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Recruitly vs Bullhorn

Recruitly vs Bullhorn: Features, Pricing, ATS & Recruitment

Which tool is the Right Choice?

Quick Summary

Recruitly and Bullhorn are both recruitment platforms built for agencies and staffing teams, but they are aimed at different levels of recruitment complexity. Recruitly is a cloud-based recruitment CRM, ATS, email marketing and job distribution platform designed for agencies that want a modular system without unnecessary complexity.

Bullhorn is a more comprehensive recruitment platform combining ATS and CRM capabilities for staffing agencies and larger recruitment teams. It supports high-volume recruiting, candidate sourcing, client relationship management, job posting and reporting, with a strong focus on managing the full recruitment lifecycle from one platform.

The main difference is simplicity and modularity versus enterprise-level depth. Recruitly is generally better suited to small to mid-sized recruitment agencies that value CRM strength, responsive support and straightforward workflows, while Bullhorn is a stronger fit for larger staffing firms and agencies that need sophisticated ATS-CRM functionality, scalability and extensive recruitment operations.

Both platforms are worth serious consideration for their respective use cases, and teams comparing them should also look at iSmartRecruit, an AI-powered recruitment platform that combines applicant tracking, recruiting CRM and automation in one system.

Metrics Comparison of Recruitly vs Bullhorn

Recruitly
Recruitly
Bullhorn
Bullhorn
iSmartRecruit
iSmartRecruit
Pricing Starts From

$30

$99

Free Trial

Best For Staffing & Recruiting agencies (also used by HR teams and IT/Technical recruiters), Small and Mid-Sized Businesses Staffing Firms, Recruiting Firms, Small Agencies, Midsize Agencies And Enterprise Agencies Corporate HRs, Mass recruiters, Hiring managers, Employment and recruiting agencies, Executive search firms, Staffing firms, Small businesses and startups
Help Videos

New Release/Updates Monthly Annually Monthly
Trustpilot Score 3.9 4.6 4
Software Suggest Score - 4.5 4.7
SaaSWorthy Score 4.3 3.9 4.6
Capterra - Ease of Use 4.8 4.1 4.5
Capterra - Customer Service 4.9 4.0 4.7
Capterra - Features 4.7 4.6 4.6
Capterra - Value for Money 4.9 3.7 4.6
Mobile Application

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:

Bullhorn

Pricing Starts From $99

Free Trial:

Ease of Use: 4.1

Customer Service: 4.0

Features: 4.6

Value for Money: 3.7

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 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

Overview of Bullhorn

For 2026 buyers, Bullhorn is an AI-powered online recruitment software platform built mainly for staffing and recruitment agencies. Its website positions it as a recruiting CRM and recruitment lifecycle automation platform that helps agencies manage candidate activity, client relationships, placements and wider recruitment workflows from one connected system.

The platform highlights applicant tracking and CRM capabilities, automation and AI agents, and Bullhorn Recruitment Cloud as key product areas. It is designed to support staffing firms with candidate and client management, job and placement workflows, AI-assisted processes, automation and reporting, making it more relevant for agencies that need a structured recruitment operating system rather than a basic hiring tool.

Bullhorn has a pricing page, but its website describes pricing as custom to each firm’s needs and encourages agencies to request a quote. Buyers should therefore treat it as quote-based pricing when comparing plans, features, implementation requirements, automation access and platform configuration.

However, teams should carefully review Bullhorn’s quote-based pricing, setup requirements, CRM and ATS workflow fit, automation needs, learning curve, support model, integration requirements and access to advanced AI or analytics features before deciding whether it is the right long-term recruitment platform for their agency.

pros

Pros

cons

Built specifically for staffing and recruitment agencies.

cons

Combines applicant tracking and recruiting CRM capabilities.

cons

Includes automation and AI agents for recruitment workflows.

cons

Supports recruitment lifecycle automation from candidate activity to placements.

cons

Highlights recruiting CRM functionality for managing client relationships.

cons

Suitable for agencies that need structured recruitment workflow management.


Chris C.

"Good Recruitment ATS & CRM"
Overall, it's quite good to deal with. Everything is laid out quite well and it integrates with a lot of 3rd party solutions.

