# Workforce planning for small business buyers: what AI models recommend, October 2026

HR AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition. Asked as "workforce planning software" and as "headcount planning tool", six framings each, to fourteen models with search on, on behalf of a small B2B company. Page: https://hr-ai-index.com/planning/workforce-planning/smb/

**Standing:** ChartHop leads with 31% of first choices; verdict contested. 49 first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts.

## First-choice share

| # | Product | Share | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ChartHop | 31% | 5% | 40 |
| 2 | Homebase | 20% | 3% | 33 |
| 3 | Rippling | 8% | 6% | 31 |
| 4 | Connecteam | 8% | 0% | 13 |
| 5 | BambooHR | 6% | 9% | 32 |
| 6 | Zoho People | 6% | 8% | 13 |
| 7 | Gusto | 2% | 8% | 13 |
| 8 | TeamOhana | 2% | 27% | 11 |
| 9 | When I Work | 0% | 6% | 16 |
| 10 | Deputy | 0% | 0% | 11 |
| 11 | SAP SuccessFactors Workforce Planning | 0% | 92% | 13 |
| 12 | Workday Adaptive Planning | 0% | 89% | 18 |

## Each model's first choice on the direct prompt

- Claude Haiku 4.5: Homebase; alternatives BambooHR, Gusto, Rippling, Runn
- GPT-5.4 mini: Rippling; alternatives Deel HR, HiBob, Pigment
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: ChartHop; alternatives Float, Parallel, Resource Guru, Runn
- Perplexity Sonar: Gusto, Zoho People; alternatives ChartHop, Employment Hero, HiBob
- Grok 4.1 Fast: ChartHop; alternatives BambooHR, Keka, Rippling
- Mistral Small: Zoho People; alternatives Keka
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: ChartHop; alternatives BambooHR, FirstHR, Rippling
- Llama 4 Maverick: no first choice
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: Deem; alternatives Deputy, Rippling, UKG Ready, When I Work
- Kimi K2: ChartHop; alternatives Rippling, TeamOhana
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: ChartHop; alternatives Connecteam, Rippling
- MiniMax M2.5: no first choice
- GPT-6 Luna: Float; alternatives Productive, Resource Guru
- Muse Glimmer 30B: ChartHop; alternatives BambooHR, Homebase, Zoho People

## Sources the answers cite

73 of 84 answers came back with a source list, from 14 of 14 models. Sites named in the most answers:

- peoplemanagingpeople.com: 44 answers, 65 citations
- firsthr.app: 44 answers, 60 citations
- guideflow.com: 42 answers, 59 citations
- joinhomebase.com: 30 answers, 43 citations
- learn.g2.com: 30 answers, 33 citations
- g2.com: 27 answers, 40 citations
- resources.rework.com: 26 answers, 29 citations
- charthop.com: 20 answers, 39 citations

Pages named in the most answers:

- https://firsthr.app/compare/core-hr/workforce-planning-software (42 answers)
- https://peoplemanagingpeople.com/tools/best-workforce-planning-software (29 answers)
- https://learn.g2.com/best-workforce-planning-software (26 answers)
- https://guideflow.com/blog/workforce-planning-software (25 answers)
- https://resources.rework.com/tools/workforce-management/best-workforce-planning-software-2026 (24 answers)
- https://joinhomebase.com/blog/workforce-planning-tools (23 answers)
- https://guideflow.com/blog/workforce-management-software (19 answers)
- https://paylocity.com/why-paylocity/compare/lists/workforce-planning-software (18 answers)
- https://checkr.com/resources/articles/best-workforce-management-software (17 answers)
- https://abacum.ai/blog/best-headcount-workforce-planning-software (15 answers)

## Warned against

- Anaplan: 23 of 23 labels negative. "Enterprise complexity — Tools like Anaplan, Workday, or Oracle are built for companies with dedicated FP&A teams. You'll pay for 90% of functionality you won't use" (DeepSeek V4 Flash, scale prompt)
- Workday Adaptive Planning: 16 of 18 labels negative. "Platforms like Workday Adaptive Planning, Visier, and Anaplan are powerful but often come with high per-employee or per-planner fees... typically overkill for small businesses" (Mistral Small, negative prompt)
- SAP SuccessFactors Workforce Planning: 12 of 13 labels negative. "What to avoid: Heavy-duty corporate planning software (e.g., Workday Strategic Workforce Planning, SAP SuccessFactors, Oracle Cloud HCM, Anaplan, Visier)." (Gemini 3.5 Flash, negative prompt)
- Visier: 8 of 9 labels negative. "Tools to avoid or scrutinize closely include: - Enterprise analytics platforms such as Visier, Oracle HCM Analytics, SAP SuccessFactors, and One Model" (Perplexity Sonar, negative prompt)

## Movement since September 2026

Floor: 13 points of share, measured on the calibration repeat.
New leader: Homebase (22%) to ChartHop (33%). Margin 17 points, beyond the floor.

- ChartHop: 13% to 33%, +20. Cleared the floor by 7 points · rank 3 → 1 of 99.
- Rippling: 18% to 10%, −8. Inside the floor by 5 points · rank 2 → 3 of 99.
- Zoho People: 0% to 7%, +7. Inside the floor by 6 points · rank 19 → 6 of 99.
- Homebase: 22% to 17%, −6. Inside the floor by 7 points · rank 1 → 2 of 99.
- BambooHR: 4% to 7%, +3. Inside the floor by 10 points · rank 5 → 4 of 99.
- Connecteam: 4% to 7%, +3. Inside the floor by 10 points · rank 7 → 5 of 99.
- Runn: 2% to 0%, −2. Inside the floor by 11 points · rank 10 → 15 of 99.
- Gusto: 4% to 2%, −2. Inside the floor by 11 points · rank 6 → 8 of 99.
- When I Work: 0% to 0%, ±0. Inside the floor by 13 points · rank 20 → 14 of 99.
- Cube: 0% to 0%, ±0. Inside the floor by 13 points · rank 21 → 37 of 99.
- SAP SuccessFactors Workforce Planning: 0% to 0%, ±0. Inside the floor by 13 points · rank 107 → 97 of 99.
- Workday Adaptive Planning: 0% to 0%, ±0. Inside the floor by 13 points · rank 109 → 98 of 99.

## Record

- Method: https://hr-ai-index.com/methodology/
- Raw judge labels and full responses: https://hr-ai-index.com/data/
- License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as HR AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition, hr-ai-index.com.