BambooHR has remained one of the top names in HR software for years. They have won numerous awards for customer support, ease of use, and good value. Their numerous features can be flexibly packaged according to your needs.
Ratings
Ease of Use
Best For
Key Differentiator
Price
Free Trial
PROS
- Flexible packaging and custom pricing is the way they roll. You can pick out one or two packages and pick other modules as add-ons based on your needs.
- Very simple and straightforward tool, easy to use.
CONS
- Payroll is only available for US-based employees
- Customer support is only offered during US business hours.
- Some modules like time tracking, performance management, and surveys are only available as add-ons.
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BambooHR tries to accommodate one or another version of their technology to fit your business. Their HR platform spans across the employee lifecycle as they have tons of other functionalities (like a full ATS or a performance management module) in addition to the core HRIS offer.
They do offer the core HR part as a stand-alone product. The way they package features can be flexible. For instance, they have a small business package called Essentials.
This package covers all the HR Management features like employee records, benefit tracking, standard reporting, document storage and more. It also has the employee self-service module, which is where workers can manage their time off, consult the employee directory and org chart, see a company calendar, and do all this from either the desktop version or the mobile app.
Further, Modules like payroll, time tracking, and performance management are offered as add-ons. If you need more, you can opt for the Advantage package. This plan includes onboarding and offboarding features, the Applicant Tracking System, advanced reporting, company branding, access to the open API, satisfaction surveys, and much more.
The flexibility of building out your plan like this is part of what keeps drawing one HR team after another to the tool. Arguably, it’s also what makes BambooHR one of the most popular HR software products of all time.
The product itself is fairly easy to use and figure out on your own. It’s one of the most simple tools to navigate that packs so many features. At SSR, we’ve demoed the tool, tried it for free, and even worked at companies where it was the HRIS of choice. We can say it’s rare to have to consult any help articles in order to make use of the tool. You just log in, do what you have to do, and trust that your colleagues will be notified.
Take the process of requesting time off, for instance. A worker would log in, send the request to their manager, and the manager gets an email notification. Once approved or rejected, the worker gets an email notification as well and the company calendar is updated accordingly. There’s no need for the worker to log back into the tool.
Lastly, BambooHR also have numerous amenities like an app marketplace of HR/recruiting vendors that integrate with their system, an HR glossary, and host HR events on occasion.
- The tool has been critical in managing employee data and maintaining the database of employee information accessible by the team remotely.
- We use BambooHR for onboarding and collecting information for new joiners. It is also an ideal tool for recruitment and tracking of candidates throughout the recruitment cycle.
- We are also able to use it to track and manage employee leave applications.
- Reporting has been made very simple since I can pull a report in minutes on headcount, analysis on gender, leave, turnover rates, onboarding, and performance
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- Excellent Customer Service: The customer support team has been very supportive and responsive in troubleshooting.
- The system is user-friendly and has some videos guiding you through some of its functions. The system is designed to be customizable, so clients can tailor it to meet their specific needs.
- Powerful reporting: BambooHR's reporting features have allowed me to generate a wide range of reports, such as headcount, turnover, and diversity reports, this information is instrumental in making data-driven decisions.
As Covid-19 forced most employers to look into hybrid working models, there was a need for us to look into tools for managing employee information and tracking time off to streamline administrative tasks and reduce errors while working remotely.
BambooHR offers Recruiting and applicant tracking features that make it easier to find and hire the right candidates for open positions remotely.
Additionally, it provides performance management tools, including goal setting and performance reviews, which can help ensure that employees are working towards company objectives and receiving the feedback they need to succeed.
I found the system to be user-friendly, with a modern interface that is easy to navigate and customize to meet our needs. The system also has video tutorials that are clear and guide you through its functions.
The main con would be its limited payroll functionality. It is not available in Africa and its payroll functionality is currently only available for customers in the United States and Canada, which may be a drawback for companies based in other countries.
Pricing is also on the upper limit compared to other solutions, particularly in Africa.
The features on training could also be more customizable to clients in diverse spaces or lines of work
BambooHR has strong reporting features which allow us to generate a wide range of reports, such as headcount, turnover, and diversity reports, which can help organizations make data-driven decisions.
Its user-friendly interface is easy to navigate and find the information users need. The system is designed to be customizable, so users can tailor it to meet their specific needs.
