Namely and VIVA HR approach people management from completely different directions. Namely is an all-in-one HRIS focused on compliance and complex managed services. VIVA HR focuses squarely on affordable, user-friendly hiring and team collaboration. You must decide if you need a full HR suite or a powerful Applicant Tracking System (ATS).
Comprehensive HR features, critical support gaps.
We see that Namely offers a comprehensive, unified HR platform starting at an accessible price point for core services. However, the limited external feedback available highlights potentially critical failures in follow-up support, especially concerning urgent tax and compliance matters. Overall, organizations must weigh the promised robustness of the platform against the risk of inadequate ticket resolution times and potential compliance issues.
Affordable ATS with Powerful Collaboration Tools.
We recognize VIVA HR provides exceptional value and strong features, particularly for small businesses needing an accessible ATS. The platform excels at automated actions and team collaboration, which simplifies complex recruiting pipelines. Overall, we see VIVA HR as a powerful and affordable system, but potential users must also be aware of concerning reports related to unauthorized billing and platform-associated spam issues.
Namely is a comprehensive solution designed to streamline key human resources processes. It helps you handle everything from attracting top talent to managing internal performance reviews. You gain control over workforce details like scheduling and time keeping. Simply put, it makes HR efficient, allowing your team to focus on growth, not paperwork. 💡
VIVA HR is a robust platform designed to help organizations manage their talent acquisition and team engagement efforts. It appears built for internal users responsible for sourcing, hiring, and analyzing workforce metrics. The system provides practical communication tools, including Email and Text capabilities. It effectively helps you manage the full journey, from candidate Sourcing to issuing Offer Letters. VIVA HR aims to improve overall communication and workflow efficiency within your company. ✅
We highlight the main differences and pick a winner for each feature.
Namely is a unified HRIS suite; VIVA HR is strictly focused on hiring.
Namely integrates full HR functions including payroll, benefits, and performance management. This comprehensive platform starts with core payroll at $9 per employee per month. Namely aims to simplify crucial administrative and compliance tasks. VIVA HR is specialized software, functioning primarily as an Applicant Tracking System. Its strength lies in streamlining hiring pipelines and team collaboration for recruitment. VIVA HR does not handle employee payroll, benefits administration, or time tracking. Namely offers depth across the full human resources lifecycle in one dashboard. VIVA HR offers specialized efficiency only in talent acquisition processes. Choose Namely if you need one system to handle an employee from hire to retirement and everything in between.
Namely provides outsourced managed services that VIVA HR does not offer.
Only Namely offers Managed Payroll Service and full benefits administration as optional upgrades. The top-tier Namely Complete plan provides complex features like shared liability compliance. This helps organizations significantly reduce operational risk. VIVA HR is a purely self-service software tool specializing in recruitment workflows. It does not provide any expert HR managed services like tax filing or compliance assistance. VIVA HR requires the user to handle all external HR obligations. Namely allows businesses to offload critical, high-stakes tasks like payroll execution and benefits enrollment. VIVA HR only helps you hire the person for the job, not manage the compliance after the hire. If you need a vendor to actively manage your complex tax and benefits liability, Namely is the necessary choice.
VIVA HR is much more affordable and transparent for small teams.
Namely's base plan starts at $9 per employee per month for core HR access. However, getting essential managed services requires custom, non-transparent pricing. This lack of clear pricing can present budgeting challenges. VIVA HR is extremely affordable, with plans starting as low as $1 per month. Its entry-level plan clearly specifies limits: 5 active postings and 1 user. This is excellent value for small, budget-conscious businesses. VIVA HR provides low-cost access to its primary feature, efficient candidate tracking and collaboration. Namely requires a much higher ongoing investment, especially for full functionality. Small start-ups prioritizing cost control combined with powerful hiring mechanisms should overwhelmingly favor VIVA HR.
VIVA HR offers reliable support, while Namely has critical user-reported failures.
