TriNet vs TimeForge

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Our analysts compared TriNet vs TimeForge based on data from our 400+ point analysis of HR Management Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.

Product Basics

TriNet is a cloud-based HR solution that’s ideal for small and medium-sized businesses, focusing on payroll, benefits and compliance.

Acquired by TriNet in February 2022, Zenefits was previously recognized for its all-in-one approach to HR, emphasizing benefits administration and employee management. The platform supports onboarding new employees, tracking time and attendance, managing payroll and monitoring performance.

After running through the demo, I felt that navigation was particularly well-suited for beginners. Its simple layout streamlines administrative tasks without needing extensive HR expertise.

An issue a lot of workplaces face is handling employee burnout. Many users mention how easy it is to submit PTO, helping their employees take the time off they need without needing admin approval.

Another common HR challenge is benefits enrollment. With so many plan options, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. On top of that, employees often have limited time to make decisions, which can lead to rushed choices or forgetting to enroll at all. TriNet addresses these challenges by providing tools like automated notifications and detailed cost breakdowns to simplify the enrollment process.

Users appreciate the user-friendly interface and automated processes, which lessen the manual workload for HR teams. Some consider it basic, but most value its straightforward design. In contrast, opinions vary on customer support wait times.

There are three pricing plans: Essentials $8 annually or $10 monthly, Growth $16 annually or $20 monthly, and Zen $27 annually or $33 monthly, all charged per user. For exact pricing information, we recommend requesting a quote from their website.

Overall, TriNet helps manage payroll, benefits and employee performance with tools like time tracking, automated payroll and employee engagement surveys.

What else can it do? Let’s take a closer look.


TriNet at a Glance

Support Options
  • Phone and email
  • Training videos
  • Help Center
  • Chat
Top Modules/Functions and Our Analyst Score
  • Time and attendance (100)
  • Document management (98)
  • Payroll management (95)
Strengths
  • User-friendly design
  • Easy benefits enrollment
  • Automation options
Limitations
  • Mixed reviews on customer support wait times.
  • Basic functionality may lack depth for advanced users.
Mobile Access Yes. (2.2 rating on Google Play)

Industry Specialties

Serves all industries, including but not limited to:

  • Healthcare
  • Technology
  • Manufacturing
  • Professional Services
  • Retail

Pricing Plans

Feature/Functionality

Essentials

Growth

Zen

Price

$8 annually, $10 monthly

$16 annually, $20 monthly

$27 annually, $33 monthly

Core HR Included

Yes

Yes

Yes

Benefits

Yes

Yes

Yes

Recruiting

Yes

Yes

Yes

Time and Attendance

Yes

Yes

Yes

HR Advisory Desk

Yes

Yes

Yes

People Analytics

No

Yes

Yes

Real-time Comparison Salary Data

No

Yes

Yes

Custom Compensation Benchmark Options

No

Yes

Yes

Goal Management

No

Yes

Yes

Employee Engagement Surveys

No

No

Yes

People Hub

No

No

Included

Payroll Tax Filing

Add-On

Add-On

Included

General Ledger

Add-On

Add-On

Included

Contractor payments

Add-On

Add-On

Included

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Timeforge is an all-in-one labor management solution that helps manage employee hiring, training, scheduling, communications and payroll. You can manage all aspects of your labor operations seamlessly from a centralized software without any data silos.

Its employee scheduling module provides a visual calendar that allows you to easily drag and drop shifts, ensuring optimal staffing levels at all times. Additionally, the built-in time tracking feature enables employees to clock in and out of work, eliminating the need for manual timesheets and reducing the risk of errors.

To help you run your team like clockwork, Timeforge also incorporates nifty HR and compliance management tools. You can manage employee records, track sick leave and vacation time, and ensure compliance with labor regulations. The software's built-in compliance alerts keep you informed about any changes in labor laws and avoid costly penalties.

The built-in messaging feature lets you communicate with your team easily, so you won’t lose important conversations across different platforms, minimizing the risk of miscommunication. Moreover, a native payment processor ensures same-day pay, boosting employee satisfaction and reducing administrative overhead.

