Is hr goat an alternative to Sage HR Performance?

For many teams, yes. hr goat includes performance (goals, one-to-ones, reviews and surveys) in every plan, with an assistant that does the work. If you need time off or hiring today, Sage HR has them now; in hr goat they are coming soon.

Is performance extra in hr goat?

No. Every live feature is in every plan, with no per-module charges. hr goat is free for 1 admin and 4 more people, for good.

What about companies over 250 people?

Sage HR is built for up to 250 employees; Sage’s product for larger companies, Sage People, is set up as a project with a Sage project manager. hr goat is the same product at any size, set up the same day, with Enterprise pricing from 500 people.

Where did the Sage facts come from?

From Sage’s own pages, checked in October 2026. Some of Sage’s pages did not answer automated requests, so for those we read dated copies kept by the Internet Archive; the links below show the dates. Prices and features change, so check Sage’s site before you decide.

Compare

hr goat vs Sage HR

Sage’s performance management is an add-on to Sage HR. Here is what each one does today, from each company’s own website, so you can pick the one that fits.

Checked October 2026From each company’s own website

What you get for the price

Freefor 1 admin and 4 more people, for good
$99per admin a month
$8 to $5.25per person a month, less as you grow
AI creditsincluded: 1,000 per admin, 100 per person, every month

Every live module, in every plan

Onboarding and offboarding
Performance
Learning (LMS)
Compliance and CPD
Pulse check-ins and surveys
Recognition: nods, trophies, a league
Skills
Workforce planning
Succession and internal mobility
Policies
Data and analytics hub

SoonTime off, time tracking, payroll, pay bands and hiring

Sage HR: £5.00 per employee a month for Core HR and leave, then £2.50 more per employee for Performance. Other modules are add-ons too.

Who each one suits

hr goat

Companies of any size that want an assistant to do the HR work, with every live feature in every plan. Users in 106+ countries; Enterprise from 500 people.

Sage HR

Sage HR is “built for companies with up to 250 employees”. Performance management is an optional add-on to Core HR and Leave Management. Sage sells a separate product, Sage People, for larger companies.

Side by side

Featurehr goatSage HR

PricingPublished. $99 per admin a month, then from $8 per person a month, less per person as you grow. US dollars.Published. Core HR and leave £5.00 per employee a month, plus £2.50 per employee a month for Performance (UK prices).

Free planFree for good for 1 admin and 4 more people. Not a trial, no card.30-day free trial, no payment details needed. No free plan listed.

Getting set upSame day. You set up by chatting with the assistant. No consultants, no implementation project, no set-up fee.Sage HR: pick modules and start a trial. Sage People, for larger companies, is a project run by a Sage project manager; no time is given.

How the AI worksBuilt AI first. The assistant does the work: adds people, writes role profiles, drafts policies, files documents, then shows what it changed. Nothing goes to people without a yes.No AI features listed on Sage HR’s pages.

PerformanceEvery plan. The assistant drafts KPIs for each role, suggests goals and key results, and shows who still owes a review.Add-on: goals or OKRs, 360 feedback, 1-to-1s

SurveysEvery plan (employee voice)In the Performance add-on; can be anonymous

Time offSoonIncluded with Core HR

HiringSoonAdd-on (Recruitment)

PayrollSoonSeparate Sage payroll products, which connect to Sage HR

Messages to your peopleBuilt in, on every plan. More than 70 messages already written for the moments that matter, your own if-then rules, and sequences of messages spaced out in days. Sent in the app, by email, WhatsApp, Slack, Teams or Google Chat, and you can see who received what.Company announcements in a feed people can react to and comment on, gathered into a weekly, fortnightly or monthly newsletter. Push notifications in the app for approvals, and time off can be approved from Slack.

Soon means coming to hr goat, not working yet. Prices and features change: check Sage HR’s own site before you decide.

Where Sage HR is stronger

Time off is in Core HR, and hiring is an add-on, today. In hr goat they are coming soon.
Timesheets, shift scheduling and expenses, as add-ons.
Connects to Sage’s own payroll, so people can get digital payslips.

Where hr goat is different

Performance is included, not an add-on: every live feature is in every plan.
An assistant that does the work: it drafts KPIs for each role, suggests goals and key results, and shows who still owes a review.
Set up the same day, with no consultants and no set-up fee, at any size.
A free plan, not a trial: 1 admin and 4 more people, for good.
Learning, compliance and CPD, skills, succession and workforce planning are live today.
hr goat connects to Sage and Xero accounting.
Messaging is built in, so you do not need to pay for a separate email tool to reach your people: more than 70 messages already written, sequences that stop once the job is done, six channels, and a record of who received what.

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Questions

Where the Sage HR facts come from

Sage HR is a trademark of its owner. hr goat is not connected with Sage HR.

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