All industries · head to head
BambooHR vs Gusto
The short version
- Each has a real cost: BambooHR organisations of 25 or fewer employees pay a flat rate starting at $250 a month, so a very small team pays far more per head than the listed per-employee price; Gusto customer service can be slow and unresponsive to issues
- They diverge on capability: BambooHR covers Employee database, Gusto covers Automated payroll.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which BambooHR and Gusto actually diverge.
Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (All industries).
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 BambooHR
- Employee database
- Time-off management
- Benefits tracking
- Performance reviews
- Onboarding
- Reporting & analytics
- Mobile access
- Document management
Only in Gusto
- Automated payroll
- Tax filing
- Benefits administration
- Time tracking
- Employee onboarding
- HR compliance
- Workers' comp
- 401(k) management
Both cover
- Slack
- QuickBooks
- SOC2
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
BambooHR
- HR system of record with employee data and documentsnot Gusto
- Time off tracking and approvalsnot Gusto
- Applicant tracking and onboardingnot Gusto
- Performance reviews and 1:1s on the Pro tiernot Gusto
- Compensation planning and benchmarking on Elitenot Gusto
Gusto
- Payroll processingnot BambooHR
- Benefits administrationnot BambooHR
- Tax compliancenot BambooHR
- Employee onboardingnot BambooHR
- Time trackingnot BambooHR
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
BambooHR
- Organisations of 25 or fewer employees pay a flat rate starting at $250 a month, so a very small team pays far more per head than the listed per-employee price
- Per-employee pricing starts at 26 employees, from $10 on Core
- Performance management, 360 reviews and recognition all require Pro at $17 per employee per month
- Compensation management, salary benchmarking and advanced analytics are Elite only at $25 per employee per month
- Compliance training is rationed by tier, at 1 course on Core against 300 on Elite
Gusto
- Customer service can be slow and unresponsive to issues
- Weak reporting capabilities, cannot export data to spreadsheets for analysis
- Support staff lacks deep payroll expertise and knowledge
- Rehired employees do not have settings reset, causing manual cleanup work
- City tax handling requires additional monitoring and monitoring
- Onboarding can have issues with bank account verification and tax registration
Pricing, plan by plan
BambooHR
$10/month per employeeNo published plan breakdown. See the BambooHR review.
Gusto
$49/monthNo published plan breakdown. See the Gusto review.
Which should you pick?
Choose BambooHR if
- You need employee database.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
- You also want time-off management.
Questions people ask
- Is BambooHR or Gusto better?
- Neither clearly leads. BambooHR starts at $10/month per employee and Gusto at $49/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, BambooHR or Gusto?
- BambooHR starts at $10/month per employee and Gusto at $49/month.
- Does BambooHR or Gusto run on more platforms?
- BambooHR runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api. Gusto runs on Web.
- What is BambooHR best used for?
- BambooHR is most often used for hr system of record with employee data and documents, time off tracking and approvals, applicant tracking and onboarding, performance reviews and 1:1s on the pro tier. Of those, hr system of record with employee data and documents and time off tracking and approvals are not what Gusto is typically brought in for.
- What can BambooHR do that Gusto cannot?
- BambooHR covers Employee database, Time-off management, Benefits tracking, Performance reviews. Gusto covers Automated payroll, Tax filing, Benefits administration, Time tracking. Both handle Slack, QuickBooks, SOC2.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Gusto: What is Gusto's starting price?
Gusto starts at $49 per month plus $6 per person. The company also offers a Contractor-only plan for $35 per month plus $6 per contractor.
SourceGusto: Does Gusto include unlimited payroll runs?
Yes, all Gusto plans include unlimited payroll runs at no extra charge, including off-cycle payrolls.
SourceGusto: What core features are included in Gusto?
All plans include payroll processing, tax administration, digital onboarding, benefits enrollment, time tracking, performance management, and next-day direct deposit for most plans.
SourceGusto: Does Gusto support integrations?
Yes, Gusto integrates with accounting software, applicant tracking systems, benefits providers, time-tracking tools, and other business platforms to reduce data entry.
Source