Finally, Timeforge empowers you to make data-driven decisions with its labor analytics, reporting and sales forecasting capabilities. You can analyze employee performance, track labor costs and forecast future staffing needs based on historical data. This insight enables you to optimize your workforce, improve operational efficiency and drive business growth.

read more...
$8 Monthly
Get a free price quote
Tailored to your specific needs
$2.50/User, Monthly
Get a free price quote
Tailored to your specific needs
Small 
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Medium 
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Large 
i
Small 
i
Medium 
i
Large 
i
Windows
Mac
Linux
Android
Chromebook
Windows
Mac
Linux
Android
Chromebook
Cloud
On-Premise
Mobile
Cloud
On-Premise
Mobile

Product Assistance

Documentation
In Person
Live Online
Videos
Webinars
Documentation
In Person
Live Online
Videos
Webinars
Email
Phone
Chat
FAQ
Forum
Knowledge Base
24/7 Live Support
Email
Phone
Chat
FAQ
Forum
Knowledge Base
24/7 Live Support

Product Insights

  • Reduce Busy Work: Create approval workflows to make daily tasks more efficient. These workflows can be applied to any employee changes, including promotions, terminations and new hires. Automating these processes saves time and reduces administrative overhead. A couple of fully supported features that further cut down on manual work include ACA eligibility calculations and real-time data synchronization, according to our Express App.
  • Get Intelligent Insights: Access reports smoothly, from executives to administrators—with customizable permissions for security. Get real-time data through prebuilt reports on turnover, compensation, equal opportunity and more, plus create custom reports for your key KPIs.
    • TriNet fully supports timesheet management, custom fields, and charts and visualizations for data-driven decision-making.
  • Empower Employees: Let your employees take the reins with employee self-service (ESS) tools to manage their information, including viewing pay stubs and updating benefits elections.
    • New hires can self-enroll in benefits like healthcare and 401k during onboarding or later on.
    • Employees can update their personal info, such as family details, marital status updates, birthdays and work permits.
    • Self-service leave requests are moderately supported.
  • Provide Mobile Access: Check benefits, view pay stubs, access the company directory, clock in and out, and close tasks on the go. Admins can also cross off performance reviews, payroll and time off tasks right from their phones via mobile apps for iOS and Android devices.
    • Simplify PTO: View and request time off in a few steps on the mobile app.
  • Ensure Compliance: Ensure ACA compliance with built-in explanations, tailored configuration suggestions, e-filing, compliance status visibility, offboarding features and ERISA data storage.
  • Connect to Popular Platforms: Use third-party apps for ATS, productivity, 401(k), expense management, employee engagement, learning and development, and accounting (just to name a few). Apps include G Suite, Slack, OnPay and Salesforce.
  • Access TriNet Perks: Provide your employees access to discounts and corporate rates on brands like Costco, AMC Theaters, Disneyland, PODS, and Columbia Sportswear.
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  • Streamline PTO Handling: Timeforge offers a robust leave and absence management module that scored a perfect 100 rating from our analysts. It allows you to configure custom leave policies, track balances and set blackout periods, helping you handle leave requests efficiently while staying compliant with your organization's policies. The platform also supports partial day-offs and simplifies time-off requests and approvals for both employees and managers.
  • Simplify Scheduling: According to our data, the platform excels in its scheduling capabilities, offering every key scheduling feature ready to use out of the box. With features like ad-hoc scheduling, auto-scheduling and a drag-and-drop interface, you can easily create, modify and manage schedules. The system also identifies scheduling conflicts, supports multi-location scheduling and provides various visualization options to help you better understand and communicate schedules.
  • Adopt a Data-Driven Decision-Making Approach: The platform’s reporting and analytics capabilities are another strong suit, receiving a perfect rating from our analysts. With customizable dashboards and report templates, you can easily track KPIs and identify areas for improvement. Additionally, its sales forecasting capabilities enable you to analyze historical sales data and predict future demand, helping you optimize workforce allocation.
  • Ensure Compliance With Labor Regulations: Lastly, the platform offers a robust security and compliance management toolkit that got a 100 analyst rating. The solution adheres to industry-standard regulations such as FLSA, OSHA and GDPR, ensuring that your organization complies with relevant labor and data protection laws. Additionally, its role-based permissions and single sign-on capabilities provide security and control over access to sensitive employee data.
