Tickin vs Zoho Payroll: statutory payroll, or attendance and payslips in Slack
Zoho Payroll and Tickin overlap in the markets where both work, India, the GCC countries, Canada and the US, but they go deep in different places. Zoho Payroll goes deep on statutory payroll: country editions with social security, pension and end-of-service rules, and salary payments through partner banks. Tickin goes deep on the working day: clock-ins, breaks, leave and overtime from Slack, turned into itemized payslips. It doesn't file taxes or pay employees.
In short
Choose Zoho Payroll if you need statutory payroll compliance in India, the GCC, Canada or the US, such as social security and pension contributions, end-of-service rules or WPS, and salary payments from the same tool. Choose Tickin if your priority is time tracking, attendance and leave run from Slack, with payslips from the same hours, and your accountant handles statutory filings.
| Tickin | Zoho Payroll | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Attendance, leave and payroll software, run from Slack (Microsoft Teams on the Scale plan) or the browser | Payroll software with country editions |
| Countries | Any country, with income-tax presets for 17 markets that an admin reviews and confirms | Editions for the GCC, Canada, India and the US |
| Statutory contributions | Not built in: presets cover income tax only (GCC presets are zero, as there is no personal income tax); add contributions as deduction components | Built in per edition, for example GCC social security and pension schemes, end-of-service rules and WPS, and CPP/QPP and EI in Canada |
| Pays employees | No. You pay salaries through your bank | Online salary payments through partner banks |
| Time tracking and attendance | Included on every plan, with clock-in from Slack and the browser | Leave, attendance and holiday policies in one place |
| Chat | Slack on every plan; Microsoft Teams on Scale | Varies, check their site |
| Free plan | Free for up to 10 employees, without payroll (payroll is on Growth) | India edition: free forever for up to 10 employees |
| Pricing (per month) | Starter $2, Growth $3, Scale $6 per employee | India edition: Standard ₹1,250 per organization with 25 employees, Professional ₹3,750 and Premium ₹5,000 with 50 employees, plus a charge per additional employee |
What Zoho Payroll is great at
Zoho Payroll is built country by country. In the GCC it covers social security and pension schemes, end-of-service rules and WPS requirements; in Canada, CPP/QPP, EI and year-end forms; and it pays salaries through partner banks. If your hard problem is getting statutory payroll right in those markets, Zoho Payroll is designed for it, and Tickin does not replace it.
Where Tickin is different
Tickin is built around the working day in Slack. People clock in with /tickin start and out with /tickin end, request leave and get approvals in chat, and managers see who is working on a live dashboard, on every plan including Free. On the Growth plan, Tickin turns those hours, that leave and approved overtime into pay and sends each person an itemized PDF payslip. Its tax presets cover income tax as a starting point an admin confirms: for India, the new regime without cess and surcharge; for Canada, federal slabs only; for the GCC, zero, because there is no personal income tax. Statutory contributions are added as deduction components rather than calculated for you.
Which should you choose
If you need a payroll system that knows your country's statutory contributions and pays salaries, choose Zoho Payroll. If you need attendance, leave and time tracking your team will actually use in Slack, with payslips from the same hours and an accountant handling statutory filings, Tickin fits that, and a team of up to 10 can start free.
Explore Tickin features
Learn more
Solutions for teams like yours
Frequently asked questions
- Is Tickin a Zoho Payroll alternative?
- For attendance, leave and payslips, yes; for statutory payroll, no. Zoho Payroll builds in country-specific contributions and pays salaries, which Tickin does not. Tickin runs the working day from Slack and calculates pay from it.
- Does Tickin handle GOSI, WPS or end-of-service?
- No. Tickin's GCC presets reflect that there is no personal income tax, and it does not calculate social security, pension, end-of-service or WPS files. Contributions can be added as deduction components. Zoho Payroll's GCC edition covers these.
- Is Tickin free like Zoho Payroll's free plan?
- Both have a free plan for up to 10 employees, but they include different things. Tickin's Free plan covers time tracking, attendance and leave; payroll is on the Growth plan. Zoho Payroll's India edition is free forever for up to 10 employees.
- Which countries does each cover?
- Zoho Payroll has editions for the GCC, Canada, India and the US. Tickin works in any country, with income-tax presets for 17 markets, including India, Canada, the US, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman.
- Does Tickin pay employees?
- No. Tickin is payroll software, not a payroll service: it doesn't file taxes or pay employees. You pay salaries through your bank.
Competitor pricing and features change often. Zoho Payroll details on this page come from Zoho's own Payroll website and its India-edition pricing page as of September 2026; Tickin details describe what Tickin does today. It is not an exhaustive feature audit, so please check each product's own website for current details, including the edition for your country.