rocket-icon

iSmartRecruit MCP Is Now Live! Search, Compare & Analyse Candidates in ChatGPT & Claude

iSmartRecruit MCP Is Live!

Get a Demo
/
CATS vs Recruitly

CATS vs Recruitly: Compare Features & Pricing

Which tool is the Right Choice?

Quick Summary

CATS (CatsOne) and Recruitly sit in different corners of the recruitment software market, even though both aim to help agencies and talent teams move candidates through a pipeline more efficiently. CATS (CatsOne) operates as a web-based ATS built for professional recruiters, agencies and corporate hiring teams, with pricing set at around $99 per user per month billed monthly, or $69 per user per month billed annually, with a free single-position Bootstrap plan and a 7-day free trial. Its standout capability is affordable, transparent pricing with no hidden fees and a genuinely free entry tier, but it currently has no public API, and some reviewers note lighter reporting depth and search precision at higher candidate volumes.

Recruitly is a cloud-based recruitment CRM, ATS, email marketing and job distribution platform for agencies, priced a professional monthly plan metered by active user, with optional feature add-ons priced on request. It tends to appeal to teams that value CRM strength, responsive customer support and a steady pace of feature updates, although it currently has no API, which can limit deeper integrations for agencies with more complex tech stacks.

We'll also look at iSmartRecruit, an AI-powered ATS and recruiting CRM platform, as a further option worth comparing alongside CATS (CatsOne) and Recruitly.

Metrics Comparison of CATS vs Recruitly

CATS
CATS
Recruitly
Recruitly
iSmartRecruit
iSmartRecruit
Pricing Starts From

$89

$30

Free Trial

Best For Small Business Hiring Teams, Professional Recruiters, Construction, Engineering, Education, Energy, Executive Search, Finance, Healthcare, and Manufacturing Staffing & Recruiting agencies (also used by HR teams and IT/Technical recruiters), Small and Mid-Sized Businesses Corporate HRs, Mass recruiters, Hiring managers, Employment and recruiting agencies, Executive search firms, Staffing firms, Small businesses and startups
Help Videos

New Release/Updates Annually Monthly Monthly
Trustpilot Score - 3.9 4
Software Suggest Score 4.3 - 4.7
SaaSWorthy Score 4.4 4.3 4.6
Capterra - Ease of Use 4.3 4.8 4.5
Capterra - Customer Service 4.3 4.9 4.7
Capterra - Features 4.1 4.7 4.6
Capterra - Value for Money 4.3 4.9 4.6
Mobile Application

Capterra Rating
G2 Rating
CATS

Pricing Starts From $89

Free Trial:

Ease of Use: 4.3

Customer Service: 4.3

Features: 4.1

Value for Money: 4.3

Capterra Rating:

G2 Rating:

Recruitly

Pricing Starts From $30

Free Trial:

Ease of Use: 4.8

Customer Service: 4.9

Features: 4.7

Value for Money: 4.9

Capterra Rating:

G2 Rating:

iSmartRecruit

Pricing Starts From: Get Quote

Free Trial: Get a Trial

Ease of Use: 4.5

Customer Service: 4.7

Features: 4.6

Value for Money: 4.6

Capterra Rating:

G2 Rating:

Overview of CATS

For recruiters reviewing it in 2026, CATS is positioned as an applicant tracking system and recruiting software platform built to support automated recruiting through a customisable and easy-to-use interface. Its current website presents CATS as a system for teams that want to manage recruiting activity, candidate information and hiring workflows in one applicant tracking platform.

The platform highlights recruitment features such as meeting scheduling, SMS texting for the US and Canada, two-way calendar and email sync, a recruiting browser extension, custom access levels and sponsored job postings. These features suggest a practical ATS focused on helping recruiters organise communication, candidate sourcing, scheduling and day-to-day hiring tasks.

CATS appears suitable for recruitment teams and professional recruiters that need configurable applicant tracking software rather than a very basic hiring tool. Its website also promotes a free trial, giving buyers a way to test the platform before committing to a paid subscription.

CATS’ pricing page shows pricing at USD 89 per user per month, with a free trial option available. Buyers should still review the live pricing page carefully to confirm billing terms, included features, user costs, SMS availability, job posting options, integrations and any add-ons before making a final comparison.

