APS Payroll vs. BambooHR

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
APS Payroll
Score 6.9 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
APS is a national workforce management and cloud-based HR solution provider. The platform includes core HR, payroll, time and attendance (including manager and employee self-service), compliance tools, and onboarding.N/A
BambooHR
Score 8.3 out of 10
N/A
BambooHR is an on-line human resources solution that provides onboarding, payroll, and benefits management. It also offers automated time-off management and employee self-service.
$250
per month
Pricing
APS PayrollBambooHR
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Core
$250
per month
Pro
$250
per month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
APS PayrollBambooHR
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
YesYes
Entry-level Setup FeeRequiredOptional
Additional DetailsOur Payroll solution is offered as a standalone service, but additional solutions must be used in conjunction with our Payroll solution. This ensures the best possible user experience for our customers.No matter what HR looks like at your company, we have the perfect plan for you!
More Pricing Information
Features
APS PayrollBambooHR
Human Resource Management
Comparison of Human Resource Management features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
7.3
32 Ratings
7% below category average
BambooHR
8.1
103 Ratings
3% above category average
Employee demographic data8.329 Ratings7.885 Ratings
Employment history7.427 Ratings8.892 Ratings
Job profiles and administration6.420 Ratings8.591 Ratings
Workflow for transfers, promotions, pay raises, etc.8.326 Ratings8.380 Ratings
Organizational charting4.013 Ratings7.188 Ratings
Organization and location management8.619 Ratings8.081 Ratings
Compliance data (COBRA, OSHA, etc.)8.020 Ratings8.552 Ratings
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
8.8
32 Ratings
9% above category average
BambooHR
8.1
69 Ratings
1% above category average
Pay calculation9.231 Ratings8.246 Ratings
Support for external payroll vendors8.013 Ratings8.240 Ratings
Off-cycle/On-Demand payment9.23 Ratings8.026 Ratings
Benefit plan administration8.822 Ratings8.952 Ratings
Direct deposit files8.931 Ratings8.553 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management8.723 Ratings8.153 Ratings
Reimbursement management8.913 Ratings6.827 Ratings
Leave and Attendance Management
Comparison of Leave and Attendance Management features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
7.6
25 Ratings
6% below category average
BambooHR
8.9
90 Ratings
10% above category average
Approval workflow8.225 Ratings9.288 Ratings
Balance details7.024 Ratings9.081 Ratings
Annual carry-forward and encashment7.618 Ratings8.572 Ratings
Employee Self Service
Comparison of Employee Self Service features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
7.7
33 Ratings
5% below category average
BambooHR
8.7
100 Ratings
7% above category average
View and generate pay and benefit information9.432 Ratings7.965 Ratings
Update personal information9.230 Ratings9.299 Ratings
View company policy documentation6.823 Ratings9.080 Ratings
Employee recognition5.014 Ratings8.567 Ratings
View job history8.023 Ratings9.093 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
5.8
12 Ratings
29% below category average
BambooHR
7.8
39 Ratings
1% above category average
Tracking of all physical assets5.812 Ratings7.839 Ratings
HR Reporting
Comparison of HR Reporting features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
7.2
32 Ratings
5% below category average
BambooHR
7.7
77 Ratings
1% above category average
Report builder7.932 Ratings8.173 Ratings
Pre-built reports7.231 Ratings7.773 Ratings
Ability to combine HR data with external data6.617 Ratings7.456 Ratings
Onboarding
Comparison of Onboarding features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
9.7
19 Ratings
19% above category average
BambooHR
8.6
81 Ratings
7% above category average
New hire portal9.519 Ratings8.777 Ratings
Manager tracking tools9.815 Ratings8.673 Ratings
Performance and Goals
Comparison of Performance and Goals features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
7.4
11 Ratings
10% below category average
BambooHR
8.2
53 Ratings
1% above category average
Corporate goal setting8.12 Ratings8.243 Ratings
Individual goal setting7.89 Ratings8.351 Ratings
Line-of sight-visibility5.18 Ratings8.240 Ratings
Performance tracking8.611 Ratings8.147 Ratings
Performance Management
Comparison of Performance Management features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
6.8
13 Ratings
16% below category average
BambooHR
7.9
59 Ratings
1% below category average
Performance plans7.612 Ratings7.652 Ratings
Performance improvement plans6.010 Ratings8.047 Ratings
Review status tracking7.611 Ratings7.953 Ratings
Review reminders7.212 Ratings8.255 Ratings
Multiple review frequency5.611 Ratings7.850 Ratings
Succession Planning
Comparison of Succession Planning features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
5.0
1 Ratings
45% below category average
BambooHR
7.2
39 Ratings
9% below category average
Create succession plans/pools5.01 Ratings5.927 Ratings
Candidate ranking5.01 Ratings7.734 Ratings
Candidate search00 Ratings7.134 Ratings
Candidate development00 Ratings8.031 Ratings
Recruiting / ATS
Comparison of Recruiting / ATS features of Product A and Product B
APS Payroll
8.1
8 Ratings
4% above category average
BambooHR
8.1
65 Ratings
4% above category average
Job Requisition Management9.56 Ratings8.045 Ratings
Company Website Posting9.57 Ratings8.353 Ratings
Publish to Social Media6.16 Ratings8.247 Ratings
Job Search Site Posting8.86 Ratings8.250 Ratings
Duplicate Candidate Prevention6.57 Ratings7.543 Ratings
Applicant Tracking9.16 Ratings8.257 Ratings
Notifications and Alerts6.98 Ratings8.760 Ratings
Best Alternatives
APS PayrollBambooHR
Small Businesses
Patriot Software
Patriot Software
Score 9.0 out of 10
Patriot Software
Patriot Software
Score 9.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.5 out of 10
Paypro Workforce Management
Paypro Workforce Management
Score 9.5 out of 10
Enterprises
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.3 out of 10
Infor Human Resources
Infor Human Resources
Score 7.3 out of 10
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User Ratings
APS PayrollBambooHR
Likelihood to Recommend
8.5
(35 ratings)
8.9
(106 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.7
