# BrightHR — Absence Management BrightHR by BrightHR Ltd holds a panel rating of 2/5 from 6 AI judges (category median 2/5), as of 2026-10-29. Provenance: provenance unknown; sovereignty: 1 of 4 dimensions proven. - Vendor: BrightHR Ltd (https://www.brighthr.com) - Category: [Absence Management](https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management.md) - Provenance (editorial classification): provenance unknown - Canonical page: https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management/brighthr - Alternatives: https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management/brighthr/alternatives ([markdown](https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management/brighthr/alternatives.md)) - Data as of: 2026-10-29 · evaluated 2026-10-29 · oldest source captured 2026-10-27 **AI-generated.** Every score, rationale and verdict here is written by a panel of AI judges from public evidence — an analysis, not a hands-on test. Every fact quotes the vendor page it was read from. No score can be bought. How scores are made: https://whats-best.ai/methodology ## At a glance - Vendor: BrightHR Ltd - Headquarters: Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 28 Oct 2026 - Data hosting: Default not stated; pages mention United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, Canada and New Zealand [S5] - Free plan: Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 28 Oct 2026 ## The panel's verdict BrightHR is a UK-framed absence management suite, judged strongest on payroll handover with a flat 5: a documented open API with a developer portal covering leave balances, absence requests and Blip time-and-attendance data, Zapier links to over 5,000 services, and a sync into the vendor's own payroll software — with no public information on DATEV or other German payroll integrations. Leave policies scored a flat 4 and requests and approvals 4-5: automatic annual leave calculations, pro-ration for joiners and leavers, mobile approvals with clash notifications and a 360-degree team calendar are documented, but every rule shown is UK law — 5.6 weeks statutory, bank holidays at the employer's choice, UK statutory sick pay. Scores spread a single point on sick leave and continued pay, absence data protection and sovereignty (3-4 each), with lower and higher scores citing the same missing information — eAU retrieval, six-week continued-pay counting, restrictions on sickness reasons, a subprocessor list. EU storage is stated only for Republic of Ireland subscribers. Pricing transparency scored 1-3; the public pages show only a quote route and a free demo. **Speaks for it:** - Open API with a developer portal covers leave balances, absence requests and Blip time-and-attendance data - Holiday requests can be accepted or denied from the mobile app, with clash notifications and a 360-degree team leave calendar - Automatic annual leave calculations each working year, with pro-ration toggles from a start date and up to a leaving date, are documented - Zapier connects to over 5,000 web services, and single sign-on runs via Microsoft Entra ID - ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification is published, alongside two-factor authentication and role-based, need-to-know access **Held against it:** - Every rule shown is UK law (5.6 weeks statutory, bank holidays at the employer's choice), with no public information on German federal-state holidays or half-day and hourly leave - We found no public information on DATEV or other German payroll integrations; the only payroll sync documented is with the vendor's own software - Sick pay is calculated under the UK statutory scheme, with no public information on eAU retrieval or counting toward a six-week continued-pay limit - We found no public information on restricting sickness reasons and certificates to named roles, on retention periods per record type, or on works-agreement documentation - We found no public information on a published subprocessor list, and EU storage is stated only for customers subscribing in the Republic of Ireland **Best for:** - You run a UK-based team and want automatic annual leave calculations, mobile holiday approvals with clash notifications, and a shared team calendar - Your developers can build on a documented open API with a developer portal for leave, absence and time-and-attendance data from Blip - You plan to use the vendor's own payroll software and Blip clocking-in alongside absence management **Avoid if:** - Your leave and sick-pay rules must follow German law — the documented rules are