What do you get when you cross Human Resources (HR) with the power of modern project management software? Software designed to streamline onboarding, benefits, payroll, and new hire processes. 🙌🏼
HR software is a must-have for businesses of any size, especially those focused on growth and putting their employees first!
We’ve created a list of the 15 best HR software for your business including key features, pros, cons, pricing, customer feedback, and user ratings. Plus, a dive into HR software FAQs and categories to guide you on your search.
Summarize this article for me pleaseWhat Should You Look for in HR Software?
HR software helps leaders and team members align on company goals, manage employee benefits, streamline daily processes, and distribute their time more efficiently. In many cases, this software is also used by employees to manage their time cards, submit requests, view important tax and payroll information, and much more.
Your HR software should be flexible enough to keep up with your company’s growing headcount and structural changes without forcing you to invest in yet another tool to get the job done. Features to look out for in your next HR software include:
- Onboard new employees
- Manage payroll
- Access the company practices and policies
- Track time spent on tasks and billable hours
- Schedule tasks among employees
- Manage and request use for employee benefits
- Track applicants in the recruitment process
- Manage employee reviews and HR goals
The characteristics that make HR software so valuable aren’t limited to this list. Tools to manage tasks, track progress, plan projects, and collaborate with the team will make everyone’s day-to-day a little easier and run smoother using your ideal HR software.
Summarize this article for me pleaseThe 15 Best HR Software Tools
We’ve done our homework to gather a list of the 15 best HR software alternatives for every category, including their benefits, key features, customer feedback, user ratings, and pricing.
1. ClickUp
Category: Best overall HR software solution
ClickUp is the only all-in-one productivity platform powerful enough to provide wall-to-wall solutions for teams of any size and industry. With hundreds of customizable features and over 1,000 integrations, ClickUp can centralize your work across apps into a collaborative workspace—perfect for HR teams managing employee data, time, and goals.
Whether you’re streamlining your recruitment process, onboarding new employees, or tracking their progress toward goals, ClickUp’s flexible platform has everything you need to simplify and optimize long-held HR processes.
ClickUp’s HR features
Multiple views
Over 15 ways to visualize your workflows, tasks, and projects in ClickUp including several key views that your HR team will love:
- Table view for a spreadsheet-like experience managing data
- List view with multiple sorting, filtering, and grouping options
- Form view for turning employee survey responses, requests, and feedback directly into an actionable task
- Calendar view for managing schedules, time off, daily agendas, and virtual meetings
- Workload view for managing your team’s capacities
Automations for HR processes
There are over 100 ways to automate your HR processes in ClickUp so your team can focus on what matters most—your people! Automations in ClickUp can trigger task creation, assign tasks, populate and assign comments, change task statuses, and more.
Dashboards for HR tracking
Ideal for tracking project Milestones, targets, and HR KPIs, Dashboards in ClickUp gather all of your work into an instant and high-level overview. Dashboards are customizable, highly visual, and always meeting-ready to present to stakeholders and other managers. Plus, there are over 50 widget variations in Dashboards that can be created for any HR scenario positions filled, time to hire, and team performance.
HR Templates
This HR SOP Template by ClickUp is the perfect resource for introducing your team to processes using ClickUp Whiteboards. This template applies a colorful, organized, and easily edited table to your collaborative Whiteboard to help HR managers train the team, establish recruitment tasks, manage hiring processes, and more.
ClickUp pros
- All of these powerful tools are found in one dynamic platform, so you won’t have to invest in separate products or a suite of software to access all of ClickUp’s functionality
- Over 1,000 integrations and hundred of pre-built templates to extend and streamline your experience using ClickUp
- 24/7 customer support, learning resources like ClickUp University, webinars, and Help Docs to make your transition as smooth as possible
ClickUp cons
- Does not provide specific benefits packages but can manage the data in a secure platform
- Can be a bit of a learning curve adjusting to ClickUp’s rich feature list
ClickUp Pricing
- Free Forever
- Unlimited: $7 per user, per month
- Business: $12 per user, per month
- Business Plus: $19 per user, per month
- Enterprise: Contact ClickUp for custom pricing
ClickUp ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.7/5 (5,030+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.7/5 (3,210+ reviews)
2. Rippling
Category: Best employee management software
Rippling offers a suite of products to simplify HR, IT, and finance processes using its cloud-based software. Its HR software is enjoyable to use, easy to learn, and has a ton of features that span from payroll to employee feedback surveys, and more.
