BambooHR HRIS System Review for 2025

In this review, I'm going to share my analysis and evaluation from hands-on experience with BambooHR. But first, if you're just beginning your search for the best human resources information system (HRIS), check out my picks of the best HRIS systems.

You probably already know BambooHR is among the most popular HRIS systems out there, but you might want to better understand what's good and not so good about it. This in-depth BambooHR review will walk you through the pros and cons, features, and functionality to help guide you to better understand its capabilities and suitability for your organization.

BambooHR presents itself as a strong candidate for small to midsize businesses in search of an intuitive and cost-effective HR software solution. It’s commonly used by HR departments, recruiters, and managers to automate HR processes and manage employees. It helps businesses save time, stay organized, and maintain compliance.

BambooHR's streamlined user interface and efficient onboarding tools facilitate swift implementation and employee onboarding. The platform covers essential HR functions, including employee records management, PTO tracking, and performance reviews, providing a solid foundation for basic HR needs. Its best features are its intuitive user interface, customizable workflows, mobile app, and integrations with popular software like Google Workspace.

BambooHR Evaluation Summary

Why Trust Our Software Reviews

BambooHR Overview

In BambooHR, everything works together in a clear, easy-to-understand way. Whether managing data, onboarding new employees, or running payroll, BambooHR simply works how you’d expect, with an intuitive and easy to learn and use design. And you can bet that your employees will love it too as they have access to all their data, PTO, and files all in one place, even on their mobile phone.

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pros

Customizable permissions: Users can set permissions to control access and ensure data security, although it does not support multi-department roles, limiting flexibility for organizations with complex structures.
Employee self-service: Robust self-service features and access levels allow employees to access their data, request time off, sign documents, and more.
Automated approval workflows: The platform includes automated workflows for approvals, streamlining processes and reducing manual effort, thus enhancing overall efficiency.
Ease of use: The system has a modern, intuitive interface that makes it simple for employees and managers to find information and complete tasks. The free trial instance is populated with dummy content, which makes it convenient to recreate the tool experience using existing employee profiles.

cons

Finding certain views or data can be complex: Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), which are the primary target audience, might find the extensive array of views and features overwhelming and unnecessary for their simpler operational requirements.
Limitations on payroll feature and integration partners in free trial: The inability to test the payroll feature and integration partners limits the opportunity for prospective users to evaluate how well the system fits their specific needs before making a purchase decision.
Pricing is not transparent: The lack of clear pricing information can make it challenging for potential customers to gauge the cost-effectiveness of the solution before committing.

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Are You a Good Fit for BambooHR?

Who Would Be a Good Fit for BambooHR?

Organizations seeking a holistic integrated HRIS with all employee data, onboarding, time tracking, performance management, recruiting, and payroll in a centralized location would benefit greatly. Companies looking to provide an easy-to-use self-service platform for employees to access their information and perform various tasks independently will find this system ideal. Additionally, businesses desiring a straightforward interface with one centralized source of truth for housing documents and company information will appreciate the simplified document management and consistency it offers.

Best Use Cases for BambooHR

Small businesses

BambooHR is a good fit for small companies with under 1000 employees that want an affordable, easy to use HR system to streamline core processes.
Fast-growing startups:

The software can scale as a company grows, making it ideal for startups anticipating rapid headcount growth in the coming years.
Remote workers:

BambooHR's cloud-based platform and mobile app give remote and distributed teams easy access to HR functions from anywhere.
Retail and restaurant industries:

Features like applicant tracking, onboarding, time tracking and performance management are well-suited for high-turnover industries like retail and restaurants.
Strong focus on company culture:

BambooHR has unique features to strengthen culture and employee experience, such as employee satisfaction surveys, peer recognition and company values and mission promotion.
Non-tech savvy users:

The software has an intuitive, user-friendly interface that non-technical HR staff and employees can quickly learn to use effectively.

Who Would Be a Bad Fit for BambooHR?

Those who want ready access to support may find the platform lacking, as it does not provide immediate and extensive support options. Organizations looking for a simple ATS focused on recruiting without the bells and whistles of a holistic HRIS platform might find the system excessive. Users who want to build a custom solution with robust integration capabilities may also find the platform limiting, as it is designed for streamlined HR functions rather than extensive customization and complex integrations.

