Greenhouse alternatives: where to go and how to leave cleanly
Six applicant tracking systems, one for each reason to leave, and a seven-step exit plan.
The short answer: Ashby if reporting is why you're leaving and you want a listed price (from $400 a month up to 100 employees), Lever if your team lives on sourcing passive candidates, Workable if you want a public price and a fast setup, Teamtailor if your careers site has to sell the job, Breezy HR for flat pricing with unlimited users, Manatal for the lowest entry price ($15 per user). One thing to know before you pick: Greenhouse's free data export only works during your contract term. After that it becomes a paid service, and your data is queued for deletion 90 days later. We compared these six options and checked every price on the vendor's own page in 2026.
The ranking is editorial: a sponsored spot is always labeled on its card, and no affiliate link changes a score.
Why teams leave Greenhouse, and what gets in the way
Greenhouse earned its reputation on structured hiring: interview kits, scorecards, approval flows. Users still rate it 4.4 to 4.5 out of 5 on the big review sites. People leave for other reasons: the bill, the reporting, and a contract built to keep you. Six of them, all checked in 2026.
No public pricing
The pricing page lists three plans, Core, Plus and Pro, and not a single number. Your price depends on hiring volume, organizational complexity and the features you pick. So you can't benchmark it on your own against Ashby at $400 a month or Workable from $299.
Fees can go up at every renewal
The master subscription agreement says it in one line: Greenhouse reserves the right to increase fees upon renewal. There's no cap in that document. Unless your order form adds one, you find out about the increase on the next invoice.
Auto-renewal for a full year
If you don't cancel in writing at least 30 days before the end of your term, the subscription renews for another year. Greenhouse has to remind you 60 days out. Miss that 30-day window and you're paying for a year you didn't plan on.
Reports that end up in a spreadsheet
It's the most common complaint in reviews and Reddit threads: rigid reports that you export to Excel to get a real answer. AI-powered report filters and the Business Intelligence Connector only start on the Plus plan.
Tool stacking around the ATS
Teams describe the same pattern: Greenhouse in the middle, then a scheduling tool, a sourcing tool and a texting tool bolted on. Candidate texting itself starts on Plus. Each add-on is another line in the budget and another renewal to track.
Heavy for a small team
The product is built for multi-stage processes with lots of stakeholders. A two-person recruiting team opening ten roles a year pays for structure it barely uses. Reviewers also call the interface click-heavy and say training new hiring managers takes a while.
You're leaving because… go with…
The right Greenhouse alternative depends on what's pushing you out. Usually only one line applies. Each card jumps to the full profile below.
Analytics built in, listed price up to 100 employees.
Your recruiters mostly source passive talentLeverApplicant tracking and talent CRM in one product.
You want a public price and a fast startWorkableFrom $299 a month, 15-day free trial.
Your careers site has to do the sellingTeamtailorUnlimited jobs and users, free standard import.
You want flat pricing with unlimited seatsBreezy HRFrom $157 a month billed annually, unlimited users.
Your budget is tight and your team is smallManatal$15 per user per month, migration help included.
Greenhouse alternatives, one by one
For each ATS: why move to it, who it's for, its limit, how to migrate from Greenhouse, and what it costs. Prices are what the vendors list in 2026, in US dollars before tax.
Ashby: when reporting is the reason you're leaving
Best analyticsWhy move to Ashby. Ashby is an applicant tracking system built around its analytics. Dashboards, sourcing and interview scheduling all live in one product, which is exactly what frustrated Greenhouse users go shopping for. On Reddit, people who switched say they dropped separate scheduling and sourcing tools. And unlike Greenhouse, the entry price is public: the Foundations plan shows $400 a month for companies up to 100 employees (the amount displayed with the size selector's default band), with 10% off on an annual commitment.
Who it's for. Venture-backed scale-ups that run recruiting on numbers: time in stage, pass-through rates, load per recruiter.
Who it's not for. A very small team with simple pipelines. Reviewers describe a dense product with a real learning curve.
Its limit. Past 100 employees you're back to a quote (Plus up to 1,000, Enterprise beyond). SSO costs an extra $100 a month, while Greenhouse includes it from Core.
How to migrate. Ashby says it has built import connectors that bring your data over from your old ATS, and one customer describes one month from signature to fully migrated. Ask about its contract buyout program: for companies that qualify, Ashby buys out a percentage of your existing contract. That's your lever if you still have six months left with Greenhouse.