(6 ratings)
9.2
(10 ratings)
Usability
9.5
(4 ratings)
8.5
(33 ratings)
Availability
9.0
(1 ratings)
9.3
(5 ratings)
Performance
9.0
(1 ratings)
8.7
(5 ratings)
Support Rating
6.8
(5 ratings)
8.5
(36 ratings)
In-Person Training
9.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Online Training
9.0
(1 ratings)
9.2
(4 ratings)
Implementation Rating
8.7
(4 ratings)
9.6
(3 ratings)
Configurability
8.0
(1 ratings)
8.6
(4 ratings)
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
-
(0 ratings)
8.3
(3 ratings)
Ease of integration
8.0
(1 ratings)
9.6
(2 ratings)
Product Scalability
9.0
(1 ratings)
8.9
(5 ratings)
Professional Services
-
(0 ratings)
9.2
(2 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
9.0
(1 ratings)
8.9
(4 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
9.0
(1 ratings)
9.1
(4 ratings)
User Testimonials
APS PayrollBambooHR
Likelihood to Recommend
APS Payroll
I think that APS Online is scalable to any organization. It's a wonderful product and I have had so many managers that work with me that feel the same way. We haven't been with them quite a year yet but since we've started it has made a world of difference for us. Things to ask about- 1- Do they specialize in or can they accommodate states that you are working in and their various rules? 2- What type of customer service? Do they have a call center or do they have a designated person like APS? 3- How long do your reports stay in the system? (ADP "archived" theirs after a year so we couldn't reach them)
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BambooHR
BambooHR is well suited for corporate type of organization. For example, the performance reviews are great, but if something more tailored to the restaurant side were quick and easy, that would be awesome. Timekeeping, as I mentioned, could be a bit more automated. Customer service is top-notch!
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Pros
APS Payroll
  • It's fast and intuitive. Our previous contractors were ADP and Paychex and neither were intuitive. Our payroll runs have less errors now than with previous vendors. Payroll prep time is down from 5 hours with ADP to 2 hours with APS for the HR Manager.
  • The limiters are great. I'm always afraid of that error that no one caught. Let's assume that you add a $200 limiter to overtime. Any time that a staff member is about to receive more than $200 in overtime for that pay period, a red flag goes up for the HR manager to double check.
  • We have 3 programs in public schools that block certain ports. APS has a 2nd feature using GPS so that staff can only check in for their shift while they are in the designated GPS range. Great for someone who has to report to a remote location. Just add the GPS coordinates and they can't check until they get to the project.
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BambooHR
  • It provides an extensive system for setting up time off accruals and managing their balances.
  • It has a powerful system for managing user permissions to allow supervisors access to necessary areas and limit the access of employees.
  • It provides a very useful set of auditing tools and reports, both for tracking changes to employee profiles and who made the changes.
  • It has a clean UI that makes it easy for less tech-savvy users to interact with their HR data.
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Cons
APS Payroll
  • Reporting - We have six different business units and the reporting is separate for all three. Most reporting I do requires information from all business units so am running six reports and then copying and pasting to get the report I need.
  • Multi-state taxes - We have a number of employees who live in New York and work in New Jersey. APS OnLine is designed to accommodate one state withholding so ability to have "worked in" state and "lived in" state taxes withheld went away. This was a shortfall.
  • The Carrier connection setup took much longer than expected. After a year, we are still having some issues with some items transferring over to the GL.
  • The CA overtime calculation does not calculate after 8 hours per day, only on the 40 per week so we override each week.
  • Reporting - when running Benefit reports, it recognizes employees who formerly carried the plan but may have dropped it. To get around this, we have to delete off the employee's record so the history is not readily available.
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BambooHR
  • Have a more robust report builder that has all the data as a filter.
  • Not all reports are able to be downloaded in different formats. I would prefer, csv, excel and PDF for all.
  • More options in the report builder to be able to customize your own reports instead of having to pay at least $200 for a simple report.
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Likelihood to Renew
APS Payroll
I have been using the system for over a year now and feel more comfortable with the functionality of it. I have just recently implemented the benefit administration portion.
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BambooHR
We have tried other software in the last year and have not found it to be comparable to Bamboo HR especially in relation to the HR functionalities such as workflows, onboarding, automation, user-friendly experience, innovation, timekeeping, and ability to integrate with other 3rd party Payroll processing software. In addition, the employee ease of access and navigation of the platform makes this software crucial within our current culture of multi-site and remote work environments.
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Usability
APS Payroll
In general, it's a great system to use. We were looking for simplicity and ease of use and have received raves from our employees in their ability to access and make use of the system. There is still so much more that we have yet to gain as we continue working through each of the modules.
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BambooHR
It’s a very user-friendly interface. It is modern and easy on the eyes. It is simple and not overloaded with too much detail. It is not overwhelming, and it is visually insightful for all types of learners and workers. The backend is also just as simple to use and visualize.
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Reliability and Availability
APS Payroll
I haven't had any outages
