2023 Spark Hire Review: Pricing, Features & Alternatives
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Juvy has over 10 years of content writing experience and was a licensed teacher. She has evaluated and written about dozens of payroll and HR software solutions for small business to provide the best answers to your software questions.
This article is part of a larger series on Hiring.
Spark Hire is an easy-to-use, web-based interview software that helps simplify candidate screening and hiring by integrating with applicant tracking systems and providing collaboration tools. Users can anonymize candidate information to reduce bias, share comments with other team members, and quickly rate candidates. Spark Hire has four plans, starting at $149 per month.
With an overall score of 4.61 out of 5, Spark Hire got at least 4 in all categories except pricing, for not offering a free plan or free trial, and popularity, for fewer than 500 reviews on popular user sites such as Capterra and G2. On the other hand, it got perfect marks for video tools, functionality, and reporting criteria. Because of its easy-to-use platform and strong video interviewing tools, it also got a perfect score for our Expert Review, helping it land atop our video interview software for employers guide.
Spark Hire Overview
Overall Score:
4.61 / 5
Pros
- Easy-to-use interface
- Two video interview options
- Self-scheduling feature
- ATS integration
Cons
- Expensive for multiple jobs
- Lacks free plan
Deciding Factors
- Pricing: $149–$499; custom; no free trial
- Features:
- Multilanguage capability
- Unlimited interviews for all plans
- Limited storage capability but can purchase additional
- Customer Support: Live chat, email
What We Recommend Spark Hire For
Spark Hire has a self-scheduling feature, which makes it easy for candidates and the hiring team to find a schedule that works for everyone. Its mobile app allows busy professionals to conduct interviews from anywhere with an internet connection and review recordings if they were unavailable during the interview. Spark Hire is our top video interview software because of its rich video interviewing features, such as a mobile app, self-scheduling, and replay capability.
In short, Spark Hire is best for:
- Businesses that hire international and remote workers: Sometimes, hiring managers may want to do live interviews for remote or international job positions. Spark Hire’s integration with most calendar and ATS tools, like Zoho Recruit and SmartRecruiters, makes it easy to schedule, conduct, and evaluate interviews.
- Staffing companies or recruiters: Spark Hire makes it convenient for recruiters and staffing firms to encourage candidates to self-register through an open interview link and communicate with applicants in bulk. The one-way video interviews can be particularly helpful for recruiters needing to review multiple candidate interviews but at the times most convenient for them.
- On-the-go hiring managers: Spark Hire’s mobile app allows employers and applicants to connect conveniently. Members of a hiring team can also review interviews through the app. Regardless of their location, as long as they can connect to the internet, they can watch and evaluate interviews left by candidates.
When Spark Hire Would Not Be a Good Fit
- Small businesses looking for a free video interview software: Spark Hire has removed its free 14-day trial and doesn’t have a free forever plan. You may consider using myInterview, which offers a free plan for one job and two users.
- Businesses that hire anywhere from six to 10 jobs at a time: If a company needs to fill more than five jobs at any one time but doesn’t really need unlimited job ads, Spark Hire’s pricing might be too expensive. Consider Breezy HR, which allows unlimited users, candidates, and positions starting at a monthly rate of $171.
- Organizations wanting video interviewing and recruiting in one tool: Although Spark Hire can integrate with applicant tracking systems, it doesn’t have its own recruiting features. Instead, you may consider Avature, which includes video interviewing as part of its hiring platform.
Looking for something different?
Read our guide to the best recruiting software for small businesses.
Spark Hire Top Alternatives
 |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|
Best for | Businesses that want to streamline video interviewing and recruiting | Businesses interviewing for more than five jobs and looking for an affordable solution | Small businesses looking for a free basic video interview software |
Monthly fees | Custom | $171; has a free plan | $79; has a free plan |
Since Our Last Update:
Spark Hire plans’ pricing has changed from $199 to $149 for the lowest tier now Lite (formerly Starter), $249 to $299 for the Pro plan, and $599 to $499 for its Growth plan (formerly Team). The features are essentially the same, except for some modifications to the Growth plan—and the custom-priced Enterprise plan—in its number of jobs and users. The Growth plan, which formerly supported unlimited jobs, is now limited to 10 jobs and a custom number of users.