Rippling features
- Workforce reports and analytics to track hiring, headcount, and progress
- Workflow automation across consistent tasks
- Role-based permissions and policies with customized access and approvals
- Compliance management with local, state, and federal recommendations
Rippling pros
- Hundreds of templates for payroll and other HR needs that you can customize as needed
- Built to manage a global workforce with localized payroll, tax, and compliance features
- Tons of integrations to extend functionality into every HR category
Rippling cons
- Integration required to manage employee performances and reviews using Rippling
- The background check feature through Rippling is expensive
- Customization and multiple views are only extended to admin, so most of your employees will not have access to those features
Rippling pricing
Rippling starts at $8 per user, per month but all pricing plans require a custom quote from Rippling and are created for each team based on the features you need.
Rippling ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.8/5 (1,470+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.9/5 (1,840+ reviews)
HR leaders have a tough job. They have to find the best talent and manage them in a way that makes the company money. This is why HR leaders need the best HR software! I chose Rippling for its user-friendly interface and affordability. It also has features that other HR software programs don’t have. Rippling allows me to track employee performance and create custom reports. It also helps me connect with other HR leaders to share best practices, and the system automatically tracks vacation and sick days, and it makes it easy to view employee records.
3. Workday
Category: Best for large enterprise companies
Workday merges finance processes with HR, planning, and analytics to deliver a well-rounded experience for a variety of use cases. With features tailored to professional services using billable time, education management, and sales operations, this HR software suite helps mid-sized and large enterprise companies adapt processes to keep up with their growth.
Workday features
- Analytics and reporting to track HR task progress, payroll, and benefits
- Employee time-tracking and management
- Workflow automation for professional services
Workday pros
- Multiple products to serve companies across industries
- Built to manage HR processes for large enterprise teams with lots of data, frequent changes, and thousands of employees
- Self-service options through personal employee portals
Workday cons
- Not intuitive, difficult to navigate, and dated-looking interface
- Can be a lengthy implementation process, especially for larger companies
- Expensive and not an accessible option for small businesses
Workday pricing
Contact Workday for all pricing inquiries.
Workday ratings and reviews
- G2: 4/5 (1,290+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.4/5 (980+ reviews)
4. Gusto
Category: Best for small businesses
Gusto is an HR tool for small and mid-sized teams to manage payroll, employee benefits, performance reviews, and onboarding. Like Workday and Rippling, Gusto offers insights and time and attendance features for a self-service experience across employees, but provides more in the way of hiring and talent acquisition including job postings, feedback requests, and offer letter templates.
Gusto features
- Full-service payroll including compliance, automated tax filing, and contractor payments
- Employee management to oversee candidates from their application through onboarding
- Medical, dental, 401K, vision plans, and more provided
Gusto pros
- Multiple templates for various use cases like offer letters, hiring, and job postings
- Can organize and manage all things related to payroll and benefits
- Great for new businesses and small businesses looking for their first-time HR software
Gusto cons
- There is a steep jump in prices between paid plans and no free plan offered
- Can take a bit of time to learn the platform and adjust to its UI
- Not all of the features from its web application are available on the mobile app
Gusto pricing
- Simple: $40 per month, plus an additional $6 per person, per month
- Plus: $80 per month, plus an additional $12 per person, per month
- Premium: Contact Gusto for a quote
Gusto ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.2/5 (650+ reviews)
- Capterra: 5/5 (1 review)
We found that Gusto is the best HR software for our needs and has been instrumental in helping our workflow run smoothly. Gusto makes employee satisfaction the number one priority, which is essential for us. It has easy-to-use features like compensation management, employee onboarding, and a self-service portal. It also includes time off and benefits management, which is important in a small business to ensure that within our small staff, these tasks are still handled professionally.
5. BambooHR
Category: Best self-service option for employees
BambooHR is the payroll, benefits, and employee data trifecta of HR software that revolves around the employee’s personal experience accessing their related tasks. Built for small and medium-sized businesses, BambooHR helps teams focus on employee retention through a tool that lets members easily use their benefits, collect feedback, set performance goals, and more.
BambooHR features
- Reporting for company management, growth, retention, and employee satisfaction
- Multiple personal and public calendars to calculate time off and view who’s out for the day
- Built-in onboarding packets including electronic signing
BambooHR pros
- This company practices what they preach in the way of putting employees first and prioritizing work-life balance
- Creates a space for HR teams, recruiters, and managers to collaborate on new applicants
- Multiple features for employees to track their performance through assessments, feedback, goals, and training
BambooHR cons
- Outdated UX and UI
- Limited metrics in its reporting feature
- No built-in scheduling feature
BambooHR pricing
All BambooHR pricing is customized per team and available upon request.
