Bullhorn alternatives: six recruiting tools compared on price and trial

Six tools set against Bullhorn

The six Bullhorn alternatives for a small agency are Recruit CRM, Manatal, Loxo, Recruiterflow, Crelate and JobAdder, each set against Bullhorn's applicant tracking system (ATS) and CRM. Bullhorn Starter is $99 per user per month and Core is $165, both billed per user monthly, as read on October 27, 2026.

Bullhorn sells Pro and Max by quote. Recruit CRM Pro is $109 per user per month billed monthly, the like-for-like figure, or $95 billed annually.

Why small agencies look past Bullhorn

Bullhorn's small-agency pricing page says in its FAQ that Bullhorn does not currently offer a free trial, while data in the page's code points to the sales team for trial options. Pro and Max are sold by quote, and the sales pipeline, Bullhorn's recruitment CRM, starts at Pro.

Bullhorn lists timesheets and client invoicing under Middle Office, a separate product. Onboarding and Back Office are optional and priced separately, and prices exclude VAT. Bullhorn's ATS and CRM page says small-agency plans are for teams of 1 to 10, while data on its pricing page says Starter is designed for 1 to 2 users.

In its favor, Bullhorn includes free implementation with Starter, Core and Pro, and Core adds an app marketplace with 300+ partners, custom fields and workflows, LinkedIn integrations and an email sidebar.

Recruit CRM and Manatal for small desks

Recruit CRM puts deal pipelines and invoicing on every plan. On monthly billing, Pro at $109 sits between Bullhorn Starter at $99 and Core at $165. Pick it for a contingency or contract desk that wants the client pipeline and invoicing from its first plan; Recruit CRM vs Bullhorn sets the two plan by plan.

Manatal vs Bullhorn is a price question first. Manatal Professional is $15 per user per month billed annually, or about $19 billed monthly (Manatal's page data), against Bullhorn Starter's $99. It caps an account at 15 jobs, and workflow automation starts on its Enterprise plan.

Loxo, Recruiterflow and Crelate for larger teams

Loxo vs Bullhorn is annual prepayment against monthly billing. Loxo Core starts at $149 per user per month, billed annually and paid up front, with no monthly option. Loxo offers a free 7-day trial of the full Professional platform with no credit card, and Professional includes 2,500 credits per seat per month. Recruit CRM vs Loxo sets Loxo beside Recruit CRM.

Recruiterflow Platform is $119 per user per month billed annually and $149 billed monthly (Recruiterflow's page data), which on monthly billing sits above Bullhorn Starter and below Core. It lists unlimited jobs, candidates, contacts and companies and says it has no add-ons. Its pricing page shows demo buttons and no trial wording.

Crelate vs Bullhorn: Essentials is $85 per user per month, paid annually, for up to 2 users and 20k contacts. Business is $119 per user per month, billed annually or monthly, as one figure for both. Crelate says you can start a free trial without talking to sales.

JobAdder and Vincere next to Bullhorn

JobAdder vs Bullhorn starts with price, and JobAdder shows none. Its pricing page says to request pricing and takes you through a demo. Its plans follow team size: Recruiter Lite for 1 to 5 users, Essential for 6 to 20 and Pro for 21 or more.

Vincere's price is on Vincere's own pricing page. Its plans follow team size too: Startup is a flat monthly fee for one user, Core is for 2 to 7 users, and Pro, priced to your agency, is for 7 or more. Startup and Core run on a 30-day rolling contract.

Stay on Bullhorn when free implementation, the Core marketplace and LinkedIn integrations matter more than the seat price. Pick Recruit CRM for a 30-day trial and invoicing on every plan, Manatal for a $15 seat on annual billing, and Loxo for a 7-day trial of Professional. The best CRM for recruitment agencies guide adds Zoho Recruit.

Recruit CRM opens with a 30-day trial that can end early at a usage cap, while Bullhorn's FAQ says it offers no free trial and its page points to sales for trial options.