When buying BambooHR or any other HR software solution, there are several criteria to consider, including:
- Location: BambooHR's payroll functions are better suited for companies in US and Canada. For ease of compliance with local regulations, countries in Africa can consider an alternative tool to run their payroll function.
- Company size and needs: The size of the company and its HR needs are important factors to consider when selecting a software solution. BambooHR is generally well-suited for small to medium-sized businesses with straightforward HR needs.
- Customization: Companies should consider how customizable BambooHR is, and whether it can be tailored to their specific HR workflows and processes.
- Security and compliance: Companies should consider BambooHR's security and compliance features to ensure that employee data is protected and that the system meets relevant legal and regulatory requirements.
- Improved user experience: BambooHR has focused on improving the user experience over time, with updates to the system's interface, navigation, and overall usability.
- Deeper analytics: BambooHR has added more powerful reporting and analytics features over time, which has helped users gain deeper insights into their HR data.
BambooHR is well-suited for small to medium-sized organizations with straightforward HR needs. The system is particularly strong in areas such as employee data management, onboarding, and reporting, and is designed to be customizable to meet the specific needs of each organization.
Functions like payroll are better suited for companies in US and Canada.
It is well-suited to organizations that need a flexible, customizable, and user-friendly HR software solution.
Large enterprises: BambooHR is generally not recommended for large enterprises with complex HR needs. The system is designed to be straightforward and easy to use, which means it may not have the depth of functionality that larger organizations require.
It is also not ideal for a company wishing to run payroll that is operating outside the US
BambooHR is an essential part of our workflow at the office. We use BambooHR on a daily basis for reducing manual paperwork and quickly tracking employee information. BambooHR helps to ensure that our manager and team members are up-to-date on records such as shift changes, vacation requests, and job roles. This helps make hiring and onboarding new employees easy, fast, and efficient. BambooHR also allows us to easily track employee performance reviews and keep tabs on employee attendance. Its comprehensive search capabilities enable us to quickly find important documents when needed. BambooHR has been an invaluable tool for improving overall workplace organization and productivity, helping us run our business with fewer manual processes efficiently and effectively.
- BambooHR is an incredibly user-friendly HR platform that has made it easier than ever to manage employee data.
- it makes onboarding new employees a breeze, allowing us to quickly and accurately collect important documents with just a few clicks.
- The powerful analytics BambooHR provides are also great for keeping tabs on performance, compensation, and attendance.
We chose BambooHR as our Human Resources software because of its expansive, easy-to-use capabilities. We wanted to automate HR processes and initially used Zoho but we found a problem integrating Zoho to meet our expectations since Zoho requires knowledge of IT. BambooHR allows us to easily manage employee timesheets, track new hire onboarding processes, create interactive checklists, and track performance goals with ease. We have been using BambooHR for almost two years now and have seen a great ROI. BambooHR has moved our HR processes into the 21st century and enabled us to make changes quickly while keeping track of valuable data that would have taken us significantly longer to include manually.
- BambooHR does not offer a significant number of options when it comes to customizing your dashboard or user profiles.
- BambooHR lacks many advanced reporting features.
- BambooHR does not currently offer the ability to track vacation hours for individual employees.
Its strong suite of features make it stand out from similar tools. BambooHR simplifies the onboarding process by helping to manage employee data, providing an effective way to track hours and attendance, or designing custom workflows for tasks like vacation requests. What I particularly appreciate about BambooHR is its ability to create employee reports that are fast, intuitive, and easy to use. BambooHR also integrates seamlessly with other software such as payroll, benefits management, and mailing services. Overall in comparison to other HR tools available today, BambooHR stands above many of them. Its intuitive design and robust functionality make it my preferred choice for managing my HR processes; it gives me everything I need in one place without any hassle.
When considering BambooHR as the right software solution for your business, there are several key criteria to consider. Thoughtful evaluation of factors such as cost and implementation time frame should be taken into account to make BambooHR fits into your business plans and operations. Additionally, it’s important to understand BambooHR's functionality and its capacity for automation to guarantee you’re getting the most out of the software in terms of streamlining tasks and increasing efficiency.
By consistently listening to customer feedback, BambooHR continues to evolve and grow along with its users' needs. BambooHR now provides software solutions that allow companies to streamline their mundane, yet essential HR processes like record-keeping, onboarding, and more. BambooHR has also added more robust analytics and reporting functionality to offer real-time visibility into human capital metrics.