However, teams should carefully assess CATS’ per-user pricing, setup needs, customisation depth, regional SMS availability, calendar and email sync fit, sourcing workflow, support expectations and long-term scalability before deciding whether it is the right applicant tracking system for their recruitment process.

pros

Pros

cons

Responsive and friendly customer support.

cons

Useful features include statuses, customisable fields and archiving.

cons

User-friendly workflow with job posting and email integration.

cons

CV parsing and candidate search support recruiter productivity.

cons

Customisable workflows and HRIS integration are available.

cons

Task automation can help reduce routine administration.


Miguel G.

"Good experience."
User friendly. Very good applicant tracking. Control Panel very helpful. I can see CATS calendar integrated with microsoft outlook. Great understanding with linkedin.

Verified Capterra Review

pros

Cons

cons

Reporting features may be limited or harder to locate for some users.

cons

Advanced data export formats should be checked before purchase.

cons

Support response consistency has received mixed feedback.

cons

CV forwarding and email integration may require workflow testing.

cons

Loading speed can vary depending on usage and setup.

cons

Automated skills selection may not meet every team’s screening process.


James G.

"8 Year CATS User"
Very clunky and slow at times. Does not offer any integrations that are helpful. I use it for dissemination of my jobs. It is one step above an excel spreadsheet.

Verified Capterra Review

Overview of Recruitly

Recruitly is a cloud-based recruitment platform built by UK firm The SOO Group, combining an applicant tracking system, recruitment CRM, marketing automation and job distribution tools into a single agency-focused workspace. The company positions itself as an alternative to juggling separate point solutions, aiming to replace what it estimates as roughly $429 a month in stitched-together ATS, CRM, job board and automation tools with one subscription.

On the workflow side, Recruitly covers candidate sourcing, CV parsing, job advert posting across 50-plus job boards, pipeline and deal management, and multi-channel outreach sequences spanning email and WhatsApp. Agencies can also build branded candidate portals, manage placements, apply GDPR automation to candidate records, and customise workflows for staffing, executive search, technical recruitment or boutique agency models.

Its more distinctive additions sit in the AI layer: an AI copilot called Simi that drafts emails and pipeline updates but waits for human confirmation before acting, AI-assisted candidate matching and CV rewriting, semantic search across a claimed 800 million-plus people database, and a Model Context Protocol (MCP) connector that lets the CRM talk directly to Claude.

Pricing runs on a per-user, per-month model, starting with a genuinely free plan on capped record limits and scaling through Solo, Professional and Enterprise tiers priced from around $25 to $120 a user per month on annual billing, with add-ons for sourcing credits, SMS, digital signatures and AI agent actions charged separately.

Recruitly tends to suit solo recruiters, boutique agencies and small-to-mid-size staffing businesses that want ATS, CRM and outreach in one login rather than a best-of-breed stack. Larger or multi-brand agencies with more complex compliance, reporting or integration needs may want to weigh it against other recruitment CRM platforms, including iSmartRecruit, before committing.

pros

Pros

cons

Easy to use, intuitive interface for recruiters and admins.

cons

AI-assisted candidate matching and CV parsing praised as accurate.

cons

Responsive, hands-on customer support and onboarding.

cons

Strong perceived value for money versus stitched-together tool stacks.

cons

All-in-one CRM, ATS, sourcing and outreach in a single platform.

cons

Frequent feature releases based on user feedback.


Romanos Y.

"Very user friendly and effective product"
i like all functionalities and the fact that is very user friendly

Verified Capterra Review

pros

Cons

cons

Fewer native ATS integrations than some larger competitors.

cons

Occasional bugs or stability issues reported after updates.

cons

Learning curve for advanced search and CRM configuration.

cons

Limited job board coverage outside the UK and US for some users.

cons

No native Google Docs upload for CVs.


Lisanne M.

"Recruitly review "
It has some bugs and occasionally when updates happen some previous changes revert back, allowing issues that had been solved to re-emerge.

