greytHR for Small Business in India: A 2026 Setup & Cost Guide
If you run a small business in India and payroll still lives in spreadsheets, greytHR is one of the most popular ways to fix that without hiring a big HR team. It automates salary processing and statutory compliance, and gives your employees self-service for payslips and leave. This guide explains where greytHR fits for small businesses, what it costs, and how to get started. National IT Service is an authorised greytHR partner that sets up and supports greytHR for SMBs across India.
Why small businesses choose greytHR: Small businesses pick greytHR because it removes the two biggest payroll headaches: calculation errors and statutory compliance. Instead of manually computing PF, ESI, Professional Tax and TDS every month, greytHR does it automatically and generates the government-ready files. It is cloud-based, so there is nothing to install, and employees self-serve payslips and leave — which means fewer interruptions for the owner or office manager who often doubles as HR.
Free vs paid plans and cost: greytHR follows a subscription model with a free tier suitable for very small teams and paid plans that scale with headcount and the modules you need (payroll, leave, attendance, ESS). As a rule of thumb, paid plans start from a few thousand rupees per month for a small team. Because plans and inclusions change, we recommend confirming current pricing on our greytHR pricing page or asking us for an exact quote for your headcount.
Statutory compliance made simple: This is where greytHR earns its keep for small businesses. It handles Provident Fund (PF ECR), ESI challans, Professional Tax across states, and TDS with quarterly Form 24Q — then issues Form 16 at year-end. For an owner who cannot risk a compliance notice, having this automated and correct is often reason enough to move off spreadsheets.
What you can automate on day one: From the start you can automate monthly payroll runs, payslip generation and release, leave accrual and approval, attendance capture (including mobile selfie and geofence for field staff), and reimbursement claims. Employee self-service through the web portal and mobile app means staff pull their own payslips and apply for leave without emailing you.
Typical setup timeline: A small business (up to ~50 employees) is usually live on greytHR within 1–3 weeks: statutory configuration, salary structure setup, employee data import, and a first parallel payroll run to validate against your previous method. Working with a partner compresses this and avoids the classic first-month errors.
Getting started with a partner: You can sign up for greytHR yourself, but most small businesses prefer a done-for-you setup so payroll is correct from month one. As an authorised greytHR partner, National IT Service handles configuration, migration, employee rollout and training, and can even run payroll for you each month — all with GST invoicing and local NCR + pan-India support.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does greytHR cost for a small business?
greytHR has a free tier for very small teams and paid plans that scale with headcount and modules, typically starting from a few thousand rupees per month for a small team. Check our greytHR pricing page or ask us for an exact quote for your employee count.
Is greytHR good for a small business in India?
Yes — it is purpose-built for Indian SMBs, strong on statutory compliance (PF, ESI, PT, TDS), quick to deploy as cloud software, and light on your HR workload thanks to employee self-service. It is one of the most widely used options for small businesses.
Should I set up greytHR myself or use a partner?
You can self-serve, but statutory configuration and the first payroll run are where mistakes happen. An authorised partner like National IT Service sets it up correctly, migrates your data, trains your team, and can run payroll for you — saving time and avoiding compliance errors.
Can I move from spreadsheets or another tool to greytHR?
Yes. We migrate employee master data, salary structures and leave balances from Excel or another HR tool into greytHR, and run a parallel payroll for the first month to validate everything before you go live.
Want greytHR set up for your small business — done right from month one? Talk to National IT Service — authorised greytHR partner.