- Price
- from $400 a month
- Up to
- 100 employees, then quote
- Best for
- data-driven scale-ups
- Limit
- SSO is $100 a month extra
Lever: when your team hires by sourcing
Best talent CRMWhy move to Lever. Greenhouse shines at interview quality. Lever shines earlier in the funnel: it combines applicant tracking with a recruiting CRM, the database of people you nurture over months. If your recruiters spend their days reaching out to passive candidates, it's the most natural fit. Users also tend to find its interface lighter.
Who it's for. Mid-size teams hiring hard-to-find engineers or sellers, and keeping a talent pool warm for years.
Who it's not for. A team that wants deep analytics first. Reviewers put its reporting above Greenhouse but below Ashby.
Its limit. No public price, just like Greenhouse. Pricing scales with team size and hiring needs, and three add-ons are quoted separately: Candidate Insights, AI Screening by VONQ and Onboarding.
How to migrate. Get the data migration written into the quote, listing what you expect to keep: candidates, resumes, notes, feedback, stage history. Run the Lever and Greenhouse renewal conversations at the same time. Competing quotes are the strongest negotiating tool you have.
- Price
- custom quote
- Add-ons
- three, quoted separately
- Best for
- passive candidate sourcing
- Limit
- no public price
Workable: when you want a listed price and a quick setup
Fastest to launchWhy move to Workable. Workable lists its prices and offers a 15-day free trial, so you know the number before the first sales call. Standard starts at $299 a month, Premier at $599, Enterprise at $719, across nine company-size bands. Annual billing saves 20%.
Who it's for. SMBs that hire continuously and want a complete tool without a months-long rollout.
Who it's not for. A team that lives in its reports. Some users say the numbers get unreliable on archived jobs.
Its limit. Add-ons stack up on Standard: Texting+ $89, Video interviews+ $109, Assessments+ $59 a month. AI agents are paid in credits on top. Add it all up before you compare with your Greenhouse quote.
How to migrate. The pricing page promises no data migration. Ask in writing what gets imported and in which format, then prepare a clean CSV from Greenhouse (see step 4 below).
- Price
- from $299 a month
- Trial
- 15 days
- Best for
- SMBs hiring all year
- Limit
- paid add-ons on Standard
Teamtailor: when your employer brand matters
Best careers siteWhy move to Teamtailor. Teamtailor, a Swedish company, built its ATS around the careers site: pages that make people want to apply, no developer needed. Jobs and users are unlimited, and the AI assistant is included with unlimited usage. On security, it holds ISO 27001 and ISO 27701 certifications and goes through a SOC 2 Type 2 audit every year.
Who it's for. Companies hiring lots of brand-sensitive roles: retail, hospitality, consumer tech, multi-location businesses.
Who it's not for. A team that needs deep analytics. Some users find the analytics page confusing.
Its limit. No public price. Approval flows and multi-brand management are Premium features that cost extra. If you run several brands in Greenhouse, get them priced in the first quote.
How to migrate. The standard import is free and takes about two weeks, using a CSV template with fixed fields. A custom import with your own fields costs extra and takes about four weeks. Imported jobs land as archived, and duplicate candidates have to be merged by hand.
- Price
- custom quote
- Import
- standard is free, about 2 weeks
- Best for
- strong employer brand
- Limit
- multi-brand is Premium
Breezy HR: when you want one flat price for the whole team
Flat pricingWhy move to Breezy HR. Breezy charges a flat monthly price with unlimited users and unlimited positions, so adding a hiring manager never changes the bill. Startup is $157 a month billed annually ($189 monthly), Growth $273 ($329), Business $439 ($529). Annual billing works out to two months free, and the trial runs 14 days with no credit card.
Who it's for. Small and mid-size companies that want every manager in the tool without counting seats.
Who it's not for. A team that relies on Greenhouse-style structured interview kits and deep reporting across many departments.
Its limit. The plans add features in steps, so check which tier holds what you need before you commit. Data export and import show up as a paid option on the Custom Pro plan.
How to migrate. Breezy advertises easy migration from other platforms but publishes no details. Send a sample of your Greenhouse export during the trial and see what comes through before you pay.
- Price
- from $157 a month, annual
- Users
- unlimited
- Best for
- SMBs with many managers
- Limit
- export/import is a paid option on Custom Pro
Manatal: when budget comes first
Lowest priceWhy move to Manatal. It has the lowest entry price on this page: $15 per user per month billed annually ($19 monthly) on Professional. Three recruiters cost $45 a month. The trial is 14 days with no credit card, and implementation and data migration support are included on all three paid plans.
Who it's for. Small teams, startups coming off a hiring freeze, and recruiting agencies.
