BambooHR
Gusto
| Feature | BambooHR | Gusto |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Contact sales | From $40/mo |
| Free Plan | ✗ No | ✗ No |
| Rating | 4.4 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 |
| Best For | smbs, hr-teams, growing-companies, people-operations | small-businesses, startups, accountants, us-companies |
| Founded | 2008 | 2011 |
| Employee Database | ✓ | ✗ |
| Ats | ✓ | ✗ |
| Onboarding | ✓ | ✓ |
| Time Off Tracking | ✓ | ✗ |
| Performance Reviews | ✓ | ✗ |
| Reporting | ✓ | ✗ |
| Employee Satisfaction | ✓ | ✗ |
| Payroll | ✗ | ✓ |
| Benefits | ✗ | ✓ |
| Tax Filing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Time Tracking | ✗ | ✓ |
| Hiring | ✗ | ✓ |
| Compliance | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ BambooHR Pros
- Beautiful and intuitive interface for HR teams
- Excellent employee self-service portal
- Built-in ATS for recruitment
- Strong performance management features
✗ BambooHR Cons
- Pricing not transparent (quote required)
- Limited payroll features (US only)
- Fewer integrations than enterprise HRIS
✓ Gusto Pros
- Easiest payroll software to set up and run
- Automatic federal, state, and local tax filings
- Health insurance and 401(k) brokering built-in
- Excellent employee onboarding experience
✗ Gusto Cons
- US-only — no international payroll
- Gets expensive as headcount grows
- Limited HR features compared to BambooHR
The Verdict
BambooHR is built for smbs and hr teams, with a focus on employee-database and ats. Gusto targets small businesses and startups and leads with payroll and benefits.
BambooHR uses custom enterprise pricing, while Gusto starts at $40/mo — a tangible advantage for teams with a fixed budget.
Neither tool offers a free plan, so factor the subscription cost into your decision from the start.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.