15Five Review 2023: Pricing, Features & Alternatives
15Five is a performance management software with employee engagement features. It is designed to help businesses promote a culture of continuous feedback and align their goals to increase team performance and achieve better decision-making. It has surveys, OKRs, talent matrix, strengths discovery, and 1:1 meetings. While it offers essential employee engagement features, most are only available in the higher-priced plans. This and other factors greatly impact 15Five’s score in our evaluation of the best employee engagement tools.
Despite this, 15Five is an affordable solution, especially for small to midsize businesses. Its paid plans start at $4/user monthly and come with both an Android and iOS mobile version.
Overall Score:
4.26 / 5
Pros
- Robust reporting and analytics features
- Has OKRs and performance tracking
- Continuous recognition and feedback features
Cons
- Pricing plan can be a bit complicated
- Basic plan has limited features
What We Recommend 15Five For
15Five Deciding Factors
Supported Business Types | Data-driven businesses, high-growth organizations, remote teams |
Free Trial | 14-day free trial |
Pricing* |
Manager Training and Coaching Plans**
*15Five only provided the annual billing quote on their website **These plans are designed for managers only and have a different set of features from the three core plans. |
Standout Features |
|
Ease of Use |
|
Customer Support | Chat, knowledge base, FAQs, forum, email, help desk |
How 15Five Compares With Top Alternatives
Best For | Starter Fees | 1:1 Meetings | Employee Profiles | Our Reviews | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Continuous feedback | $4/user/month | âś“ | âś“ | Â |
 | Annual performance management | $8.75/employee/month* | âś• | âś“ | |
 | Microbusinesses or solopreneurs | $35/user/month | âś• | âś“ | |
 | Businesses with flat organizational structure | $4/user/month | âś“ | âś“ | |
*The price was based on a quote for businesses with 20 employees on its Advantage plan.
15Five got a 4.63 rating out of 5 in the pricing criterion. It took a hit because it has no free version, but it has a 14-day free trial version, which is enough for users to become familiar with the platform. For its paid plans, the most basic is Engage, which focuses on employee engagement; thus, if your main goal is to improve engagement, getting this plan is enough.
If you want to have performance review tools as well, its Perform plan has OKRs, action tool planning, and goal setting and tracking. On the other hand, the Total Platform plan includes the whole package and provides tools for managers to make employee management much easier.
Aside from these plans, 15Five also offers two separate plans—Transform and Transform Accelerator—with features for managers to help them improve their management and coaching skills. Transform is at $99/manager/month and includes live Manager Mastermind sessions every month and other coaching tutorials. Transform Accelerator is at $220/manager/month and gives managers access to everything in the Transform plan, plus group coaching for up to 10 managers.
Engage | Perform | Total Platform | |
|---|---|---|---|
Monthly fee | $4/user/month | $10/user/month | $16/user/month |
Heatmaps | âś“ | âś“ | âś“ |
Surveys | âś“ | âś“ | âś“ |
Custom assessments | âś“ | âś“ | âś“ |
360* feedback | âś• | âś“ | âś“ |
Talent matrix | âś• | âś“ | âś“ |
Career hub | âś• | âś“ | âś“ |
HRIS integrations | âś• | âś“ | âś“ |
Video courses | âś• | âś“ | âś“ |
Manager training resources | âś• | âś“ | âś“ |
Although 15Five has notable employee engagement features, it got a 3.5 rating out of 5 in this criterion because some of these features are only available in the higher-priced plans. Nevertheless, its lower-tier plan has some notable employee engagement tools like pulse surveys, engagement surveys, and assessments.
Below is a list of 15Five’s standout employee engagement features:
Some of the surveys you can utilize on 15Five’s platform include:
- Core engagement surveys: These surveys are designed to collect feedback from employees on a variety of topics, including their satisfaction with their work, their relationship with their manager, and their overall sense of belonging to the company.
- Topic-based surveys: These are designed to collect feedback from employees on specific topics, such as burnout, diversity and inclusion, or working from home.
- Custom surveys: These surveys are designed to collect feedback from employees on topics that are specific to your organization.
- eNPS surveys: These surveys are designed to collect feedback from employees on their overall satisfaction with your organization.
15Five offers a variety of reward and recognition features that can help you show appreciation for your employees and motivate them to do their best work. These features include:
- High Fives: They can be sent by managers, peers, or even customers to show that their work is appreciated and that they are valued members of the team.
High Five is a great way to show appreciation for employees and to create a positive and supportive work environment. (Source: 15Five)
- Badges: They can be awarded for things like meeting goals, completing projects, or going above and beyond. Badges are a great way to show employees that their hard work is paying off.
- Rewards: These rewards include gift cards, merchandise, and even experiences. Rewards are a great way to show employees that you value their contributions and that you want to keep them motivated.
15Five has both custom and targeted assessments:
- Custom assessments: They are created by businesses to specifically address their unique needs. The questions and topics covered in a custom assessment will vary depending on the business. They can be a good option for businesses that want to get feedback on specific areas of their company, such as their culture, their performance management process, or their employee engagement initiatives.
- Targeted assessments: They are based on a set of predefined questions and topics. Targeted assessments can be a good option for businesses that want to get feedback on a broad range of topics, such as their work-life balance, their career development opportunities, or their overall satisfaction with their jobs.
The Talent Matrix is a visualization tool that helps businesses identify top and at-risk performers. It is based on the Private Manager Assessment, which asks managers to rate their direct reports on a variety of factors, such as performance, potential, and fit. It uses this data to create a visual representation of the distribution of talent within the organization.