Namely users report deeply concerning issues regarding support ticket resolution times. Specifically, urgent tickets related to critical tax and compliance matters remained unresolved for months. This presents a serious regulatory risk to Namely clients. In contrast, VIVA HR users frequently commend their responsive customer support team. They feel well-assisted, especially during critical onboarding and setup processes. VIVA HR appears reliable, even at its low price point. Namely seems to over-promise on managed services but under-deliver on the necessary support execution. VIVA HR delivers competent support for its simpler recruitment focus. Reliability is non-negotiable for critical HR functions; VIVA HR wins on dependable service experience.
VIVA HR offers a superior, dedicated hiring experience compared to Namely's module.
Namely includes functional Applicant Tracking and good Onboarding seamlessly integrated into the HRIS. New hire details transition easily into the centralized employee profile. This unified approach works well for existing users. VIVA HR specializes in creating clean, effective hiring pipelines used by over 5,000 customers. It excels at team collaboration tools and fast candidate communication via email and text. VIVA HR's focus is solely on talent acquisition efficiency. VIVA HR is clearly built to solve the modern recruiting pipeline bottleneck quickly and easily. Namely treats this functionality as one necessary part of a much larger system. If your primary business goal right now is filling seats quickly and smoothly, VIVA HR provides the sharper tool.
Namely uniquely allows month-to-month contracts where VIVA HR uses standard terms.
Namely offers highly flexible contract terms to suit various organizational needs. You can choose from month-to-month agreements up to multi-year contracts if desired. This flexibility is unusual for a comprehensive HRIS system. VIVA HR utilizes standard monthly or annual billing cycles common to most SaaS tools. They offer significant savings (up to 42%) if you commit to paying annually. There is no mention of specialized month-to-month contract options. Namely gives businesses financial agility if needs or circumstances change rapidly. VIVA HR keeps billing cycles standard to maintain its accessible, low price point. If project-based or short-term planning dictates your software purchasing decisions, Namely's contract flexibility is very compelling.
Choosing between Namely and VIVA HR boils down entirely to your immediate need: managed complexity or reliable recruiting. Namely is the full-featured HRIS suite, whereas VIVA HR is a specialist. For most teams seeking efficient hiring, VIVA HR is the clearer, less risky choice. Namely's superpower is its unified management of the entire employee lifecycle. Namely bundles vital services like payroll, benefits, and advanced compliance into one system. If you absolutely require shared liability coverage and large-group benefits, Namely provides that robust framework. VIVA HR's strength is its affordable, user-friendly Applicant Tracking System (ATS) focused on results. It starts at just $1 per month and makes team collaboration on hiring easy. VIVA HR streamlines pipelines and communication better than Namely, making recruitment faster. The critical deciding factor is support reliability, which Namely seemingly sacrifices for feature breadth. Users report Namely failing to resolve urgent tax tickets for months, creating huge business risk. VIVA HR is praised for its responsive support, delivering better peace of mind. If you are a small team focused on hiring velocity, choose VIVA HR for its cost and reliability. If you operate a large, complex organization requiring managed payroll, Namely offers the depth, but approach its critical support services with extreme caution.
Namely is significantly better for core HR, offering unified payroll, benefits, and performance management. VIVA HR strictly specializes in recruitment and candidate tracking. VIVA HR does not include features like payroll or time tracking.
VIVA HR is much more affordable, with plans starting at $1 per month. Namely's foundational plan starts at $9 per employee per month. Entry-level Namely quickly becomes expensive when you add necessary managed services.
Namely offers functional hiring and onboarding modules integrated into the HRIS. However, VIVA HR provides a superior, dedicated Applicant Tracking System experience. VIVA HR wins if your current bottleneck is candidate collaboration and speed.
No, VIVA HR does not include payroll functionality or managed services. Namely provides integrated core payroll and optional managed payroll services. Organizations needing integrated payroll must choose Namely.
Namely has a lower overall rating (2.6) due to critical reports about support failures regarding urgent tax matters. VIVA HR has a better rating (3.4), receiving commendations for user-friendliness and responsive customer support.
Namely offers greater contract flexibility, including month-to-month agreement options. VIVA HR uses standard monthly or annual billing cycles. Namely's flexibility is uncommon for a comprehensive HRIS.
Both tools have their strengths. Choose based on your specific needs.