SAP vs Oracle: Which HR Software Is Better for Your Business in 2023?

Unsure which HR software is the best choice for your business? Learn the key differences between SAP and Oracle, and find out which one is the best fit for your specific needs.

When it comes to HR software for large and enterprise businesses, Oracle and SAP are two of the top vendors you will see recommended. Oracle’s HR solution, branded as Oracle Cloud HCM, incorporates a cluster of HR cloud software tools for payroll and talent management.

SAP SuccessFactors started out as performance management software and has grown over time to become a comprehensive and sophisticated cloud-based HR solution. The SAP SuccessFactors Human Experience Management Suite includes tools for HR analytics and employee experience management.

In this guide, we will compare these two platforms to discover the differences between Oracle and SAP’s HR solutions.

SEE: The best human resources payroll software of 2023.

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Oracle Cloud HCM vs SAP HXM Suite: Comparison table

Oracle Cloud HCM and SAP HXM Suite pricing

Oracle does not publicly disclose pricing on its website for its human capital management cloud service software. Interested parties must contact the Oracle sales team for a custom quote. Oracle does not offer a free trial.

The SAP SuccessFactors website is slightly more forthcoming, stating that prices begin at $6.30 per user per month. However, more details are not available, and companies must contact SAP for a more comprehensive pricing quote. SAP SuccessFactors does not offer a free trial.

SEE: Protect those pennies and cents with the best free HR software of 2023.

Feature comparison: Oracle Cloud HCM vs SAP HXM Suite

Core HR features

Oracle Human Resources software forms the center of the HCM application. Functions include centralized employee records management, document management, high-level workforce insights and self-service portals. Oracle also offers other HR tools, such as payroll and benefits administration, as separate solutions.

SAP SuccessFactors also covers all core HR features, including global benefits administration, payroll, time management, document management and HR service delivery. SAP SuccessFactors Employee Central is SAP’s main HRIS software, while other solutions such as payroll and time tracking are offered through separate — but thoroughly integrated — products.

Employee experience

Both Oracle and SAP offer employee experience platforms within their HCM solutions. Oracle ME (my experience) is part of Oracle Fusion Cloud HCM and has a native employee listening tool built into the platform. Other features include a flexible audience builder, visual editor, automated engagement and insights.

SAP’s Employee Experience Management solution includes many advanced tools as well. HR teams can increase employee engagement with SAP Qualtrics Employee Engagement, gather feedback with SAP Qualtrics 360 Development, improve the digital experience with SAP Qualtrics Employee Technology Experience and manage the entire employee lifecycle with SAP Qualtrics Employee Lifecycle.

People analytics

Oracle Fusion HCM Analytics is a prebuilt, cloud-native solution for Oracle Cloud HCM. It provides a comprehensive overview of the entire workforce and allows users to dig deeper into analytics for talent acquisition, diversity and inclusion, career mobility, and retention and turnover. Choose from more than 600 prebuilt talent KPIs or add non-Oracle data with outside sources.

SAP also offers an analytics solution in the form of Workforce Planning and People Analytics, which you may also see referred to as extended planning and analysis. SAP’s extended planning and analysis tools combine HR, financial and operational data to give your business the information it needs to make evidence-based decisions. The tool incorporates machine learning technology to identify insights that users may have missed on their own.

SEE: We’ve rounded up the best HRIS tools for small businesses.

Oracle Cloud HCM pros and cons

Oracle Cloud HCM pros

• Detailed talent management features.
• Employee self-service portal is available to users.
• Easy expense management.
• Oracle Transactional Business Intelligence integration for reporting.

Oracle Cloud HCM cons

• Complicated to use and difficult to navigate.
• Old-fashioned user interface.
• Mobile app is not that useful.
• System can be slow to load or fail to load.

SAP HXM Suite pros and cons

SAP HXM Suite pros

• Comprehensive HR feature set.
• Excellent performance management module.
• Solid payroll system.
• Accurate reports are easy to generate.

SAP HXM Suite cons

• Pricing is not transparent.
• User interface is not as updated as some competitors.
• Data loading and refreshing can lag.
• Workflow configurations could be improved.

SEE: Look at Oracle and Workday in this comparison of HR software.

Review methodology

To compare these two HR software suites, we examined product documentation, viewed demos and videos, and consulted user reviews. We considered factors such as the user interface and experience, core HR features, advanced tools, customer support and security.

Should your organization use Oracle Cloud HCM or SAP HXM Suite?

Like most other Oracle products, Oracle Cloud HCM is geared toward enterprise businesses with thousands of employees. It is also designed to be used in conjunction with the rest of the Oracle software stack. If you are part of a corporation that already uses other Oracle products or is thinking about switching your software stack to Oracle, then Oracle Cloud HCM might make sense for you.

On the other hand, SAP SuccessFactors caters more to medium and large businesses with several employees rather than thousands (though plenty of enterprises also use it). It offers a nice balance of complexity and usability for growing companies that need a more sophisticated HR software solution that is still easy enough to navigate. However, its features will be excessive for most small businesses, and it still presents a learning curve for beginners.

Still not sure which HR solution to choose after comparing SAP and Oracle? There are plenty of other high-performance HR software platforms besides Oracle Cloud HCM and SAP HXM Suite. Check out our roundup of the best HR software for 2023 to see what else is out there.