Softwr

Recruitment & ATS · head to head

Pilot vs Workday

Pilot logo

Pilot

Recruitment & ATS

Bookkeeping, CFO, and tax for startups

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Workday logo

Workday

All industries

Enterprise cloud applications for finance and HR

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Pilot the Essentials bookkeeping plan at $99 per month covers up to $100,000 in monthly expenses, and is cash-basis only using bank and credit card data; Workday high implementation costs equal to or exceeding annual software fees
  • They diverge on capability: Pilot covers Bookkeeping, Workday covers Human capital management.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Pilot and Workday actually diverge.

Attributes where Pilot and Workday differ
AttributePilotWorkday
Starting price$29/monthOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
PlatformsWebCloud/Web
CategoryRecruitment & ATSAll industries
Founded20172005

Identical on both: free tier (No), 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 Pilot

  • Bookkeeping
  • CFO services
  • Tax preparation
  • R&D tax credits
  • Financial reporting
  • QuickBooks
  • Stripe
  • Brex

Only in Workday

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

What people use each for

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

Pilot

  • Outsourced monthly bookkeeping for startups and small businessesnot Workday
  • Federal, state and Delaware franchise tax filing for US companiesnot Workday
  • Fractional CFO support for financial planning and fundraisingnot Workday

Workday

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

Where each one falls short

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

Pilot

  • The Essentials bookkeeping plan at $99 per month covers up to $100,000 in monthly expenses, and is cash-basis only using bank and credit card data
  • A dedicated US-based bookkeeper, accrual-basis books and phone support require the Core plan, which is contact sales and billed annually
  • Core caps bill management at 10 vendor bills per month
  • Keeping an existing QuickBooks account with historical data requires the Custom plan
  • Accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll administration and CFO advisory are Custom plan only
  • Monthly reports arrive on the 10th business day on Core and the 6th business day only on Custom
  • Tax filing is sold separately, starting at $1,000 per year for single member LLCs and $2,000 per year for partnerships and S-Corps, billed annually
  • The tax service must be purchased together with Pilot Bookkeeping
  • Partnership and S-Corp tax filing includes up to 25 1099-NEC filings

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

Pilot

$29/month
  • Core$599/month
    • Bookkeeping
    • Accrual basis
    • Monthly close
  • Plus$849/month
    • CFO support
    • Custom reporting
    • Board deck

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 Pilot if

  • You need bookkeeping.
  • You also want cfo services.
Pilot 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 Pilot or Workday better?
Neither clearly leads. Pilot starts at $29/month and Workday at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Pilot or Workday?
Pilot starts at $29/month and Workday at On request.
Does Pilot or Workday run on more platforms?
Pilot runs on Web. Workday runs on Cloud/Web.
What is Pilot best used for?
Pilot is most often used for outsourced monthly bookkeeping for startups and small businesses, federal, state and delaware franchise tax filing for us companies, fractional cfo support for financial planning and fundraising. Of those, outsourced monthly bookkeeping for startups and small businesses and federal, state and delaware franchise tax filing for us companies are not what Workday is typically brought in for.
What can Pilot do that Workday cannot?
Pilot covers Bookkeeping, CFO services, Tax preparation, R&D tax credits. Workday covers Human capital management, Financial management, Planning, Analytics.

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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