UK-framed, from 5.6 weeks statutory to UK statutory sick pay - Your payroll runs on DATEV or another German system; the only payroll sync documented is with the vendor's own software - You must document special-category handling of sickness data for a works council — the published compliance picture is framed around UK practice (ICO registration), and we found no public information on works-agreement documentation - You need EU data storage outside a Republic of Ireland subscription; EU storage is stated only for customers subscribing there ## Scores by judge and criterion Scores out of 5, each judge scoring independently against the published rubric (v2). "n/r" = not rated: the vendor publishes no price, or the judge found no public information on that criterion. | Criterion | The Team Lead | The Managing Director | The Payroll Accountant | The Data Protection Officer | The HR IT Integrator | The Skeptic | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Entitlements & German leave rules | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | | Requests, approvals & team calendar | 2.5/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | | Sick leave, eAU & continued pay | 2/5 | 2/5 | 1.5/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 1.5/5 | | Payroll handover, time tracking & API | 2.5/5 | 2.5/5 | 2.5/5 | 2.5/5 | 2.5/5 | 2.5/5 | | Health data, access & works council | 1.5/5 | 1.5/5 | 1.5/5 | 2/5 | 1.5/5 | 2/5 | | European sovereignty | 2/5 | 1.5/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | | Pricing transparency | n/r | n/r | n/r | n/r | n/r | n/r | | **Weighted verdict** | **2/5** | **2/5** | **2/5** | **2/5** | **2/5** | **2/5** | ### The judges - **The Team Lead** (v1.0): Approves leave for twelve people across two shifts and finds out about clashes too late. Wants requests and approvals on the phone, a named substitute on every request, minimum-staffing warnings before approval, and a team calendar that shows who is away without showing why. - **The Managing Director** (v1.0): Runs a forty-person company in two federal states without an HR department and is liable when leave is calculated wrong. Wants part-time entitlements prorated correctly, the right public holidays per site, carry-over that lapses only after employees were told, and the eAU handled without a phone call to every health insurer. - **The Payroll Accountant** (v1.0): Closes payroll in DATEV every month and corrects whatever arrived late. Wants absences exported with the right payroll codes, the eAU result attached to the sick day, the six-week continued-pay limit counted per illness, and past months locked once they are paid. - **The Data Protection Officer** (v1.0): Treats every sick day as special-category data, because the law does. Asks who can see a reason or a certificate, how long absence records are kept and deleted, whether access is logged, where the data is hosted, and which subprocessors send the push notification that says someone is ill. - **The HR IT Integrator** (v1.0): Wires the absence tool to payroll, time tracking, the identity provider and the calendar. Wants a documented API and webhooks, maintained connectors for the named German payroll systems rather than a CSV, SSO, and balances that agree with the time-tracking system on both sides. - **The Skeptic** (v1.0): Knows "eAU supported" can mean a photo upload, "DATEV integration" can mean a CSV, and "GDPR-compliant" can mean every manager sees every diagnosis-adjacent note. Reads for who actually retrieves the certificate, which leave rules are computed rather than typed in, and whether the carry-over expiry notice exists at all. ## European sovereignty — proven facts Built only from facts on the vendor's own pages; a dimension we could not prove is left open, never scored as zero. Headline: 1 of 4 dimensions proven. | Dimension | Finding | Points | Source | |---|---|---|---| | Legal entity | Not determined | — | — | | Ownership | Not determined | — | — | | Data residency | Not determined | — | — | | Subprocessors | US CLOUD Act reach | 0/2 | [S3] | ## Key facts Each fact is the vendor's own statement, cited to the source page it was read from ([S*n*] → Sources). **Compliance** - Breach notification: 72 [S3] - Certifications: yes · yes · yes · yes · yes [S3] - DPA GDPR: yes · yes [S3] - Fca: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 [S7] - Fca authorisation: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 [S6] - Fca regulated: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 [S5] - Fca regulated: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 · Financial Conduct Authority [S6] - Iso14001: ISO 14001:2015 [S3] - ISO 27001 certificate: ISO/IEC 27001:2022 · A-LIGN [S3] - Iso45001: ISO 45001:2018 [S3] - Iso50001: Provision of legal, health & safety and advisory services · ISO 50001:2018 [S3] - Iso9001: ISO 9001:2015 [S3] - SOC 2 type1: 2026-06-03 · SOC 2 Type I · A-LIGN · Security [S3] - Wtr fine: Breaking WTR can lead to improvement/prohibition notices or fine up to £5,000 [S6] - Wtr fine amount: 5000 [S6] **Data** - Retention on termination: data handled per retention policy; securely deleted if no lawful basis after closure/dissolution [S2] **Hosting** - Data residency: in-country · in-country · EU · Australia · Australia [S3] - Platform: Microsoft Azure [S3] - Regions: United Kingdom · Ireland · Australia · Canada · New Zealand [S5] - Regions: United Kingdom · Ireland · Australia · Canada · New Zealand [S4] - Regions: United Kingdom · Ireland · Australia · Canada · New Zealand [S6] - Regions: United Kingdom · Ireland · Australia · Canada · New Zealand [S10] **Integrations** - Azure entra id: Azure Entra ID integration [S10] - Microsoft office365 SSO: Microsoft Office 365 / Entra ID SSO integration [S10] - Open API: Open API for custom integrations [S10] - Open API detail: custom integrations via Open API [S10] - Popular services: Xero, Slack, Hubspot, and more [S10] - Products: HR software · Health & safety software · Clocking-in · Employment law advice · HR guides & templates · Payroll software · Wellbeing & Employee support · Expense tracker [S6] - Reporting: Reporting via Microsoft and Zapier integrations [S10] - Single sign on: Single-Sign On feature [S10] - Zapier: Zapier · yes · 5000 [S10] **Legal** - Contracting entity options: Contract with a BrightHR group entity specified in the Order Form; may be any BrightHR legal entity [S2] - Fca regulated: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 [S2] - Fca regulated: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 [S3] - Fca regulated: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 [S9] - Fca regulated: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 [S5] - Fca regulated: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 [S10] - Fca regulation: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 [S4] - Fca regulation: non-investment insurance products · 1042221 [S8] - Governing law by entity: New Zealand · England and Wales · Province of Ontario · Ireland · New South Wales [S2] - Liability cap: fees paid or payable in previous 12 months [S2] - Registered office: Bright HR Limited · The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB · England and Wales · 09283467 [S2] - Registered office: The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB · Bright HR Limited · England and Wales · 09283467 [S5] - Registered office: The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB · Bright HR Limited · England and Wales · 09283467 [S4] - Registered office: The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB · Bright HR Limited · England and Wales · 09283467 [S3] - Registered office: Bright HR Limited · England and Wales · 09283467 · The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB [S9] - Registered office: Bright HR Limited · The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB · England and Wales · 09283467 [S6] - Registered office: The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB · Bright HR Limited · England and Wales · 09283467 [S8] - Registered office: Bright HR Limited · England and Wales · 09283467 · The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB [S10] - Registered office: Bright HR Limited · The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB · England and Wales · 09283467 [S6] - Terms no variation: no [S2] - UK entity: The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB · Bright HR Limited · 09283467 [S7] - UK registered office: Bright HR Limited · The Peninsula, Victoria Place, Manchester, M4 4FB · England and Wales · 09283467 [S5] - Version date: 2026-05-29 [S2] **Pricing** - Additional services: yes [S2] - Auto renewal notice days: 90 [S2] - Excessive usage charges: yes [S2] - Fixed initial term: yes · initial term [S2] - Online quote: price available online [S1] - Renewal increase cap: renewal terms · 7 [S2] **Product** - Absence law: Software accounts for absence law [S7] - Absence management: Sickness and Lateness absence management [S10] - Absence management: Rota software includes absence management [S6] - Absence management included: absence management included with rota