5 PerformYard alternatives for performance reviews in 2025

If you’ve been evaluating PerformYard as a possible performance management software, then you’ve probably realized it has some powerful features, such as the ability to customize your review process, eliminate tedious HR tasks, write AI performance summaries, conduct 360 reviews, and analyze employee data, helping you focus on continuous improvement. 

But it’s not the only option available. Some alternatives are more budget-friendly, have smarter AI assistance, and provide an easier way to track performance trends. There are also platforms that combine learning and development, and employee engagement apps as part of their offering. 

We compare five PerformYard alternatives, such as SimplePerf, Lattice, 15Five, Leapsome, and Culture Amp - providing an apples-for-apples analysis, helping you make the best choice for your business.  

Startups and small businesses that need a cost-effective, yet powerful performance review platform can start here 👉 Launch your first review within minutes

Key Takeaways

• All tools listed here can do performance reviews, 360 degree reviews, goal tracking, AI summaries, and data analysis - the core offerings of PerformYard.
• SimplePerf is the most affordable option compared with PerformYard, and is designed with simplicity in mind without leaving out powerful features.
• Lattice, Leapsome, 15Five, and Culture Amp increase the scope of the PerformYard offering with extra features you can latch onto the PMS module. 

Table of Contents

• PerformYard alternatives: Overview
• PerformYard alternatives for performance reviews: Top choice
  • Simpleperf
  • Lattice
  • 15Five
  • Leapsome
  • Culture Amp
• How do the best alternatives stack up to PerformYard?
• Conclusion
• Frequently Asked Questions

PerformYard alternatives: Overview 

Need more options and a more in-depth analysis? 👉 What are the best performance review software options available, and how do you pick the right one? Provides a detailed analysis with a free scorecard to rate your choices. 

PerformYard alternatives for performance reviews: Top choices

1. Simpleperf: Simple, powerful review and engagement software

Best for: Small teams, startups, and first-time managers who want quick setup, low costs, and powerful features.

Key Features

• Ready to use templates with full customization to workplace culture principles.
• Automated 360-degree feedback to foster employee growth.
• AI-assisted answers to get better responses.
• Continuous feedback cycle.
• Automated reminders and scheduling of reviews. 
• Slack first integration.

Pros

• Most affordable option without compromising on features. 
• Very fast setup, and easy to customize cycles and templates.
• Easily track progress for small teams.
• Designed with small teams in mind.
• Employee recognition tool available - Clappy Kudos
• Affordable Employee engagement surveys and check-in add-on apps available. 

Cons

• Less advanced analytics than large enterprise options. 
• Fewer deep integrations outside Slack compared to others.

Pricing

Priced at $3 per employee per month, it presents a highly accessible entry point for SMBs.

User feedback and positioning

• BuddiesHR apps rated 4.8/5 on G2
• Endorsed by People Ops as a lightweight but effective option for conducting 360 reviews and customization of templates. 

Small teams need actionable performance reviews that are tailored just for you. Performance reviews for small companies: Best practices that work explains how you can get all the benefits from reviews without complex processes slowing you down. 

2. Lattice: AI-driven people management and analytics

Best for: Teams needing smart, scalable, AI-powered performance and engagement workflows with in-depth analytics. 

Key Features

• Equip managers with real-time insights to boost team performance.
• AI suggested performance reviews with cross-functional feedback, goals, and development areas.
• Open-ended surveys with real-time analysis of results.
• Real-time recommendations to improve the quality of performance reviews. 
• Goals and OKR tracking

Pros

• Strong AI assistance to improve reviews and tracking of goals. 
• Employee engagement surveys customized to enrich development data.
• Instant answers to questions with an AI agent.
• Automation of routine tasks associated with the review cycle.

Cons

• Modular pricing can push up costs quickly, especially for larger companies.

Pricing

$11 a seat/month with engagement and goal tracking as add-ons ($4 a seat/month). $4,000 annual minimum spend.

User feedback

• Rated 4.7/5 on G2. 

3. 15Five: Culture-focused performance and feedback system

Best for: Teams seeking an integrated, people-centric experience with performance reviews, engagement tools, and manager enablement.

Key Features

• Performance reviews and real-time review data.
• OKRs and goal setting.
• 360° feedback.
• Talent matrix. 
• Customize reviews: Annual reviews, Check-ins and one-on-one reviews. 
• Recognition add-ons like High Fives. 

Pros

• Strong engagement features alongside performance review features. 
• Tools available to improve manager effectiveness. 
• Clear, tiered pricing structure.