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  • Payroll: Log on, go to your payroll overview, and you'll see tasks you need to complete at the top. Click open payroll and review and approve your next pay run. There are also indicators that let you know if anything looks off to prevent payroll errors.
    • Pay Cycle Tracking: Monitor pay cycles and important dates categorized by employee groups (exempt vs non-exempt) with downloadable calendar views.
    • Advanced Issue Notifications: Receive indicators for potential payroll issues prior to final approval, with advanced filters for insights (location, department, job code).
    • Reimbursements: Make reimbursements easy. Choose the type (like driving) and enter the amount right on the platform.
  • Integrations: Integrate with popular accounting software platforms like Xero and QuickBooks.
  • Benefits Administration: Offer standard medical, dental and vision benefits, along with life and disability insurance. Additionally, there are commuter benefits, COBRA administration, workers comp, FSA and HSA. Filter from hundreds of providers for easy comparison and manage their information from a dashboard.
    • Transparent Pricing: Know where your money's going with monthly cost breakdowns that lay out all the details, from dental to life insurance.
  • Time Management: Keep an eye on clock-in/out times and hours worked with real-time dashboards. Set up customizable PTO policies, streamline workflows, view calendars, approve requests with a click and let employees manage their sick days/time-off requests.
  • TimeKeeper iPad App: Protect against fraud and time theft by taking pictures of employees when they check in or out.
  • Performance Management: Leverage goal management, meetings, action items and performance tracking. Run peer and 360-degree reviews using prebuilt templates and customizable questions.
  • Document Management: Centralize employee documents, create custom folders and specify which employees have access.
  • Recruiting and Hiring: Handle all your hiring tasks digitally, fast track completing offer letters with templates and run background checks.
    • Job Post Sharing: Share job listings on free job boards and social media, or boost them on paid channels with just a few clicks.
    • Automated Communication: Send automated texts, emails and notifications to prevent candidates from getting stuck in one step of the hiring process.
    • Candidate Profiles: Click on a candidate's name to access their profile, where you can view their resume, scorecard, assessments, emails, and documents all in one place. Easily reject or advance candidates with just a click from their profile.
    • Seamless Hiring: Once you select a candidate for hire, simply choose their start date and hit "hire." Celebrate when they’re officially onboarded.
  • Onboarding: New hire info syncs across the suite, so you won't have to enter it twice (or worry about double entry). New employees can also manage their part of the process to keep everything accurate and on time.
    • Employee Progress Dashboard: Track who’s completed enrollment and send reminders or invitations to new hires.
  • Compliance Assistant: Use this built-in tool to track federal HR deadlines and set custom reminders. You’ll find detailed explanations of compliance deadlines that could affect your business and sync reminders with your personal calendar. There are also resources to provide a better understanding of regulatory requirements, including ACA, COBRA, EEOC and I-9 compliance.
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  • Employee Management: Track candidates before they even become employees, seamlessly transferring information over to HR files. It can monitor the progress and completion of forms, exams and training, as well as notify employees of forms they need to complete before they even clock in for a shift.
  • Employee Self-Service: Provide employees with access to the system as soon as they accept an offer, allowing the new employee to enter all of their information into the database and freeing up managers to focus on other essential onboarding tasks.
  • Communication Tools: Send texts and alerts to individual employees or groups of staff members. Managers can send communications as necessary or enable the system to automatically send notifications regarding things like schedule changes or open shifts.
  • Mobile Access: Log into the platform from any internet-connected device, allowing managers and employees alike to complete essential tasks, such as clocking in for work or requesting a shift change. Mobile apps are available for both Android and iOS, with specific apps for employees and managers.
  • HR Types: Create, customize, categorize and track various types of files, including employee information sheets and tax forms. Managers and employees can both upload relevant documents and files, allowing for centralized storage and organization.
  • Learning and Development: Develop HR Activities and send them to employees for completion. Activities can include everything from collecting employee information to assigning training courses to employees.
read more...

