ahlan hamad

HR & payroll software in Saudi Arabia: a 2026 buyer's guide

8 HR and payroll systems that state they serve Saudi Arabia, compared on the six points that decide a payroll there: the Mudad / WPS wage file, GOSI contributions, an Arabic interface, public pricing, a free trial and where your data is hosted. Every fact about another product comes from that vendor's own website and links to the page it was read from; AhlanHamad's row links to the pages on this site that show each feature.

Comparison: HR & payroll systems for Saudi Arabia

Last updated:

SoftwareMudad / WPS wage fileGOSI calculationArabic interfacePublic pricingFree trialHosting region
AhlanHamadA bank salary file from each approved run; your bank then issues the signed wage file for Mudad [1]Yes — GOSI employee and employer shares, with the contributory-wage ceiling [2]Yes — the full product and site in Arabic and English [3]Yes — prices published per employee [4]Yes — 30 days, no card required [5]A Convex cloud region on AWS, outside the GCC; in-country hosting available by contract [6]
JisrYes — its payroll page says it generates Mudad WPS files [7]Lists GOSI integration and eligibility rules; contribution calculation is not described [7]Not stated publicly for the product — the website has an Arabic version [8]Quote-based — "request quotation" [9]Not stated publicly — a demo is offered [8]In the GCC: Google Cloud Saudi Arabia or AWS Bahrain [10]
ZenHRYes — states a native Mudad integration that generates WPS-compliant payroll files [11]Yes — states it calculates employee and employer GOSI contributions [11]Yes — states it is fully bilingual on web and mobile [11]Quote-based; its FAQ says prices start at US$8 per user per month, billed annually [12]Not stated publicly [11]Not stated publicly — says "regional data centers" without naming a country [11]
BayzatYes — says salaries can be paid through Mudad from inside Bayzat [13]Yes — says GOSI contributions are calculated per employee in payroll [13]Yes — a full Arabic, right-to-left interface alongside English [13]Quote-based — pricing depends on company size and modules [13]Not stated publicly — a free demo is offered [13]Not stated publicly — says data is located as local regulations require, without naming a country [14]
Zoho Payroll / Zoho PeopleYes — states it generates wage files to meet WPS requirements; Mudad is not named [15]Yes — lists GOSI pension calculation on every plan [16]Yes — "Choose English or Arabic" [15]Yes — Zoho Payroll from SAR 35 per organisation per month billed annually (SAR 45 monthly), 5 employees included, then SAR 7 per additional employee [16]Yes — free trial offered; length not stated on the Saudi pages [16]Data centre set by the country chosen at signup; Saudi Arabia (Riyadh, Jeddah) is a listed region [17]
MenaitechYes — states WPS-compliant payroll outputs and a Mudad integration [18]Yes — states GOSI integration including contribution calculations [18]Not stated publicly on the Saudi pages — an Arabic website is published [19]Quote-based — depends on employees, modules and compliance needs [18]No time-limited trial stated; a free "Freemium" payroll plan for up to 30 employees is offered [20]Not stated publicly — cloud, with on-premises possibly available [18]
Odoo HR / PayrollYes — its Saudi documentation describes a WPS report; Mudad is not named [21]Yes — its Saudi documentation sets GOSI employer and employee contribution rules [21]Not stated publicly [22]Yes — one app free; Standard US$16.90 and Custom US$32.00 per user per month (12-month introductory discount; US$21.10 and US$40.00 after) [23]Yes — free trial offered; length not stated [24]Middle East region: production in India and Saudi Arabia, backups in France, the Netherlands and Canada [25]
gulfHRStates automated WPS file generation; the country is not specified [26]Names Saudi GOSI in its compliance module; contribution calculation is not described [26]Yes — states "Arabic language support" [26]Quote-based — "Get Your Free Demo & Quote" [26]A 30-day free pilot for companies with 500+ employees [26]Not stated publicly — says cloud hosting, without naming a country [26]

Methodology: every fact about another product comes from that vendor's own public website on 15 October 2026, and links to the page it was read from. Where a vendor's site does not say, the cell reads "Not stated publicly" — we do not infer. No ratings or reviews are included. Details change; confirm with each vendor before deciding, and tell us if anything here is out of date so we can correct it.

Sources

  1. AhlanHamad: https://ahlanhamad.com/sa/en/wps/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  2. AhlanHamad: https://ahlanhamad.com/sa/en/social-insurance/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  3. AhlanHamad: https://ahlanhamad.com/sa/ar/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  4. AhlanHamad: https://ahlanhamad.com/sa/en/pricing/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  5. AhlanHamad: https://ahlanhamad.com/sa/en/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  6. AhlanHamad: https://ahlanhamad.com/legal/subprocessors/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  7. Jisr: https://www.jisr.net/en/payroll — accessed 15 October 2026
  8. Jisr: https://www.jisr.net/en — accessed 15 October 2026
  9. Jisr: https://www.jisr.net/en/pricing — accessed 15 October 2026
  10. Jisr: https://www.jisr.net/en/security — accessed 15 October 2026
  11. ZenHR: https://www.zenhr.com/en/hr-software-saudi-arabia — accessed 15 October 2026
  12. ZenHR: https://www.zenhr.com/en/faqs — accessed 15 October 2026
  13. Bayzat: https://www.bayzat.com/ksa — accessed 15 October 2026
  14. Bayzat: https://www.bayzat.com/security — accessed 15 October 2026
  15. Zoho Payroll / Zoho People: https://www.zoho.com/en-sa/payroll/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  16. Zoho Payroll / Zoho People: https://www.zoho.com/en-sa/payroll/pricing-comparison/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  17. Zoho Payroll / Zoho People: https://www.zoho.com/know-your-datacenter.html — accessed 15 October 2026
  18. Menaitech: https://menaitech.com/en-sa/faqs-sa/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  19. Menaitech: https://menaitech.com/ar-sa/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  20. Menaitech: https://menaitech.com/en-sa/free-payroll/ — accessed 15 October 2026
  21. Odoo HR / Payroll: https://www.odoo.com/documentation/19.0/applications/hr/payroll/payroll_localizations/saudi_arabia.html — accessed 15 October 2026
  22. Odoo HR / Payroll: https://www.odoo.com/documentation/19.0/applications/general/users/language.html — accessed 15 October 2026
  23. Odoo HR / Payroll: https://www.odoo.com/pricing — accessed 15 October 2026
  24. Odoo HR / Payroll: https://www.odoo.com/trial — accessed 15 October 2026
  25. Odoo HR / Payroll: https://www.odoo.com/privacy — accessed 15 October 2026
  26. gulfHR: https://gulfhr.com/ — accessed 15 October 2026

