What Is 15Five?
Primarily, 15Five is performance management software that is meant to be a supplement for human resource (HR) teams, managers and employees to achieve success individually and as a whole. The best employee management software typically includes features to help with one-on-one meetings, performance reviews and employee growth, but not all do.
At Forbes Advisor, we recognized 15Five on our list of the best talent management software because it focuses on employee engagement and growth. Through its many manager- and employee-led features, 15Five can help you foster a positive work environment.
Pros
Use 15Five’s engagement surveys to take the pulse of employees’ and teams’ view of your current workplace vibe. After everyone answers questions related to trust, authenticity, purpose and role clarity, to name a few, you’ll be able to get a clear view of what everyone thinks about your company. With these insights, you can then create objectives and key results (OKRs) to improve workplace culture or morale.
Employee growth is a big part of talent management, so 15Five included several tools to help with manager-led and self-guidance to employees’ career goals. You can define roles clearly for each person, organize one-on-one performance reviews, create objectives and track progress.
Directly related to engagement and morale is recognition, but 15Five doesn’t leave it just to managers to deliver praise. Employees can offer peers high fives digitally to show appreciation for a job well done or for something someone may have done to go above and beyond. These high fives are published publicly in the app so that the whole company can see that recognition.
Cons
Most HR software includes a few tools to help with performance management, but 15Five is strictly performance and talent management focused. That focus means there are no core HR features, so you won’t find applicant tracking or benefits administration. The workaround is that 15Five integrates with many human resource information systems (HRIS), such as Gusto, BambooHR and Rippling.
User reviews for 15Five are mostly positive, but employee user reviews are mixed. Some point out that 15Five sends many emails and notifications, which can be distracting. There are also complaints that the software makes the employee-manager relationship a bit awkward.
It’s also important to consider the cost, which could be too high for small businesses that may consider 15Five more of a supplemental system.
Featured Partners
1
Rippling
Yes
Yes
$35/month plus $8 PEPM
2
OnPay
Yes
Yes
$40 per month + $6 per user
3
Paychex Flex
Yes
Yes
$39-plus per month, depending on company size and needs (6 month free offer)
4
Gusto
Yes
Yes
$40 per month plus $6 per user
15Five Core Features
Performance Management
Employee management isn’t just about tracking paid time off (PTO) and work anniversaries, which is why 15Five focuses on employee performance from many different angles. There are one-on-one meetings (along with templates), self-reviews, manager-led reviews, feedback for managers and peer reviews.
Engagement Assessment
The main features of 15Five are related to employee engagement. You can survey your workforce to find out what works and what doesn’t and then set OKRs to improve in the areas in which you score lowest. Then reassess and set new goals. With 15Five, it’s all about creating a positive work environment at all levels.
Personal and Professional Growth
The performance and engagement features of 15Five lead into the personal and career growth features of the platform. You can set individual goals, team objectives and company OKRs. Run reports to analyze current and historical data for a clear measurement of how everyone’s growth is going. All of this then leads to making informed decisions on promotions and raises and, in the end, contributes to employee retention.
15Five Pricing & Plans
There is no free plan for 15Five, but you can get a 14-day free trial or contact sales for a demo. You have four plans from which you can choose, which are built with specific teams in mind.
| Engage | Perform | Total Platform | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Monthly Cost (per User)*
|
$4
|
$10
|
$16
|
|
Engagement Surveys
|
✔
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Assessments
|
✔
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Performance Review Templates
|
X
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Career Paths
|
X
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Self, Manager and Peer Reviews
|
X
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Objectives
|
X
|
X
|
✔
|
|
1-on-1 Meetings
|
X
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Role Clarity
|
X
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Request Feedback
|
X
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Slack, Google Ccalendar and Teams Integration
|
X
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
HR Integrations
|
X
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Multifactor Authentication
|
X
|
✔
|
✔
|
The low-cost 15Five plan Engage costs $4 per user, per month (billed annually) and includes features you’d use to gauge employees’ level of engagement, including surveys and topic-based assessments. You can analyze the data at various times, send surveys at a later date and reassess, using historical benchmarks.
To get more granular talent management features, you’d need to upgrade to the Perform plan, which costs $8 per user, per month (billed annually). It’s at this level you can set up one-on-one meetings, set career goals, conduct performance reviews (self, manager-led and peer reviews) and send high fives.
Total Platform is all of 15Five’s features, which costs $14 per user, per month (billed annually). You get the engagement assessment tools, talent management tools and integrations with more than 20 apps.
15Five Ease of Use
From templates to premade surveys, 15Five makes it easy to get started with talent management. You can also create custom questions for surveys and one-on-one meetings, so you don’t have to stick to 15Five’s scripts. Dashboards are intuitive, making it simple to find what you need. Reports and charts are colorful and easy to understand.