Cons

• Coaching and learning modules can raise the total cost for small teams.
• Less suited for teams who only want 360-degree reviews. 

Pricing

$10 per user/month for Perform subscription (billed annually).

User feedback

• Rated 4.6/5 on G2.

4. Leapsome: Integrated performance, engagement and learning platform

Best for: Growing companies that have high-performing teams and want to drive performance criteria

Key Features

• Multiple review formats for every need.
• Competency frameworks that drive unique processes.
• Bias reduction through anonymity and calibration.
• Goal setting, tracking, and OKR management.
• Fully automated review cycles.
• Integrations with Slack, Teams, and Google Workspace.

Pros

• Combines learning and performance.
• Focus on fairness and transparency in reviews. 
• Integration with HR stack offering flexible templates and question banks.
• Recurring reviews triggered with customizable cycles. 

Cons

• Setup is slightly more complex than other alternatives.
• Pricing is not transparent as it depends on the combination of modules. 

Pricing

Modular pricing on request only. 

User feedback 

• Rated 4.8/5 on G2

5. Culture Amp: Data-rich performance and engagement analytics

Best for: Enterprises focused on engagement analytics and performance benchmarks. 

Key Features

• Streamline the collection of feedback, enabling AI-powered insights.
• Intuitive heatmaps and detailed reporting for easy-to-see focus areas.
• Prioritizes high-performance culture by providing insights into how to drive performance at scale.
• Optimize HR functions with automation and real-time insights.
• 360-degree feedback with external contributions. 

Pros

• Deep analysis into performance improvement and driving high accountability ratings across the organization.
• Science and research-backed review content.
• Deep dive into organizational performance by senior leaders anytime, anywhere. 

Cons

• Higher entry cost.
• Not suitable for small teams that need easy setup and transparent pricing.

Pricing

• Pricing varies according to the modules taken up. All subscriptions have value-adds such as coaching and multi-language capabilities. 

User feedback

• Rated 4.5/5 on G2

How do the best alternatives stack up to PerformYard?

While the alternative compare very well to PerformYard in terms of core functionality, each platform adds features outside of the key PerformYard focus:

• SimplePerf - Slack first design with a strong focus on small teams and beginners. 
• Lattice - Stronger analytics and wider modular variety.
• 15Five - Focuses more on culture and manager enablement to run reviews, and also AI coaching.
• Leapsome - Adds an integrated learning platform, which PerformYard doesn’t have. 
• Culture Amp - Goes the deepest into engagement analytics and science-backed review methods. 

The bottom line is that if you’re only looking for a performance review system, then all these alternatives are ‘apples-for-apples’ replacements. But if you need extras that include learning modules or a deep dive into analytics, then PerformYard doesn’t offer everything. 

If you’re doing performance reviews for the first time, you may need additional help. That’s understandable. How to prepare for a performance review as a manager: Beginner’s Guide will take you through preparation steps and offer additional resources.  

Last thoughts

While PerformYard is an excellent choice for managing your performance review cycle, other strong contenders deserve your attention for their extra features and customizable modules. 

If you want to get going right now, SimplePerf can be set up in minutes 👉 Get started. 

Larger companies with more complicated HR processes that require additional features like integrated learning modules, in-depth analytics, and science-backed review questions and forms, should gravitate towards Lattice, Leapsome, and Culture Amp.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is there a difference between a performance review system and a performance management system?

There is a slight difference between the two in that a performance review system focuses on evaluating an employee’s development while a performance management system includes ongoing feedback, goal tracking, and development planning.

2. Can AI tools really assist with employee growth?

Yes, AI provides an unbiased analysis of performance according to key performance indicators and culture metrics. Therefore, it can suggest areas of improvement and provide real-time insights into employee engagement. 

3. How will performance review software improve my company’s workflows?

By automating mundane tasks such as setting up review meetings and consolidating reports, performance review software speeds up access to real-time performance data. It provides a solid foundation for meaningful development discussions. 

4. Why is the customization of templates for performance reviews such a big deal?

Each company has its processes, language, cultural principles, and branding. Customization allows workflows, reviews, and terminology to sound like your company. Also, you don’t need to change your processes to adapt to new software - you just adjust them to suit your needs. 

5. Is a lack of transparent pricing a problem when choosing performance review software?

That depends. If you’re a small business or startup on a tight budget and you need to understand all the costs upfront, then yes. If you’re a larger company that needs to choose modules to improve your existing HR stack, then you may be able to wait for quotes to get the right combination of modules.