What each vendor's own site says about Saudi Arabia

What to check when choosing HR software in Saudi Arabia

The Mudad / WPS wage file

Your bank executes the salary transfers and issues the digitally signed wage file that goes to Mudad; the software's job is a correct bank salary file and a check against payroll before you upload. Ask whether the software produces the file from the approved payroll run, rather than a generic export you re-key. Details

GOSI contributions, calculated correctly

General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI) contributions apply to Saudi Arabia's nationals and other GCC nationals; expatriates are covered only for the occupational hazards branch. The employee and the employer each pay a share, and the contributory wage has a ceiling — a single flat percentage gets higher earners wrong. Details

End-of-service on the right wage

End-of-service is set by Saudi Labour Law (Royal Decree No. M/51) and computed on the full wage (basic plus the fixed allowances). Ask to see each employee's accrual every month, not only at exit. Details

Permits, renewals and Saudization (Nitaqat)

Employers track commercial-licence and work-permit renewals and the Saudization (Nitaqat) quota that applies to their sector and size. Check whether expiries and the quota are tracked in the same system as payroll. Details

A real Arabic interface

Payslips, letters and the employee app in Arabic matter for national staff and for official submissions. Check the Arabic screens yourself during a trial, not just a language toggle on the website.

Where your data is hosted

Payroll holds salaries, ID numbers and bank details. Ask each vendor in writing where the data is stored and which sub-processors handle it, and whether in-country hosting is available if your policy requires it.

Price and trial terms you can see

Published prices let you compare without a sales call; a free trial lets you run your own numbers before committing. Where a price is quote-only, ask for it per employee per month so offers compare like for like.

Moving to AhlanHamad from another system

  1. Export. Export your employee list from your current system as Excel or CSV — employee number, names in English and Arabic, ID number, nationality, job title, department, hire date, basic salary and allowances, IBAN, phone and email.
  2. Upload. Upload the file to the AhlanHamad importer — Excel (.xlsx, .xls), CSV, Numbers or ODS, up to 50 MB.
  3. Match fields. The importer suggests a matching field for each of your columns; you can change any match before anything is saved.
  4. Review. Every row is checked before it is imported. Anything skipped — a duplicate, a row that failed a check — is listed with the reason, so nothing goes missing silently.
  5. Run one payroll in parallel. Keep your current system running for one pay cycle and compare the results; any difference shows up before you switch it off. A free 30-minute setup session is included, with support in Arabic and English.

The import is free on all plans. It is a file import: AhlanHamad does not connect to your current vendor's system, so field coverage depends on what your export contains — the review step shows exactly what came across before anything is saved.

Built for Saudi Arabia

Every statutory figure on this site for Saudi Arabia comes from the same engine the product runs. Explore the details:

Statutory rules current as of August 2026. Details of other products are taken from each vendor's public website on 15 October 2026 and may have changed since. Product names are trademarks of their owners and are used only to identify them. General information, not legal advice.

Frequently asked questions

Which HR software produces the Mudad / WPS wage file?

On their own websites on 15 October 2026, Jisr, ZenHR, Bayzat, Zoho Payroll / Zoho People, Menaitech and Odoo HR / Payroll state that they produce the Mudad / WPS wage file. gulfHR does not state it specifically for Saudi Arabia. AhlanHamad builds a bank salary file from each approved run; your bank then issues the signed wage file for Mudad. Check the file layout with your bank before the first upload.

Which systems calculate GOSI contributions?

AhlanHamad, ZenHR, Bayzat, Zoho Payroll / Zoho People, Menaitech and Odoo HR / Payroll state GOSI contribution calculation on their own websites. Jisr and gulfHR do not state it publicly.

Which HR software in Saudi Arabia publishes its prices?

AhlanHamad, Zoho Payroll / Zoho People and Odoo HR / Payroll publish price figures. Jisr, ZenHR, Bayzat, Menaitech and gulfHR price by quote or do not state pricing publicly — the table shows what each says.

Where do these systems host customer data?

Jisr and Zoho Payroll / Zoho People name a hosting region on their sites. AhlanHamad's core database runs in a Convex cloud region on AWS outside the GCC, and in-country hosting is available by contract. The "Hosting region" column shows what each vendor states.

Can I move my data from another system?

Yes, as a file import. Export your employee list as Excel or CSV and upload it; the importer suggests a field for each column, checks every row and lists anything it skips with the reason. The import is free on all plans.

Can I try AhlanHamad before switching?

Yes — a 30-day free trial with no card required. Import your own employees and run a payroll to see your own numbers before committing.

Start your 30-day free trial — no card

All AhlanHamad tools for Saudi Arabia

Watch it work

Short, narrated screen recordings of the product doing exactly this.