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Dayforce HCM vs SAP SuccessFactors vs Workday comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Cloud HCM category, the mindshare of Dayforce HCM is 3.5%, up from 2.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP SuccessFactors is 19.0%, down from 22.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Workday is 17.0%, down from 17.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Cloud HCM Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
SAP SuccessFactors19.0%
Workday17.0%
Dayforce HCM3.5%
Other60.5%
Cloud HCM
 

Featured Reviews

TracyBritan - PeerSpot reviewer
Frustrating support and difficult customization prevent optimal use of learning system
Customizing the home screen was difficult; I could not remove certain tabs that were irrelevant to our users. The search functionality is poor as there's no way for administrators to tag keywords to training courses, making it hard for people to find content. Additionally, there is no way to send a direct link to training if someone asks about it. The reporting is subpar; you can only report by course and not by person unless you go into specific Dayforce reports, which do not match the fields in the learning module. The support is also terrible, with slow response times and a lack of useful knowledge-based articles.
ManujGupta - PeerSpot reviewer
Has improved employee satisfaction and streamlined real-time data management
In terms of customizations in specific modules for industry requirements, SAP SuccessFactors is much more generic and does not comply many times with industry requirements as a vertical. In my experience with SuccessFactors' analytics capabilities influencing decision-making, workforce analytics is still challenging due to customizations. It does not provide flexibility in terms of analytics, and we have to customize extensively. For the future of the product, I would like to see more AI implementation, Python integrations, and GPT integrations.
Eslam Abo Elnaga - PeerSpot reviewer
Has improved HR process efficiency through intuitive workflows and responsive support
There is something that could be improved in Workday, specifically in the time tracking module. While I am not working on Workday now, I was a regional HRIS working for Egypt, Malta, India, and China. I mention these countries to relate to high population countries and companies. In our company, we use assigned work schedules for our teams. Because we work with the time tracking module, we need to assign shifts. In the manufacturing industry, we might need to change shifts every day or week. Manufacturing teams are huge, approximately 50 to 200 people in one team. If this team has one leader, the leader needs to assign a work schedule for each person individually. While there is mass upload functionality where we can load shifts for all people or specific groups, we need to select multiple people and assign them to a schedule from the interface itself. I have requested this functionality many times. When extracting business processes awaiting actions report, I can select different processes in one box, hit okay, and the report comes up. However, the same functionality does not work for work schedule assigning. If implemented, it would help many people in companies with high populations and big teams.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The fact that the time and attendance system is built into the HRIS is very valuable because, in the past, we had to use two different systems."
"The product has a pretty clean look."
"The integrated time clock has provided efficiencies in payroll, as we no longer have to decipher handwritten time sheets and input them into the system."
"Great time and attendance payroll and benefits administration which has improved our efficiency."
"Our employee benefits enrollment is managed through Ceridian Dayforce, which makes for a limited manual process."
"The solution's payroll portion is very streamlined."
"Dayforce has transformed how we operate by saving us time, paper, accuracy, money, and the employee/supervisor experience."
"The time capture from time cards to charging to projects has greatly improved because it is now all automated and flows into the GL very easily."
"The most valuable features of the solution are GUI and OData API."
"It's brought to our organization a big big improvement. We would give it a good rating."
"I think it's perfect that every requirement has flexibility in how it is handled, and that there are several workarounds for any problem we are looking to solve. Each problem has multiple solutions, so it gives us a lot of flexibility in terms of processes."
"Overall, it's excellent performance management."
"The best features that were working well for us was the Goal Management and Performance Management. They were the most valuable to our organization."
"The most valuable feature of SAP SuccessFactors is analytics."
"Flexible with a lot of good features."
"SAP SuccessFactors is a very reliable and stable solution."
"We have fewer systems, less manual data entry, and less processing."
"The user interface is good and very easy to use."
"Performance and good usability are the two most valuable features of this solution."
"The payroll and benefits engine is the most valuable Workday solution in my opinion. It is also easy to access."
"I'm happy with the features Workday offers. But in particular, Core HCM is the best."
"I like its UI and UX. When we were using Oracle or SAP, the UI/UX wasn't very user-friendly for the employees."
"I like that it's easy to use and flexible."
"Workday is a holistic HR solution."
 