Who it's not for. An organization with multi-level approvals and interview scorecards enforced across every hiring manager.
Its limit. Professional caps out at 15 jobs and 10,000 candidates. Past that, Enterprise is $35 per user. Some reviews also mention a 1,000-resume limit per import, so split your files.
How to migrate. Manatal accepts CSV and JSON imports and moves candidates, jobs and departments with its team. Send a sample of your Greenhouse export during the trial to see what survives.
- Price
- $15 per user per month
- Migration
- support included
- Best for
- small teams, agencies
- Limit
- 15 jobs on Professional
The 6 alternatives side by side
Our default picks: Ashby for a scale-up that wants numbers, Workable for an SMB that wants to know the price upfront. Watch the billing unit, it changes everything. Take 4 recruiters at an 80-person company: Manatal Professional comes to $60 a month, Breezy HR Startup to $157, Workable Standard starts at $299, Ashby Foundations at $400 (listed prices, confirm them for your size band). One row per tool: pricing model on the left, entry price and migration path on the right.
| Pricing model | Entry price and migration | |
|---|---|---|
| GreenhouseWhere you start | Custom quote; Core, Plus and Pro based on volume, complexity and features | Free API-key export during the term; paid after it ends, request within 30 days |
| AshbyAnalytics | Flat fee by company size; 10% off annually | From $400 a month up to 100 employees; import connectors, buyout if eligible |
| LeverTalent CRM | Custom quote by size and needs; three add-ons | Quote; get data migration written into the contract |
| WorkableFastest start | Flat fee by company size; 20% off annually | From $299 a month; 15-day trial, prepare a CSV import |
| TeamtailorEmployer brand | Custom quote; unlimited jobs and users | Quote; free standard import in about 2 weeks, custom import paid |
| Breezy HRFlat pricing | Flat monthly fee, unlimited users and positions | $157 a month annual, $189 monthly; 14-day trial |
| ManatalLowest price | Per user per month | $15 annual, $19 monthly; migration support included |
Entry prices before tax, subject to change. Always get your real number of jobs, seats and add-ons quoted.
Leaving Greenhouse in seven steps
Order matters. Each step protects something: your budget, your candidates, your open searches, your hiring managers' patience.
Find your renewal date and notice period
Three months outPull up your order form: it has your end date and, sometimes, a negotiated cap on renewal increases. The master agreement covers the rest: one-year auto-renewal, written cancellation at least 30 days before the term ends. Put the date in your calendar with an alert at 45 days out. If renewal is less than two months away, the migration starts this week.
- Notice
- 30 days, in writing
- Risk if rushed
- another year to pay
Inventory everything running in Greenhouse
Week 1List open jobs, every pipeline stage, interview kits and scorecards, email templates, custom fields and permission levels. Add every integration: HRIS, calendars, assessment tools, job boards, e-signature. Each one is a connection to rebuild on the other side.
Also flag in-house scripts that read the Greenhouse API. Harvest API v1 and v2 were retired in 2026 in favor of v3, so an old export script may quietly return nothing.
- Time
- one to two days
- Risk if rushed
- a forgotten integration
Decide what you actually keep
Week 1A migration is the cheapest moment to apply your retention policy. Delete what your policy says you shouldn't hold anymore instead of moving it. If you hire in Europe, remember that GDPR applies to those candidates wherever your company sits. Fewer records also means a cheaper custom import.
- Rule
- your written retention policy
- Payoff
- a lighter import
Export while you're still a customer
Week 2During your term, Greenhouse gives you an API key to export your data at no cost. CSV reports give you the tables (candidates, applications, stages), but not the files. Resumes and attachments come through the Harvest API as temporary signed links: download each file as soon as you get its link, or it expires. The API caps calls per 10-second window and returns a 429 error past the limit, so a big history takes hours.
After your term ends, you have 30 days to request an export file, billed at Greenhouse's data migration rates. Your data is queued for deletion 90 days after the end.
- Free export
- during the term only
- Risk if rushed
- lost or billed resumes
Import a sample and check it
Week 3Send 50 candidates across every stage: active, rejected, hired, in your talent pool. Open each record. Is the resume the right one? Are the notes there? Did interview feedback survive? Greenhouse scorecards don't always have an exact match elsewhere, so decide whether you carry them over as notes or keep them in an archive.
- Size
- 50 candidates
- Risk if rushed
- every note lost
Move live searches over
Week 4Don't move a search in the middle of a final round. Open new roles in the new ATS and let advanced processes finish in Greenhouse. Swap the apply links everywhere: careers site, LinkedIn, job boards, email signatures. Train hiring managers on their first real role, not on a demo.
