Bambee vs. BambooHR Comparison

Bambee vs. BambooHR Compared

Who Do We Recommend Bambee For? 

Bambee is an affordable HR software solution for small to midsize businesses that are seeking hands-on support. Bambee is a great choice for businesses that need expert HR guidance in critical areas. The platform is especially helpful for companies who need additional support in compliance and risk management. 

Bambee can manage the creation of new company policies that help mitigate risk. In today’s rapidly changing business environment, it’s important for employers to stay on top of new laws and regulations. Bambee can serve as a valuable partner to ensure businesses maintain clear policies in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations. 

Bambee offers:

• Hands-on support, including a dedicated HR manager
• Support in developing clear HR policies in compliance with applicable laws and regulations
• Strong document- and file-management tools
• Transparent pricing

Who Do We Recommend BambooHR For?

BambooHR offers an all-in-on HR platform, but where it really stands out is its performance management tools. BambooHR is great for employers seeking a highly customizable platform that allows users to track goals, manage performance assessments and record feedback. 

BambooHR makes it easy for employees to complete self-assessments and keep track of goals. Source: BambooHR

We like that BambooHR offers robust performance management tools as well as numerous add-ons and integrations. For businesses that are ready to focus on people management, BambooHR provides great tools and resources. We also like that BambooHR offers both web and mobile access. 

Bamboo offers:

• Highly customizable platform and multiple add-ons available
• Strong performance management features to support goal tracking, performance assessments and ongoing 360-degree feedback
• Robust performance management reporting features
• Optimization for web and mobile

Bambee vs. BambooHR Comparison 

Pricing

Bambee

Bambee offers transparent pricing that begins at $99 per month and increases based on the size of your business. 

These are Bambee’s current pricing plans:

• 0 employees: $99 per month with no setup fee
• 1-4 employees: $299 per month plus a one-time $500 setup fee
• 5-19 employees: $399 per month plus a one-time $500 setup fee
• 20-49 employees: $699 per month plus a one-time $1,500 setup fee
• 50-99 employees: $1,299 per month plus a one-time $2,000 setup fee
• 100-149 employees: $2,499 per month plus a one-time $2,500 setup fee
• 150-249 employees: $3,699 per month plus a one-time $3,500 setup fee
• 250+ employees: Custom pricing

Bambee’s $99 plan enables new organizations that haven’t hired their first employee to prepare to do so. Once the first employee is hired and customers move to the next plan tier, they will have unlimited access to a dedicated HR manager via phone, email, and live chat.

Bambee’s pricing model is unique among many of its competitors in that it charges by the size of your business rather than offering a set price per employee. 

BambooHR

Unlike Bambee, BambooHR does not offer transparent pricing. In order to learn more about the costs associated with its offerings, you must contact the sales team and request a quote by phone or through the BambooHR website.

BambooHR offers two pricing plans with different levels of access. The first is the Essentials tier, which includes employee records, benefits tracking, standard reporting, document storage, email alerts, time-off management, single sign-on, mobile app functionality, workflows and weekday email support.

The second is the Advantage tier, which includes everything in the Essentials tier, plus advanced reporting, branding, audit trails, open API, BambooHR Marketplace access, employee satisfaction gauge with eNPS, onboarding, offboarding, e-signatures, training progress and weekday telephone support.

Winner: Bambee

We like that Bambee offers a unique pricing model, but the setup fees with Bambee are a bit higher than those of other solutions — some of which have no setup fees at all. This is something to consider as you shop around. Bambee’s pricing transparency is helpful for businesses that have a set budget and want to know exactly what they’re getting before moving too far along in the process. On the other hand, because BambooHR doesn’t publish pricing on its website, there may be room for negotiation. The only drawback is that it may be hard to predict how pricing could change as your company grows or needs additional services.

Features

Bambee

• Hands-on HR guidance: Bambee customers receive support from a dedicated HR manager. This individual can help with everything from writing job descriptions to crafting HR policies.
• Custom HR policies: Every business faces its own challenges. Bambee’s custom HR policies can help alleviate some of the stress around maintaining good policies that support both employers and employees. These policies can address everything from PTO and dress code to sick leave and social media.
• Internal compliance: Compliance issues can be overwhelming for small businesses, so we appreciate that Bambee offers customized policies, procedures and documentation. Bambee helps create and maintain labor policies, ensuring you remain in compliance with local and federal guidelines. In addition, Bambee offers long-term document storage and mandatory training as required by law.
• Recordkeeping: Employee record retention rules can vary greatly between localities, states and federal agencies. Bambee HR makes it easy for businesses to comply with requirements with Bambee Cabinet, a safe document storage system made to support Bambee customers in all aspects of employee record retention.
• Payroll processing: Bambee offers two-day direct deposit to help ensure employees are paid efficiently. Bambee also handles all federal, state and local tax management. We like that Bambee offers guidance from its HR manager on important payroll issues, such as wage and hour regulations. 