Verified Capterra Review

Features Comparison

CATS
CATS
Recruitly
Recruitly
iSmartRecruit
iSmartRecruit
API
Activity Dashboard
Activity Tracking
Alerts/Notifications
Applicant Tracking
Application Management
Approval Workflow
Assessment Management
Billing & Invoicing
Boolean Search
Built-in ATS
CRM
Calendar Management
Campaign Analytics
Campaign Management
Candidate Management
Candidate Profiles
Candidate Sourcing
Candidate Tracking
Careers Page
Chatbot
Collaboration Tools
Commenting/Notes
Compliance Management
Compliance Tracking
Configurable Workflow
Contact Database
Content Management
Customisable Branding
Customisable Forms
Customisable Reports
Customisable Templates
Data Import/Export
Document Management
Electronic Signature
Email Management
Email Marketing
Email Templates
Employee Database
Employee Onboarding
Employee Referral Management
For Recruiting Agencies
For Small Businesses
For Staffing Agencies
Full Text Search
HR Management
Internal Chat Integration
Internal HR
Interview Management
Interview Scheduling
Job Application Management
Job Board Software
Job Management
Job Posting
Job Requisition
Job Tracking
Lead Management
Marketing Automation
Matching Engine
Mobile Access
Multi-Channel Marketing
Onboarding
Pipeline Management
Pipeline Reports
Question Library
Real-Time Analytics
Real-Time Reporting
Recruiting Firms
Recruitment Management
Reference Checking
Reminders
Reporting & Statistics
Reporting/Analytics
Resume Database
Resume Parsing
Resume Search
Resume Storage
SMS Messaging
Scoring
Search/Filter
Self Service Portal
Skills Assessment
Social Media Integration
Social Recruiting
Status Tracking
Tagging
Talent Acquisition
Talent Pool
Task Management
Temporary Staffing
Third-Party Integrations
Workflow Management

Find the perfect features for your hiring needs!

Why iSmartRecruit is Best?

iSmartRecruit is worth comparing against both CATS (CatsOne) and Recruitly for teams that want AI woven through the full hiring workflow rather than confined to a single feature. Its AI Agents, generative AI and conversational AI support sourcing, job description drafting, candidate summaries and interview feedback, going beyond what either CATS (CatsOne) or Recruitly typically offers on the automation front.

iSmartRecruit also supports multilingual candidate engagement across 14+ languages, and its combined ATS and Recruiting CRM covers candidate and client management, customisable pipelines, job board integrations, reporting and compliance on one shared data layer. For agencies comparing CATS (CatsOne)'s pricing model against Recruitly's, iSmartRecruit is a reasonable third option to evaluate. Start a free trial to see how it fits your recruitment workflow.

Our Client Testimonial Speaks Louder Than Words!

Our Client Testimonial Speaks
Louder Than Words!

Our Client Testimonial Speaks Louder Than Words!

Conclusion

Ultimately, the choice between CATS (CatsOne) and Recruitly comes down to what your recruitment process actually needs day to day. CATS (CatsOne) is the stronger option for teams focused on affordable, transparent pricing with no hidden fees and a genuinely free entry tier, while Recruitly suits teams that lean on CRM strength, responsive customer support and a steady pace of feature updates.

If neither fully covers what you're after, iSmartRecruit is a worthwhile alternative, pairing a full ATS and Recruiting CRM with AI Agents, generative AI and multilingual candidate engagement. Book a free demo to explore it further.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the main difference between CATS (CatsOne) and Recruitly?

CATS (CatsOne) is a web-based ATS built for professional recruiters, agencies and corporate hiring teams, while Recruitly is a cloud-based recruitment CRM, ATS, email marketing and job distribution platform for agencies.

2. How does CATS (CatsOne) pricing compare to Recruitly?

CATS (CatsOne) runs $69-$99 per user/month. Recruitly runs metered per active user (quote required). Exact costs vary by team size, so it's best to request a quote from either vendor.

3. Which platform offers stronger AI capabilities?

CATS (CatsOne) offers AI-assisted resume parsing and search, without a dedicated AI-branded suite. Recruitly offers AI-assisted candidate recommendations layered onto its CRM, lighter than dedicated AI-first platforms. Neither goes as deep on AI automation as platforms built specifically around AI Agents and generative AI.

4. Who is CATS (CatsOne) best suited for?

CATS (CatsOne) is generally best suited to small to mid-sized recruiting businesses that want an affordable, easy-to-learn ATS.

5. Who is Recruitly best suited for?

Recruitly is generally best suited to small to mid-sized recruitment agencies that want a well-supported, modular ATS-CRM without excess complexity.

6. What do users say about CATS (CatsOne) and Recruitly?

Feedback on CATS (CatsOne) is roughly 81% “great” on SelectHub across 329 reviews and 4.4 out of 5 on GetApp. Feedback on Recruitly is consistently strong reviews on Capterra and Software Advice for its CRM depth.

7. Is iSmartRecruit a reasonable alternative to CATS (CatsOne) and Recruitly?

Yes. iSmartRecruit combines applicant tracking, Recruiting CRM, AI Agents, generative AI and multilingual candidate engagement in one platform, making it a practical alternative for teams comparing CATS (CatsOne) and Recruitly that want broader AI automation and flexible, quote-based pricing.

Prompt copied to clipboard!