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ToolGPA

BambooHR vs Sesame HR

We give BambooHR and Sesame HR the same GPA: 2.4 out of 4.0. BambooHR grades higher on ease of use. Sesame HR grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan, features and platforms.

Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.

BambooHR

HR records, hiring, time off and reviews, with US payroll as an add-on

Free trial · from $250/mo
Full detailsbamboohr.com

Sesame HR

Modular HR from Spain built around clock-ins, time off and shifts

Free trial · from $3.75/mo
Full detailssesamehr.com

How we grade them

2.4GPABambooHRFair2.4GPASesame HRFair
Value for money
DCore is a flat $250 a month for up to 25 employees, so a ten-person company pays $250, or $25 a head. It buys records, time off, hiring and onboarding. That's the dearest tenth of this category, where most charge $3.75 to $9 a person.
CEssential is $3.75 an employee a month on yearly billing, but with a 15-employee minimum, a ten-person company pays at least $56.25 a month, for time tracking, time off and shifts. That's under this category's middle, and smaller firms are sent to sales.
Free plan and trial
CNo free plan, but a free trial with no card that ends on its own rather than turning into a bill.
CNo free plan, but a 14-day trial with no commitment.
Features
BRecords and reports, time off with accruals, hiring with 5 openings, onboarding with e-signatures and an AI assistant, then reviews and 1:1s on Pro. The whole job, with US payroll and benefits as add-ons.
BClock-ins with overtime and remote work, time off, shifts, documents, onboarding, contracts and e-signatures on every plan, then recruiting, surveys and reviews higher up. The whole job, with a lean towards time tracking.
Ease of use
B4.66 from 12,758 App Store ratings, which is a lot of happy people for HR software. Just under the 4.7 that would make it an A.
CNo App Store rating on record, and setting up shifts, clock-in rules and overtime takes time.
Platforms and integrations
BWeb, iPhone and Android, with Slack, Greenhouse, Checkr, Culture Amp, Remote, Indeed and TalentLMS. No desktop app.
BWeb, iPhone and Android, with an API on Scale or a custom plan. No integrations are on record, and there's no desktop app.
Best forsmall US companies leaving HR spreadsheetsteams that must record working hours

The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: BambooHR and Sesame HR. How we grade

Where they differ

  • BambooHR starts at $250 per month for up to 25 employees, then $10 per employee / month. Sesame HR starts at $3.75 per employee / month, billed annually ($5.25 billed monthly), 15-employee minimum.
  • BambooHR also covers reports and payroll.
  • Sesame HR also covers shift scheduling and time clock.
In commonWebiOSAndroidAI featuresApplicant trackingEmployee recordsTime off

At a glance

BambooHRSesame HR
PricingFree trialFree trial
Starts at$250 per month for up to 25 employees, then $10 per employee / month$3.75 per employee / month, billed annually ($5.25 billed monthly), 15-employee minimum
Free planNoneNone
Free trialFree trial, no credit card required; it ends on its own14-day free trial, no commitment
Web
iOS
Android
Made byBambooHRSesame Labs, S.L.
Price read frombamboohr.comsesamehr.com
CheckedOct 18, 2026Oct 18, 2026

Who each one suits

BambooHR

  • Small and mid-sized US companies replacing spreadsheets for HR
  • Teams that want hiring, onboarding and time off in one system
  • US employers that may add payroll and benefits later

Sesame HR

  • Companies with 15 or more staff that must record working hours
  • Teams that plan shifts and need clock-in records
  • Employers in Spain, Latin America or elsewhere in Europe

Worth knowing

BambooHR

  • Teams of 25 or fewer pay the flat monthly fee whatever their size; per-employee pricing, with volume discounts, starts above 25 employees.
  • Payroll and benefits administration are add-ons for US employees only, and their prices are not published.
  • The plan cards show $10 and $17 per employee for Core and Pro, while the FAQ on the same page says $10.25 and $17.50.
  • Job openings are capped by plan: 5 on Core, 25 on Pro and 50 on Elite.