BambooHR ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.4/5 (1,210+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.6/5 (1,920+ reviews)
BambooHR software is easy to use and amongst one of the best HRIS options for small to mid-sized businesses. BambooHR is user-friendly for HRIS professionals and employees alike. The workflows are customizable and the reporting functionality is straightforward. BambooHR makes onboarding new employees fun and helps get them to engage with the company from day one. One of my favorite features is the ability to create workflows cross-departmentally. For us, this simplified the new hire equipment process by streamlining communication between HR and the IT department.
6. Namely
Category: Best HR software for mid-sized teams
Namely is an HR software for mid-sized businesses to stay on top of their payroll processes, manage benefits, and track their working time.
Namely features
- Reward and recognition features to motivate employees
- E-signature and E-verify functionality to streamline onboarding processes
- Tons of integrations with the option to build your own through its API
Namely pros
- Very easy for employees to view their time and paystubs through their personal portals
- Simple interface that mimics many social media platform feeds
- Designed for mid-sized companies with 25-1,000 employees
Namely cons
- Lacking powerful and intuitive employee reporting and performance features
- The platform struggles to manage data for larger companies and almost exclusively is built for mid-sized teams
- Time reporting can be difficult to manage for hourly employees
Namely pricing
All pricing information for Namely is available only upon request.
Namely ratings and reviews
- G2: 3.9/5 (270+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.2/5 (410+ reviews)
7. Oracle
Category: Best for industry-specific features
Oracle offers a suite of cloud-based applications for enterprise companies to manage everything from resource planning to content, customer experience, supply chain processes, and more. Among its handful of products includes Oracle Fusion Cloud HCM—AKA, its HR software for human capital management.
Oracle features
- A digital assistant to help manage benefits, workforce predictions, and strategic company planning
- Career development and performance management features including checklists and modules
- Pre-built and custom HR KPIs and dashboards
Oracle pros
- Payroll localizations for a global workforce stretching from Mexico to China
- Industry-specific features for a tailored HR software experience
- This software is built to help companies scale and implement Agile practices into HR processes
Oracle cons
- Most of the drawbacks stem from Oracle being such a large software. The setup and the learning curve can be very time-consuming
- Lots of different applications in each product get expensive quickly
- The interface feels outdated and is not intuitive
Oracle pricing
Contact Oracle sales for detailed pricing information.
Oracle ratings and reviews
- G2: 3.7/5 (100+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.2/5 (50+ reviews)
8. HR360
Category: Best for compliance resources
HR360 is a digital resource for people management. It helps businesses keep track of employee information, performance data, and compliance with HR regulations.
HR360 features
- Automated job description and interview question builder
- Employee cost calculator and salary benchmarking tool
- A library of interactive guides to align with HR compliances and best employee practices
HR360 pros
- Additional apps to extend its feature functionality
- An entire online library of all federal and state laws
- Over 500 downloadable template forms
HR360 cons
- This software relies on separate apps to access its features
- This tool is helpful for HR teams but less valuable for employees across departments
- Not the best option for mid-to-large teams
HR360 pricing
Contact HR360 for all pricing information.
HR360 ratings and reviews
- G2: N/A
- Capterra: 5/5 (2 reviews)
I chose HR360 because it offers a comprehensive suite of HR features, including an employee self-service portal, an onboarding module, and a performance management system. HR360 is also highly configurable, so it can be customized to meet the specific needs of my business. Additionally, the price is competitive compared to other HR software programs. Overall, HR360 is the best HR software solution for my business.
9. Clockify
Category: Best for managing employee time off requests
Clockify is a time-tracking software that HR teams can use to categorize and track employee progress during work days. Clockify gives the HR department insight into employee performance, current projects, and general activity. It also gives employees a private work calendar for requesting paid time off for future dates or day-of requests. On the admin side of things, your HR department and managers have access to an annual timeline with everyone’s approved and pending requests.
Clockify features
- Multiple timekeeping features for entering hours, marking billable time, setting a stopwatch, and overseeing your timesheet
- Invoices created by tracked time, expense, and hourly rates
- Multiple views to oversee time off, project schedules, the team, and progress
Clockify pros
- Helpful for tracking and managing the team’s workload
- Helps employees take full ownership and accountability for their working hours and off-time
- Some project management features including milestones and assigned tasks
Clockify cons
- Lacking many key HR features for managing benefits, employee portals, and hiring
- Limited time tracking automation features
- Clockify would be helpful for some departments but not all of them which isn’t ideal for an HR software
Clockify pricing
- Basic: $3.99 per user, per month
- Standard: $5.49 per user, per month
- Pro: $7.99 per user, per month
- Enterprise: $11.99 per user, per month
Clockify ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.5/5 (130+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.7/5 (4,290+ reviews)
Aside from performance management, the HR department can efficiently distribute tasks, track progress, and address everyone’s needs in a timely manner with Clockify. They can also use Clockify’s reports to determine who may be overworked and help out team leaders to distribute tasks and projects. Clockify’s time tracking data also helps HR learn more about their employees’ work habits, especially if the company relies on a remote/hybrid work system.
