payroll, HR, and finance platform that best suits your business’s needs.

iTrent is ideal for large and medium-sized businesses that may have unique needs—like high-security standards or advanced customisations—which can’t be met by a cookie-cutter payroll software solution. Pricing is fully bespoke.

MHR ERP

The MHR ERP plan significantly broadens its offerings compared to the previous two plans. It’s a full enterprise resource management solution with a focus on automating and increasing efficiency for all critical areas of your business, including payroll.

MHR ERP is ideal for the largest and most complex enterprises looking for an all-in-one management solution. Pricing is fully bespoke.

MHR Features

Here are some key features that set MHR apart from its competitors.

Real-time payroll processing: Unlike other providers that require constant refreshes and periodic updates, MHR processes payroll in real time. You’ll be able to see every transaction as soon as it occurs, which means your reporting will always be as current as your actual operations.
Customisable interface: Under the iTrent plan, you can design your own payroll software interface. You can remove any unnecessary buttons and menus, and add new ones that speed up your workflow.
Payroll, HR, and finance in one: Although this might not be essential for small businesses looking to minimise overheads, all of MHR’s payroll plans come with HR and finance software built-in. For most businesses, this is a boon, as integrations will be less painful, and important information can be contained in one solution.

MHR Security

MHR isn’t forthcoming about security measures under People First, its core plan.

Its two higher plans, iTrent and MHR ERP, both come with iTrent Shield, an innovative, AI-driven security protocol for protecting sensitive employee data.

iTrent Shield features MFA (multi-factor authentication) and UBA (user behaviour analytics), which analyses employee behaviour, notifying you when it detects sketchy patterns that may indicate fraud. Beyond this, iTrent Shield comes with standard security protocols such as SOC2, ISO27001, and ISO9001 certifications.

MHR Support Resources

MHR offers a tremendous amount of support resources, organising its offerings into five categories: Knowledge Hub, downloads, case studies, events and webinars, and MHR Labs.

Knowledge Hub: This is where you can find broad help resources like financial checklists and logistics guides.
Downloads: Here you can download more technical documents like whitepapers and formal reports.
Case studies: This is where you can read proof of how MHR’s software solutions have benefited other businesses in the past.
Events and webinars: Here you can register for remote and in-person events from MHR’s team and other industry authorities.
MHR Labs: This is one of MHR’s newest offerings—a ‘lab’ with opinions and useful advice from MHR experts, covering cutting-edge topics like AI.

MHR’s support resources vastly exceed those of the competition. Even our other favourite payroll software providers like Iris Staffology, ADP, and Moorepay only offer standard resources like one-off guides and blog posts.

MHR Scalability

MHR has two solid strengths in the scalability department.

Firstly, the fully bespoke pricing model and tiered plans cater to business growth and increasing employee numbers. MHR will scale with you, removing the need to change providers.

Secondly, MHR’s payroll software solutions come part and parcel with HR and finance software—even its core plan, People First. While this isn’t ideal for every business, it does mean you’ll be less likely to ‘grow out’ of MHR as your business continues to develop.

However, it’s important to note that MHR doesn’t advertise compatibility with international payroll systems—so if you’re looking to expand your business into multiple countries, you might want to go with a more globally focused provider like Frontier.

MHR Customer Support

MHR gets high marks from us for its customer support, for three reasons:

MHR offers full implementation support upon purchase, with the choice between in-person or remote options.
MHR guarantees a dedicated account manager for as long as you use its software.
MHR’s customer help centre assists customers via phone and live chat.

The only downside is MHR’s baffling lack of email support, a service offered by literally every other payroll software provider on the market.

How We Reviewed MHR Payroll

We regularly research a wide range of market-leading payroll products and services to evaluate them in terms of functionality, usability, data security, and customer support so we can make the most useful recommendations for UK businesses.

Our rigorous research process means these products have been scored and rated in five main categories of investigation and 10 subcategories – in fact, we covered 56 areas of investigation in total. We then gave each category score a ‘relevance weighting' to ensure the product's final score perfectly reflects the needs and requirements of Expert Market readers.

Our main testing categories for payroll products and services are:

Control: the level of customisation and flexibility provided by the payroll software in managing and processing payroll, such as the ability to define pay periods, set up tax withholding rules, and manage employee data.

Data Security: the measures and protocols implemented by the payroll software to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of sensitive payroll information.

Expertise: the level of knowledge and guidance provided by the payroll software vendor or support team. This can include resources such as documentation, tutorials, and training materials.

Scalability: the ability of the payroll software to accommodate the growth and changing needs of a business, including the capacity to handle an increasing number of employees and support multiple locations or entities.

Customer Support: the various channels and methods available for users to seek assistance and support from the payroll software vendor, such as email or ticket-based support, phone support, or live chat.

Verdict

MHR offers bespoke payroll, HR, and finance software across three tiers: People First for startups and small businesses, iTrent for larger organisations requiring customisation, and MHR ERP for complex enterprises looking for an all-in-one management solution.

Key features include real-time payroll processing, customisable interfaces, and integrated HR and finance software, with security enhanced by iTrent Shield in higher tiers.

MHR stands out for its extensive support resources and strong customer service, although it strangely lacks an email support line.

MHR’s fully bespoke pricing model and all-in-one approach make it adaptable for scaling businesses, though not if that means expanding into other countries.

MHR Payroll FAQs

What’s so good about MHR payroll?

MHR excels in its highly flexible reporting and customisable interfaces. These features, along with its fully bespoke pricing model, make it ideal for scaling businesses with complex, unique payroll needs.

Does MHR offer other software besides payroll?

MHR’s payroll software comes as a package deal alongside its HR and finance software. Its highest-level plan, MHR ERP, is a full-on enterprise resource management solution, applicable to all areas of business management.

Is MHR easy to implement?

MHR makes the implementation process as close to painless as possible, offering remote and in-person implementation options, as well as a dedicated account manager to help walk you through the entire process.