Alternatives and Switching
Best HR Software Options for Small vs. Growing Teams
What a 5-person, 25-person and 150-person company each need from HR software, and how requirements shift as headcount, states and compliance grow.
HR Software Selection and Launch Checklist
Work through the key steps for choosing, migrating to and launching HR software.
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Before you shop
Vendor evaluation
Data and migration
Launch
Use this checklist to keep an HR software purchase or switch on track. It has four phases: defining what you need, evaluating vendors, preparing data and migrating, and launching. Tick items as you complete them. Your progress is saved only in your own browser, so it is not shared and will not follow you to another device.
The list is short enough for a small team to finish in about 30 days if the vendor is responsive. A larger company, several states, union rules or a payroll switch in the middle of a quarter will add steps, such as a security review, a legal review of the contract or a phased rollout by location. Treat the items as a baseline and add your own.
The items teams skip most often are the unglamorous ones: a full backup before any import, a written quote that itemizes every fee, a parallel payroll run, and a data export test before signing. Skipping them is the usual reason a switch takes longer and costs more than planned.
Related guides
Plans and Pricing
Free HR Software Plans and Trials Compared: What You Actually Get
How free plans, free trials and freemium HR tools differ, what they usually leave out and how to test them before committing your employee data.
Features and How-To
U.S. HR Compliance Features to Look for in HR Software
How HR software helps with Form I-9, E-Verify, new-hire reporting, ACA reporting, EEO-1, wage and hour records and data privacy, and where it stops.
Features and How-To
HR Software Setup Guide: Your First 30 Days Week by Week
A week-by-week plan for configuring new HR software: company structure, policies, permissions, data import, payroll checks, employee rollout and a 30-day review.
Alternatives and Switching
HR Software Demo Questions and Contract Terms to Negotiate
A practical list of questions to ask in HR software demos, a scorecard to compare vendors and the contract clauses worth negotiating before you sign.
Alternatives and Switching
How to Migrate to New HR Software Without Losing Data
A step-by-step plan for moving employee records, payroll history and time-off balances to a new HR system, with a timeline, field mapping and testing steps.