Product Ranking

#25

among all
HR Management Software

#45

among all
HR Management Software

Find out who the leaders are

Analyst Rating Summary

72
we're gathering data
34
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85
we're gathering data
57
we're gathering data
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Analyst Ratings for Functional Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

TriNet
TimeForge
+ Add Product + Add Product
Applicant Tracking And Recruiting Benefits Management Compensation Management Document Management Employee Engagement Employee Onboarding And Administration Employee Self Service Learning Management Payroll Management Performance Management Platform Capabilities Reporting And Dashboard Succession Management Time And Attendance Management Workforce Management 34 85 57 98 69 78 73 34 95 47 50 79 14 100 49 0 25 50 75 100
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Analyst Ratings for Technical Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

TriNet
TimeForge
+ Add Product + Add Product
Availability And Scalability Deployment Options Integrations And Extensibility Mobile Platform Security 100 50 75 100 0 25 50 75 100
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Analyst Ratings for Vendor Qualification Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

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User Sentiment Summary

Great User Sentiment 1503 reviews
Excellent User Sentiment 41 reviews
82%
of users recommend this product

TriNet has a 'great' User Satisfaction Rating of 82% when considering 1503 user reviews from 5 recognized software review sites.

94%
of users recommend this product

TimeForge has a 'excellent' User Satisfaction Rating of 94% when considering 41 user reviews from 3 recognized software review sites.

5.0 (14)
n/a
4.0 (460)
5.0 (1)
4.2 (822)
4.7 (37)
4.0 (3)
n/a
3.7 (204)
4.5 (3)

Awards

SelectHub research analysts have evaluated TriNet and concluded it earns best-in-class honors for Time and Attendance Management and Training.

Time and Attendance Management Award
Training Award

TimeForge stands above the rest by achieving an ‘Excellent’ rating as a User Favorite.

User Favorite Award

Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews

Ease of Use: Many users find the platform simple to navigate, making it easy to view paychecks, track time and attendance, manage payroll, and administer benefits.
Automation: Payroll and benefits processes are largely automated, reducing manual tasks and improving efficiency.
Customer Support: The support team is often praised for being professional, friendly and helpful. There are various support options available, including chat and phone and the ability to track case submissions.
Smooth Benefits Enrollment: Most users like its insurance options (especially with it being all integrated right into the platform), including re-enrollment options, multiple language support and mobile enrollment. Overall, the majority found the process hassle-free.
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Time-Saving: Reviews mentioned that TimeForge significantly reduces the time spent on scheduling, payroll and other HR tasks.
Comprehensive Functionality: The platform offers a wide range of key HR tools out of the box. You don’t need to spend resources on integrating with external solutions.
Customization: TimeForge allows for a high level of customization to meet specific business needs, particularly in reporting and scheduling.
Customer Support: Users frequently praise the responsiveness and helpfulness of the customer support team during implementation and ongoing use.
Real-Time Data: The ability to access and manage real-time data remotely through the web-based platform is a significant advantage.
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Basic Functionality: Users find the platform design on the basic side, which can be a double-edged sword. While it simplifies navigation, it may feel less intuitive.
Customer Support Wait Times: Some users reported long wait times and the need to connect with multiple support representatives. There are designated support representatives, but the availability depends on the plan you opt for.
Integration Challenges: There have been difficulties linking multiple companies within the platform, complicating things like time-off approvals.
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Limited Mobile Access: Many users complained about the mobile app lacking essential features such as geofencing, customizable push notifications and offline scheduling.
Integration Issues: The lack of integration with certain systems like QuickBooks or sales programs limits the platform’s scope.
User Interface Challenges: Some users experienced minor issues with the user interface, such as fields being too narrow to view all information or the system refreshing and pulling users away from the section they were working on.
Complexity of Reports: The platform has a clunky and outdated reporting and analytics interface, which involves a steep learning curve.
Cost Concerns: The platform cost was a concern for some users, especially those from smaller or rural businesses.
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In HR, you're responsible for a lot of paperwork for core functions like recruiting, tax filing, payroll and performance management (just to name a few). Trying to keep every document organized and secure the old-fashioned way might feel like managing the Smithsonian.;TriNet can alleviate your document management woes by keeping everything in one place in the cloud.Its platform includes HR management and administration tools, recruiting, payroll and benefits. Overall, I found the design practical and simple. It didn't leave me guessing where to find things.;Manage access to folders and documents, create custom folders and specify which employees have access. In the upper right corner, you'll find your profile along with an arrow that reveals menu options. The top right also features your inbox, notifications, help and a handy search bar.It has separate tabs for worker and company documents. Creating folders to stay organized is easy with the bright orange "Create New Folder" option. Each document allows you to hover over it, where you can click the pencil icon to edit or the trash can icon to delete.Manage employees’ benefits eligibility, view benefit costs and change enrollment details. Scroll down and see everything covered under your plan, from dental and vision to life insurance. To get employees on board, set your open enrollment dates and automate notifications.;Customize email invites, preview the employee experience and ensure no one misses enrollment – once it’s open, they’ll see it as a task at the top of their dashboard.;There’s no guessing when it comes to employee costs, the company contribution and total because it’s laid out clearly in the monthly cost breakdown. Plus, when enrollment time rolls around, there’s a start renewal link, side-by-side plan comparisons and a quoting tool.;My favorite feature is the step-by-step guide because even if you’ve gone through the labyrinth of benefits enrollment seemingly a hundred times, there’s still a lot of ground to cover, which makes setting everything up less overwhelming. Make your enrollment setup unforgettable with benefits checklists that ensure employees don’t miss important options.The payroll module is reasonably straightforward. The layout is on the simple side, featuring main menu optionhs including Overviews, People, Timeline, Reports, Taxes, Forms and Settings.;Just like conveniently passing by a coffee shop on your way to work, essentially every payroll task you have to check off is connected and easy to find. Manage employee notifications, download payroll reports and approve payroll — all in one place.;The candidate landing page is simple. It shows the person’s name to the very left; on the right, you can view their contact info (there’s a phone icon and email icon), location, workflow status, source (like your career page) and the date they applied.So, what happens after clicking a candidate's name? You get directed to their profile and, from there, view their resume, scorecard, assessments, emails and documents. There are options at the top to reject or advance candidates. Once they move to hiring, you select their start date and press hire candidate, and ta-da — you’re greeted with virtual confetti.;I like that there are conveniently automated communication options like sending text messages. It's especially helpful if you’re hiring multiple people and don’t want to lose track of candidates or get anyone stuck in one of the hiring steps.;While everyone learns things at their own pace, from my perspective, I found TriNet a good fit for beginners.;