- Overlap
- two to three weeks
- Risk if rushed
- a finalist who drops out
Cancel in writing, then run one last export
Before day -30Send your cancellation in writing before the 30-day deadline and keep the confirmation. Right before your term ends, run one more full export: it catches the candidates who applied during the cutover. Store it somewhere secure, with a deletion date set by your retention policy.
- Deadline
- 30+ days before the end date
- Risk if rushed
- an unwanted renewal
Is your tool missing from this page? Email us: hello@hackceleration.com
What makes a Greenhouse exit go wrong
Almost every costly mistake when leaving Greenhouse comes down to contract timing, not technology. Here they are, with the fix for each.
Cancelling after the 30-day window
The reminder lands 60 days before renewal, and cancellation must go out 30 days before. That leaves one month. One slow demo or a late quote and you've renewed for a year.
Exporting after the term ends
During the term, API export is free. After it, export is a paid service you must request within 30 days, and everything is queued for deletion at 90 days. Export first, cancel second.
Assuming a CSV is enough
CSV reports don't contain resumes. Without attachments, your new database is a list of names. Check that your export has the files themselves, not just their file names.
Running an old export script
Harvest API v1 and v2 were retired in 2026. A homegrown script or a connector that was never updated can fail without a clear error. Test it on ten candidates before you rely on it.
Importing everything, even the stale stuff
A candidate rejected four years ago doesn't belong in your new ATS if your policy says otherwise. Cleaning up before import cuts volume, the price of a custom import, and your exposure.
Forgetting the new tool's add-ons
SSO at $100 a month on Ashby, texting and video on Workable, multi-brand on Teamtailor Premium: some things Greenhouse bundled cost extra elsewhere. Compare full quotes, not headline prices.
- Renewal date found and an alert set at 45 days out
- Renewal cap requested in the new vendor's quote
- Full export with resumes, done during the term
- Records past your retention policy deleted
- Sample of 50 candidates imported and checked
- Apply links replaced everywhere
- Written cancellation sent more than 30 days before renewal
- See our best applicant tracking systems ranking if you're still deciding
Greenhouse alternatives: frequently asked questions
How much does Greenhouse cost?
Greenhouse doesn't publish prices; everything is quoted. Its pricing page describes three plans, Core, Plus and Pro, priced on hiring volume, organizational complexity and the features you choose. The figures floating around comparison sites come from buyers, not from Greenhouse, and they contradict each other. The only reliable number is yours, so pull out your order form before you compare.
How do I export my data from Greenhouse?
During your term, with the API key Greenhouse provides at no cost. CSV reports give you the tables; the Harvest API also gives you resumes and attachments as temporary links you need to download right away. Once the contract ends, export becomes a paid service you must request within 30 days.
What happens to my data after I cancel Greenhouse?
The master agreement queues all customer data for deletion 90 days after the agreement ends. In the first 30 days you can still request an export file at Greenhouse's data migration rates. After that, don't count on getting anything back.
Is Greenhouse SOC 2 compliant?
Yes. Greenhouse goes through annual SOC 1 Type 2, SOC 2 Type 2, ISO 27001 and ISO 27701 audits, and it runs a separate EU environment on AWS in Frankfurt. Teamtailor, on this page, holds ISO 27001 and ISO 27701 and a SOC 2 Type 2 audit too. Ask any vendor for the current report before you sign.
Ashby or Lever: which is better after Greenhouse?
Ashby if reporting is why you're leaving: analytics are its core, and its price is public up to 100 employees. Lever if your team lives on sourcing and a talent pool built over years. Both negotiate better when they know you're also weighing your Greenhouse renewal.
Can you negotiate a Greenhouse renewal?
Yes, and renewal is when you have the most leverage. The master agreement allows increases at renewal with no written cap, so ask for a specific cap in your order form. Bring a competing quote, from Ashby or Lever for example, and start three months before the end date, not three weeks.
How long does an ATS migration take?
Plan on one to two months from first quote to full cutover. The import itself is quick: about two weeks for a standard Teamtailor import, and an Ashby customer reports one month from signature to fully migrated. The longest part is running both tools side by side while live searches wrap up.
Is there a free alternative to Greenhouse?
Not among the serious options on this page. The closest you'll get is a trial: 15 days on Workable, 14 days on Manatal and Breezy HR. For a small team, Manatal at $15 per user is the cheapest way out. Our ATS for small business ranking covers all of them.
Get the next migration guide in your inbox
One tool to leave, one destination, one migration plan. Nothing else.