Compare/Head to head

Compono vs Criteria

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

Starting price

Compono

A$3,500/yr

Compono is an ATS that profiles every applicant with its own psychometric assessment and ranks the shortlist on culture and behavioural fit, with engagement surveys, an LMS and competency credentialling available in the same platform. Indicative pricing is published in Australian dollars: about A$5,500 to A$6,500 a year for one product under 100 staff, or A$3,500 to A$8,500 a year for agencies under 10 recruiters. It suits employers of 60 to 1,000 staff, mainly in Australia and New Zealand, that hire for fit at volume.

Where Compono fits

  • Mid-sized employers (60 to 1,000 staff) hiring for culture fit at volume
  • Franchise and multi-site operators that want consistent hiring across locations
  • ANZ agencies wanting an ATS plus culture data to show clients

Criteria

Sales-quoted 14 day free trial

Pre-employment testing and video interviewing sold as three packages: Assess, Interview, and Hire. Quote-based, with a 14-day free trial.

Where Criteria fits

  • HR teams adding validated pre-hire tests
  • Companies that want cognitive plus personality tests
  • Teams that want tests and video interviews together
  • Buyers who want a free trial before a demo

At a glance

DetailComponoCriteria
Starting priceA$3,500/yrSales-quoted
Free tier–No–No
Free trialNot on record14 day free trial
MCP server–No–No
Public API–No✓Yes
Listed underATS, Assessments, Engagement, LearningAssessments

Where they pull apart

Compono

Stands out: The assessment is part of the application itself, so every candidate arrives with a behavioural profile and a fit score against your culture and top performers, and you can re-weight skills versus fit to reorder the list. Compono also publishes its price bands openly, including a plain-text pricing page, which few ATS vendors in this size range do.

Watch out: Prices are in Australian dollars and the customer base is mostly Australia and New Zealand, so US buyers should check job board coverage and support hours. The only integration listed is per-customer single sign-on, with no published HRIS or job board integration catalogue. Onboarding and customer success packages are charged on top of the ranges.

Not the right fit for

  • US teams that need a broad integration marketplace
  • Buyers who only want a standalone assessment tool
  • Very small teams looking for a free or low-cost ATS

Criteria

Stands out: Cognitive, personality, emotional intelligence, risk, and skills tests on one platform, with video interviews in the same suite.

Watch out: All three packages are sales-quoted. AI proctoring, the AI interview agent, and AI scoring are paid upgrades, and Develop is a separate add-on.

Not the right fit for

  • Engineering teams that only need a live coding pad
  • Buyers who need a published price

Pros and cons

Compono

  • Psychometric fit scoring built into every application
  • Openly published price bands by company size
  • ATS, engagement, LMS and credentialling in one platform
  • Prices published only in Australian dollars
  • No published integration catalogue beyond SSO
  • Onboarding and success packages cost extra

Criteria

  • Broad test catalog in one platform
  • Video interviewing in the same suite
  • 14-day free trial
  • No published price
  • AI features cost extra
  • Develop is a separate add-on

What each one costs

Compono

A$3,500/yr

Compono publishes indicative ranges, not list prices, in Australian dollars excluding GST, banded by company size and number of products. For employers under 100 staff, one product (Hire, Engage or Develop) is about A$5,500 to A$6,500 a year, two about A$9,000 to A$11,000 and three about A$11,000 to A$13,000. The 100 to 200 staff band starts at about A$7,000 to A$8,500 for one product, rising to A$11,000 to A$13,000 at 400 to 500 staff; 500+ is quoted.

Recruitment agencies get Hire plus Engage on a monthly platform fee plus a per-recruiter fee: about A$3,500 to A$8,500 a year under 10 recruiters, A$10,000 to A$17,000 for 11 to 20, and A$17,000 to A$35,000 for 21 to 50. Assure (competency and licensing) is custom scoped. Onboarding and customer success packages are extra. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 1 Oct 2026

Criteria

Sales-quoted

Sales-quoted. No public rate card on the vendor site. Three packages (Assess, Interview, Hire) are priced by headcount, with AI upgrades and the Develop add-on on top, and a 14-day free trial is available. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 19 Sep 2026

Common questions

Can you try Compono or Criteria for free?
Neither carries a free tier on our listing. Criteria offers a 14 day free trial.

Not the pair you wanted?

All Compono alternatives All Criteria alternatives Every ATS tool

Editorial listings, never paid rankings. Prices checked 1 Oct 2026. Confirm current terms on the vendor site. Spot an error?