Is 15Five or SmartHR better?

Neither clearly leads. 15Five starts at $4/month and SmartHR at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, 15Five or SmartHR?

15Five starts at $4/month and SmartHR at On request.

Does 15Five or SmartHR run on more platforms?

15Five runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api. SmartHR runs on Web.

What is 15Five best used for?

15Five is most often used for running engagement surveys with heat maps and benchmarking, performance reviews and continuous feedback cycles, setting and tracking okrs, 360 degree feedback and talent matrix reviews. Of those, running engagement surveys with heat maps and benchmarking and performance reviews and continuous feedback cycles are not what SmartHR is typically brought in for.

What can 15Five do that SmartHR cannot?

15Five covers Weekly check-ins, 1-on-1 meetings, OKRs & goal tracking, Performance reviews.

HR · head to head

15Five vs SmartHR

15Five

Performance management that drives results

From: $4/month
Rated: -

Full review Website

SmartHR

Japanese back-office cloud for labor management, payroll and talent management

From: On request
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Each has a real cost: 15Five split across three tiers, so performance reviews, OKRs and 360 feedback need Perform at $11 per user per month rather than the $4 Engage tier; SmartHR no specific pricing published on vendor website
Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which 15Five and SmartHR actually diverge.

Attributes where 15Five and SmartHR differ
Attribute	15Five	SmartHR
Starting price	$4/month	On request
Pricing model	subscription	quote
Platforms	Web, Ios, Android, Api	Web
Founded	2011	Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (HR).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in 15Five

Weekly check-ins
1-on-1 meetings
OKRs & goal tracking
Performance reviews
High fives recognition
Engagement surveys
Pulse surveys
Manager effectiveness

Only in SmartHR

Nothing recorded that 15Five does not also cover.

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

15Five

Running engagement surveys with heat maps and benchmarkingnot SmartHR
Performance reviews and continuous feedback cyclesnot SmartHR
Setting and tracking OKRsnot SmartHR
360 degree feedback and talent matrix reviewsnot SmartHR
Compensation review cycles as a paid add-onnot SmartHR

SmartHR

Reducing combined processing time by 88% across HR functionsnot 15Five
Centralizing employee information through onboarding to offboardingnot 15Five
Distributing payroll and salary statements via mobile appnot 15Five
Automating document distribution and employee communicationsnot 15Five
Integrating with 120+ external systems for extended functionalitynot 15Five

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

15Five

Split across three tiers, so performance reviews, OKRs and 360 feedback need Perform at $11 per user per month rather than the $4 Engage tier
Manager training microlearnings are only in Total Platform at $16 per user per month
Compensation is a paid add-on at $9 per user per month, rising to $11 with benchmarking
The Kona meeting assistant is a further $2 per employee per month and Kona Coach $19 per manager per month
Advertised prices are the annual rates

SmartHR

No specific pricing published on vendor website
Requires direct quotation for customized pricing
Multiple plan options create complexity in pricing structure

Pricing, plan by plan

15Five

$4/month

Engage$4/month
- Employee Engagement Surveys
- Targeted Assessments
- Action Planning
Perform$11/month
- Engage features
- AMAYA
- Insights Dashboard
Total Platform$16/month
- Perform features
- Manager Training Microlearnings

SmartHR

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the SmartHR review.

Which should you pick?

Choose 15Five if

You need weekly check-ins.
You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
You also want 1-on-1 meetings.

15Five review

Choose SmartHR if

Nothing in the data separates SmartHR from 15Five on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

SmartHR review

Questions people ask

Is 15Five or SmartHR better?: Neither clearly leads. 15Five starts at $4/month and SmartHR at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, 15Five or SmartHR?: 15Five starts at $4/month and SmartHR at On request.
Does 15Five or SmartHR run on more platforms?: 15Five runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api. SmartHR runs on Web.
What is 15Five best used for?: 15Five is most often used for running engagement surveys with heat maps and benchmarking, performance reviews and continuous feedback cycles, setting and tracking okrs, 360 degree feedback and talent matrix reviews. Of those, running engagement surveys with heat maps and benchmarking and performance reviews and continuous feedback cycles are not what SmartHR is typically brought in for.
What can 15Five do that SmartHR cannot?: 15Five covers Weekly check-ins, 1-on-1 meetings, OKRs & goal tracking, Performance reviews.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

15Five: What are 15Five's core plan tiers and pricing?

15Five offers Engage ($4/user/month), Perform ($11/user/month, marked Most Popular), and Total Platform ($16/user/month). All prices are billed annually. Perform adds AI-assisted performance reviews, OKRs, and 360-degree feedback compared to Engage.

Source

SmartHR: How much does SmartHR cost?

SmartHR pricing is customized per organization based on features and user count. The vendor does not publish standard pricing rates. Customers must use the estimation tool or contact the vendor directly to receive a personalized quote. No additional charges are assessed beyond monthly usage fees.

Source

15Five: What add-on products does 15Five offer?

Manager Content costs $49/manager/month (annually billed). Manager Coaching is $399 per credit (1-on-1 coaching = 1 credit; group coaching = 5 credits). Kona AI Meeting Assistant is $2/employee/month. Kona AI Coach is $19/manager/month. Compensation add-ons start at $9/user/month for base package or $11/user/month with salary benchmarking.

Source

SmartHR: What is SmartHR's free tier?

SmartHR offers a free plan (¥0プラン) for small businesses with up to 30 employees. This tier provides basic employee data management without additional charges, making it suitable for very small organizations or trials.

Source

15Five: Are 15Five contracts flexible?

All 15Five plans require annual billing and contracts. Support is included as dedicated human support with all plans.

Source

SmartHR: What are SmartHR's plan options?

SmartHR provides multiple plans including HR Strategy Plan (labor and talent management), Essential Plan (labor management focus), Talent Management Plan (employee growth focus), and a specialized plan for companies with 50 or fewer employees. Optional add-ons including payroll, attendance tracking, and recruitment are available.

Source

15Five vs SmartHR

15Five

SmartHR

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in 15Five

Only in SmartHR

What people use each for

15Five

SmartHR

Where each one falls short

15Five

SmartHR

Pricing, plan by plan

15Five

SmartHR

Which should you pick?

Choose 15Five if

Choose SmartHR if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on 15Five

More on SmartHR

Keep looking

Other head to heads