Bambee’s payroll processing feature makes it easy to manage taxes, as well as access additional support for questions related to wage and hour regulations. Source: Bambee

• Employee feedback collection: Bambee’s Employee Voice function gives employees the ability to submit honest feedback, thoughts or concerns, anonymously or with their name included. Employers will find this feature valuable for tracking any trends and encouraging employee engagement and communication.

BambooHR

• HR data and reporting: The BambooHR platform is intuitive and customizable, which allows for easy access to detailed reports. The platform offers 49 built-in reports. It’s simple to collect and analyze data, often with just one click. BambooHR’s wide array of reporting options also makes it easy to track performance management trends across the company and individual teams. 
• Hiring and onboarding: BambooHR offers applicant tracking, new-hire onboarding and offboarding. Bamboo HR’s applicant tracking has an option for different stakeholders to be added to teams with different permissions and communication, making the candidate review process more efficient for everyone involved. Onboarding is made easier with customizable templates and automatic reminders for employees to complete required tasks. Offboarding features can help businesses gain more insight into an employee’s experience and departure while also ensuring company data is safe and secure after an employee’s final day.

BambooHR’s onboarding features offer simple checklists and step-by-step processes for both employer and employee, ensuring important tasks are handled efficiently. Source: BambooHR

• Employee experience and performance: BambooHR uses a combination of Net Promoter Score (NPS) and open-ended employee feedback to deliver research-backed employee engagement information. Additionally, it offers employee well-being check-ins to help increase retention and reduce burnout. BambooHR’s performance management features make it easy to identify opportunities for growth. Performance evaluations are easy to customize, and both self- and manager assessments are available. 
• Payroll, time and benefits: BambooHR’s time and attendance software makes it easy for employees to clock in and out via web or mobile. With geolocation, managers receive a snapshot of employees’ locations to ensure accurate tracking. BambooHR also has a feature for project time tracking so you can determine how much time an employee spent in certain customizable categories. Since overtime requirements vary by state, BambooHR includes built-in overtime tracking features. We appreciate how streamlined BambooHR’s features are in this category since they can help reduce administrative time and offer clear reporting.

Winner: BambooHR

We really appreciate all BambooHR has to offer in terms of performance management and the overall employee experience. BambooHR’s mobile app makes it easy for employees to manage their time, performance goals and required training even on the go. BambooHR also offers strong hiring and onboarding features to help ensure a smooth talent acquisition process. For organizations quickly increasing headcount that are focused on maintaining a strong culture as they grow, these features are all helpful to have.

Customer Service

When choosing an HR software platform, consider customer service. If you should run into any difficulty using the features or troubleshooting technical difficulties, a responsive support team is essential.

Bambee

Unlike a lot of HR solutions, Bambee offers customers a dedicated HR manager once you’ve hired your first employee. Having a single person dedicated to your business is especially helpful for smaller employers and startups that are navigating HR functions for the first time. In addition, Bambee offers unlimited chat, phone and email support. Customer support agents are available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. PT. 

Bambee provides customers with a dedicated HR manager. Support can be accessed via phone, email or chat. Source: Bambee

BambooHR

Customers that select BambooHR’s Essentials package have access to email support Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. MT. Those that select the Advantage plan can access live phone and chat support Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. MT, in addition to the email support covered in the Essentials package. Further, the BambooHR website is full of online tutorials and interactive guides for those who prefer a self-help approach.

Winner: Bambee

We appreciate that Bambee provides customers with a dedicated HR manager. Sometimes consistent hands-on support is what you need. This extra guidance may be especially beneficial for startups or smaller companies with less HR software experience. However, Bambee’s customer support hours may be less convenient for employers on the East Coast. We were disappointed to see that BambooHR’s Essentials plan includes email support only, although the Advantage offers phone and chat. If you aren’t concerned about access to more hands-on support, BambooHR may meet your needs. 