15Five Security
Every 15Five customer is entitled to data privacy, so you can expect all data that touches 15Five servers to be encrypted with standard secure sockets layer (SSL) certificate encryption. All plan levels can use a single sign-on (SSO) or multifactor authentication (MFA) integration. The top three plans get MFA automatically for users, security logs and SOC 2 compliance.
15Five Customer Service & Support
Every user can access the 15Five help center, which includes articles with instructions on how to use features (along with screenshots for visual learners). Alternatively, you can open a support ticket with 15Five’s support staff through the app or by email. Support hours are limited to 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern time on weekdays.
15Five Additional features
Although there isn’t a built-in learning center, 15Five offers a training and coaching hub. Managers can get training through the app to help them focus on positivity, motivation, psychological safety and personal growth mindset. Use the coaching hub to schedule sessions with coaching facilitators from 15Five to help managers learn how to communicate better, face change, develop a management style and focus on team performance.
15Five Alternatives & How They Compare
| 15Five | Rippling | Freshteam | Paycor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Forbes Advisor Rating
|
 |
 |
|
 |
|
Monthly Starting Price
|
$4 per user
|
$8 per user
|
$1 per user
|
Custom quote
|
|
Free Trial
|
14 days
|
14 days
|
21 days
|
14 days
|
|
Engagement Surveys
|
✔
|
✔
|
X
|
✔
|
|
1-on-1 Meetings
|
✔
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
|
Employee Recognition
|
✔
|
X
|
X
|
X
|
|
Peer Reviews
|
✔
|
✔
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Applicant Tracking
|
X
|
✔
|
✔
|
✔
|
|
Customer Support
|
Email and help center
|
Email, live chat and help center
|
Email and help center
|
Email, phone and help center
|
|
Learn More
|
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Read Reviews
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When you compare 15Five to other talent management software, you’ll see a few similarities, but mostly differences. While 15Five focuses on employee management and growth, others like Rippling, Freshteam and Paycor home in on the recruitment and retention of employees.
15Five vs. Rippling
Both 15Five and Rippling have affordable starter plans (though Rippling is pricier) and include engagement surveys and peer reviews, but that’s where the comparison falls off. Rippling is more of a workforce management app that includes recruitment tools and payroll while 15Five is all about employee engagement, growth and recognition.
Featured Partners
1
OnPay
Yes
Yes
$40 per month + $6 per user
2
SurePayroll
Yes
Yes
$29.99/mo plus $5 per employee
3
Gusto
Yes
Yes
$40 per month plus $6 per user
4
Rippling
Yes
Yes
$35 per month + $8 per user
5
Justworks
Yes
Yes
$50/month + $8/user
15Five vs. Freshteam
Much like other talent management apps, Freshteam offers core features for hiring, onboarding and PTO tracking. It’s more affordable than 15Five, but it doesn’t offer insight into what employees think about the workplace. You can engage employees with peer reviews, but Freshteam is best described as an applicant tracking system.
15Five vs. Paycor
Paycor defines itself as human capital management (HCM) software, so it covers payroll, compliance support and gives employees access to benefits and insurance — none of which 15Five offers. Paycor recently added employee engagement surveys, but it doesn’t quite go as deep with assessments as 15Five, nor does it include built-in coaching and employee growth features.
Is 15Five Right for You or Your Business?
If you’re looking for a way to assess employee engagement, coach employees and managers and motivate teams, 15Five could be good supplemental HR software for your needs. If you’re looking specifically for applicant tracking software (ATS) for interviewing, hiring and onboarding, 15Five is not right for you. Nor is it an HRIS, so you won’t get access to core HR functions, such as benefits and insurance packages.
Payroll Solutions Tailored To Your Business Goals
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the use of employee engagement software?
The goal of any employee engagement software is to assess how invested an employee is in the company for which they work. Then the company works to improve in the areas in which they scored low. It benefits the employee to ensure their happiness at work and benefits the employer with a high retention rate.
Why use 15Five?
Managers can use 15Five to develop and improve management style. The employee engagement software can also help give employees a voice so upper management hears their concerns and praises. It also encourages peer recognition, review and feedback to improve communication and create a positive work environment.
Are 15Five reviews anonymous?
The anonymity of 15Five reviews are dependent on roles. Employee reviews of managers will be visible by the manager’s boss and only visible if the boss decides to share it with an employee’s manager. Peer reviews are visible by managers and only then visible to the reviewee if the manager shares it with them.
What are the benefits of employee management software?
Employee management software can make it far easier to onboard, train and schedule employees. It also simplifies benefits administration, payroll and employee records. On the whole, it should save you a ton of time and give you more insights into employee performance and satisfaction.
