The True Cost of Using Multiple SaaS Tools vs an All-in-One Platform
Compare the hidden costs of using separate HR, CRM, and care tools versus an integrated platform. A practical analysis for UK business owners.
Onarvo Team
The Multi-Tool Trap
Most growing businesses accumulate software the same way they accumulate kitchen gadgets — one tool at a time, each solving a specific problem, until suddenly you have twelve subscriptions and nobody knows which one does what.
A typical 30-person UK business might use:
- BreatheHR for HR (£5/employee/month = £150/month)
- Pipedrive for CRM (£25/user × 10 sales staff = £250/month)
- Birdie for care management (£300+/month)
- Front or Zendesk for shared inbox (£15/user × 15 staff = £225/month)
- Xero for accounting (£36/month)
- Zapier to connect them (£50/month)
Total: £1,000+/month before you count the hidden costs.
The Hidden Costs Nobody Budgets For
1. Integration Tax
Every tool that needs to talk to another tool costs time and money:
- Zapier/Make automations that break silently
- API limits that throttle at the worst moments
- Data that syncs hourly instead of instantly
- Custom integrations that need maintaining after every update
2. Context Switching
Your team spends 20-30 minutes per day just switching between tools, remembering passwords, and finding the right tab. That's 10+ hours per month per person of lost productivity.
3. Data Silos
Your CRM knows a client's deal value. Your HR system knows which employee manages that client. Your care system knows that client's service history. But none of them talk to each other — so nobody has the full picture.
4. Training Overhead
Every new hire needs training on 4-5 different tools. Each with its own UI, its own logic, its own support documentation. Onboarding takes weeks instead of days.
5. Vendor Management
Five tools means five contracts, five renewal dates, five support channels, five sets of terms and conditions, and five GDPR data processing agreements.
The All-in-One Alternative
An integrated platform replaces multiple tools with one:
| Separate Tools | All-in-One | |---|---| | 5+ logins | 1 login | | 5+ invoices | 1 invoice | | Manual integrations | Built-in data sharing | | 5+ support channels | 1 support team | | Weeks of onboarding | Days of onboarding | | Data in silos | Single source of truth |
Cost Comparison
For that same 30-person business:
| Approach | Monthly Cost | |---|---| | Separate tools (HR + CRM + Care + Mailbox + integrations) | £1,000+ | | All-in-one platform (Professional plan × 30 users) | £1,770 | | All-in-one platform (Starter plan × 30 users) | £870 |
The Starter plan is actually cheaper than the separate tools, and you get everything integrated.
When Separate Tools Still Make Sense
To be fair, all-in-one isn't always the answer:
- Enterprise companies (500+ employees) often need best-of-breed solutions with deep specialisation
- Single-function teams that only need CRM and nothing else
- Heavily regulated industries that require certified specialist software
But for UK SMEs with 5-200 employees who need HR, CRM, care management, or communications — an integrated platform eliminates complexity without sacrificing functionality.
What to Look For in an All-in-One Platform
- Modular — use only what you need, add more later
- UK-compliant — GDPR, employment law, CQC-ready
- Fair pricing — per user, not per module
- Data portability — CSV import/export so you're never locked in
- Single support team — one place to go when things break
How Onarvo Compares
Onarvo combines four modules — HR, CRM, Care, and Mailbox — into one platform:
- Start with one module from £59/user/month
- Add modules as you grow
- All data shared across modules (a contact in CRM is visible in Mailbox)
- UK-built, GDPR compliant, UK support team
- CSV import to migrate from your existing tools
No Zapier. No integration tax. No context switching.