software [S6] - Absence notifications: yes [S8] - Absence reporting download: Sickness records downloadable via absence reporting tool [S8] - Absence tracking: Absence management software to track employee absence and lateness with team calendar and leave-type reports [S7] - Additional services third party terms: no [S2] - Admin change monitoring: yes [S3] - Analytics reporting: yes [S8] - API technical requirement: developers/engineers/technical teams; requires knowledge of authentication, HTTP requests, data handling [S9] - API terms: yes [S2] - Attendance records: Secure attendance records for recurring lateness [S7] - Automatic leave calculations: yes [S5] - Bank holiday inclusion: bank holidays may be included in statutory entitlement at employer's choice [S4] - Birthday wage notification: Birthday notification when employee can claim a change in pay rates [S6] - Blip time data: time and attendance data from Blip available via API [S9] - Bradford factor: Reviews sick leave patterns and calculates Bradford Factor scores [S7] - Brightbase templates: Free HR document templates via BrightBase [S7] - Brightlearn: BrightLearn e-learning with CPD-accredited courses and LMS [S7] - Calculator inputs: working days per week · holiday year start date · contractual annual leave entitlement · bank/public holidays included or excluded · started during holiday year · left during holiday year [S4] - Calculator scope: not intended for irregular-hours or part-year workers [S4] - Carryover not legally required: no [S5] - Change notification changelog: yes [S2] - Clock in app: clock-in app for working hours [S1] - Clocking in: yes [S8] - Clocking in: Blip clocking-in app with real-time clock in/out/break view [S7] - Clocking in: Clocking in via Blip App [S10] - Content maternity carryover: yes · 5.6 [S5] - Content no legal carryover requirement: no [S5] - Content normal carryover cap: UK · 1.6 [S5] - Content UK leave rules: UK · 18 · 4 [S5] - Customer API: yes · open-source API to connect BrightHR with business systems [S9] - Customer base: 120000 [S1] - Customer base: 120000 [S8] - Customer base: Over 120,000 companies use BrightHR [S6] - Customer count: 120000 [S5] - Customer count claim: 120000 [S6] - Customer count claim: 120000 [S5] - Data deletion: yes [S3] - Data stored: name · start date · salary · bank details · job title [S2] - Delegation feature: yes [S2] - Demo free: yes [S1] - Demo free: yes [S5] - Document storage: Unlimited document storage [S7] - Document storage: unlimited document storage [S10] - Document upload: Upload proof of sickness including sick notes and RTW documentation [S8] - Eap: Employee assistance programme (EAP) for long-term absence support [S7] - Eap services: yes [S8] - Employee HR data sync: sync employee HR data across systems via API [S9] - Encryption: vendor is data processor, customer is data controller · yes [S3] - Entitlement rules: Tailored sickness entitlement rules with balances and deduction tracking [S7] - Era 2025 compliance: yes [S8] - Holiday absence data: holiday and absence data management via API [S9] - Holiday carryover rule: 1.6 [S5] - Holiday planner: holiday planner automatically calculates annual leave entitlements [S4] - Holiday planner: Holiday planner with clash notifications and team schedule view [S7] - Holiday planner: Holiday Planner [S10] - Holiday planner features: accept_deny_requests · leave_calendar · automatic_annual_leave_calculations · leave_balance_tracking [S5] - Holiday planner integration: HR records can integrate with BrightHR payroll software [S4] - Holiday planner requests: yes [S5] - HR document templates: yes [S8] - Leave balance tracking: yes [S5] - Leave calendar view: yes [S5] - Maintenance suspension: yes [S2] - Marketing claim: 120,000+ global businesses [S9] - Markets: UK · Ireland · Canada · Australia · New Zealand · 2015 · 120,000+ businesses [S3] - Maternity carryover: yes [S5] - Medical appointment alerts: Alerts for employee scheduled medical appointments [S7] - Minimum wage alert: yes [S6] - Mobile app: yes [S2] - Mobile app: yes [S6] - Mobile app: Mobile app for managing absences, uploading proof photos, approving requests, releasing open shifts [S7] - Mobile app: yes [S5] - Mobile app features: Mobile app: upload proof of absence documents, calendar view of availability, open shifts [S8] - Mobile app sick leave: yes [S8] - Multi datacentre hosting: yes · yes [S3] - No pro advice substitute: no [S2] - Onboarding assistance: yes [S6] - Onsboarding assistance: Assistance from provider to get up and running [S6] - Open shifts: yes [S8] - Open