Workday HCM vs Zenefits

A detailed comparison of Workday HCM and Zenefits. See how they stack up on features, pricing, and user ratings.

At a Glance

Workday HCM Zenefits
Rating 4.0/5 4.0/5
Starting Price N/A $8/mo
Free Trial No No
Free Plan No No
Features 9 9
Best For Enterprise SMB

Workday HCM

Enterprise cloud HCM platform covering HR, payroll, talent management, and workforce planning for large organisations with 1,000+ employees.

Rating 4.0/5
Best for Enterprise
Free trial No
Free plan No
Visit Workday HCM →

Zenefits

HR platform for small and mid-sized businesses covering onboarding, benefits administration, payroll, time-and-attendance, and compliance. Now part of TriNet.

Rating 4.0/5
Best for SMB
Free trial No
Free plan No
Visit Zenefits →

Feature Comparison

Feature Workday HCM Zenefits
Workflow Automation
Reporting Dashboard
EEO/OFCCP Compliance
GDPR Compliance
API Access
HRIS Integration
Slack Integration
Zapier Integration
Mobile App

Pricing Comparison

Workday HCM

Enterprise Custom

Zenefits

Essentials $8/mo
Growth $16/mo
Zen $27/mo

Integrations

Both tools integrate with

ADP Azure AD Gmail Google Calendar Google Workspace Microsoft 365 Microsoft Teams Okta OneLogin Outlook

Only Workday HCM

DocuSign Greenhouse LinkedIn Salesforce

Only Zenefits

Gusto

Pros & Cons

Workday HCM

Pros

  • +Industry-leading reporting and analytics engine (Prism Analytics)
  • +True single-platform architecture — HR, payroll, talent all share one database
  • +Continuous product innovation with bi-annual feature releases
  • +Strong security and compliance posture for regulated industries

Cons

  • -No pricing transparency — custom enterprise pricing only
  • -Long implementation timelines (6-12 months typical, can be longer)
  • -Requires dedicated admin resources or implementation partner
  • -Overkill and cost-prohibitive for organisations under 1,000 employees

Zenefits

Pros

  • +Affordable all-in-one HR platform
  • +Good benefits administration
  • +Clean, intuitive interface
  • +Strong for companies with 10-500 employees

Cons

  • -Past compliance issues affected reputation
  • -Payroll is a paid add-on, not included
  • -Limited recruiting and ATS functionality
  • -Customer support has mixed reviews

Which Should You Choose?

Choose Workday HCM if:

  • • Your company is Enterprise size
  • • Industry-leading reporting and analytics engine (Prism Analytics)
Visit Workday HCM

Choose Zenefits if:

  • • Your company is SMB size
  • • Affordable all-in-one HR platform
Visit Zenefits

How we evaluate tools

Our ratings combine verified user reviews from G2 and Capterra with hands-on feature analysis. Pricing is checked against official sources. We may earn a commission through affiliate links, but this never influences our rankings or recommendations. Read our full methodology.