The Talent Matrix can be used to identify top performers who may be ready for promotion or other opportunities. It can also be used to identify at-risk performers who may need additional support or development. The Talent Matrix can be a valuable tool for businesses that want to improve their workforce planning and performance management.
15Five’s talent matrix is a visualization tool that helps businesses identify top and at-risk performers based on their performance, potential, and fit. (Source: 15Five)
15Five’s coaching features are designed to help businesses provide their employees with the support they need to be successful. These features include:
- 1:1 Coaching: This feature allows managers and employees to have private, confidential coaching conversations about goals, performance, and development.
- Coaching Plans: This enables managers and employees to create custom coaching plans which can be used to track progress, set goals, and identify areas for improvement.
- Coaching Templates: This is a library of pre-made coaching templates to help managers start coaching conversations or to refresh their memory on specific topics.
- Coaching Reports: This feature provides data-driven insights into coaching conversations. They can also be used to track progress, identify areas for improvement, and make informed decisions about coaching.
15Five received a 4.5 out of 5 rating in this criterion. It would have scored higher if it did not limit some of its reporting and analysis capabilities in its higher-priced plans. However, even without these advanced features, 15Five can still provide value to businesses. While comprehensive reporting and analytics capabilities are undoubtedly beneficial for organizations seeking in-depth insights and data-driven decision-making, the software offers other valuable features in its lower-tiered plans that can contribute to improved communication, feedback, and performance management.
Even without extensive reporting and analytics, 15Five’s core functionalities include features such as goal setting, regular check-ins, and feedback loops, which can foster a culture of transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement within teams. These features enable managers and employees to align on goals, track progress, and provide feedback, leading to increased engagement, performance, and employee development.
Furthermore, the basic reporting features available in the lower-tiered plans of 15Five can still offer visibility into individual and team performance, allowing organizations to monitor progress and identify areas for improvement. While they may not provide the same level of customization as higher-tiered plans, they can still provide valuable insights to inform discussions, coaching, and performance evaluations.
15Five got a perfect score in this criterion because it integrates with a number of popular HR software and communication tools, including:
- Slack
- Jira
- Rippling
- Google Calendar
- Gusto
- Zapier
- BambooHR
- Microsoft Azure
- Workday HCM
- Okta
- Sapling
- Namely
- Freshteam
- LearnUpon
- OneLogin
- Agiliron
- SimplyMerit
- OnSched API
- BetterCloud
- Clearlogin
- Blissfully
- Pacific Timesheet
- Fuel50
- Trelica
- Unit4 Compensation Planning
- NextBee
- saasmetrix
- Clean and organized interface
- Simple onboarding process
- Intuitive features
- Responsive customer support
15Five offers a user-friendly experience with its clean and organized interface, ensuring that users can navigate the software effortlessly. The simple onboarding process allows new users to quickly get acquainted with the platform and start utilizing its features. With its intuitive functionalities, 15Five provides a seamless experience for managing performance and facilitating communication within teams. Additionally, the software offers responsive customer support, ensuring that users can receive timely assistance and resolve any issues they may encounter.
To gain insights into the platform from real-world users, we examined third-party review websites to gather feedback and opinions regarding their experience with the software. This allowed us to consider the perspectives and firsthand accounts of individuals who have utilized the platform in practical settings.
Those that left positive 15Five reviews allowed them to spot potential problems before they become a large issue. Another review said that it helped them manage their employees much easier. On the other hand, those who left negative reviews mentioned that there’s a lack of diversity in the questions, and they tend to be repetitive at times. As a whole, the positive reviews outweigh the negative ones, which contributed to the 5 out of 5 rating in this criterion.
- G2: 4.6 out of 5 based on 1,745+ reviews
- Capterra: 4.7 out of 5 based on 880+ reviews
How We Evaluated 15Five
In our guide to the best employee engagement tools, we evaluated different providers based on their features, pricing, and ease of use. We looked for those that could help businesses improve employee engagement by providing social recognition, rewards and incentives, feedback, analytics, and other features. Meanwhile, we excluded those that were too focused on one aspect of employee engagement, too complicated to use, or not affordable for most businesses.
Click on the tabs below to see the breakdown of our criteria:
25%
Pricing
30%
Employee Engagement Features
20%
Reporting and Analysis
5%
Popularity
10%
Integration
10%
Ease of Use
25% of Overall Score
We assessed the cost and value proposition of each employee engagement tool, considering factors such as pricing structure, affordability, and the correlation between features and benefits.
30% of Overall Score
We evaluated the breadth and effectiveness of the features dedicated to fostering employee engagement, including performance reviews, feedback tools, goal management, and learning and development capabilities.
20% of Overall Score
We examined the tools’ capacity to generate comprehensive reports, visualize data, and provide valuable insights on various aspects such as performance, engagement, and other relevant metrics.
5% of Overall Score
We took into account the star ratings and user reviews available on popular third-party review websites, considering the tool’s reputation and user base.
10% of Overall Score
We assessed the ease and compatibility of integrating the tools with other existing systems within an organization’s tech stack, such as HRIS, communication tools, or learning management systems.
10% of Overall Score
We evaluated the user experience and interface design, considering factors such as intuitiveness, ease of navigation, and overall user-friendliness, to ensure a positive and efficient user experience.
*Percentages of overall score
Bottom Line
15Five is a comprehensive employee engagement platform that can help businesses improve employee engagement, performance, and development. However, it has some drawbacks, as some of its features are only available in higher-tiered plans. Overall, it is a great option for businesses looking for a comprehensive employee engagement platform. The platform is easy to use, affordable, and offers a wide range of features. If you are looking for a way to improve employee engagement, performance, and development, 15Five is a great option to consider. Sign up for a 15Five plan today.