Worst Use Cases for BambooHR

Large enterprises:

Companies with over 1000 employees will likely require a more complex enterprise HRIS with deeper functionality that BambooHR lacks.
Unionized workforces:

BambooHR does not have built-in support or features for managing unionized workforces and collective bargaining agreements.
Global companies:

The software has limitations in handling needs of international companies, such as multi-currency, multi-language and country-specific compliance.
Manufacturing and industrial companies:

BambooHR lacks some key features these industries require, such as job costing, crew scheduling and complex time tracking.
High-security industries:

Companies dealing with very sensitive data or strict industry regulations may find BambooHR's security and compliance features insufficient.
Learning management needs:

BambooHR does not include a built-in LMS, so companies prioritizing employee training/development would need a separate system.

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How We Test & Score Our Tools

We’ve spent years building, refining, and improving our software testing and scoring system. The rubric is designed to capture the nuances of software selection and what makes an HRIS system effective, focusing on critical aspects of the decision-making process.

Below, you can see exactly how our testing and scoring works across seven criteria. It allows us to provide an unbiased evaluation of the software based on core functionality, standout features, ease of use, onboarding, customer support, integrations, customer reviews, and value for money.

Core Functionality (25% of final scoring)

For HRIS systems, the core functionality we test and evaluate are:

Employee profiles: Stores and manages detailed employee information.
Payroll processing: Calculates and processes employee payroll accurately.
Benefits administration: Manages employee benefits plans and enrollments.
Time and attendance: Tracks employee work hours and time off.
Compliance management: Ensures compliance with labor laws and regulations.
Reporting and analytics: Generates HR reports and people analytics.

Standout Features (25% of final scoring)

We evaluate uncommon, standout features that go above and beyond the core functionality defined and typically found in HRIS systems. A high score reflects specialized or unique features that make the product faster, more efficient, or offer additional value to the user. We also evaluate how easy it is to integrate with other tools typically found in the tech stack to expand the functionality and utility of the software. HRIS systems offering plentiful native integrations, 3rd party connections, and API access to build custom integrations score best.

Ease of Use (10% of final scoring)

We consider how quick and easy it is to execute the tasks defined in the core functionality using the HRIS systems. High scoring software is well designed, intuitive to use, offers mobile apps, provides templates, and makes relatively complex tasks seem simple.

Onboarding (10% of final scoring)

We know how important rapid team adoption is for a new platform, so we evaluate how easy it is to learn and use the HRIS systems with minimal training. We evaluate how quickly a team member can get set up and start using the software with no experience. High scoring software indicates little or no support is required.

Customer Support (10% of final scoring)

We review how quick and easy it is to get unstuck and find help by phone, live chat, or knowledge base. HRIS systems that provide real-time support score best, while chatbots score worst.

Customer Reviews (10% of final scoring)

Beyond our own testing and evaluation, we consider the net promoter score from current and past customers. We review their likelihood, given the option, to choose the HRIS systems again for the core functionality. A high scoring software reflects a high net promoter score from current or past customers.

Value for Money (10% of final scoring)

Lastly, in consideration of all the other criteria, we review the average price of entry level plans against the core features and consider the value of the other evaluation criteria. Software that delivers more, for less, will score higher.

Through this comprehensive approach, focusing on core functionalities, standout features, usability, onboarding, customer support, value, and customer reviews, I aim to identify HRIS systems that not only meet but exceed expectations, ensuring teams have the tools they need to succeed.

4.1 ^/5 Core Features

Employee Records

Digital management of employee records is made easy with the platform's secure, centralized database. It efficiently organizes employee information, including emergency contacts, contract details, job responsibilities, salary, and addresses, in a user-friendly manner. The system also provides a centralized “Documents” hub to store resumes, signed documents, task lists, and project workflows. Additionally, the “Assets” hub lists equipment assigned to employees, such as computers, monitors, and other hardware. For miscellaneous items, the “Notes” hub offers a space to store agendas, meeting minutes, and other relevant information.