Spark Hire got 3.5 out of 5 for pricing because of its transparent pricing and affordability. The lack of a free option and free trial, as well as its monthly minimum being higher than $99, pulled its score down.
Spark Hire offers four plans—Lite, Pro, Growth, and Enterprise—which all include unlimited interviews, interview scheduling, video messages, interview evaluation and comments, ratings, and 24/7 support and live training. For the Enterprise plan, you have to contact the provider to get specific pricing. Here’s what to expect from the plans.
Starter | Pro | Team | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Monthly Fees | $149 | $299 | $499 | Custom |
Number of Jobs | 1 | 5 | 10 jobs | Unlimited |
Number of Users | 3 | 5 | 6+ | 10+ |
Video Library Storage | 1GB | 5GB | 20GB | 20GB |
One-way and Live Interviews | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Intro/Outro Videos and Video Questions | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Integrations: ATSes, Google Chrome, and Zapier | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) Suite | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Adjustable Time Limits, Analytics | N/A | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Security Evaluation, Dedicated Onboarding, and Success Manager | N/A | N/A | ✓ | ✓ |
API Access for Development, Two-factor Authentication | N/A | N/A | N/A | ✓ |
Spark Hire stores recorded and uploaded videos in the video library. Custom intro videos and video questions are also stored here. If additional storage is required, Spark Hire allows account holders to purchase additional storage at $15 per month for 5GB. When users exceed the limit, they’ll be automatically billed an extra $15 on the next month.
Because of Spark Hire’s complete set of video tools that we deemed helpful for small businesses, it got a perfect score for this criterion. These tools include transcripted interviews, chat features in live interviews, pre-recorded interview questions and candidate responses, collaboration tools for the hiring team, and screen sharing.
Video Messaging
With this feature, users can design videos with suitable messages for various purposes. For example, you can create videos to make your brand stand out and attract more candidates. Or when hiring new employees, you or anyone on the hiring team can record videos that will encourage applicants to move forward to the next step in the hiring process. You can also welcome new employees by sending them a video message, or send a video memo to your existing employees. If you’re a recruiter, you may use video messages to sell open positions when sourcing talent.
One-way Video Interview
One option to conduct interviews on Spark Hire is via one-way video. Users can create sets of questions that candidates should answer in their interviews. You can indicate the number of attempts candidates can make or how long their answers should be. The candidates will capture their answers to the interview questions using a webcam or through the Spark Hire mobile app.
Create interview questions and save them as templates. (Source: Spark Hire)
You can save the interview questions you’ve created for future use and ensure that you’re consistent in doing interviews for the specific position. This feature is beneficial for candidates as they can make their videos during their most convenient time. Members of the hiring team can also review, share, and rate the interviews on demand. With this option, there’s no need to worry about fitting the interview in your schedule.
Live Video Interview
In this option, the hiring team conducts a real-time video interview with the candidate via a web browser. Users or applicants don’t need to download software to join the interview. You can also record the live interview for easy review later.
With Spark Hire’s tools, you can make your interviews look more professional by customizing colors and adding your logo. Live video interviews allow you to meet candidates personally, regardless of their location.
Conduct live interviews via a web browser. (Source: Spark Hire)
Interview Evaluation
Spark Hire has evaluation tools to help users shortlist candidates and respond to candidates that don’t make it to the next step.
From the dashboard, you can filter interviews and review applicants interviewing for the same position. Members of the hiring team can rate the candidates on a five-star scale and the average score is immediately calculated. Users can then create a shortlist by sorting video interviews by rating and determine which candidates go to the next round.
For candidates who don’t make the cut, you can also document the reason why they weren’t chosen. You can send an email to unsuccessful candidates to ensure a good candidate experience, letting them know their applications didn’t just get lost.