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TimeForge is a labor management platform offering various features to streamline hiring, scheduling, payroll and workforce tracking. Our experience with the software has been mixed, with both strengths and weaknesses.Setting up TimeForge was straightforward, with a user-friendly setup wizard guiding me through each step. The platform's intuitive interface made it easy to create schedules using the drag-and-drop editor. I appreciated the ability to customize intricate settings, such as pay rates, payment options, employee roles, permission groups and custom fields.While the user interface felt somewhat outdated compared to some competitors, it was still functional and easy to navigate. One of my favorite things was how organized the platform was, providing separate dashboards for tracking shift confirmations, swaps, templates, work periods and messages. You can also create custom dashboards to track key performance indicators specific to your business.TimeForge significantly improves the employee experience as well. Staff members can access their schedules, chat with colleagues and easily swap shifts. The platform's automatic prevention of early clock-ins and late punch-outs helps avoid time theft and ensure compliance. Additionally, the integration of staff surveys allows managers to gather feedback and improve the overall employee experience.However, there are some limitations to consider. The mobile app, while functional, is not as robust as those offered by competitors like Deputy, 7shifts and Sling. The lack of GPS tracking can make it challenging to verify employee locations during clock-ins and clock-outs. Additionally, the inability to create schedules offline and publish them later can be inconvenient.Also, TimeForge's integration capabilities are limited. It doesn’t integrate with popular sales and accounting solutions like QuickBooks and HubSpot. This requires you to manually enter sales, payroll and employee data, opening the door for errors and mistakes.Overall, TimeForge is a solid option for businesses of all sizes, but it’s important to weigh its strengths and weaknesses to see if it meets your specific needs. If mobile scheduling and extensive integrations are a priority, you may want to explore other options. However, if you’re looking for a user-friendly platform that can streamline processes and provide valuable insights, TimeForge is worth considering.

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Screenshots

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