Empuls
Reward Gateway
How It Works
Empuls
Create pre-defined pieces of recognition that users can distribute, each with its own specific givers, recipients, approvers, point value, and budget. Points from awards can be used to purchase gift cards.
Reward Gateway
Recognition on the platform is monetary when given by managers and non-monetary for normal users. Points can be redeemed for gift cards, products on Amazon, or donated to a charity via the GlobalGiving platform.
The Good
Empuls
- 30-day free trial
- Configuration options give complete control over your recognition program
- Very good international rewards options
Reward Gateway
- Provides several unique flexible benefit offerings to employees
- Fully customizable and brandable platform experience personalized for specific groups
- Customized blogs, content pages, and file libraries that can be restricted to specific users
The Bad
Empuls
- Has a learning curve that makes it easy to misconfigure something
- Limited support options
- Gift cards are the only reward option
Reward Gateway
- Several features only eligible for UK, and to a lesser extent, US and AU
- Steep learning curve to make the most of the platform
- No monetary recognition or reward options for users that live outside ~50 supported countries
Pricing
Empuls
$2-$4 per user per month, depending on the the plan and if paying monthly or annually.
Reward Gateway
Custom quotes, no public pricing
Setup & Onboarding
Empuls
Free trial makes it easy to get started, but the complexity of budgets and awards makes going through their sales and onboarding process more appealing.
Reward Gateway
Implementation specialist guides you through onboarding and launch, then handed over to Client Success Manager.
UI & UX
Empuls
Modern, if unremarkable look. Navigation is mostly easy and users have personalized homepages.
Reward Gateway
Platform isn’t particularly attractive, but has a clean, modern aesthetic. There is a learning curve for admins to comfortably navigate the platform.
Reward Catalog
Empuls
Hundreds of gift cards with plenty of international options.
Reward Gateway
Gift cards, Amazon products, charitable donations.
Integrations
HRIS
Empuls
Gusto, Zoho People, Freshteam, Keka, custom HRIS integrations via SFTP
Reward Gateway
BambooHR, Workday, Namely, custom HRIS integrations via SFTP
SSO
Empuls
OneLogin, Okta, Azure, custom SSO integrations
Reward Gateway
Okta, Azure, OneLogin, custom SSO integrations
Common Tool Integrations
Empuls
Microsoft Teams, Slack, Facebook Workplace
Reward Gateway
Microsoft Teams, Slack
Additional Integrations
Empuls
N/A
Reward Gateway
Yapster, Yammer, Google Analytics
Analytics & Reports
Empuls
Good data visualizations with filters and pivot points to adjust the data, but overall very basic.
Reward Gateway
Strong data reporting with a variety of graphs, filters, and export options.
Support
Empuls
Primary support channel is email. Help center covers entire platform, but lacks depth.
Reward Gateway
Chat, phone, and email. Two separate support teams for admins and non-admins. Very informative help center, but admin-centric.
Extra Features
Empuls
Any user can send feedback survey requests. Admins can send company-wide surveys. Mobile apps for Android and Apple.
Reward Gateway
Corporate discounts, Wellbeing Center with resources from wellness experts, Surveys, 0% interest payment plans for tech items, vacation trade-in, car purchase benefit for fixed monthly amount and no deposit or credit check, Android & Apple mobile apps.
The Bottom Line
Empuls
Tons of control over how your recognition program is setup, but excessive for those who need something simple.
Reward Gateway
So robust that it resembles a full-blown HR platform, but its complexity and UK-centric feature set makes it ideal only for some.
Empuls
