greytHR vs Keka — compared fairly
A payroll-first veteran against a suite-first challenger: the most common shortlist in Indian SME HR software. Here is the factual frame, plus the per-employee alternative to both.
What this shortlist is really about
greytHR grew from payroll outward: statutory depth first, HR tooling around it, and a long SME track record. Keka grew from the suite inward: modern HR experience first, payroll within it. Both are credible; verify each one's current modules, packaging and statutory specifics on their own pages. Shortlists pairing them are usually asking one question: do we buy payroll that acquired HR features, or HR that includes payroll? Your answer depends on where your risk lives; if payroll correctness is the anxiety, weight the payroll-first heritage; if HR experience drives adoption, weight the suite.
Where PeopleDeck enters
PeopleDeck answers the same question a third way: payroll-first like the veteran, born-cloud and experience-conscious like the challenger, and priced on one per-employee rate with nothing plan-gated. If the shortlist exists because you want both statutory depth and modern experience without choosing, that is precisely the gap it was built for.
The triangle, side by side
Concrete claims below are about PeopleDeck only. For the other platforms, we state category facts and what to verify. Products change, so check current details on their own pages before you decide.
| Dimension | greytHR; verify current | Keka; verify current | PeopleDeck |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heritage | Payroll-first veteran, statutory depth as identity; verify current modules | Suite-first challenger, modern HR experience; verify current packaging | Payroll-spined and born-cloud — both, by design |
| Payroll & statutory | Their heartland; verify formats for your registrations | Native within suite; verify depth on your cases | PF, ESI, PT and TDS applied on every payslip; upload-ready ECR and return files generated. Filing stays with you |
| Pricing model | Tiered plans (check current pages | Plan-based packaging) check current pages | Per employee, per month, in ₹. Whole platform included, rate shown transparently at sign-up, start free |
| Attendance & leave | Established, device-integrated (verify your hardware | Suite modules) verify shift depth | Rosters, rotating shifts, biometric, web and mobile punches; attendance feeds payroll directly |
| Self-service | ESS and mobile (verify payslip detail | Strong suite ESS) verify scope | Payslips, balances, declarations, claims and Form 16 data in every employee's hands |
| Getting started | Guided onboarding (confirm timeline | Sales-led) confirm timeline | Self-serve sign-up; import employees, run a parallel month, go live when it reconciles |
What switchers say they were actually looking for
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1
Weight the axis that hurts
List last year's HR-software pain: was it payroll errors and files, or process friction and adoption? Score the shortlist on the axis your pain named, not on total features.
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2
Demand the workings
Whichever product you test, open one computed payslip and ask to see its arithmetic: attendance days, component math, statutory basis. Explainability predicts how disputes and audits will feel.
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3
Run the triangle cheaply
All three products can be tested against one identical month of your data. The reconciliation table you build from that exercise is worth more than every comparison page on the internet.
PeopleDeck in depth: the payroll engine · statutory compliance · per-employee pricing
Migrating without a bad payday
Migration mechanics are similar from either product: masters, structures and balances export cleanly, year-to-date statutory figures carry as opening records, and one parallel month validates the destination.
PeopleDeck's path is self-served — validated imports, policy encoding, parallel run, month-boundary cutover, and free to test, which makes it the cheapest third leg of the triangle to actually verify. Whichever way the triangle resolves, keep your export archives; the history you carry out is the history an auditor will one day ask for.
The boundary that decides it
PeopleDeck is a standalone HRMS any business signs up for, priced per employee, per month, with PF, ESI, professional tax and TDS applied to every payslip and upload-ready return files generated, never filed behind your back. If you are an education institution comparing ERP-bundled payroll instead, that is a different product shape: see SchoolDeck staff payroll for schools or CampusAlly payroll for colleges, licensed per institution.
Frequently asked questions
Which should we choose, greytHR or Keka?
Choose by risk centre: payroll-first heritage if statutory correctness is your anxiety, suite-first if HR experience and adoption are. Verify both products' current specifics on their pages; then test your conclusion on one real month.
Why does this page exist on PeopleDeck's site?
Because the shortlist's underlying want: statutory depth plus modern experience at a predictable price, is exactly PeopleDeck's design brief, and honestly framing the two-way comparison is the credible way to earn the third look.
Are the three products really comparable?
On the HR-payroll core, yes. At the edges (deep PMS, breadth modules) they diverge; compare the edges only if you will actually operate them this year.
What statutory specifics should we verify on all three?
Your states' PT regimes, contribution-period ESI handling, arrears workings, FnF computation, and generated file formats for your registrations — against a real month, not a checklist.
What is PeopleDeck's honest weakness in this triangle?
Breadth: no deep performance suite, no ecosystem of adjacent apps. If those anchor your decision, one of the other two fits better: the per-employee model and payroll spine are the trade.
Payroll-first, suite-first, or per-employee.
Run a parallel month on your own data — the reconciliation decides, not the brochure.
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