In short:
- Factorial alternatives are best chosen by the reason for leaving: Skello and Combo for frontline scheduling, PayFit for payroll, Lucca and Eurecia for budget and French HR coverage, Personio for companies operating in several countries.
- Factorial bills per user, from 6.50 euros per month. Skello (59 to 129 euros per month depending on the plan) and Combo (from 60 euros) bill per location, a model that keeps costs stable as soon as a site has more than 15 to 20 employees.
- Lucca sells each module separately, from 2.24 euros excl. VAT (remote work) to 3.97 euros excl. VAT (performance) per employee, and Eurecia starts at 4.20 euros excl. VAT per employee. PayFit and Personio do not publish prices.
- According to the Factorial Business Facts Index 2026, 44.3% of Italian companies pay for at least two software tools that do the same job: switching tools is often a chance to cut that number.
The best Factorial alternatives in 2026 are not separated by the length of their feature lists. They are separated by the need that matters most in a given company: schedules with rotations, payroll produced in the same tool, billing that follows hiring, or operations spread across several countries. The comparison below starts from these reasons for leaving, one at a time.
Table: which Factorial alternative for each reason to switch
| Reason for leaving | Need covered | Best placed alternative | Other option | Public entry price (October 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rotating schedules, extra staff, split shifts | Collective agreement rules applied to the schedule | Skello | Combo | 59 euros per month (Skello Time Clock), 79 (Scheduling), 99 (both) |
| Payroll still done elsewhere | Payslips and social filings produced in the tool | PayFit | Lucca with a Silae connector | Quote-based (PayFit) |
| Bill that follows headcount | Module-by-module purchase | Lucca | Eurecia | 3.11 euros excl. VAT per employee for the Absences module (Lucca) |
| Employees in several countries | Multi-country management and advanced recruiting | Personio | Factorial also covers several countries | Quote-based |
| Need for a French all-in-one vendor | Strong mid-market footprint in France | Eurecia | Lucca | 4.20 euros excl. VAT per employee |
| Verdict | The reason decides, not the company size | Skello for frontline teams | PayFit for payroll | Per-location billing suits sites with more than 20 employees |
Why SMBs look for an alternative to Factorial
Factorial has become one of the most widely used HRIS software tools among European SMBs. The Barcelona-based vendor reports more than 14,000 client companies in 10 countries, and its promise rests on one idea: bringing leave, documents, e-signature, org chart and reviews into one simple interface.
Companies that switch usually do so because their main needs sit outside HR administration, where Factorial is strongest.
The first need is scheduling. Factorial displays team hours and covers day-to-day HR management; Skello and Combo also check the daily span and the daily rest period automatically as the manager builds the week.
The second need is budget. Factorial offers an entry price of 6.50 euros per user per month, with add-on modules (recruiting, reviews, advanced expenses, onboarding) activated as needed. For a seasonal business, the per-location billing of Skello or Combo stays stable when headcount varies.
The third need is payroll. Factorial centralizes payroll variables and integrates with payroll tools and accounting firms. Some small businesses without a payroll specialist look for payroll produced in the same tool.
When frontline scheduling is the problem: Skello and Combo
Scheduling software becomes the central question as soon as hours change from one week to the next. That is the case in restaurants, retail, pharmacies, gyms and construction sites. The ranking of the best employee scheduling software details these shift profiles.
Skello starts from this need. The manager builds the schedule from availability and contracts, and the software flags in real time an exceeded daily span, a missing rest period or extra hours on a part-time contract. The tablet time clock or geolocated mobile clock-in then records actual hours, compared with planned hours before payroll. The vendor reports 30,000 frontline teams. Plans start at 59 euros per month for the time clock, 79 euros for scheduling and 99 euros for both, with a 14-day trial on Skello’s website.
Combo targets the same businesses. Its Time plan starts at 60 euros per month per location and its People plan at 80 euros, with tiered pricing depending on the number of sites. Combo specializes in scheduling and team management, and Skello offers a recruiting module as an option from 40 euros per month.
The difference between the two lies in the depth of legal rules and in multi-site management. Running both in parallel on a real week, split shifts and replacements included, quickly separates them.
When payroll is the real issue: PayFit
PayFit addresses a single problem and solves it well: producing accurate payslips without payroll expertise. Contribution calculations, the DSN (France’s monthly social filing) and salary payments all start from the same interface, and approved absences flow into the payslip automatically.
The vendor does not publish a price list: pricing is quote-based and depends on headcount. PayFit focuses on payroll and connects to scheduling and review tools. The guide to the 5 criteria for choosing payroll software helps check collective agreement coverage before signing.
