An honest comparison
Kordis vs Bullhorn: which fits a 25 to 100 worker agency? (2026)
Last updated . Competitor facts checked against the sources at the bottom of this page.
Bullhorn is the market-leading applicant tracking system and CRM for mid-to-large staffing firms, priced from $99 US per user per month. Kordis is an operations layer for Canadian temp agencies with 25 to 100 workers, priced flat per agency.
If you run a placement desk with several recruiters, Bullhorn earns its price. If you run a shift desk that lives on confirmations, credentials, and payroll evenings, that is the job Kordis was built for.
What is Bullhorn good at?
Bullhorn has been the reference ATS and CRM in staffing for two decades. It tracks candidates from application to placement, gives recruiters a shared CRM, integrates with a large ecosystem, and scales to thousands of seats. Mid-market and enterprise firms standardize on it for good reasons.
- Market-leading ATS with a deep integration ecosystem and Salesforce-grade customization
- Recruitment CRM and full-cycle ATS in one system for placement-driven desks
- AI-assisted candidate matching and resume parsing at volume
- Mobile tools for recruiting teams in the field
How do Kordis and Bullhorn compare?
| What matters | Kordis | Bullhorn |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Canadian temp staffing agencies with 25 to 100 workers | Mid-to-large recruiting and staffing firms |
| Pricing | $249 a month founding rate for the first 3 months, then $499 a month flat, all-in, up to 100 active workers | From $99 US per user per month (Starter), $165 (Core); add-ons and implementation quoted |
| Shift filling | Auto Dispatch and Instant Cover: confirmation texts and calls go out on their own; fills and backfills are staged for your OK | ATS workflows; shift confirmation is not the core job |
| Screening | Smart Screening: applicant screening calls with transcripts and scores | Resume parsing and AI matching at recruiter scale |
| Credential tracking | AutoFile and the Renewal Clock: credential expiry tracking with renewal texts at 90 days, 2 weeks, and 3 days, plus dispatch gating | Configurable fields; no published Canadian card gating |
| Canadian rules | Ontario, BC, and Alberta rules built in: the cards workers carry, gating, calling hours | US-centric defaults; no published provincial ESA or WSIB features |
| Setup | Done-with-you setup on your own data | Implementation projects reported from $2,000 to $50,000+ |
Bullhorn's Starter ($99 US per user per month) and Core ($165) tiers are published on bullhorn.com/pricing, checked July 2026. Add-on module and implementation figures are third-party reported ranges, not published prices.
Pick Bullhorn if
- You run a permanent-placement or high-volume recruiting desk with dedicated recruiters
- You have 100+ internal users and an admin who can own the configuration
- You need a deep CRM for client development, not just shift operations
Pick Kordis if
- Your day is filling shifts, confirming crews, and covering drop-outs, not managing a placement pipeline
- Per-user pricing scales against you: you want one flat price for the agency
- You need Ontario, BC, or Alberta rules (cards, gating, calling hours) built in rather than configured
- You want the phone work done for you: confirmations and screening calls staged for your OK
Common questions
Is Kordis a Bullhorn replacement?
No. Bullhorn is an ATS and CRM for placement pipelines; Kordis is the operations layer around shifts: confirmations, screening calls, credential gating, and hours to payroll. Some agencies keep an ATS they love and run Kordis beside it.
What does Bullhorn cost a 10-person agency per year?
At the published $99 US per user per month Starter tier, ten users run $11,880 US per year before add-ons or implementation. Reported implementation ranges start around $2,000 and rise steeply with customization.
Does Bullhorn handle Canadian compliance?
Bullhorn publishes no provincial ESA, WSIB, or Canadian credential-card features; its defaults are US-centric. Canadian rules are typically handled by configuration, add-ons, or outside the system entirely.
Who should clearly pick Bullhorn?
A placement-driven firm with several recruiters, an admin who owns configuration, and a client-development CRM need. At that shape and scale, Bullhorn's ecosystem and pipeline depth are genuinely the market standard.
Sources
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