Cons

"I would like to see more built-in forms. This would save a lot of time during the year-end process."
"The solution's dashboards and geofencing could be improved."
"It would be nice if retro pay calculations were made automatically for salaried payroll, so a calculation and manual entry do not have to be done."
"I would like to continue to see improvements in the Recruiting module. I would like to see this module interact with Calendars, such as Outlook, etc."
"The solution's initial setup was difficult. Also, the solution's initial deployment took around six months."
"Management and reporting of the GL costing could be improved."
"I would also like to see some improvement in standard reports. A standard report should be available to pull the required information for Affirmative Action Plans. I do not think I should have to build or create one."
"Customizing the home screen was difficult; I could not remove certain tabs that were irrelevant to our users."
"There have been cases involving a lot of re-implementations and frustrations within clients where they have the workbook sessions, the workbook workshops and things like that. And I think that doesn't really go down well because the workbooks are very technical and, a lot of times, very confusing for the client."
"The stability could be a bit better."
"SuccessFactors should consider building their best practices around critical industries to help companies become more differentiated in the markets they operate in."
"The reporting tool is not as good as IBM Cognos which is very, very powerful."
"The product doesn't have a modernized look and is not very user-friendly like other products."
"The graphical user interface (GUI) is not very friendly. On the homepage, it is not possible to place advisories or announcements at the top."
"Some of the screens aren't that user-friendly, older employees especially have a hard time with it. They have some problems with it."
"Analytics could use some work."
"It's possible that the way things are integrated could be improved"
"The user interface could be modernized somehow."
"The implementation could have gone a little smoother."
"If you want to add more features to your subscription, Workday becomes expensive."
"In the manufacturing industry, we might need to change shifts every day or week. Manufacturing teams are huge, approximately 50 to 200 people in one team. If this team has one leader, the leader needs to assign a work schedule for each person individually."
"I'm not sure they have added this feature yet, but there should be a cellphone version, so we do not need to do it on a laptop. I'd like to log in on a cellphone and have the same features. I'm not sure if that is already available or if it's on the roadmap, but that would be a great feature."
"I would be happy if it was faster. Currently, when I try to navigate within the solution itself, it is a bit slow in terms of the page load time. When I click on something, it usually takes time to load. When you click on different icons or areas on the website, it is slow. Even when you navigate between different models, it is a bit slow. I would like to see a bit faster performance and a better user experience."
"There is so much information floating around Workday that it becomes overwhelming to digest all of it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I rate the solution's pricing a seven on a scale where one is the lowest and ten is the most expensive."
"In terms of pricing, the product is expensive. However, it is crucial to take into account the manner in which the solution will be utilized and the availability of other alternatives."
"Ceridian continually enhances Dayforce HCM. Some of these enhancements they charge for and some are just straight enhancements with no extra charge."
"We paid for the implementation costs in the first year with the money that we saved by switching to Dayforce HCM."
"We found the setup costs and pricing to be very reasonable."
"Negotiate for everything you want."
"Earlier, the price of the product was reasonable. Under present circumstances, the price or cost of the product has been increased."
"The XOXO program associated with Dayforce allows you to earn credits towards registration and accommodations at their annual Insight Conferences, which can be a real savings to the company when sending employees to the conference."
"So now, SAP charges me 300 Euros for 14,000 employees. I still have to pay 2,000 euros because I'm using SAP on-prem."
"We are on an annual subscription to use SAP SuccessFactors. The pricing model is something that they could restructure a bit better. If it was based differently on the type of usage it would help."
"The pricing for SuccessFactors is ridiculously high, and there are costs in addition to the license fee for some features."
"SAP SuccessFactors requires an annual subscription."
"The product is expensive. The product is worth the money you pay for it."
"The solution is on the expensive side but is definitely worth the money."
"The cost of SAP SuccessFactors is reasonable."
"It is not expensive because it is a complete suite with a module-based cost."
"I would rate the solution’s pricing a six out of ten."
"It is on a yearly basis."
"The pricing for this solution is fairly high. It is not affordable for small and mid-sized companies."
"Workday is moderately priced - I'd rate its pricing three out of five."
"You have the license fee per module, and then you have a kind of annual training fee, which is a kind of add-on. I wouldn't say it is exhaustive; it is minor. Licensing is pretty transparent for most of the part."
"I rate the product’s pricing a ten out of ten."
"Workday is an expensive solution."
"It's very, very expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
13%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Non Profit
7%
Comms Service Provider
13%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
University
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise5
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business22
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise69
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise41
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Ceridian Dayforce HCM?
The solution's payroll portion is very streamlined.
What needs improvement with Ceridian Dayforce HCM?
Customizing the home screen was difficult; I could not remove certain tabs that were irrelevant to our users. The sea...
What is your primary use case for Ceridian Dayforce HCM?
We have used Dayforce HCM for our HR functionalities and for the learning module over the last five years. We actuall...
What are the biggest differences between Workday, Oracle Cloud and SAP SuccessFactors?
Differences between Workday, Oracle Cloud,w and SAP SuccessFactors:w Oracle: "simple interface and deep customizatio...
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 expe...
What do you like most about SAP SuccessFactors?
The tool is easy to use for performance management. We haven't experienced any issues with SAP SuccessFactors for per...
What do you like most about Workday?
I like its UI and UX. When we were using Oracle or SAP, the UI/UX wasn't very user-friendly for the employees.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Workday?
If you go with the launch implementation approach, the solution is generally not very expensive. If you want to add m...
What needs improvement with Workday?
There is something that could be improved in Workday, specifically in the time tracking module. While I am not workin...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

Ceridian Dayforce HCM, Ascender Talent Management, Ceridian Ideal
SuccessFactors
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

ACCO Brands
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, Skril
AAA, Allied Global, Avago Technologies Limited, Aviva, Cardinal Health, CareFusion, Chiquita Brands International, Equifax, Flextronics, HP, Life Time Fitness, McKee Foods, MGM Resorts International, Sanofi, ServiceSource International, Symantec, TripAdvisor, Yahoo!
Find out what your peers are saying about SAP, Workday, Oracle and others in Cloud HCM. Updated: September 2025.
868,654 professionals have used our research since 2012.