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SAP HCM vs UKG 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 HCM
Ranking in Benefits Administration
3rd
Ranking in Talent Management
3rd
Ranking in Cloud HCM
3rd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
56
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
UKG
Ranking in Benefits Administration
4th
Ranking in Talent Management
5th
Ranking in Cloud HCM
5th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
125
Ranking in other categories
Employee Scheduling Software (1st), Employee Time Tracking Software (3rd), HR Analytics Software (1st), Talent Acquisition (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Cloud HCM category, the mindshare of SAP HCM is 13.1%, down from 17.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of UKG is 5.5%, down from 5.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Cloud HCM
 

Featured Reviews

Renelia Villanueva - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient payroll processing with comprehensive attendance management
I am currently heading the payroll benefits and HRIS team here in Manila. We are using SAP HCM on-premises, and we implemented SuccessFactors focusing on Employee Central and GMPM SAP HCM has helped a lot due to the always changing government regulations pertaining to taxation, social security…
Lonnie Fluck - PeerSpot reviewer
Helps us establish system front-end and back-end connectivity, but the recruiting features need improvement
I used UKG to track applicants and create job descriptions. We built the electronic onboarding system to be used nationwide and created a path to integrate with the backend The product's most valuable feature is the ability to establish connectivity between the front and the back end,…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Customers can create custom infotypes to store any custom data points."
"The compliance management functionality is quite good."
"Payroll processing is my favorite HCM feature, and I like all the SuccessFactors talent modules also. SAP is making good progress on enhancements to the features in the SF modules."
"The most valuable feature is the Personnel Administration."
"Sometimes, employees may have pending requests that need approval, so you should check those and clear any errors to ensure smooth processing."
"The tool's best feature is SAP SuccessFactors."
"The platform is simple to use and has a user-friendly dashboard and integration features."
"SAP HCM has valuable features for analytics data management."
"The product's most valuable feature is the ability to establish connectivity between the front and the back end, particularly the single point of data entry, to minimize mistakes."
"The pay policies and approvals are valuable features."
"I have found the most valuable feature to be business intelligence and Cognos reporting."
"It enables us to manage the system ourselves. We don't need an additional team to do a lot of maintenance and add the things that we want."
"The employee self-service feature is most valuable. This is the restaurant industry, and they have a mobile app that allows employees to go in and manage their data. So, employees can manage direct deposit accounts, emergency contacts, and other things in the app. That's definitely the biggest benefit."
"The fact that I can see the whole HR information in a single point is valuable. There is a unified view of everything, which is good. Previously, we had many different systems for each part of the information. Now, it is all centralized. It is very good."
"I like UKG's integration."
"The most valuable feature is being able to get time management reports which break out reclassified jobs and departments to separate areas of the company. This allows for better tracking of hours spent in certain jobs and where more hours may be needed."
 

Cons

"The product's license is very expensive."
"System usability is a challenge."
"SAP is not ready to sell the license on time and delays the progress of projects. It's better to work with a competitor like Oracle. Those that are selling the product just go through powerpoints and don't have the knowledge necessary to sell. They can't answer any questions."
"The extensibility of the integration could be improved."
"It would be very helpful for our company if a new version was released with the ability to contain all of the things that we have newly introduced in our company."
"Its reporting feature could have customization options."
"The limitation of HCM compared to new-era human capital management solutions is the cost."
"SAP HCM is costly compared to other ERPs like Microsoft Dynamics or Oracle, and I would rate the cost as one out of ten."
"UKG could be a little more flexible in some areas."
"The solution could improve by simplifying it even more core reports, such as more sample reports, more generic reports that you can edit and improve on yourself."
"One area where UKG could improve is in its ability to understand its own competency and then work hard to improve it."
"Reporting is always a hurdle for any user just because it is so extensive. They provide a lot of out-of-the-box reports, but it is something that you always need to work on because you need more advanced writing of reports."
"Since UKG is a SaaS software, other parts of the application or add-on solutions are not the best in class or very configurable."
"Certainly, the time and attendance and the payroll integration need a lot of work. They are disjointed pieces, and they don't work smoothly together. That's the main drawback."
"The navigation on the screen could be better. Sometimes, I have to dig a little bit deep to find what I need. Everything is there. It just needs to be a little bit smoother."
"The platform's features need enhancement while being used as a recruiting tool."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is really high."
"For implementation, SAP offers little support unless you buy SAP Safeguarding from SAP Consulting."
"I believe HCM is a little expensive, but I don't know the exact price because I'm involved with the sales team. However, I think the price must be reasonable because many organizations are migrating their current ERPs to SAP. It's excellent software, and the price is competitive."
"You pay per license. There not any costs in addition to the standard licensing fees."
"We purchase the product's yearly license."
"SAP is expensive, but if you're using the product, then the expensive product becomes inexpensive. Considering its performance and features, I find it quite reasonable."
"Licensing is pretty complex. SAP does not have a straight forward way of licensing, and it differs from client to client."
"Be careful and guard against future changes in licensing."
"I wasn't involved in the pricing part. I'm a user, and I believe it is based on the user count. One thing that is nice about Ultimate is that you can learn how to use the system without additional fees. The learning aspect is the life of a product, and the training was a huge reason why we went with Ultimate. We did have some integration costs. They were a part of the implementation because of the integrations to other systems that we included in our implementation."
"If you're going for the full suite, it can be fairly pricey."
"UKG's pricing and licensing model involves ongoing expenses based on the number of employees paid. The initial implementation cost is low when UKG implements it directly. However, when partners handle the implementation, it becomes more expensive since partners don't receive the monthly recurring fees."
"While I am unsure of the licensing cost itself, the total cost of implementation and licensing for a company with over 5000 employees would be around 6,00,000. So, there are additional costs beyond licensing."
"The platform is not affordable but also not the most expensive."
"The pricing depends on the number of licenses we buy."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Retailer
6%
Educational Organization
87%
Computer Software Company
1%
Healthcare Company
1%
Manufacturing Company
1%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about SAP HCM?
SAP HCM is the one of the best ERP for an organization with a small to large scale business. It has the most efficient payroll functionality. Regards : SAP HR classes in pune
What do you like most about SAP HCM?
HCM is a very important module that each organization should want to use. It will help any organization to calculate and control the cost of their human resources.
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 needs improvement with UKG?
UKG needs more publicity. It is a productive ERP ( /categories/erp ) application, but many people in the IT market are not aware of it. Greater awareness could increase its adoption.
What is your primary use case for UKG?
I worked for a healthcare organization and a university. Most organizations use UKG ( /products/ukg-reviews ) to track employee timesheets, capturing accurate swipe-in and swipe-out data. UKG ( /pr...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

SAP Human Capital Management
UKG Pro, UKG Dimensons, UKG Ready
 

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, Skrill Group Ltd.
Tesla, Marriott, Yamaha, Aramark, Feeding America, Samsung, Sony Music, Dave & Buster's, Revlon
Find out what your peers are saying about SAP HCM vs. UKG and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
847,862 professionals have used our research since 2012.