Comparison

BambooHR vs Bonusly

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

BambooHR

Access essential HR functions on the go. View your company directory, manage time off requests, and stay updated with notifications. Securely access employee information and approve or deny leave requests from anywhere.

Highlights
  • Company directory access
  • Time off requests and approvals
  • View colleague information
  • Add contacts to phone
  • Check time off balances
  • Push notifications for requests
  • TouchID and passcode protection
Read full description

BambooHR is online HR software for small and medium-sized businesses that have outgrown spreadsheets. We automate many of the most tedious HR functions and free you up to do meaningful work. The BambooHR app lets you take some of those most important functions with you, and makes your most common tasks in BambooHR simple and fast. * In order to do anything with the BambooHR app you will need a current BambooHR account. Find out more on our website. * The app fully supports single sign-on (SAML) to login Your Company Directory, Everywhere You Go Your company’s phone numbers, emails, photos, titles—your whole company directory goes wherever you do. * See colleague’s information and call, email, or message them with a tap * Quickly add someone’s info to your phone’s contacts Plan and Manage Time Off Planning a trip? Request time off when you’re out and about. Leave requests can be submitted in the app, and if you’re an approver, you can approve them there as well. * See who’s out of the office today and on any future date * See current and calculate your future time off balances * Submit, view, edit, and comment on your time off requests * Approve and deny time off requests * Push notifications keep you in the loop on the status of your requests And don’t worry, TouchID and passcode protection will help keep your information secure. Happy Bambooing!

About

Bonusly

This platform fosters stronger teams and better workplace cultures through recognition. It allows users to send appreciation, redeem rewards, conduct one-on-one meetings, and stay connected with colleagues, all from their mobile device.

Highlights
  • Send recognition tied to goals
  • Record video messages for recognition
  • Redeem rewards with gift cards
  • Run 1:1 meetings and check-ins
  • View company social feed
  • Donate to charity
Features
Read full description

Experience stronger teams and better cultures with Bonusly, the recognition-first platform that brings connection, motivation, and performance into the palm of your hand. Send recognition, redeem rewards, run 1:1s, and stay connected with your team, no matter where you work. Bonusly for iOS works with any active Bonusly account. With Bonusly, celebrating wins and guiding performance happens in real time. Give recognition on the go, record a quick video to make it personal, or run a check-in between meetings. From peer-to-peer shoutouts to performance recaps, Bonusly helps you stay engaged, aligned, and ready to do your best work, right from your mobile device. CELEBRATE GOOD WORK, FROM ANYWHERE Give recognition tied to goals, values, or milestones Record a video message to make it feel more personal Add gifs, emojis, and tags to keep it fun and fresh REDEEM REWARDS YOU’LL LOVE Use points to shop 1,200+ digital gift cards Track your points balance and recent activity Donate to charity or pay it forward for even more recognition STAY SUPPORTED AS WORK UNFOLDS Run 1:1s and check-ins that work on the go Capture moments of peer recognition and guidance Bring hidden work and wins to light STAY CONNECTED TO YOUR TEAM See the latest recognition in your company’s social feed Join the conversation with likes and comments Feel part of the team—wherever you are

Screenshots

BambooHR4 screens
Bonusly4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: BambooHR at every 2 weeks against Bonusly's monthly. Bonusly's advantage is review sentiment (40% vs 26%) and iOS requirement (16.4 vs 18.0). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for BambooHR against 4.8 for Bonusly. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 13K and 4.5K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 26% of BambooHR's written reviews are positive against 40% of Bonusly's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BambooHR ships an update every 2 weeks, Bonusly monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
BambooHR versus Bonusly: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBambooHRBonusly
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (13K ratings)4.8 (4.5K ratings) — better
Positive reviews26.1% of reviews40.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings13K — better4.5K
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.016.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size287 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBambooHRSmartly, Inc.

Customer experience

BambooHR

All ratings12,755 ratings
Positive91.8%
Neutral1.8%
Negative6.3%
Written reviews287 reviews
Positive26.1%
Neutral12.9%
Negative61.0%

Bonusly

All ratings4,454 ratings
Positive96.7%
Neutral1.8%
Negative1.5%
Written reviews35 reviews
Positive40.0%
Neutral2.9%
Negative57.1%

User reviews

BambooHR

From 13K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use for employer and employee
  • 👍 Simple to use
  • 👍 Professional approach
  • 👍 User friendly
  • 👍 Great app when it involves anything to do with my job

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App ask for update to see inbox, people or my info
  • 🐛 Locks you out
  • 🐛 Spends a lot of time down, can't always see signature so you don't know if forms are actually filed out or not
  • 🐛 Not user friendly
  • 🐛 Freezes

Bonusly

From 4.5K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Fun and easy to use
  • 👍 Encourages team recognition
  • 👍 Great for creating a positive work culture

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and errors
  • 🐛 Unresponsive and slow performance
  • 🐛 Login issues with Google authentication
  • 🐛 Compatibility problems on older devices
  • 🐛 Buggy and unreliable app experience

Bugs and requests

BambooHR

Reported bugs

14 issues
  • App ask for update to see inbox, people or my info
  • Locks you out
  • Spends a lot of time down, can't always see signature so you don't know if forms are actually filed out or not
  • Freezes
  • Notifications don't clear properly
Show 9 more
  • Badges slow to update, annoying
  • Poor crashes
  • Log in is impossible
  • Slow app
  • Phone directory look up not working
  • Contacts don't work
  • Document Sigining not working
  • Crashes on log in
  • Crashes every time you try to save a contact locally

Requested features

14 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Advanced calendar view on app
  • Allow employees to download letter of employment at their own
  • Easier way to fix clocking issues
  • Easier way to track lieu hours
Show 9 more
  • Open app from email links
  • More functionality on app compared to website
  • Ability to cancel time off requests from app
  • Include user on calendar/out today view
  • Text-based recruiting services
  • Ability to onboard new hires from app
  • Allow document signing on mobile
  • Announcements in the app
  • Ability to view emergency contacts

Bonusly

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Endless login loop with Google Authenticate
  • 404 errors when trying to sign in
  • Unknown errors when browsing rewards
  • App crashing on launch or login
  • Unresponsive buttons and screens

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improve app stability and fix bugs
  • Enhance user interface and navigation
  • Add more customization options
  • Improve integration with other platforms

In-app purchases

None

BambooHR

No in-app purchases

None

Bonusly

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is BambooHR free?
BambooHR is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Bonusly free?
Bonusly is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, BambooHR or Bonusly?
Bonusly is rated higher. BambooHR averages 4.7 out of 5 from 13K ratings, while Bonusly averages 4.8 from 4.5K ratings.
Do BambooHR or Bonusly have ads?
Neither BambooHR nor Bonusly shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BambooHR or Bonusly?
BambooHR ships an update every 2 weeks, and Bonusly monthly. Most recently, BambooHR was updated on October 19, 2026 and Bonusly on October 13, 2026.

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