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DarwinBox vs SAP HCM comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

DarwinBox
Ranking in Talent Management
11th
Ranking in Cloud HCM
10th
Average Rating
6.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
HR Analytics Software (6th), Talent Acquisition (9th)
SAP HCM
Ranking in Talent Management
3rd
Ranking in Cloud HCM
3rd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
59
Ranking in other categories
Benefits Administration (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Cloud HCM category, the mindshare of DarwinBox is 3.4%, up from 2.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP HCM is 9.6%, down from 16.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Cloud HCM Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
SAP HCM9.6%
DarwinBox3.4%
Other87.0%
Cloud HCM
 

Featured Reviews

SHANOOPCHATHOTH PARAMBIL - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhancing attendance and leave management but needs better performance customization
Our primary use case for DarwinBox includes managing attendance, payroll-related tasks, and employee appraisal cycles DarwinBox has provided a significant return on investment for our finance team. Managing payroll and attendance manually would require more team members, so using DarwinBox…
Bijoykrishna Das - PeerSpot reviewer
Centralized system enhances resource and capital management efficiency
The functions in SAP HCM that I have found most valuable include a bundle of resource management as well as capital management, which is also integrated with payroll and other systems. I also use a payroll processing feature in SAP HCM. The talent management tool in SAP HCM is useful, though it does not provide everything; it is not at the level of some other third-party tools for talent management, but we can still use it. SAP HCM supports our organization's global operations with multi-currency capabilities. The main benefit SAP HCM provides is that we have all the information in one place; it is basically one centralized system with all the information rather than having multiple systems across the organization.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The most valuable features of the solution are organogram and position-based mapping."
"The solution that we used previously was very complex. As a result, without referring to the manuals and consulting an expert, it was difficult for a newly hired employee to navigate the platform. However, this is not the case with Darwinbox. It has a very intuitive user interface, and anyone can use it and implement it without having to use a guide or a walk through process. It's very simple."
"The leave-related modules are comprehensive, offering built-in functionalities for optional leaves."
"In our company, we use DarwinBox to maintain the data of our employees and for recruitment purposes."
"Scalability is excellent, and I would rate it ten out of ten."
"The payroll and time management features are useful."
"They have some interesting features in the learning space."
"SAP HCM can handle a large number of employees. We can easily process payrolls and check the arrangements, and the client can also check the performance of the employees. Additionally, it has some advanced features."
"The platform is simple to use and has a user-friendly dashboard and integration features."
"They provide the most stable and powerful technology in the areas of human resources, information systems, and ERP."
"I like the talent, recruitment, and learning features the most."
"SAP HCM is a competitive and comprehensive tool that covers major programs in the enterprise and supports the global process."
 

Cons

"Customization in performance management is cumbersome."
"DarwinBox is not a stable solution...DarwinBox is not a scalable solution."
"Like most software, it has a base version, the vanilla, out-of-the-box version, and customization is required to match it to the unique processes of each company. The Darwinbox team seems to be having difficulty with the customization process. They have to be a little more mature to customize it as per every company's need."
"The solution's API integration with third-party applications should be improved."
"When performing reconciliation, manual entry is sometimes required, and barcode scanning isn't always available."
"In my experience, SAP HCM and similar products are very good, but the focus now should be on providing features to encourage employee adoption. For example, accessing pay slips is a task that naturally drives adoption. However, AI tools that can prompt employees at the right time through the right application are needed for actions such as conducting surveys or gathering performance feedback."
"Its reporting feature could have customization options."
"The current platform is quite rigid and not as flexible and end-user friendly as other HR solutions."
"The setup comes with a set of challenges as well."
"I'm currently working for a state-owned government company, and we need to follow some standards and regulations. We also have a strategy to be followed. Sometimes the template and the format are not available in the SAP HCM, so we have to work around this limitation. The tax also sometimes changes in my country, and we have to redo everything to change the payroll calculations, benefits, and things like that. The talent management feature can be improved. It is currently very simple in SAP HCM. SAP is also very hard to integrate. In terms of monitoring, there are no monitoring tools, but as long as we take care of the disk capacity, there is no problem."
"SAP HCM has many different channels for communication with the consultants which makes it complex. There are delays when there is a problem."
"The breadth of functionality offered by SAP HCM comes at a cost."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"My company makes some yearly payments towards the licensing costs attached to DarwinBox."
"Compared with SuccessFactors, there is no major difference in DarwinBox's cost."
"For implementation, SAP offers little support unless you buy SAP Safeguarding from SAP Consulting."
"The solution is a little expensive and we are charged per user for the license. The solution can be paid monthly or annually."
"The solution is cheap."
"The pricing depends upon the specific model and number of user accounts included in a bundle."
"The cost depends on the size of the organization. Compared to others, I'd say Oracle is number one, followed by Workday and SAP HCM."
"The pricing is not reasonable at all."
"Be careful and guard against future changes in licensing."
"The cost of SAP HCM is high, the license should be reduced. SAP HCM has a lot of hidden costs."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
13%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise39
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about DarwinBox?
The most valuable features of the solution are organogram and position-based mapping.
What needs improvement with DarwinBox?
Customization in performance management is cumbersome. Processes like six-month appraisals lack easy configurations, and any significant customization requires working with vendors.
What is your primary use case for DarwinBox?
Our primary use case for DarwinBox includes managing attendance, payroll-related tasks, and employee appraisal cycles.
What do you like most about SAP HCM?
SAP HCM is the one of the best ERP for an organization with a small to large scale business. It has the most efficient payroll functionality. Regards : SAP HR classes in pune
What do you like most about SAP HCM?
HCM is a very important module that each organization should want to use. It will help any organization to calculate and control the cost of their human resources.
What is better, SAP HCM or SAP SuccessFactors?
When it comes to user experience, SuccessFactors is unquestionably superior, as it provides end users with a new experience and an advanced user interface. Additionally, the entire concept of SF is...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

No data available
SAP Human Capital Management
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Myntra, GVK BIO, Bisleri, Times Internet, Delhivery, Aarti
City of Cape Town, ADAMA Agricultural Solutions Ltd., TransAlta Corporation, Keolis, PT XL Axiata Tbk, National Football League (NFL), Plan International, Yoh, A Day & Zimmermann Company, China Talent Group (CTG TMO), Umicore S.A., Butterfield Bank, Skrill Group Ltd.
Find out what your peers are saying about DarwinBox vs. SAP HCM and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
868,787 professionals have used our research since 2012.