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Writing & Documentation · head to head

Confluence vs Workday

Confluence logo

Confluence

Writing & Documentation

Your remote-friendly team workspace

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Workday logo

Workday

All industries

Enterprise cloud applications for finance and HR

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Confluence has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Confluence listed on UK G-Cloud at £5 to £11 per licence per month for Atlassian Confluence, via reseller Rapid X; Workday high implementation costs equal to or exceeding annual software fees
  • They diverge on capability: Confluence covers Page creation, Workday covers Human capital management.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Confluence and Workday actually diverge.

Attributes where Confluence and Workday differ
AttributeConfluenceWorkday
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Windows, Macos, Ios, AndroidCloud/Web
CategoryWriting & DocumentationAll industries
Founded20022005

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Confluence

  • Page creation
  • Rich text editing
  • Macros
  • Templates
  • Comments
  • Version history
  • Content organization
  • Jira

Only in Workday

  • Human capital management
  • Financial management
  • Planning
  • Analytics
  • Payroll
  • Time tracking
  • Talent management
  • Procurement

Both cover

  • Slack
  • SOC2
  • ISO27001
  • HIPAA
  • Cloud deployment

What people use each for

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

Confluence

  • Knowledge basenot Workday
  • Meeting notesnot Workday
  • Process documentationnot Workday
  • Project planningnot Workday

Workday

  • HR managementnot Confluence
  • Financial planningnot Confluence
  • Workforce planningnot Confluence
  • Compliancenot Confluence
  • Analyticsnot Confluence

Where each one falls short

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

Confluence

  • Listed on UK G-Cloud at £5 to £11 per licence per month for Atlassian Confluence, via reseller Rapid X

Workday

  • High implementation costs equal to or exceeding annual software fees
  • Long deployment timelines (12-18 months standard) before ROI
  • Steep per-employee pricing at enterprise scale ($408-504 PEPM)
  • Limited pre-built templates and customization; often requires extensive configuration
  • Requires significant IT and change management resources during implementation

Pricing, plan by plan

Confluence

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Unlimited pages
    • Basic sharing
    • Search
  • Standard$5.5/month
    • Everything in Free
    • Advanced permissions
    • Macros

Workday

On request
  • Small Business$undefined/month
    • Core HR
    • Payroll
    • Time tracking
  • Medium Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Full HCM suite
    • Financial management
    • Advanced analytics
  • Large Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Complete platform
    • Custom configurations
    • Dedicated support

Which should you pick?

Choose Confluence if

  • You need page creation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, Macos, Ios, Android.
  • You also want rich text editing.
Confluence review

Choose Workday if

  • You need human capital management.
  • You work on Cloud/Web.
  • You also want financial management.
Workday review

Questions people ask

Is Confluence or Workday better?
Neither clearly leads. Confluence starts at Free and Workday at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Confluence or Workday?
Confluence has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Confluence and On request for Workday.
Does Confluence or Workday run on more platforms?
Confluence runs on Web, Windows, Macos, Ios, Android. Workday runs on Cloud/Web.
Can I use Confluence for free?
Yes. Confluence has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Workday starts at On request.
What is Confluence best used for?
Confluence is most often used for knowledge base, meeting notes, process documentation, project planning. Of those, knowledge base and meeting notes are not what Workday is typically brought in for.
What can Confluence do that Workday cannot?
Confluence covers Page creation, Rich text editing, Macros, Templates. Workday covers Human capital management, Financial management, Planning, Analytics. Both handle Slack, SOC2, ISO27001, HIPAA.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Workday: What is Workday GO and what market is it designed for?

Workday GO is a product designed for small and midsize organizations, bringing together HR and finance solutions with transparent pricing and fast activation in 30 to 60 days. It includes HCM, benefits, payroll, talent, and more at a lower price point than standard Workday.

Source
Workday: What is Workday Skills Cloud and how does it fit into HCM?

Workday Skills Cloud is an intelligent skills foundation built into Workday HCM. It is described as the world's most open intelligent skills foundation and fuels data-driven talent strategies across recruiting, learning, and workforce planning.

Source
Workday: Does Workday include payroll and benefits management?

Yes. Workday HCM includes benefits administration and payroll capabilities as part of its core suite. Global payroll processing is available across multiple countries and tax jurisdictions.

Source
Workday: What is the typical pricing model for Workday HCM?

Workday HCM uses per-employee (PEPM) annual subscription pricing. Companies at scale typically pay $34-42 PEPM. Enterprise organizations with 5,000+ employees typically pay $408-504 per employee annually. Pricing decreases with larger commitments and longer contract terms.

Source
Workday: How long does Workday implementation typically take?

Standard implementations are lengthy, often taking 12-18 months. Workday GO promises faster activation in 30-60 days. Implementation costs typically equal 100-150% of the first year's software subscription fees.

Source
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