# Coaching platforms: what AI models recommend, September 2026

HR AI Recommendation Index, September 2026 Edition. Asked as "employee coaching platform" and as "digital coaching marketplace", six framings each, to twelve models with search on, on behalf of a mid-market B2B company. Page: https://hr-ai-index.com/learning/coaching-platforms/

**Standing:** Growthspace leads with 26% of first choices; verdict contested. 54 first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts.

## First-choice share

| # | Product | Share | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Growthspace | 26% | 4% | 28 |
| 2 | Boon Health | 22% | 7% | 30 |
| 3 | Exec | 13% | 4% | 27 |
| 4 | Torch | 7% | 0% | 29 |
| 5 | CoachHub | 6% | 29% | 38 |
| 6 | Risely | 4% | 11% | 18 |
| 7 | BetterUp | 2% | 55% | 38 |
| 8 | CoachAccountable | 0% | 0% | 12 |
| 9 | Paperbell | 0% | 0% | 10 |
| 10 | Valence | 0% | 10% | 10 |

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

- Claude Haiku 4.5: Torch; alternatives Avoma
- GPT-5.4 mini: Lattice; alternatives BetterUp, CoachHub, Growthspace, Torch
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: Exec, Growthspace; alternatives Boon Health, Torch
- Perplexity Sonar: Boon Health; alternatives BetterUp, CoachHub, Exec, Growthspace
- Grok 4.1 Fast: Exec; alternatives Boon Health, Growthspace, Torch
- Mistral Small: Exec, Growthspace; alternatives Boon Health, Torch
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: Boon Health, Growthspace; alternatives CoachHub, Torch
- Llama 4 Maverick: Boon Health; alternatives Exec, Growthspace, Torch
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: Boon Health; alternatives Exec, Growthspace, Hone, Torch
- Kimi K2: Boon Health, Growthspace; alternatives CoachHub, Exec, Torch
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: Boon Health; alternatives CoachHub, Exec, Growthspace, Risely
- MiniMax M2.5: Boon Health, Growthspace; alternatives Exec, Lattice, Torch

## Sources the answers cite

64 of 72 answers came back with a source list, from 12 of 12 models. Sites named in the most answers:

- boon-health.com: 44 answers, 56 citations
- torch.io: 24 answers, 26 citations
- coachstackhub.ai: 22 answers, 23 citations
- coachello.ai: 18 answers, 27 citations
- exec.com: 15 answers, 17 citations
- 360learning.com: 14 answers, 14 citations
- coachilly.com: 13 answers, 14 citations
- togetherplatform.com: 13 answers, 14 citations

Pages named in the most answers:

- https://boon-health.com/learn/resources/best-enterprise-coaching-platforms (44 answers)
- https://torch.io/compare (23 answers)
- https://coachstackhub.ai/compare/business-coaching-platforms (21 answers)
- https://exec.com/learn/best-leadership-coaching-platforms (15 answers)
- https://360learning.com/blog/online-coaching-platforms (14 answers)
- https://circle.so/blog/best-coaching-platforms (13 answers)
- https://togetherplatform.com/blog/best-online-platforms-for-employee-coaching (13 answers)
- https://coachello.ai/blog/online-coaching-platform (11 answers)
- https://coachilly.com/coaching-software-review-2026 (11 answers)
- https://gitnux.org/best/employee-coaching-software (9 answers)

## Warned against

- BetterUp: 21 of 38 labels negative. "Avoid per-seat enterprise platforms — BetterUp ($500–$2,000/seat/year) ... charge for every employee whether they use it or not" (DeepSeek V4 Flash, budget prompt)
- CoachHub: 11 of 38 labels negative. "Avoid per-seat enterprise platforms — ... CoachHub ($200–$800/seat/year) charge for every employee whether they use it or not" (DeepSeek V4 Flash, budget prompt)
- Coach.me: 5 of 6 labels negative. "coach.me - Has reports of unauthorized charges and appears to have identity issues with similar-named companies" (MiniMax M2.5, negative prompt)
- Coaches Console: 3 of 3 labels negative. "Coaches Console is described as having an outdated interface and poor value in the 2026 review.[6]" (Perplexity Sonar, negative prompt)

## 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, September 2026 Edition, hr-ai-index.com.