Free Trial

Bambee

Bambee doesn’t offer a free trial for potential customers. You can schedule an overview call to discuss your needs with a representative of Bambee on the company’s website. The Bambee YouTube channel does have some helpful videos, including a previously recorded demo. We do wish Bambee offered a free trial so you could easily try out its features.

BambooHR

BambooHR offers potential customers a seven-day free trial to learn more about the product and support. The free trial includes access to the following:

• Hiring and applicant tracking
• Onboarding and offboarding
• Paid time off
• Time tracking
• Performance management
• Benefits tracking
• Employee database
• Reporting and analytics
• BambooHR Mobile for iPhone and Android

We appreciate the access available during the seven-day trial offered by BambooHR. Since pricing is not transparent, it’s not clear whether or not all of these features are included in a standard package, so that is something we recommend discussing with a BambooHR representative. 

Winner: BambooHR

It’s always helpful to see what you’re purchasing in action before moving forward. Sometimes a demo alone isn’t enough. We appreciate that BambooHR does offer a seven-day free trial. However, since pricing is not transparent, it’s difficult to determine how utilizing certain features may impact pricing. Although Bambee doesn’t offer a trial, you can likely run through a live demo with customer support. And since pricing is clearer with Bambee, it may be easier to determine how the product fits your budget and needs, even without a free trial.

Usability

Bambee

Customers can access the Bambee platform via web app or web browser. The user interface is easy to navigate and doesn’t require any advanced technical skills. We appreciate that the platform is easy for the average person to navigate. This is especially helpful for smaller companies that don’t have a lot of HR support. Employers can easily access documentation and data. Managers have the ability to assign tasks to employees and can also manage individual employee settings and permissions. Another thing we appreciate about Bambee is that the platform verifies all HR policies are up to date and reaffirmed by employees on a semiannual basis. The platform makes it easy for both employers and employees to stay on top of necessary tasks without any prior experience using Bambee products.

BambooHR

Both employers and employees can access BambooHR via web app, web browser or mobile phone. We appreciate that BambooHR offers mobile access given today’s business environment. The dashboard is very people-focused so users can quickly view items like birthdays, recognition and PTO. The BambooHR platform also makes it easy to locate any new notifications about appointments, applicants and more. We appreciate BambooHR’s employee-centric platform because it makes it easy for leaders to see performance management metrics as well. 

The BambooHR platform is people-focused, highlighting its emphasis on performance management and employee engagement. Source: BambooHR

Winner: BambooHR

We really like the people-focused interface offered by BambooHR. It’s very simple to use, and it helps both employers and employees prioritize engagement, performance and communication. We appreciate how this interface can help employees feel more connected to the organization, and we see great potential for its use in building a strong company culture. We also appreciate that BambooHR offers mobile access. This can be incredibly beneficial for some organizations. While we wish Bambee offered mobile access, we do find great value in Bambee’s ease of use. This platform will be a great fit for smaller organizations that are really focused on ensuring compliance, risk, payroll and other critical functions are easy to manage without a large HR staff. Everything is in one place, and navigation is very intuitive, so someone without a lot of HR experience will still find it easy to manage.

Bambee vs. BambooHR Recap

Choose Bambee if: 

• You want a dedicated HR manager.
• You need hands-on professional guidance in the areas of risk and compliance.
• You’re looking for assistance in creating and writing company policies.

Choose BambooHR if: 

• You want strong employee experience and performance management features.
• You need mobile access.
• You’re looking for a free trial before committing to a service.

FAQ 

Who are Bambee’s and BambooHR’s competitors?

There are several HR software solutions on the market, all offering unique services. Some of Bambee’s and BambooHR’s competitors are Gusto, Paychex, Rippling and Paycor.

Who are BambooHR’s customers?

BambooHR’s customers include Maxx Builders, Medical Clinic of Houston, Pronto Forms and Change.org. You can learn about other BambooHR customers through various case studies on the BambooHR website.

Does Bambee manage benefits?

Bambee does not administer benefits. However, Bambee can support customers with any compliance issues related to benefits since requirements can vary by location.

Does BambooHR integrate with other applications?

Yes. You can find all of the integrations available with BambooHR on the website. Checkr, Slack and Gifted are just a few examples. There are more than 50 available at this time.

Is Bambee a PEO?

No. A professional employer organization (PEO) is a co-employer that actually manages a business’s HR functions. Bambee is a HR software solution. Bambee provides tools and resources to support and streamline various HR functions.