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BambooHR
Yes, there is a huge team in the back of the online platform or it looks like it because I have never been left without an answer when I have a question or waiting from a response on my chat .... There must be a huge team, this is so great and I always seem to have someone that is very knowledgeable too. So many times in the past I had to leave with customer service that would connect you with someone else because of the expertise, here everyone seems to be some kind of an expert in the HR function.
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Performance
APS Payroll
Very quick
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BambooHR
I love BambooHR. Reports are easy to run and download and it usually covers any types of requests I get from the management team. You get excel or .csv downloads/reports and it is fast and simple, not too crowded so it is easy to read through. We don't integrate the tool yet but again, soon we will. we just did not had the time to utilize it yet but that's the plan.
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Support Rating
APS Payroll
I had to learn APS on my own, and the support team held my hand. They are still there when I have an occasional question. Anytime I need support, I can call my rep or send an email and help is on the way, without failure. The support team is awesome
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BambooHR
Support is effective and responsive. During our time with BambooHR we did not experience many issues, but initial support on setup was helpful and allowed for a quick turnaround on getting started. Since then, few needs have arisen for contacting support, but I would not hesitate to do so and would recommend BambooHR based on the quality of their support team.
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In-Person Training
APS Payroll
Even if it wasn't in-person on location, we felt like we had our trainer in the room with us.
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BambooHR
I didn't have in-person training besides teaching my managers how to use the program. However, I couldn't omit this question (maybe a system glitch).
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Online Training
APS Payroll
We had great webinars.
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BambooHR
As far as I can recall, everything went well with doing it online and got questions answered. Was thankful to work with a dummy file to get used to some practices prior to getting our own domain within bamboo to then place our personnel information in the system, this helped a lot!
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Implementation Rating
APS Payroll
It would have been helpful to understand the phases of the implementation up front so I could have prepared differently for enrollments, billing, and transfer of information to payroll. At the end of the day, I'm happy with the selection and the system and anticipate I will like it better as we go along. We have done a number of other system implementations in the past few years, and this has been pretty painless, however, I've had a few surprises.
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BambooHR
It was some work involved in moving all of our documents from a drive over to the correct folders and creating the system of what folders were needed and what got placed where
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Alternatives Considered
APS Payroll
I have used ADP for many years and always found the system to be restrictive in ADP's resistance to building rules that matched the organization's needs rather than asking the organization to modify its policies to match 'canned' rules already built within ADP. Bamboo and several other newer systems really cannot support the many separate EINs under the corporate umbrella. And, finally, the other products are simply too costly for this organization.
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BambooHR
Although there are many products in the marketplace, there is no perfect system. BambooHR is the most economical HRIS for a small business, start-up, or business that has never had HR software. BambooHR was selected for its affordable functionality. However, if they continue to ingore the lack of functionality the pretty package will no longer have any value.
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Contract Terms and Pricing Model
APS Payroll
No answers on this topic
BambooHR
Since my organization has dropped with employees, I always find ways to reduce costs. I thought there would be a cheaper option, but I was glad that my package included a lot for the price, and downgrading would cost more. The rep could have let me downgraded and taken me to a higher package. I am thankful that didn't happen.
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Scalability
APS Payroll
I've never had a problem with the system nor in finding the right information.
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BambooHR
There is so much you can do with this platform, it is incredible and so welcoming. We don't utilize it 100% yet just because we are growing and the HR team has not been able to concentrate on other areas offered to us but but we will soon. Which is also why we got the product, specifically because what BambooHR can do to help us meet our growing business needs.
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Professional Services
APS Payroll
No answers on this topic
BambooHR
VERY professional!
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Return on Investment
APS Payroll
  • APS OnLine has helped us streamline the payroll process by freeing up our time of not having to personally cut and sign weekly paychecks. We don't have to rely on check signers to be present which has helped our timeliness as well.
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BambooHR
  • It's been a great force multiplier for our HR staff, supplementing their skills to allow them to focus on more complex tasks.
  • Employees enjoy using it and have to talk to HR staff less with the self-service options.
  • You may find as your organization grows that you outgrow a module or BambooHR and will replace with a dedicated solution.
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ScreenShots

APS Payroll Screenshots

Screenshot of Benefits Administration Dashboard

BambooHR Screenshots

Screenshot of BambooHR's Reporting