Overview

Effy AI brings employee performance, engagement, and workplace satisfaction into a web platform. It supports 360, peer, upward, self, probation, and annual reviews, using customizable forms and workflows. That range can accommodate different evaluation processes across teams, rather than forcing every employee through one review format.

Goals and OKRs cascade from company to team to individual, with progress tracking and links to reviews. This connects objectives to performance conversations; organizations that only need a lightweight goal tracker may find the broader review system unnecessary. Framework builder, job family management, and career paths also extend its role into structuring jobs and development.

Key features

Reviews and AI assistance

AI-generated review summaries and reports, writing assistance, and automated reminders can reduce the coordination and drafting work around review cycles. They support managers rather than replacing their judgment about performance. Multiple reviews per user per year are included in the 360° Reviews plan, making that tier more relevant to organizations running several formal cycles.

Goals and connected tools

The goals feature includes check-ins, people and alignment views, and personal development plans and performance improvement plans. Effy’s Slack app sends reminders, captures feedback and kudos, and syncs workspace people; it is included in all plans. That makes Slack a practical route for collecting input without an extra plan charge.

Effy AI skills can connect to Claude, ChatGPT, or Copilot through MCP. Its 1-on-1 skill can prepare manager notes using employee context and connected tools including Gmail, Google Calendar, Granola, Zoom, Fathom, and Slack. This may help managers assemble context across their working tools, though it depends on using those assistant connections.

Pricing

Effy uses a freemium model. The Free plan costs 0.00 USD per free, covers up to 5 users, requires no credit card, and has no time limit. It is a low-friction way for a very small team to try the product, but the user cap makes it unsuitable for most of Effy’s stated target range.

Goals and OKRs costs 2.00 USD per year, billed annually. It includes SMART goals and OKRs, people and alignment views, PDPs and PIPs, and check-ins. This is the lower-cost paid option for teams focused on goal alignment, but it does not include the multiple reviews per user per year specified for the 360° Reviews plan.

360° Reviews costs 6.00 USD per year, billed annually, and includes multiple reviews per user per year. It is the more relevant paid choice for organizations that need recurring review cycles. Effy’s paid pricing is also stated as starting at 2 /user/mo; compare the annual plan terms with the number of users and review needs before choosing a tier.

Platforms

Effy AI runs on the web. Its Slack app and connections to AI assistants and work tools extend workflows into those services, but the platform itself is web-based.

Who it's for

Effy says it works best for companies with 30 to 1,000+ employees, including software, financial services, and healthcare organizations. Its range of review types, cascading goals, job family management, and career paths fits teams formalizing performance processes as they grow. A five-person team can use the free plan, but a larger organization will need a paid plan and should consider the disclosed security limitations before adopting it.

Effy says it is designed for GDPR compliance and describes AWS hosting, access controls, MFA, and encryption measures. It also provides controls to archive or export historical reviews and set deletion policies. However, formal audits and a business continuity plan were not in place when its security page was last updated on October 3, 2024. That is a material consideration for organizations with stricter assurance or continuity requirements.

That approach may suit teams needing onboarding support for review processes.

Pros and cons

Pros: A broad set of review types and customizable workflows can serve organizations with varied evaluation cycles.
Pros: Goals, OKRs, check-ins, and review links connect objectives with performance conversations.
Pros: Slack features are included across plans, and AI assistant connections extend manager preparation workflows.
Cons: The free plan is limited to five users, so it is chiefly a small-team entry point rather than a company-wide option.
Cons: Formal audits and a business continuity plan were absent at the stated security update, a concern for risk-sensitive buyers.

Alternatives

For broader role-structure tooling, compare Job Architecture Software; for a wider category comparison, see Performance Management Software.

JobFrame is a freemium option with job profiles, family matrices, an index, and developer/API documentation, so it may suit teams focused on job architecture rather than review cycles. Leapsome is a paid, multi-platform option with a free trial and a compensation plan covering reviews, budget management, and pay-gap analytics; consider it when compensation workflows are the priority. CozyHR is a paid HR option with a free trial and a Starter plan for up to 75 employees; it may fit teams looking for employee master, leave, and attendance functions.

Engagedly offers a performance suite covering reviews and goals, with a stated minimum pricing of $7,500/year, so it is a candidate for buyers evaluating a larger-budget performance suite. 15Five includes a Kona Meeting Assistant plan for meeting notes, performance snapshots, and summaries, which may suit teams centering their workflow on manager meetings. BenefitConnect is another paid option. Centranum is a paid option with a free trial and self-hosted platform support. Oracle Fusion HCM Analytics is a paid analytics option with a stated minimum of 1,000 hosted employees and a three-year standard subscription term, better aligned with organizations assessing hosted HCM analytics at that scale.

Verdict

Choose Effy AI if your organization needs configurable review cycles tied to cascading goals, with Slack workflows and AI-assisted summaries in the same system. Its main appeal is the breadth of performance processes it can support; look elsewhere if your security requirements depend on formal audits and continuity planning, or if a five-user free plan is all your budget allows.

	Effy AI	Horilla
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Free trial		Yes
Paid from	$0.17/mo	$7/mo
Open source		Yes
Platforms	Web	Web
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Paid from	2 /user/mo	7 /user/mo
Framework builder	Yes
Job family management	Yes
Career paths	Yes
Free trial		Yes
Open source		Yes
Employee records		Yes
Time-off management		Yes
Employee onboarding		Yes
Performance management		Yes
Time tracking		Yes
Mobile apps		Yes

Effy AI vs Horilla

Effy AI

Horilla