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SAP HCM vs UKG 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
1.0
SAP HCM boosts efficiency and decision-making through automation and insights, offering a return in months to years.
Sentiment score
6.2
UKG users enjoy data integrity and efficiency, but many find ROI unclear despite improved processes and cost savings.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.3
SAP HCM customer support is praised for quality but needs faster response times and more personalized consultant engagement.
Sentiment score
7.2
UKG's customer service is inconsistent, praised for expertise but criticized for delays and inefficiencies, needing service consistency improvements.
I am totally satisfied with the response time and quality of support.
Not all requests are attended to promptly.
Technical support from SAP is very good, and I would rate it nine out of ten.
One developer and one functional person can efficiently manage the implementation for a large organization.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
SAP HCM offers seamless scalability and flexibility, efficiently supporting diverse organizations and adapting to evolving demands across sectors.
Sentiment score
7.4
UKG is scalable and adaptable across various organization sizes and industries, effectively meeting growth and flexibility requirements.
Currently, we are upgrading from 4.12 to 4.18, and after migrating the DC, our applications run smoothly without any challenges or slowness.
SAP HCM is quite scalable.
UKG is scalable, especially for organizations with shift work activities like healthcare, as it can accommodate different shift timings and overlapping schedules efficiently.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.0
SAP HCM is stable and reliable, with cloud versions showing improved stability despite isolated initial issues and configuration challenges.
Sentiment score
7.1
Users find UKG mostly stable with occasional issues, but appreciate quick responses and effective system integration.
I would rate its stability as nine out of ten.
I would rate the stability of SAP HCM as seven out of ten.
 

Room For Improvement

SAP HCM faces usability, integration, and customization challenges, with high costs, complex payroll, and limited talent modules compared to competitors.
UKG users seek improved implementation, customer service, system integration, platform flexibility, and enhanced features like time management and training.
SAP HCM needs to be more customizable to fit unique organizational processes.
SAP should provide more customization options.
We sometimes face issues in the minor version, requiring us to upgrade to the major version.
It is a productive ERP application, but many people in the IT market are not aware of it.
 

Setup Cost

SAP HCM's high, complex pricing often hinders small businesses, with hidden costs and compared unfavorably to cheaper alternatives.
UKG's pricing, influenced by employees and modules, is high yet justified, with negotiation options and discounts available.
I would rate pricing for SAP as one because the price is high.
SAP HCM is quite expensive, but considering solutions like Oracle, they are similar.
SAP HCM is costly compared to other ERPs like Microsoft Dynamics or Oracle, and I would rate the cost as one out of ten.
Compared to other ERPs like Oracle SCM Cloud or SAP, UKG's pricing is standard and not as expensive.
 

Valuable Features

SAP HCM enhances productivity with integration, payroll management, scalability, user-friendly interfaces, and supports global operations efficiently.
UKG offers intuitive, customizable HR solutions with seamless integrations, enhancing automation, data management, and employee lifecycle efficiency.
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.
When we face challenges and raise tickets, Red Hat provides support within an hour, fixes bugs, and allows us to move to production after resolving issues.
Capturing all the attendances and absences is a huge task that must be completed before running payroll.
The application is like an ERP, providing comprehensive features for organizations, simplifying their processes, and reducing the need to use multiple software solutions.
 

Categories and Ranking

SAP HCM
Ranking in Benefits Administration
4th
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
No ranking in other categories
UKG
Ranking in Benefits Administration
5th
Ranking in Talent Management
6th
Ranking in Cloud HCM
5th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
125
Ranking in other categories
Employee Scheduling Software (1st), Employee Time Tracking Software (2nd), HR Analytics Software (3rd), Talent Acquisition (6th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Cloud HCM category, the mindshare of SAP HCM is 9.9%, down from 17.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of UKG is 5.6%, up from 5.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Cloud HCM Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
SAP HCM9.9%
UKG5.6%
Other84.5%
Cloud HCM
 

Featured Reviews

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.
Talia Jean Paul - PeerSpot reviewer
Affordable but needs to improve its stability
Our company is testing the UKG Ready Mobile App, but there are some glitches. I feel that in the system when you log on to Kronos, UKG Dimensions, and UKG Workforce Central, we have different modules in different versions. With regards to the newer version, I feel the older version, which was UKG Workforce Central, was more user-friendly for the end user as opposed to the newer version, which looks a bit more complicated. When training someone who wants implementations to be done, it would be easier if you could hover above certain things, and it shows you or tells you exactly what it is. There are certain SAP modules that can be audible. If you click on it if someone is being a bit slow with regards to training, the tool will tell you what needs to be done and what needs not to be done by you, but for us, it is fine because we are in the back end with configuration and the administrators. I am talking about the need for improvements in the tool for the benefit of the end users. The explanation on UKG's community consists of training manuals and some of the other stuff that we use, and we send to our supervisors at the site. With the tool in place, catching onto white-collared employees is quicker. The tool is not quick to catch onto certain blue-collared employees in the plant or supervisors who are actually working with machinery and stuff because they are not as computer-centric as white-collared employees. If I could scan the tool across the globe with our site supervisors, there are a few loopholes in the tool. There are some issues with the tool's stability. For me, I would like someone who is building the system in the back end to know if a front-end user can manipulate the system. I am not going to rate the tool's scalability to be high. I would rate the tool's scalability to be at a mediocre level or at something like 50 percent, so there is a lot of room for improvement.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business19
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise39
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business48
Midsize Enterprise43
Large Enterprise48
 

Questions from the Community

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...
What needs improvement with UKG?
UKG needs more publicity. It is a productive ERP ( /categories/erp ) application, but many people in the IT market are not aware of it. Greater awareness could increase its adoption.
What is your primary use case for UKG?
I worked for a healthcare organization and a university. Most organizations use UKG ( /products/ukg-reviews ) to track employee timesheets, capturing accurate swipe-in and swipe-out data. UKG ( /pr...
What advice do you have for others considering UKG?
Publicity is very important for any software. If people aren't aware of UKG, despite its productivity, they won't use it. Expanding the awareness is essential for greater adoption. Overall, I would...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

SAP Human Capital Management
UKG Pro, UKG Dimensons, UKG Ready
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

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.
Tesla, Marriott, Yamaha, Aramark, Feeding America, Samsung, Sony Music, Dave & Buster's, Revlon
Find out what your peers are saying about SAP HCM vs. UKG and other solutions. Updated: August 2025.
867,497 professionals have used our research since 2012.