What is the difference between Gusto and BambooHR?

Gusto is best for Small US businesses wanting easy payroll and benefits, while BambooHR is best for Small to mid-size companies wanting easy HR management. Gusto starts at $40/mo + $6/person and BambooHR starts at Custom.

Is Gusto or BambooHR cheaper?

Gusto starts at $40/mo + $6/person. BambooHR starts at Custom.

Gusto vs BambooHR

Gusto is payroll, benefits, and HR platform built for small businesses, while BambooHR is HR software with onboarding, time off, performance reviews, and payroll. The biggest difference up front: BambooHR is free, while Gusto starts at $40/mo + $6/person. Gusto is built for small us businesses wanting easy payroll and benefits, whereas BambooHR targets small to mid-size companies wanting easy hr management.

At a glance

	Gusto	BambooHR
Best for	Small US businesses wanting easy payroll and benefits	Small to mid-size companies wanting easy HR management
Starting price	$40/mo + $6/person	Custom
Free tier	—	—
Open source	—	—
Free tier available	—	—
Open source	—	—
Benefits	✓	—
HR	✓	—
Onboarding	—	✓
Payroll	✓	✓
Performance	—	✓
Time Off	—	✓
Time Tracking	✓	—

Gusto

Strengths

Includes Payroll as a core feature, purpose-built for hr & recruiting workflows
Includes Benefits as a core feature, purpose-built for hr & recruiting workflows
Pricing starts at $40/mo + $6/person, which includes the full hr & recruiting feature set
Established product with 14+ years on the market and a mature ecosystem

Weaknesses

Starts at $40/mo + $6/person — on the expensive side, especially for small teams or solo users
Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
Ecosystem of third-party integrations is smaller than the market leaders in hr & recruiting
Limited team/admin features if your organization eventually scales up

Try Gusto → Full review

BambooHR

Strengths

Includes Onboarding as a core feature, purpose-built for hr & recruiting workflows
Includes Time Off as a core feature, purpose-built for hr & recruiting workflows
Focused toolset keeps the interface clean and easy to navigate
Established product with 18+ years on the market and a mature ecosystem

Weaknesses

No free tier, so you can't try it without committing to a paid plan
Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
Ecosystem of third-party integrations is smaller than the market leaders in hr & recruiting
Mobile experience lags behind the desktop version in features and polish

Try BambooHR → Full review

The bottom line

Pricing: BambooHR is completely free, which makes it the obvious pick if budget is the top concern. Gusto starts at $40/mo + $6/person. That cost buys you a more polished or feature-rich experience, so it comes down to whether the extras justify the spend.

Feature gaps: Gusto offers Benefits, HR and Time Tracking that BambooHR lacks. BambooHR brings Onboarding, Performance and Time Off that Gusto does not have. Both share Payroll.

Team fit: Gusto is geared toward small teams teams, while BambooHR is aimed at mid-size teams teams. Pick the one that matches where your team is today and where it is headed — migrating tools later is always painful.

Where each tool shines: Gusto's biggest strengths are: includes payroll as a core feature, purpose-built for hr & recruiting workflows. includes benefits as a core feature, purpose-built for hr & recruiting workflows. BambooHR's biggest strengths are: includes onboarding as a core feature, purpose-built for hr & recruiting workflows. includes time off as a core feature, purpose-built for hr & recruiting workflows.

Watch out for: With Gusto, users commonly note that starts at $40/mo + $6/person — on the expensive side, especially for small teams or solo users. With BambooHR, the main complaint is that no free tier, so you can't try it without committing to a paid plan.

Choose Gusto if...

You need a tool built for small us businesses wanting easy payroll and benefits
You specifically need Benefits and HR
You care about includes benefits as a core feature, purpose-built for hr & recruiting workflows
Your team size fits the small teams profile Gusto is designed for

Choose BambooHR if...

You need a tool built for small to mid-size companies wanting easy hr management
Budget is a hard constraint — BambooHR is free, Gusto is not
You specifically need Onboarding and Performance
You care about includes time off as a core feature, purpose-built for hr & recruiting workflows
Your team size fits the mid-size teams profile BambooHR is designed for