BambooHR is an incredibly valuable tool for businesses of all sizes looking to streamline their HR processes. It makes it simple to store employee information, set access permissions, and track important past and present data. From small independent businesses just getting started with their HR needs, to large organizations that have much more complicated paperwork requirements. because the software offers a high range of features and prices that can fit any type of business.
BambooHR may not be suitable for certain users and organizations due to its specialization in Human Resources. BambooHR’s core focus is streamlining the payroll, hiring, performance reviews, and goals-tracking processes for medium-sized businesses. As such, BambooHR may not be the ideal choice for companies that prioritize a large range of features outside of conventional HR setup or are unwilling to invest time into learning the platform’s unique services. BambooHR also does not have an international presence, so global organizations looking for a comprehensive HR system may need to look elsewhere.
Starting with talent acquisition, we use it to maintain our talent pool. Then recruiting the talent by incorporating an offer letter and contract. Once the employee is in our system, we use it for database management. We also use it for their performance evaluation and record the training. In the end, we also use its features of onboarding, offboarding, and employee survey as well.
I like it for its smooth performance evaluation process. It's one of my favorite features. Second is its onboarding feature and hires packet that let the new employee feel welcomed. Last but not least, is its ATS system which helps us keep a track of our talent pool.
My organization has been using it for 2 years. This is an amazing tool for employee database management. Along with that, it offers an employee satisfaction survey which can help improve things along the way. Its performance module has made life way easier with a simple few steps process for performance evaluation. Lastly, its hiring module is easy to use and generates results.
It does not provide integration with LinkedIn which adds to the cost of LinkedIn job wrapping. Its customization option is very limited and its API keys are also limited to very few options.
For a startup, It provides all the necessary options that will help the organization alleviate its HRIS system. It is not that costly compared to others and it is also very simple to use.
Apart from the very obvious, cost; another criterion could be the size of the organization. The needs of the organization are also very important in terms of what they want to achieve from an HRIS.
They have introduced new modules like performance, moreover, they are always doing webinars to make the best use of their tool. Their customer support is always very helpful.
Small and Medium Enterprises.
MNCs.
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Many of BambooHR’s features work grandly for businesses in virtually every part of the world. However, modules like payroll, hiring & onboarding, and time tracking are certainly either thought of for US business practices or, in the case of payroll, only available for US employees. International or remote businesses looking for an HRMS to handle both HR and payroll needs would not be a good fit. Unless, that is, they use the HR part only and integrate payroll through another vendor, like one of the best international payroll providers.
Among the 20,000+ companies that use BambooHR, you’d find names like Quora, Universal Group, Reddit, Asana, Change.org, University of Maryland, Grammarly, Stance, Postmates, Wistia, the Jacksonville Jaguars, and ZipRecruiter.
BambooHR has two feature sets. Essentials provides human resources management modules, employee self-service tools, and baseline customer support.
Advantage includes everything in Essentials but adds premium customer support, hiring and onboarding systems, an ATS, training, reporting, a job site, company branding, and access to BambooHR's partner marketplace and open API integration.
Add-ons such as time tracking, payroll, and performance management are available at additional costs.
Here’s a breakdown of some of the top features:
- People Data & Analytics: BambooHR strives to be the single and secure database where all your employee information is stored and managed. They couple that with powerful, intuitive reporting tools and a strong focus on security.
- Mobile Hiring App: One of their most-talked-about perks, their hiring app gives recruiters the ease to perform most applicant tracking tasks from their phone if needed.
- Automated onboarding: Set up tasks to new hires for them to complete at a time of their choosing.
- Introductions: BambooHR makes introductions easy with resources like customizable new-hire packets and get-to-know-you emails.
- Electronic signatures: New employees can sign the stuff they need to without stepping a foot in the office.
BambooHR also has capabilities for:
- Attendance tracking
- Benefits administration
- Compliance
- Employee communication tools
- Employee engagement
- Reporting and analytics
- Payroll
- Performance appraisal
- Time tracking
- Workforce management
- Compensation management
- Performance management tools and surveys
BambooHR has an API with lots of partnerships and an app marketplace, although these are only available from the Advantage onwards. If you do go with that plan, the platform integrates with most applicant tracking systems, as well as solutions for employee assessments, background checks, employment verification, payroll, benefits administration, ERP & accounting, training, onboarding, performance management, recognition, and more. Their marketplace keeps growing and already features a few hundred vendor integrations.