Check out these hybrid work tools!
10. Compt
Category: Best for managing employee stipends
Compt is an employee stipends platform that gives people the freedom to choose the lifestyle perks supported by their company. Helpful for HR teams managing employee benefits, Compt’s employee stipend and rewards software is customizable, IRS-compliant, and can support global teams.
Compt features
- Multiple benefits categories to reward your employees with office supplies, health and wellness classes, food, and development benefits
- Thorough bonus feature for compensating employees during career milestones
Compt pros
- A modern take on employee benefits that every team member can and wants to use
- Great for showing appreciation for remote and global employees
Compt cons
- Lacking other key HR features for hiring, retention, analytics, and performance tracking
- Focused only on stipends and perks rather than full benefits plans
Compt pricing
Contact Compt for all pricing information.
Compt ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.9/5 (20+ reviews)
- Capterra: N/A
As the future of work sees a push toward hybrid and fully remote work environments, HR teams are navigating a categorical shift in how they deliver corporate perks. These extras traditionally included staples like healthcare and retirement benefits, and now include perks like free team lunches and group fitness classes. Compt allows teams to create stipend categories like “health and wellness” or “family.” Employees then pick services in those categories and get reimbursed by uploading receipts via Compt’s application or integrations.
11. Scribe
Category: Best for sharing training materials
Scribe is a handy HR tool for documenting your processes for you. The tool auto-generates visual step-by-step guides with text and annotated screenshots. Teams can create SOPs in seconds, then share or embed Scribes in any knowledge base to streamline onboarding, training, and tool adoption processes.
Scribe features
- Automated documentation that records processes through your browser
- Customize your step-by-step guides with annotations, text, redactions, and branding
- Easy sharing options via PDF, embedding, URL, or additional exporting options
Scribe pros
- This is a helpful tool to quickly show and teach new team members how to follow standardized company processes
- This would be a great tool to use in addition to your current tech stack across departments
- Scribe does its primary function incredibly well, including screenshots and instructions in their automated step-by-step guides
Scribe cons
- Scribe takes transcription to the next level but will not stand alone as a full-service HR software
- You will be reliant on integrations to use Scribe to its fullest extent
- No time-tracking, benefits management, or employee performance tools to align Scribe with your HR processes
Scribe pricing
- Basic: Free
- Pro: $29 per user, per month
- Enterprise: Contact Scribe for custom pricing
Scribe ratings and reviews
- G2: 5/5 (50+ reviews)
- Capterra: 5/5 (5 reviews)
Any user can create and share unlimited Scribes (step-by-step guides). They are easy to create, duplicate and personalize for every employee. Scribes live in an easy-to-organize workspace, but also embed in any knowledge base, wiki or CMS.
12. Evergreen
Category: Best for rewarding your team
Evergreen is an HR tool that hinges on positivity. Its principle features motivate employees and maintain healthy workplace morale through peer-to-peer recognition. Plus, the more you recognize your team, the more trees Evergreen will plant on your behalf—so wholesome! 🌎
Evergreen features
- Track your achievements and your team by the number of achievements given and the number of trees planted
- Multiple integrations including Microsoft Teams and Slack
Evergreen pros
- Every time you give back to your employees, you’re also giving back to the planet
- This software is wholesome and entirely based on positive reinforcement
Evergreen cons
- This is a fun tool to offer your team but when if you’re trying to pinch pennies, it’s not necessary
- Lacking critical HR software features including benefits, payroll, performance, and talent management
Evergreen pricing
$2.99 per user, per month—that’s it! Nice and easy.
Evergreen ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.7/5 (50+ reviews)
- Capterra: N/A
Evergreen is the only peer-to-peer recognition app that lets teams recognize a job well done while planting trees for the planet. For the ultimate positive, feel-good team culture. My favorite features are the public peer-to-peer recognition inside Slack or MS Teams, great analytics, and the fact that company values are visible in daily operations.
13. DeskTime
Category: Best for tracking employee time at work
DeskTime automatically tracks the time you spend on the computer by logging your arrival, departure, and time spent on projects or tasks. Managers can see where their team’s time goes and gives employees proof of their time spent at work. While many of the HR tools on this list offer an array of time and attendance features, DeskTime’s primary function is to make detailed accounts of the time your employees spend at work and what is accomplished in that time.
