WhosOff has been a staple of UK leave management for years, offering a straightforward approach to holiday planning that resonates with British businesses. Its UK-specific features — bank holiday handling, accrual calculations that account for the UK tax year, and compliance with UK employment law basics — make it a natural fit for companies operating primarily in the United Kingdom. But for UK businesses that want to keep costs flat as they grow, or for companies with international employees, the per-user pricing model raises questions about long-term value.
Key Takeaways
- WhosOff is UK-focused with strong bank holiday and holiday year features; LeaveBalance works globally
- WhosOff charges per user starting at £2/user/mo; LeaveBalance is $10/mo flat for unlimited employees
- UK-only teams may prefer WhosOff’s local focus; mixed or growing teams benefit from LeaveBalance’s flat rate
What WhosOff Does Well
WhosOff understands the UK holiday landscape. It handles statutory holiday entitlement calculations, automatically accounts for UK bank holidays, and manages the April-to-April holiday year that many UK companies use. For HR teams tired of manually calculating who’s entitled to what, these automated calculations are a genuine time-saver.
The absence calendar is clean and functional, showing team availability at a glance. Employees can request time off through a simple web interface, managers approve with one click, and everyone sees who’s off on a shared calendar. The reporting covers the basics — absence rates, holiday usage, and patterns over time.
WhosOff also offers a basic time tracking module, though it’s not as robust as dedicated time tracking tools. For companies that want leave tracking and basic timesheets in one place, this can reduce the number of tools in the stack.
The setup process is guided and quick. UK-specific defaults — bank holidays pre-loaded, statutory entitlements calculated, common leave types pre-configured — mean most UK teams can be running within an hour.
Where LeaveBalance Pulls Ahead
WhosOff’s per-user pricing starts at £2/user/mo for the standard plan. For a UK company with 20 employees, that’s £40/month. For 50 employees, it’s £100/month. LeaveBalance costs $10/month regardless of headcount, and that price includes every feature.
The UK focus that makes WhosOff strong in one area creates limitations in another. If your company has employees outside the UK — remote workers in Europe, a small US office, or team members in Australia — WhosOff’s UK-centric design doesn’t serve them as well. LeaveBalance supports global leave policies, international holiday calendars, and multiple leave year configurations out of the box.
LeaveBalance’s policy engine is more flexible than WhosOff’s. While WhosOff handles standard UK entitlements well, custom policies — different accrual rates for part-time employees, department-specific carryover rules, conditional leave types — require workarounds. LeaveBalance handles all of these natively.
The reporting and analytics in LeaveBalance provide more depth for companies that want to understand their absence data. Cost analysis, trend reports, and department-level breakdowns help HR teams make data-driven decisions about leave policies and staffing.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | LeaveBalance | WhosOff |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | $10/mo flat | £2+/user/mo |
| Employee limit | Unlimited | Per-seat |
| UK bank holidays | Yes | Yes (pre-loaded) |
| Statutory entitlements | Configurable | Automated |
| Holiday year config | Flexible | UK-focused |
| Leave requests | Yes | Yes |
| Accrual policies | Yes | Yes |
| Carryover rules | Yes | Yes |
| Time tracking | No | Basic |
| Calendar sync | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-country support | Yes | UK-focused |
| Mobile app | Yes | Yes |
Pricing Comparison
| Team Size | LeaveBalance | WhosOff (Standard) | WhosOff (Premium) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 employees | $10/mo | £10/mo | £15/mo |
| 10 employees | $10/mo | £20/mo | £30/mo |
| 25 employees | $10/mo | £50/mo | £75/mo |
| 50 employees | $10/mo | £100/mo | £150/mo |
| 100 employees | $10/mo | £200/mo | £300/mo |
When to Choose WhosOff
WhosOff is the better choice for UK-only companies with straightforward leave policies and fewer than 20 employees. The pre-configured bank holidays, statutory entitlement calculations, and UK-focused interface mean less setup work for HR teams that operate exclusively in the UK.
If your company uses the April-to-April holiday year and you want a tool that handles UK-specific calculations without manual configuration, WhosOff’s defaults save time. The basic time tracking module can also justify the per-user cost if you’d otherwise need a separate timesheet tool.
When to Choose LeaveBalance
LeaveBalance wins for UK companies that are growing or have international employees. The flat $10/month rate means your leave management cost doesn’t climb with every new hire. For a UK startup that plans to double its headcount this year, that cost stability matters.
Companies with mixed UK and international teams benefit from LeaveBalance’s global approach. You can configure UK-specific policies for your London office while setting different rules for employees in other countries — all within the same platform.
For UK teams that want deep reporting, flexible policy configuration, and a clean interface without paying per user, LeaveBalance provides more value at a lower total cost.
FAQ
Does LeaveBalance support UK bank holidays?
Yes, LeaveBalance includes UK bank holidays in its holiday calendar and supports the April-to-April holiday year configuration that many UK companies use.
How does LeaveBalance handle UK statutory holiday entitlement?
LeaveBalance lets you configure statutory entitlement as a leave policy with the correct accrual rules and maximums. While it doesn’t auto-calculate statutory entitlement the way WhosOff does, the configuration is straightforward for UK HR teams.
Can I use LeaveBalance for employees outside the UK?
Yes, LeaveBalance is designed for global teams. You can set different leave policies, holiday calendars, and entitlements for employees in different countries.
What’s the main reason to switch from WhosOff to LeaveBalance?
Cost predictability as your team grows. WhosOff’s per-user pricing means every new hire increases your leave management bill. LeaveBalance’s flat rate eliminates that variable.
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