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SAP SuccessFactors vs SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 16, 2025

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

SAP SuccessFactors
Ranking in Cloud HCM
1st
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
99
Ranking in other categories
Talent Management (1st), Talent Acquisition (1st), Global Payroll (2nd)
SAP SuccessFactors Employee...
Ranking in Cloud HCM
15th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
4.6
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

ManujGupta - PeerSpot reviewer
Chief Executive Officer at Orane Consulting Pvt Ltd
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.
SP
Senior ERP Consultant at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
User-friendly integration capabilities and responsive support enhance operational efficiency
SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central is cloud-based, eliminating the need for any infrastructure with readily available data centers. It is very user-friendly and integrates seamlessly with the Employee Central Payroll and all other talent modules. I have utilized the payroll integration, noting that on-premises payroll is called SAP Payroll, while when taken to the cloud, it is referred to as Employee Central Payroll, which runs on the same server and is configured on on-premises but on a different node. Within the cloud, SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central integrates with Employee Central Payroll via point-to-point applications, which push the master data from Employee Central to Employee Central Payroll, forming the bridge between these two modules.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"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 solution is stable."
"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."
"The performance goals and learning management solutions are the product's most valuable features."
"The SuccessFactors learning applications within the SuccessFactors learning modules, as well as the performance management system, are highly beneficial for each and every employee in our organization. These tools eliminate the need for using Excel to manage data, allowing for direct input into the system. This streamlines the process, making it easier to view and analyze information. We can readily access our performance history, comparing our actions and achievements from the previous year. At present, we are consistently monitoring our day-to-day performance."
"Considering the flexibility of the system and its ability to accommodate complex business processes, the product is ready to be used in multiple industries."
"One of the most wonderful features is the ability to customize the modules and workflows. So far, we've done a fair bit of customization and it is helping us a lot and really adds to the value we already get from SuccessFactors."
"This solution offers good flexibility and configurability. It can handle different types of performance management."
"SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central is cloud-based, eliminating the need for any infrastructure with readily available data centers, and it is very user-friendly and integrates seamlessly with the Employee Central Payroll and all other talent modules."
"I find SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central to be user-friendly, with a good UI, accessible through Fiori, making it easy to navigate without using T-codes."
 

Cons

"The SAP SuccessFactors integration with old versions can improve. We are using an older finance module but we are having migration issues."
"I find that the website sometimes has problems loading, but I'm unsure if it's an issue with SuccessFactors. After the login, there are some connection issues. We get some errors telling us that it cannot connect to the host."
"It is not that user-friendly. It can be made more user-friendly."
"I think there is room for improvement in user friendliness. In my experience, users are sometimes confused about how to use the solution."
"They should be more user friendly and give us more tools to make it more flexible."
"Overall, the documentation could be improved, and I think the learning management module needs to include more capabilities when it comes to matching an organization's particular learning approach."
"User-friendliness is a major concern for me, which affects my overall experience."
"The integration between the recruitment module and employee central is a big problem."
"SAP can improve RDP and reports by making them more user-friendly, as there are complex processes in understanding and handling them."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I rate the tool's pricing a seven to eight out of ten."
"We don't utilize even half of the licenses because not everyone uses them. With SAP SuccessFactors, though, we're now conducting all our performance evaluations within the system, so I suppose we're making better use of those licenses. As for SAP for employee services and internal benefits processing, we do have licenses for those but don't utilize them."
"The price of the solution is highly expensive."
"I think the pricing is a little better than most solutions out there. There are reasonable prices when it comes to some of the modules such as the Payroll module, and for the remaining modules I believe the pricing is fair in comparison to the rest of the market."
"Our costs for the solution are subsidized by our parent company, I am not aware of the exact cost because of this. However, we pay $50,000 annually. If we move to another solution it will be more expensive."
"I don't want to comment on the license cost, to be honest. It could be about $1,000 approximately per customer. However, it's very flexible in terms of the licensing costs depending on the volume and depending on the deal of installation."
"Probably, it is one of the priciest products, and is very costly to put up and maintain but because it is a good solution end to end, people take it."
"The licensing fees are based on the number of modules that are being used, and the number of users."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
14%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business22
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise69
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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 customization to suit the purpose." SAP: Multiple functionalities that increase process effi...
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 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 performance management, which is great. However, since we're still learning to use ...
What needs improvement with SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central?
Regarding improvements or additional features for SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central, nowadays Generative AI is booming, and AI is integrated within SAP. I am planning to get certified in automati...
What is your primary use case for SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central?
SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central is essentially the master data for an employee. Compared to on-premises, it is simply OM and PA taken to the cloud and becomes the master data for an employee. R...
What advice do you have for others considering SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central?
The solution has helped to streamline organizational payroll processes. I have worked with many clients who used SAP on-premises, as well as clients with legacy systems, necessitating the retrieval...
 

Also Known As

SuccessFactors
No data available
 

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, Skril
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