DeskTime features
- Cost calculation for assigning hourly rates to make payroll calculations
- Shift scheduling to distribute your team’s time evenly and give employees the option to request specific shifts
- Booking tools that let team members reserve desks, meeting rooms, parking spaces, or office equipment
- Absence calendar to track time off
DeskTime pros
- DeskTime has several time-tracking features to promote a healthy work-life balance
- Supports time-blocking strategies like the Pomodoro technique
- Great for small businesses and freelancers
DeskTime cons
- So much visibility into your team member’s time can lead to a micromanaging and distrusting relationship between employees and managers
- This is mainly a time-tracking tool that has some crossover into common HR software features
- The UI feels very dated
DeskTime pricing
- Pro: $7 per user, per month
- Premium: $10 per user, per month
- Enterprise: $20 per user, per month
DeskTime ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.5/5 (140+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.5/5 (340+ reviews)
DeskTime is an automatic time tracker and workforce management system that helps to plan team resources, oversee workloads, prevent burnout, and much more. It’s employer- and employee-friendly with both team management solutions and features to ensure a healthy work-life balance.
14. 15five
Category: Best for performance management
15five is an HR software solution that focuses on performance management and employee enablement. It supports four products named for the problems they aim to solve: Engage, Perform, Focus, and Transform.
15five features
- Manage and plan check-ins, 1-1s, assessments, and reviews from within the software
- Goal and OKR tracking on a live dashboard
15five pros
- A strong community of leading HR professionals to lean on for tips and strategies
- HR managers can oversee employee progress using OKR-driven SMART goals
15five cons
- Limited customization in the platform
- No benefits management or payroll features
15five pricing
- Engage: $4 per user, per month
- Perform: $8 per user, per month
- Focus: $8 per user, per month
- Total Platform: $14 per user, per month
15five ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.6/5 (1,720+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.7/5 (850+ reviews)
15. Trakstar
Category: Best for giving feedback
Trakstar is a performance management HR software for managers to gauge employee progress and goals through constant and direct feedback.
Trakstar features
- 360 Degree Feedback through a continuous feedback loop for employee accountability
- Goal feature for setting SMART goals, objectives, achievements, and tracking progress
- Reporting insights and dashboards
Trakstar pros
- Multiple ways to track HR progress through applicants, job postings, goals, and analytics
- Tracks the entire employee lifecycle including learning management and performance
Trakstar cons
- Lacking benefits and payroll features
- You will be reliant on multiple products to solve different daily HR processes
Trakstar pricing
Contact Trakstar for a custom pricing quote.
Trakstar ratings and reviews
- G2: 4.3/5 (220+ reviews)
- Capterra: 4.4/5 (280+ reviews)
Summarize this article for me pleaseBenefits of HR Software
Now that you’ve learned about the best HR tools on the market take a moment to understand the benefits of using an HR software for your team.
The benefits of HR Software include:
- Increased employee data security
- Optimized HR processes
- More organization
- Improved onboarding
- Minimize errors in employee tracking
Summarize this article for me pleaseTypes of HR Software
To create a more narrowly tailored experience for different use cases, most HR tools can be divided among a handful of software types.
Human Resources Management Systems (HRMS), Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS), and Human Capital Management (HCM) all refer to a category of HR software that typically involves a suite of products that work together to target individual HR functions like payroll, benefits, and employee onboarding.
Core HR and HR administration software also fall under the HRMS, HCM, and HRIS umbrella, so if you’re seeing those terms used to describe your prospective HR tool, no need to worry—you’re on the right track. 🚗💨
If your company structure blends HR processes with talent acquisition, you may also benefit from talent management systems to streamline your workflows. These tools include features to help teams focus on recruiting new candidates, managing employee performances, providing learning and development opportunities, and overseeing compensation.
Summarize this article for me pleaseChoose the Best HR Software for Your Team
But which type of HR software will your team be most likely to engage with and introduce the most benefits for your organization? The type that does it all, like ClickUp!
Ranked first on this list as the best overall HR software and widely used by teams across industries, ClickUp is the only tool flexible and powerful enough to provide wall-to-wall solutions for your entire company. It’s packed with hundreds of features to streamline your HR processes related to onboarding, performance reviews, employee requests, talent development, and more. 🤯
Plus, ClickUp is as powerful as it is cost-effective. Access unlimited tasks and members, ClickUp Docs, Whiteboards, 100MB of storage, and tons of pre-built HR templates on ClickUp’s Free Forever Plan.
Sign up for ClickUp today and start creating HR processes that truly put your people first. 🏆
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