shifts: Open shifts feature to fill vacant shifts [S7] - Overview: HR, payroll and health & safety software with 24/7 expert insured advice for small & medium businesses [S1] - Password complexity rules: yes [S3] **Support** - Advice line: employment law advice line available for annual leave advice [S4] - Developer portal: yes [S9] - Expert HR advice: 24/7, 365 days a year · UK · expert employment law advice line [S8] - Free demo: free demo available [S10] - Google rating: 4.7 · Google Reviews [S10] - Hardware excluded: no [S2] - Webinars: Webinars offered [S10] 36 more facts on the canonical page: https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management/brighthr ## Questions ### Is BrightHR European? Not determined: the vendor’s pages as captured do not say where BrightHR is based. ### Where does BrightHR store data? The default storage location for customer data is not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 28 Oct 2026. The vendor’s pages mention United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, Canada and New Zealand as hosting locations, per [the vendor’s page captured 28 Oct 2026](https://whats-best.ai/evidence/11041). ### Does BrightHR have a free plan? Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 28 Oct 2026. ### What are the best alternatives to BrightHR? As of 28 Oct 2026, the panel rates [Kenjo (3/5)](https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management/kenjo), [flair (3/5)](https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management/flair-hr) and [HRlab (2.5/5)](https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management/hrlab) highest among the other 18 Absence Management products evaluated. Ratings that look equal are rounded to half stars; the order uses the unrounded rating, then the name. The highest-rated European alternative is [Kenjo](https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management/kenjo) (EU-Made). Ratings are the AI panel’s opinion, formed from public evidence: [how scores are made](https://whats-best.ai/methodology#ordering). The full list, with European products first: [BrightHR alternatives](https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management/brighthr/alternatives). ## What this page leaves out - 21 product facts could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and were left out of this page and of the panel’s material. - 2 compliance facts could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and were left out of this page and of the panel’s material. - 2 hosting facts could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and were left out of this page and of the panel’s material. - 2 pricing facts could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and were left out of this page and of the panel’s material. - 1 legal fact could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and was left out of this page and of the panel’s material. - 2 sovereignty dimensions could not be confirmed on the vendor’s own pages and are shown as unknown. ## Sources - [S1] Vendor page: https://www.brighthr.com (checked 2026-10-28) - [S2] Terms of service — found from the homepage: https://www.brighthr.com/terms/ (checked 2026-10-28) - [S3] Security / trust page — found from the homepage: https://www.brighthr.com/security/ (checked 2026-10-28) - [S4] Entitlements & German leave rules — found from sitemap: https://www.brighthr.com/resource-centre/holiday-entitlement-calculator/ (checked 2026-10-28) - [S5] Entitlements & German leave rules — found from sitemap: https://www.brighthr.com/articles/leave-and-absence/annual-leave/holiday-carry-over/ (checked 2026-10-28) - [S6] Requests, approvals & team calendar — found from sitemap: https://www.brighthr.com/articles/shifts-and-rotas/work-shift-calendar/ (checked 2026-10-28) - [S7] Sick leave, eAU & continued pay — found from sitemap: https://www.brighthr.com/hr-software/sick-leave/ (checked 2026-10-28) - [S8] Sick leave, eAU & continued pay — found from sitemap: https://www.brighthr.com/hr-software/workplace-sick-leave/ (checked 2026-10-28) - [S9] Payroll handover, time tracking & API — found from sitemap: https://www.brighthr.com/integrations/customer-api/ (checked 2026-10-27) - [S10] Payroll handover, time tracking & API — found from sitemap: https://www.brighthr.com/integrations/ (checked 2026-10-27) --- Cite as: whats-best.ai, "BrightHR — Absence Management", AI panel analysis, as of 2026-10-29. https://whats-best.ai/software/absence-management/brighthr Corrections: https://whats-best.ai/correct/1042?target=page