Compare/Head to head

Bonusly vs Empuls

Same facts, side by side: starting price, free tier, MCP, API and what each one is actually built for.

Starting price

Bonusly

$3/user/mo 30 day free trial

Peer recognition and rewards. There is no free plan; cheapest paid Team is $3/user/mo without Bizy, or $5/user/mo with Bizy included, after a 30-day trial.

Where Bonusly fits

  • Small companies that want a low per-seat price
  • Orgs willing to trial 30 days
  • Teams starting peer recognition in Slack or Teams
  • HR teams that want points and a rewards shop without an enterprise suite

Empuls

Sales-quoted

Empuls is still Xoxoday's employee engagement platform, sold under the Empuls name. Pricing is a per-employee, per-month SaaS model based on headcount and the modules you turn on. The vendor pricing page does not print a dollar rate.

Where Empuls fits

  • HR teams that want recognition, surveys, and a social intranet from one Xoxoday product
  • Companies that will add perks later rather than buy the whole suite day one
  • Global employers already looking at Xoxoday Plum for rewards catalogs
  • Mid-market internal-comms leads who want a feed plus rewards, not only an intranet

At a glance

DetailBonuslyEmpuls
Starting price$3/user/moSales-quoted
Free tier–No–No
Free trial30 day free trialNot on record
MCP server–No–No
Public API✓Yes–No
Listed underEngagement, Recognition & rewardsInternal communications, Recognition & rewards
Capterra4.8 from 1,611 reviews4.5 from 109 reviews

Where they pull apart

Bonusly

Stands out: A public $3/user Team seat and a 30-day trial, with Slack and Teams in the flow of work rather than a separate rewards portal nobody opens.

Watch out: Bizy, the AI recognition sidekick, is included on the $5 Team plan (or $2/user/month extra). Organization is quoted. There is no free plan for small teams.

Not the right fit for

  • Enterprises that need Workhuman-scale programs
  • Buyers who want Bizy on the $3 seat
  • Companies that will not put recognition in Slack

Empuls

Stands out: You pick modules (recognition, surveys, perks, social intranet) instead of a forced bundle, and AI is described as built into every module. Slack and Microsoft Teams are named deployment surfaces.

Watch out: Reward catalog spend is billed when employees redeem, on top of the platform fee. Minimum employee counts and contract lengths are handled in sales. Third-party $2/employee/month teaser copy is not on the pricing table.

Not the right fit for

  • Buyers who need a printed $99/mo checkout
  • Teams that only need a free Slack kudos app

Pros and cons

Bonusly

  • Public $3/user/mo Team seat
  • 30-day trial with Bizy included
  • Annual billing gives 2 months free
  • Bizy is extra on the $3 seat
  • Organization is quoted
  • Not a full engagement suite

Empuls

  • Modular PEPM so you are not forced into a full culture suite
  • Recognition, surveys, and a social intranet in one Xoxoday product still branded Empuls
  • Capterra 4.5 from 109 matching Xoxoday Empuls reviews
  • No public dollar table on the Empuls pricing page
  • Reward redemptions bill separately from the platform fee
  • Implementation is a sales-led rollout, not a credit-card signup

What each one costs

Bonusly

$3/user/mo

Team is $3 per user a month, or $30 per user a year, without Bizy, and $5 per user a month, or $50 per user a year, with Bizy. Organization is custom pricing. Annual billing gives 2 months free. There is no free plan; a 30-day trial is offered. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 4 Nov 2026

Empuls

Sales-quoted

Empuls is priced per employee per month based on headcount and the modules you activate. Recognition, surveys, perks, and the social intranet can be mixed. Reward catalog spend is billed on redemption, separate from the platform fee. The vendor does not print a dollar rate. A demo produces a quote. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 4 Nov 2026

Common questions

Can you try Bonusly or Empuls for free?
Neither carries a free tier on our listing. Bonusly offers a 30 day free trial.

Not the pair you wanted?

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Editorial listings, never paid rankings. Prices checked 4 Nov 2026. Confirm current terms on the vendor site. Spot an error?