Verified Capterra Review

pros

Cons

cons

Pricing is custom and may require a sales conversation before comparison.

cons

Advanced automation and AI features may depend on the selected setup.

cons

The platform may be more detailed than some small hiring teams need.

cons

Implementation and configuration could require planning for agency workflows.

cons

Teams should confirm which CRM, ATS and automation features are included.

cons

Recruiters may need time to adapt to the wider product ecosystem.


Jeff A.

"Be very careful before going down the Bullhorn path"
Unfortunately it's been one of the worth experiences yet for us. It's expensive to implement (due to the customization's) and on contract renewal they try to increase the price by 20%. In addition, the support team is horrible.

Verified Capterra Review

Features Comparison

Recruitly
Recruitly
Bullhorn
Bullhorn
iSmartRecruit
iSmartRecruit
API
Activity Dashboard
Activity Tracking
AI Agent - Candidate Match Insight Agent
AI Agent - Company Insight Agent
AI Agent - Executive Research Agent
AI Agent - Head Hunting Agent
AI Agent - Sourcing Agent
AI Agent - Voice AI Agent
AI - MCP Connector (Connect Claude & ChatGPT)
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 a strong alternative to Recruitly and Bullhorn for recruitment agencies that want a combined ATS and Recruiting CRM with deeper AI capabilities. It combines AI Agents, Generative AI, Conversational AI, AI Matching, AI-powered resume parsing, recruitment automation, multilingual candidate engagement and customisable workflows.

Where Recruitly focuses on CRM strength and modular agency recruitment, and Bullhorn provides extensive ATS-CRM capabilities for larger staffing operations, iSmartRecruit brings AI automation across sourcing, screening and candidate communication while maintaining a user-friendly recruitment workflow. Its support for 14+ languages also makes it suitable for agencies working across international markets. Try iSmartRecruit for free today.

Our Client Testimonial Speaks Louder Than Words!

Discover how staffing agencies & talent acquisition teams elevate hiring performance with iSmartRecruit.

Conclusion

Recruitly and Bullhorn are both strong options for recruitment agencies, but they are best suited to different operational needs. Recruitly is a better fit for small to mid-sized agencies that want a modular ATS-CRM with CRM strength and a simpler user experience. Bullhorn is better suited to larger staffing firms that need robust ATS and CRM capabilities, advanced data management and support for complex recruitment operations.

For agencies looking for a flexible AI-powered alternative, iSmartRecruit combines ATS, Recruiting CRM, AI Matching, AI Agents, automation, multilingual candidate engagement, reporting and custom workflows. It offers advanced recruitment capabilities without the complexity associated with some larger enterprise platforms. Book a free demo to compare it with Recruitly and Bullhorn.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the main difference between Recruitly and Bullhorn?

Recruitly is a modular recruitment CRM, ATS, email marketing and job distribution platform for agencies, while Bullhorn is a more comprehensive ATS and CRM platform designed particularly for staffing agencies and larger recruitment teams.

2. Which platform is better for small recruitment agencies?

Recruitly is generally better suited to small to mid-sized recruitment agencies that want a straightforward, modular ATS-CRM without excessive complexity.

3. Which platform is better for large staffing firms?

Bullhorn is better suited to larger staffing firms and recruitment agencies that need advanced ATS-CRM functionality, scalability, candidate management and reporting.

4. Which platform offers stronger AI capabilities?

Recruitly offers AI-assisted candidate recommendations, but its AI capabilities are lighter than dedicated AI-first platforms. Bullhorn also has AI capabilities, but the uploaded source positions iSmartRecruit as offering deeper AI-driven automation.

5. Which platform is better for CRM?

Both provide CRM functionality, but Recruitly is particularly recognised for its CRM strength, while Bullhorn provides a more comprehensive ATS-CRM environment designed around staffing operations and client-candidate management.

6. Which platform is easier to use?

Recruitly is generally positioned as the simpler and less complex option. Bullhorn provides greater depth for larger staffing operations, but its extensive functionality can make it feel more complex.

7. Is iSmartRecruit a good alternative to Recruitly and Bullhorn?

Yes. iSmartRecruit combines applicant tracking, Recruiting CRM, AI Agents, Generative AI, Conversational AI, AI Matching, multilingual candidate engagement, automation and custom workflows in one platform.

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