Hiring

When evaluating BambooHR's hiring capabilities, I found it lacks automatic importation and parsing of resumes, which limits efficient data entry and candidate tracking when recruiting at scale. While it simplifies job posting with an intuitive three-step process, the absence of robust resume handling is a significant drawback. BambooHR can automatically push job postings to major job boards, but setting up connections involves extra steps and permission controls, slowing recruitment efforts. During the free trial, interview emails cannot be sent directly, hindering communication. The platform supports GDPR compliance but lacks information on other international regulations, which could be a concern for global organizations. BambooHR offers strong controls over access permissions, balancing collaboration and data confidentiality. Its pre-built templates and reporting features support comprehensive analytics without additional modules, making it suitable for large organizations needing detailed HR metrics.

Employee Onboarding and Offboarding

The platform streamlines employee onboarding and offboarding workflows. Customizable steps and comprehensive new starter checklists make the onboarding process transparent and self-managed. It provides an easy-to-access space for resources and information, such as employee details via the “Directory” under the People tab, which supports adding new employees, list view, search, and organizational charts. Offboarding templates cover essential tasks, including vacation payout/accrual, disabling access to software systems and shared drives, and collecting company assets.

Time Tracking

A suite of tools allows employees to track work hours, submit time-off requests, and manage various leaves of absence, including paid time-off accruals. Users can easily submit time-off requests and view their remaining sick, bereavement, and vacation balances. Managers can review and approve timesheets and time-off requests, ensuring accurate and efficient time management.

Performance Management

Tools to enhance performance management and employee development are integrated into the platform. Learning and development (L&D) resources and training channels are housed in the “Performance” tab under My Info. The platform includes templates for review cycles, as well as 60- and 90-day performance assessments, making it easy to start an assessment. The Training tab provides templates for various trainings, including security training, unlawful harassment, product trainings, and COVID office protocols. You can track incomplete trainings and assign deadlines to ensure timely completion.

Payroll and Benefits Administration

The platform offers streamlined payroll and benefits administration modules or integrations. It houses employee information, calculates gross and net pay, and disburses payments. Integration with several payroll providers allows for seamless payroll processing and benefits administration. The Benefits tab offers a clear overview of benefits coverage and dependent information, including medical, dental, and vision insurance, 401k plans, and any opt-in supplemental benefits. Note that users are unable to try out the payroll and integrations experience via the 7-day free trial.

Reporting & Analytics

The Reports tab helps track signed documents, custom reports (with limited field configuration), and standard reports. Templates include headcount, employee turnover, additions and terminations, and time off used. You can configure custom reports to export assets, contact information, training history, and contract renewals, although details are somewhat limited. For example, generating a report on time-to-hire per recruiter or representative is not supported.

screenshot - BambooHR HRIS System Review for 2025 — BambooHR centralizes and manages employee records and data efficiently.

3.0 ^/5 Standout Features

Employee Satisfaction with eNPS

BambooHR has a built-in employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS) feature. This allows you to easily measure and track employee engagement and satisfaction over time.

Mobile App

BambooHR offers a full-featured mobile app for iOS and Android. Employees can access the HRIS, request time off, and update information from their smartphone. Note that users are not able to try out the mobile app experience via the 7-day free trial.

Integrations

BambooHR offers advanced integrations with payroll solutions (for core plan users), document management systems, single sign-on applications, and work operating systems (such as Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace). These are facilitated via the BambooHR marketplace and custom API keys. This ensures seamless connectivity and enhances the functionality of the HRIS by linking it with other essential tools and systems.

BambooHR integrates natively with Greenhouse, Lever, Glassdoor, Checkr, GoodHire, Slack, Single Sign-On, Kin HR, Lattice, and Northpass.

BambooHR also offers a developer API to build custom integrations. For non-developers, you can use Zapier to connect BambooHR with 1,000+ other business apps.

Employee Self-Service Portal

The My Info tab offers an employee self-service portal designed to reduce administrative requests on HR professionals. Employees can easily update address information and view details such as compensation (including equity), job information, employment status, visa sponsorships, and direct reports. For sales teams, clarity on commission and bonus information is also available. The portal includes integrated compliance monitoring features to track regulatory requirements, ensuring all information remains compliant with regional regulations like GDPR and others.