For years, we have been helping businesses manage employee leave through Excel-based planners at dhxsoft.com. These spreadsheet solutions have served thousands of teams well, providing robust functionality without subscription costs. But as we listened to our customers, a clear pattern emerged: businesses were outgrowing what spreadsheets could offer.
Teams wanted real-time collaboration. Managers needed mobile access for approvals. HR departments asked for automated notifications. Employees wanted self-service portals where they could request time off without sending emails. What they needed was proper leave tracking software — and Excel, for all its power, simply was not built for that.
Why We Built Simple Leave
The leap from spreadsheets to dedicated employee leave management software can feel daunting for small and medium-sized businesses. The big players in this space offer powerful platforms, but they come with enterprise pricing, lengthy implementations, and features that many SMBs simply do not need. We saw a gap in the market for something different — a solution that brings the reliability and ease of our Excel planners into the cloud, without the complexity or cost of enterprise software.
Designed for Small and Medium Businesses
Simple Leave is purpose-built employee time off software for teams of 5 to 150 employees. We have taken all our learnings from our spreadsheet planners — flexible leave policies, clear information, comprehensive reporting — and enhanced them with the power of cloud technology. The result is a staff holiday planner that is fast, intuitive, and unlocks capabilities that spreadsheets simply cannot match.
Most importantly, we have made it affordable. Budget constraints are real for growing businesses, which is why our pricing is transparent and predictable. No hidden fees, no forced annual contracts, and no paying for features you will never use.
What Makes Simple Leave Different
Built on Real-World Experience
Our Excel planners at dhxsoft.com have been refined over years of customer feedback. We know what works because we have seen it in action across thousands of businesses. Simple Leave inherits this battle-tested approach to leave management, bringing proven workflows into a modern cloud platform.
No Spreadsheet Limitations
- Real-time collaboration — multiple people can work simultaneously without file conflicts or version control nightmares
- Automatic calculations — leave balances, accruals, and carryovers update instantly across the entire system
- Mobile access — approve requests, check team calendars, and submit time off from anywhere
- Automated notifications — no more chasing emails; everyone stays informed automatically
- Secure and backed up — your data is protected with enterprise-grade security and automatic backups
- Role-based permissions — give employees, managers, and HR exactly the access they need
Flexibility Without Complexity
We learned from our Excel planners that businesses need flexibility — different leave types, varying work patterns, custom policies, and country-specific requirements. Simple Leave handles all of this without requiring configuration expertise:
- Unlimited leave types — annual leave, sick days, parental leave, time in lieu; configure whatever your business needs
- Approval workflows — email-based approval chains that match your organisational structure
- Multiple locations — manage teams across different countries with location-specific holidays and policies
- Hourly and daily tracking — support both traditional day-based and hourly leave tracking in the same system
Quick to Implement, Easy to Use
If you can use a spreadsheet, you can use Simple Leave. Our interface is designed around familiarity — think of it as the employee leave tracker you always wished your spreadsheet could be. Visual calendars, intuitive forms, and clear reports feel natural from the first login. Most teams are fully operational within a day, not weeks.
Reporting That Matters
Good reporting should not require pivot tables or formula expertise. Simple Leave provides clear, actionable insights out of the box:
- Team availability calendars — see who is off at a glance and plan resources effectively
- Leave balance summaries — track allowances, used days, and pending requests across your organisation
- Compliance reports — generate audit trails and historical data when you need them
- Export capabilities — get your data out in formats you can actually use
Built for the Future
While our Excel planners continue to serve businesses who prefer spreadsheet-based solutions, Simple Leave represents our vision for modern leave management. It is cloud-native, designed to scale with your business as it grows — and we are continuously improving it based on what our customers tell us.
We are not trying to be everything to everyone. We are focused on doing leave management exceptionally well for small and medium-sized businesses — the companies that need powerful functionality without complexity, and professional features without premium prices.
Get Started Today
Simple Leave is now publicly available. Whether you are currently using one of our Excel planners and ready to move to the cloud, or you are managing leave with shared calendars and email chains, we would love to help you simplify the process.
Start your free three-month trial today — no credit card required. Most teams are up and running within a day.
For businesses that prefer to stay with Excel, our dhxsoft Staff Leave Planners continue to be available at dhxsoft.com. We are committed to supporting both solutions for teams at every stage of their growth journey.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Simple Leave?
Simple Leave is cloud-based employee leave management software purpose-built for small and medium-sized businesses. It replaces spreadsheet-based leave tracking with self-service requests, manager approvals, real-time balances, and reporting — all in one place.
How is Simple Leave different from Excel leave trackers?
Unlike Excel trackers, Simple Leave provides real-time collaboration, mobile access for approvals, automated notifications, and self-service for employees. There are no file conflicts, no manual formula updates, and no emailing spreadsheets around the team. For a full comparison, see our article on the best Excel leave trackers.
How quickly can I get started?
Most teams are fully operational within a day. Simple Leave is designed to be intuitive from the first login — if you can use a spreadsheet, you can use Simple Leave.
Is Simple Leave free to try?
Yes. Simple Leave offers a free trial with no credit card required. New accounts get three months free to explore the full feature set before any payment is needed.