BambooHR uses per-employee, per-month pricing, varying by company size: companies with 26+ employees pay per-employee, while those with 25 or fewer pay a flat monthly rate (starting at $250).
Three plans are offered:
- Core: $10/employee/month
- Pro: $17/employee/month (Includes Core + more)
- Elite: $25/employee/month (Includes Pro + advanced features, training, and AI assistant)
Add-ons include Payroll, Benefits Administration, Time Tracking, and Employer of Record. Bundling Payroll and Benefits Administration saves 15% (U.S. employees only). Volume and non-profit discounts are available.
BambooHR is a good fit for companies looking for a very customizable HR product, with pricing that reflects their needs. It’s also popular among teams that are partially or even fully remote.
BambooHR’s latest product enhancements reflect a continued push toward mobile accessibility, simplified task management, and greater workflow flexibility. These enhancements are unlikely to change how users perceive the platform overall, but they do reinforce BambooHR’s value as a system geared toward SMBs looking for pragmatic, incremental improvements in hiring efficiency.
Key feature changes include:
- Hiring widget in Android mobile app: Recruiters using Android devices can now monitor new applicants directly from their home screen and access the candidate list with one tap. This should improve responsiveness for hiring managers or recruiters working in the field or away from a desktop.
- Updated import tasks modal: BambooHR has introduced a redesigned interface for importing tasks, intended to streamline checklist creation during onboarding and offboarding. With this UI enhancement, admins can manage multiple hires at once or coordinate cross-departmental workflows.
- Support for up to 15 job pipeline stages: The previous 10-stage cap has been raised to 15, allowing for more granular hiring workflows. This is useful for teams that want to separate screening, interviews, assessments, and approvals into distinct stages without relying on workaround labels or notes.
Getting started with BambooHR is as easy as signing up for their free trial and then getting in touch with their team. They'll likely want to talk to you about choosing a plan that's based on your needs, and the implementation of that will vary accordingly.
BambooHR does more of a self-service approach to customer success. The Essentials package includes email support and access to their Customer Success Webinar library. For their telephone support, you’d have to upgrade to the Advantage plan. From our understanding, both kinds of personal support are only offered in US business hours.
BambooHR was started in 2008 by Ben Peterson and Ryan Sanders. Their goal was to create a product that customers would love using and that would save countless man hours. At the same time, they wanted the company behind this product to be a place people would enjoy working at.
This approach worked, as they have kept growing both their employee and customer count quite steadily over the years. They had 470 employees around the end of 2019. Now, as of Summer 2025, they have over 1730. Their product is used by thousands of companies in well over 100 countries.
An interesting bit about the way they manage their company is that they have an “anti-workaholic policy”. Basically, BambooHR employees are forbidden from laboring over 40 hours per week.
Also noteworthy is the fact that while both founding members are still on the board, BambooHR’s CEO is now Brad Rencher. He was previously a marketing executive at Adobe Inc., before being recruited for the post in October 2019.
Company HQ
Lindon, Utah
Number of Employees
1250+
Year Founded
2008
Amount Raised
According to their Crunchbase profile, BambooHR has raised an undisclosed amount of funding over 2 rounds. The last one of which was in Summer 2016. Among others, BambooHR is funded by Sorenson Capital.
FAQ
How come BambooHR is so popular?
We’d argue that BambooHR was one of the first companies to bring HR functionalities to the SaaS realm with modern UX design. However, while many companies do that now, they’ve secured their position as a household name in HR software due to their ever-growing features and flexible packages; which suit SMBs and enterprises alike.
Is BambooHR Free?
As of summer 2025, BambooHR doesn’t offer a stand-alone free-for-life product. They do have a free trial, however, and they’ve been known to extend it based on your needs and plans. That being said, it does eventually cost, but the pricing is completely customized based on what features you need.
About SSR
We spend hundreds of hours researching the best HR and recruiting software so you don’t have to. We never take money from vendors during our research phase and rely heavily on practitioners and experts to help us recommend the right software. However we may earn a small fee if you click on vendor links on this page.