When budget is the priority: Lucca and Eurecia
Lucca breaks the bundle logic. Each module is billed separately, per employee per month: 2.24 euros excl. VAT for remote work, 3.00 euros for timesheets, 3.11 euros for absences, 3.21 euros for the HR core, 3.97 euros for performance. A company that only needs absences and expenses pays for two modules, not a suite.
Lucca lets each company build its offer module by module, with declarative time tracking suited to office teams.
Eurecia lists an entry offer at 4.20 euros excl. VAT per employee per month, with lower rates as headcount grows. The suite covers leave, time, expenses, reviews and recruiting. It is the French alternative closest to Factorial in its overall approach, with a stronger focus on mid-sized companies.
Budgets by company size are detailed in the article on HRIS software pricing.
When the company grows abroad: Personio
Personio, a Munich-based vendor, targets SMBs spread across several European countries. Employee files, absences and onboarding processes follow each country’s rules within a single tool.
Its strength remains recruiting: a built-in ATS (Applicant Tracking System) with job posting on several job boards and configurable approval workflows. Pricing is quote-based. Personio is particularly suited to companies present in several countries, with very complete recruiting.
The real cost of switching HR software
Switching HR tools is not just about comparing two subscriptions. The Factorial Business Facts Index 2026, presented in Milan on 9 October 2026, puts a figure on tool sprawl: according to the study, reported by Adnkronos, “il 44,3% delle aziende paga almeno due software che svolgono sostanzialmente la stessa funzione” in Italy, and the vendor estimates the time lost by managers at 85,933 euros a year for a 250-employee company (Touchpoint News, 2026).
This estimate comes from the study published by Factorial. The finding holds true in frontline businesses: a schedule in Excel, hours logged in an app, absences approved in the HRIS, and an export retyped for the accountant.
| Migration step | Indicative duration | Watch point |
|---|---|---|
| Data export from Factorial | 1 to 2 days | Contracts, amendments, signed documents |
| Transfer of balances (paid leave, RTT, rest) | 1 week | Sign-off by each manager before switching |
| Rules and schedule setup | 1 to 3 weeks | Collective agreement, cycles, split shifts |
| Parallel run of both tools | 2 weeks minimum | Outside the annual closing month |
| Final switch | 1 day | Team briefing the day before |
In total, four to eight weeks separate the decision from the switch. The most underestimated task remains the transfer of balances: a wrong leave balance only surfaces when an employee claims it.
What to test during a free trial
A demo shows what a vendor wants to show. A trial shows what the tool does with real data, provided the test is set up properly. Four checks make the difference:
- Rebuild one real week of schedules for one site, with a split shift, a last-minute absence and a replacement.
- Enter the rules of the applicable collective agreement (maximum daily hours, weekly rest, Sunday premiums) and check that the tool raises an alert when a rule is broken.
- Export the hours worked to the payroll tool or the accountant and count the fields that still need to be retyped.
- Ask an employee to clock in from the tablet or the phone, then correct the entry as a manager, and time the whole sequence.
A tool that passes these four checks in a 14-day trial will hold up in production. One that fails the second check will push the compliance work back onto managers, whatever its price.
How to decide between Factorial alternatives
One question is usually enough: where do the worked hours come from? If they come from stable office hours, a general HRIS such as Lucca, Eurecia or Factorial is well suited. If they come from a schedule that changes every week, the starting point should be scheduling software such as Skello or Combo.
The second question is about billing. With 45 employees across 3 restaurants, Factorial costs 292.50 euros per month for its core alone (45 × 6.50 euros), against 237 euros for Skello scheduling (3 × 79 euros) and 180 euros for Combo Time (3 × 60 euros). Factorial’s per-user billing follows headcount precisely, while Skello and Combo, billed per location, keep a stable cost when headcount varies in summer.
The comparison of the best HRIS software by company profile applies the same trade-offs to other company sizes.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best alternatives to Factorial in 2026?
Six tools cover the most common reasons for leaving Factorial. Skello (59 to 129 euros per month depending on the plan, billed per location) and Combo (from 60 euros per month per location) address frontline scheduling. PayFit (quote-based) solves payroll. Lucca (modules from 2.24 euros excl. VAT per employee) and Eurecia (from 4.20 euros excl. VAT per employee) target budget and French HR coverage, while Personio (quote-based) suits multi-country companies.
Why do companies leave Factorial?
The same needs come up again and again: scheduling for rotating teams, billing that follows modules and headcount, and payroll handled in the same tool.
Which Factorial alternative suits a restaurant or a retail chain?
For split shifts, extra staff and several sites, Skello and Combo fit best: shift-based schedules, an on-site time clock and per-location billing that does not change when headcount doubles in high season.
How long does a migration from Factorial take?
Allow four to eight weeks for the data export, the transfer of leave balances and a parallel run of at least two weeks, scheduled outside the annual closing month.