Mellow vs Breathe HR
You've outgrown Breathe. Here's what's next.
When spreadsheet HR becomes dangerous.
Assistants that take action
Mellow’s agents generate contracts, run payroll estimates, start compliance workflows, and produce audit-ready documents — not just answer questions.
Breathe HR
UK-built, SMB-focused
1–50 employees
From £18/month flat
Mellow
UK-built, UK-first
10–500+ employees
From £4/employee/month
Things to consider
- ✗Designed for 1–50 employees — compliance gaps at scale
- ✗No payroll processing
- ✗No AI features
Feature comparison
| Feature | Mellow | Breathe HR |
|---|---|---|
| Core HR | ||
| Employee records | ||
| Holiday tracking | ||
| Sick leave recording | ||
| Document storage | ||
| Bradford Factor Automated with configurable thresholds | ||
| Payroll | ||
| UK payroll engine Full PAYE/NI calculation — Breathe sends you to Xero | No payroll at all — integrates with Xero | |
| Native UK payroll + ready-to-file output PAYE, NI & statutory to the penny + BACS; produces a ready-to-file output (filing pack) | No payroll capability — no RTI | |
| Compliance | ||
| ERA 2025 compliance | ||
| Right to work verification | Manual process only | |
| Tribunal risk assessment | ||
| AI | ||
| Native AI agents AI assistants included per tier, plus computed compliance & pay-equity engines | No native AI — only a third-party marketplace bot | |
| AI manager coaching (People Coach) In-product coaching for conflict & team issues | Human HR-consultant network, not in-product AI | |
| People | ||
| Adjustments Passport Living per-employee record of agreed workplace adjustments, per-country legislation, AI-drafted wording | No equivalent | |
| Team-health index from operational signals Fused index from workload, ER, absence & recognition | eNPS + rule-based Burnout Monitor / Bradford flags — not a fused index | |
| Scale | ||
| Built for 50–500 employees Purpose-built for mid-market | Designed for 1–50 employees | |
Our take
Breathe is a well-regarded tool for small teams setting up HR for the first time, and for that it works well. As you cross 50 employees, the compliance picture changes — the 2025 Employment Rights Act reforms (day-one SSP from April 2026, new day-one family-leave rights, guaranteed-hours obligations ahead in 2027) and IR35 assessments are all in scope, and Breathe isn't designed for that scale. On payroll: Breathe doesn't calculate it, routing you to a separate Xero subscription instead. Mellow calculates UK payroll natively — PAYE and NI to the penny, BACS files generated, P60s produced, and a ready-to-file output prepared. Mellow does the calculation; the filing itself stays with you.
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