Sesame HR

  • Billing is per active employee with a 15-employee minimum; smaller companies are asked to contact sales.
  • It has country sites for the US, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Peru, Brazil, Spain, France, the UK, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands and Portugal.
  • The API and single sign-on come only with Scale or a custom plan; prices exclude taxes.
  • On monthly billing Essential costs more per employee ($5.25) than Connect ($5.00), as the page shows.

Key features

BambooHR

Employee records and reports
One database for people data, with a custom report builder, dashboards and built-in workflows for approving changes and time-off requests.
Hiring and onboarding
Post jobs to job boards, track candidates, send offer letters from templates, and give new hires a packet with e-signatures and an onboarding checklist.
Time off
Unlimited custom time-off policies with accruals, approvals and a shared calendar of who is out.
Performance and recognition
On Pro and Elite, run 360-degree review cycles, schedule 1:1s, track goals and give recognition points staff can redeem for gift cards.
Ask BambooHR
An AI assistant answers employees' questions about time off and holidays from company data, and on higher plans about policies and benchmarks.
Payroll, benefits and time add-ons
Add US payroll with tax filing, benefits enrollment with carrier connections, and time tracking with shift scheduling and an iPad kiosk.

Sesame HR

Time tracking and clock-ins
Employees clock in and out from the web or app, with overtime management and remote-work tracking, kept for legal compliance.
Time off and shifts
Holiday and leave requests with approvals, and shift planning for teams on rotas, included from the cheapest plan.
Core HR
Every plan has a 3 GB document manager, org chart and directory, onboarding and offboarding, contract management, team chat and desk booking.
Digital signature
Core includes one signature per employee a month for contracts and documents.
Recruitment, surveys and performance
Higher plans add a recruiting pipeline, internal communication, employee surveys and performance reviews.
Payroll data and Sesame AI
Gathers absences, advances and incentives for payroll and sends payslips to the app; Enterprise tiers add AI, automations and advanced permissions.

Plans

BambooHR

  • Core$250

    per month for up to 25 employees

    Records, reports, time off, hiring with 5 job openings, onboarding and the AI assistant. Above 25 employees, $10 per employee a month ($10.25 in the FAQ).

  • Pro$425

    per month for up to 25 employees

    Core plus performance reviews, 1:1s, recognition and rewards, and 25 job openings. Above 25 employees, $17 per employee a month ($17.50 in the FAQ).

  • Elite$650

    per month for up to 25 employees

    Pro plus compensation planning with Mercer benchmarks, custom dashboards, HR benchmarks and 50 job openings. Above 25 employees, $25 per employee a month.

Sesame HR

  • Essential$3.75

    per employee / month, billed annually ($5.25 billed monthly)

    Core plus time tracking, time off and holidays, and shifts. Minimum 15 employees ($56.25 a month).

  • Connect$4.25

    per employee / month, billed annually ($5.00 billed monthly)

    Essential plus tasks, recruitment and internal communication. Minimum $63.75 a month.

  • Growth$6.25

    per employee / month, billed annually ($6.75 billed monthly)

    Enterprise tiers of Core, time tracking and time off, plus culture and performance modules. Minimum $93.75 a month.

  • Scale$7.00

    per employee / month, billed annually ($8.00 billed monthly)

    Growth with Enterprise internal communication and performance, single sign-on and the API. Minimum $105 a month.

  • Custom planCustom

    Pick the modules and add-ons you need with an adviser, and pay only for those.

Ways to pay less

BambooHR

  • Nonprofit

    15% off for registered nonprofits

    BambooHR takes an additional 15% off for registered nonprofit organizations.

  • Other savings

    15% off when bundling payroll and benefits

    Combining the Payroll and Benefits Administration add-ons with any plan gives a 15% discount, for employees based in the US.

Sesame HR

  • Annual discount

    Lower per-employee price with annual billing

    The page labels annual billing as saving 20%; the gap varies by plan, from $3.75 against $5.25 on Essential to $6.25 against $6.75 on Growth.

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