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SAP SuccessFactors vs Workday Human Capital Management 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

SAP SuccessFactors
Ranking in Cloud HCM
1st
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
100
Ranking in other categories
Talent Management (1st), Talent Acquisition (1st), Global Payroll (2nd)
Workday Human Capital Manag...
Ranking in Cloud HCM
13th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Cloud HCM category, the mindshare of SAP SuccessFactors is 8.5%, down from 20.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Workday Human Capital Management is 1.1%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Cloud HCM Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
SAP SuccessFactors8.5%
Workday Human Capital Management1.1%
Other90.4%
Cloud HCM
 

Featured Reviews

SS
Assistant Manager at Kashiv Biosciences
HR has gained clear analytics for attrition, goals, and appraisals and manages talent efficiently
SAP SuccessFactors has a low error rate. We had many ad hoc reports that we needed to generate, and it was very easy to do so in SAP SuccessFactors. We also created many in-house reports according to our specific requirements with the help of this tool, which was a really big game changer for us. We did not depend on advanced Excel in those cases. We generated a lot of detailed reports whenever we needed them during emergency cases or board meetings. A lot of usefulness and time were saved in those cases. I will also mention that we conducted a comparative study for some recruitment cases. We had a recruitment model where we were looking for a very niche profile. Since the job profile was really different and rare, we had to depend on analytics to understand and shortlist from a large pool of candidates that we already had in our database. Analytics was really helpful in this situation.
Amit_Rai - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Software Engineer at a consultancy with 1,001-5,000 employees
Automation has transformed hire to retire processes and delivers powerful HR analytics
In Workday Human Capital Management, I feel that the security part needs to be improved. Workday gives complete control to the implementers regarding security and who is going to see what data. There are sometimes loopholes that are not identified unless fully tested. If Workday had a security alert system, even a small alert would help the security architect secure all information better, especially sensitive data such as payroll. Additionally, customization is another area of improvement, as Workday provides a default blue and yellow theme, which may not align with a company's branding. If Workday provided the option to customize themes based on a company's preferences, it would enhance the user experience.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It has a global database, and it is globally accessible. By using this solution, we have moved away from paper, which is a big step for us."
"The product is stable, scalable, and addresses a lot of issues."
"SuccessFactors' most valuable feature is performance management."
"The best feature is that the solution has an open architecture and provides an open platform so it can coexist with other systems."
"The initial setup was pretty simple."
"The main reason for switching into SAP SuccessFactors was for its brand, ease-of-use, predefined solution per business scenario, and agility."
"Talent Acquisition and Learning features are best in class."
"The role-based permissions functionality is beyond great (in my opinion) and is honestly more robust and flexible than any other security setup/process that we have with other business software that we use (and have the ability to maintain security roles with)."
"The reports I can download with compensation details come in a very organized manner, and I can record any future payments through the software, such as deferred cash bonuses that need to be paid one year later."
"The solution has good accessibility; it's easy to use and not very confusing."
"Workday Human Capital Management's most valuable feature is self-service."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is a cloud-based system and easy to use."
"The product is a complete solution for security."
"Workday Human Capital Management is a user-friendly solution."
"According to me, the most valuable feature is autonomy of business processes and the security configuration within the tenant, specifically the configuration. The solution is highly stable. It’s designed to handle most tasks automatically. I rate it a nine out of ten. The solution is highly scalable. I rate it an eight out of ten. This solution consistently supports its customers through its implementation partners or sales support. The setup is designed to be user-friendly and straightforward. Workday HCM is user-friendly and easier to implement within the organization"
"The unique selling point of Workday is its easy-to-use user interface, which is quite difficult in other ERP systems such as SAP or Oracle Fusion."
 

Cons

"They should work on a faster way of locating a proper documentation."
"In my experience with SuccessFactors' analytics capabilities influencing decision-making, workforce analytics is still challenging due to customizations."
"SAP should also look into easily integrating with other applications or other tools. Technology has changed now, and it should be easier for any application to integrate with other apps. There needs to be more flexibility."
"The reporting tool is not as good as IBM Cognos which is very, very powerful."
"SuccessFactors could be improved by making it usable on mobile and making its features less rigid."
"The graphical user interface (GUI) is not very friendly. On the homepage, it is not possible to place advisories or announcements at the top."
"The solution is quite expensive."
"The Onboarding module must be improved."
"The solution should enhance its flexibility and promptly incorporate the brainstormed ideas into the upcoming releases. Typically, after their brainstorming session, it takes one or two update cycles for the changes to reflect in the tenant."
"It would be good if the solution provided more extensive training sessions."
"The solution should focus more on user experience and less on the technical side."
"Currently, the product's payroll feature works only in four countries. It should work for more countries."
"The compensation module is not dynamic enough or flexible enough to accommodate the complexities in our salary structure."
"We have had issues with respect to incidents."
"In Workday Human Capital Management, I feel that the security part needs to be improved."
"The tool has certain shortcomings when it comes to its integration capabilities with other systems in our company, making it an area where improvements are required."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"For SAP, the product is pricey, both CAPEX and the OPEX. It's something that could be improved."
"If you go by best practices and do it right from the outset, the setup won't be a costly endeavor. In terms of setup, there is a lot of flexibility compared to three years ago."
"I have raised change requests for some modules within SuccessFactors. For example, when you're using Recruiting Management, there's a feature called Interview Central you can use to reach the candidates you're interviewing. I wanted to add a writing assessment when I select the competency on that platform. It varies from consultant to consultant, depending on what module they use."
"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."
"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 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."
"We have a yearly license. There are no additional costs."
"SAP SuccessFactors requires an annual subscription."
"The solution’s pricing is better than SAP SuccessFactors."
"Each module comes with an additional cost. It operates on a mid-price model. So, there is an additional payment for each module needed. The solution might be costlier for smaller companies, making it more suitable for mid to large-sized enterprises."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
15%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Construction Company
6%
Comms Service Provider
21%
Construction Company
11%
Government
11%
Healthcare Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise70
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business1
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise7
 

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...
How easy is to maintain Workday, Oracle Cloud, and SuccessFactors?
I implemented Workday in 2024 and without having previous Workday experience, it was very challenging. I spent most of 2025 putting out fires and cleaning up the business processes that came with l...
What needs improvement with Workday Human Capital Management?
In Workday Human Capital Management, I feel that the security part needs to be improved. Workday gives complete control to the implementers regarding security and who is going to see what data. The...
What is your primary use case for Workday Human Capital Management?
Workday Human Capital Management's key use case is the hire to retire business process. The business processes we have in Workday include hiring an employee, transfers, promotions, and termination ...
What advice do you have for others considering Workday Human Capital Management?
I am using only Workday Human Capital Management, not anything else. I am not able to answer what metrics we use to measure the impact of Workday Human Capital Management because that is a task for...
 

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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Find out what your peers are saying about SAP SuccessFactors vs. Workday Human Capital Management and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
902,456 professionals have used our research since 2012.