Software comparison
Best Applicant Tracking System (ATS) for Small Business
Worth saying plainly: Greenhouse is excellent software built for a different buyer. Its structured, data-driven hiring process is genuinely valuable at scale, but its pricing (often tens of thousands of dollars a year) reflects an enterprise sales motion, not a small-business one. If you're hiring a handful of people a year, you're very likely the wrong customer for it.
Independent research · Verify current pricing with each provider
Pricing reality
Flat-rate vs. headcount-based pricing models aren't directly comparable without knowing your actual hiring volume. Confirm current tiers directly, especially since several vendors have renamed their plans in the past year.
At a glance
Which one fits?
Best for: Most small and mid-sized businesses
Free: Free plan covers one active job posting.
Best for: Very tight budgets, especially already using other Zoho products
Free: Free tier available for very light hiring volume.
Best for: Businesses that want to proactively source candidates, not just post jobs and wait
Free: No free tier.
Best for: Companies with a dedicated recruiting function hiring at real volume, not typical small businesses
Free: No free tier - enterprise, quote-based pricing.
Detailed review
What to know before you choose.
Breezy HR
Best for Most small and mid-sized businesses
Free plan and limits
Free plan covers one active job posting.
The Trade-off
Flat-rate pricing with unlimited users at every paid tier is a genuinely different model from headcount-based competitors - cost doesn't creep up as your team grows or more people need pipeline visibility. Automation and reporting depth don't match Greenhouse's, which is the right trade for a small business's actual needs.
Zoho Recruit
Best for Very tight budgets, especially already using other Zoho products
Free plan and limits
Free tier available for very light hiring volume.
The Trade-off
The cheapest genuinely functional option here, and it connects smoothly if you're already on Zoho CRM or Zoho Books. Candidate experience and career-page customization are more basic than Breezy HR's.
Workable
Best for Businesses that want to proactively source candidates, not just post jobs and wait
Free plan and limits
No free tier.
The Trade-off
Genuinely strong at proactive candidate sourcing - searching and reaching out to potential candidates rather than only managing inbound applicants. That extra capability comes at a higher price point than Breezy HR for teams that don't need active sourcing.
Greenhouse
Best for Companies with a dedicated recruiting function hiring at real volume, not typical small businesses
Free plan and limits
No free tier - enterprise, quote-based pricing.
The Trade-off
The structured hiring methodology, 500+ integration ecosystem, and scorecarding are genuinely best-in-class for organizations with real hiring volume and a dedicated recruiting team. For most small businesses hiring a handful of people a year, this is meaningfully more tool - and cost - than the job requires.
StackPick verdict
The bottom line.
Most small businesses: Breezy HR's flat-rate, unlimited-user pricing fits how a small team actually hires. Extremely tight budget? Zoho Recruit. Need to proactively find candidates rather than wait for applicants? Workable. Have a dedicated recruiting team and real hiring volume? Then, and only then, is Greenhouse worth its price tag.
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