Users can send emails to candidates who don’t make the shortlist. (Source: Spark Hire)
Interview Collaboration
With Spark Hire, you can share video interviews with the hiring team and get feedback. The shared interviews are displayed on a branded landing page with your company colors and logo. Hiring managers don’t have to log in to see the shared video interviews. Users can post comments for a specific interview, which other users can also see. You’ll get alerts when hiring managers watch the video interview, so you’ll know when to follow-up with them. You’ll also receive email notifications when hiring team members comment on and rate the interview.
Hiring team members can rate candidates and leave comments on interviews. (Source: Spark Hire)
Spark Hire got a perfect score in this criterion due to its robust video interview tools. It helps users quickly find potential employees by efficiently scheduling interviews by allowing applicants to book based on the availability of the interviewer(s). To do this, users must integrate their calendar app to Spark Hire. It supports most calendar applications, including Microsoft 365, Apple, MS Exchange, Google, and Outlook. You can then send your scheduling link to applicants individually or in bulk.
Invited applicants will see your availability and choose a time on your branded scheduling page (complete with your logo, colors, and picture). If you’re interviewing international applicants, your availability will appear in the applicant’s time zone. After selecting a time and providing their information, you’ll automatically receive a request via email.
Quickly view and manage your events from the dashboard. (Source: Spark Hire)
From the dashboard, you can manage all events; accept, decline, cancel, or reschedule events as necessary. You can also access a time log of all interviews booked through the platform.
Spark Hire got a perfect mark for reporting because apart from the basic reporting tools, it also lets you filter tables and charts containing hiring-related metrics. Spark Hire presents data using different graphs, charts, and tables. You can then download filtered data in .csv format.
- User-friendly interface
- 24/7 live chat support
- Live training
- Help center
This provider almost got a perfect mark for ease of use, if not for its lack of live customer support via phone. Still, Spark Hire has a straightforward interface, which makes navigation easy. Users without much technical experience can explore the dashboard and quickly learn to use the features.
In case of technical issues, they can check the Help Center, which contains general FAQs and a troubleshooting guide for both candidates and companies. The Help Center also has a dedicated section on “Technical Requirements and Troubleshooting.” For immediate concerns, Spark Hire has a 24/7 live chat feature.
Another thing that makes Spark Hire easy to use is its mobile app. The app makes it convenient for busy professionals to review candidate interviews without opening their laptop.
Candidates can also complete the video interview using their mobile device, depending on their availability. If a candidate doesn’t have a webcam on their computer, they can use the mobile app to record their responses to one-way interviews. Or, if an applicant has a low-quality webcam, the mobile app allows them to capture high-definition videos using their phone camera, which usually has better specs than webcams.
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| One-way and live interview options | Limited number of users |
| Live training or onboarding service | Compatibility issues with old operating systems |
| Excellent knowledge base and support | |
This criterion, apart from pricing, is where Spark Hire scored low because of its fewer than 500 user reviews on G2 and Capterra. Despite that, Spark Hire is well-loved by its users for its easy-to-use platform. Recruiters and hiring managers said that Spark Hire effectively serves its purpose of making video interviews more convenient, whereas others mentioned they like the live training service that Spark Hire provides. Users also appreciate that they can easily refer to Spark Hire’s knowledge base for troubleshooting and contact its team for support.
Unfortunately, reviews point out the limited number of users associated with its Lite and Pro plans. Some users also reported compatibility issues, especially with devices running on older operating systems.
At the time of publication, Spark Hire reviews earned the following scores on popular user review sites:
- Capterra: 4.8 out of 5 based on about 100+ reviews
- G2: 4.8 out of 5 based on about 390 reviews
Based on our evaluation of the best interview software for employers, we highly recommend Spark Hire. It has a comprehensive set of video interview tools that will make one step of the hiring process simpler and more efficient. Plus, it’s easy to explore and master, so regardless of technical knowledge users should find Spark Hire comfortable to use.
Bottom Line
Aside from Spark Hire’s real-time and one-way or prerecorded video interview features, it has collaboration tools to provide feedback and rating. It also integrates with some applicant tracking systems and most calendar apps, which makes recruiting more convenient. Candidates and users also have access to Spark Hire’s mobile app.
