# Homebase vs Planful: which do AI models recommend for workforce planning, September 2026

HR AI Recommendation Index, September 2026 Edition, Workforce planning. Zero of twelve models named Homebase first on the direct prompt; two named Planful. Page: https://hr-ai-index.com/planning/workforce-planning/homebase-vs-planful/

| | First-choice share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels | Models naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Homebase | 17% | #2 of 13 | 0% | 11 | 10 of 12 |
| Planful | 8% | #5 of 13 | 4% | 23 | 10 of 12 |

## The direct prompt, model by model

- DeepSeek V4 Flash: planful first (first choices: Planful, Workday Adaptive Planning) (alternatives: ADP Workforce Now, ChartHop, Paylocity, Pigment, Visier)
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: planful first (first choices: Planful) (alternatives: Abacum, Orgvue, Paylocity, Visier, Workday Adaptive Planning)
- Grok 4.1 Fast: neither first, one named (first choices: Rippling) (alternatives: ChartHop, Paylocity, Planful, Workday Adaptive Planning)
- Mistral Small: neither first, one named (first choices: Workday Adaptive Planning) (alternatives: ADP Workforce Now, HiBob, Paylocity, Planful, Visier)
- Llama 4 Maverick: neither first, one named (first choices: Workday Adaptive Planning) (alternatives: Abacum, HiBob, Paylocity, Planful, Visier)
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: neither first, one named (first choices: HiBob) (alternatives: Planful, Visier)
- Claude Haiku 4.5: neither named (first choices: ChartHop) (alternatives: Deel, HiBob, Paylocity, Pigment)
- GPT-5.4 mini: neither named (first choices: HiBob) (alternatives: Anaplan, Rippling, Workday Adaptive Planning)
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: neither named (first choices: ChartHop) (alternatives: Abacum, Mosaic, Pigment, Rippling, TeamOhana)
- Perplexity Sonar: neither named (first choices: Workday Adaptive Planning) (alternatives: Abacum, HiBob, Paylocity, Visier)
- Kimi K2: neither named (first choices: Rippling) (alternatives: ADP Workforce Now, HiBob, Paylocity, Pigment, Workday Adaptive Planning)
- MiniMax M2.5: neither named (first choices: Dayforce, Visier) (alternatives: Workday)

## What the models said about Homebase

- "The best workforce planning software for a company with a limited budget is Homebase, which is free for up to 10 employees." (Llama 4 Maverick, budget prompt, first choice)

## What the models said about Planful

- "Planful/PlanGuru — but these are usually more expensive" (GPT-5.4 mini, budget prompt, soft negative)
- "Planful often being the better fit if you want a more approachable mid-market FP&A tool that includes workforce planning" (GPT-5.4 mini, paraphrase prompt, first choice)
- "I'd recommend starting with Planful if you have 200+ employees and want strong finance integration" (MiniMax M2.5, paraphrase prompt, first choice)
- "Best Overall for Finance & HR Collaboration: Planful" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, direct prompt, first choice)

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all twelve models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category. Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category. Published under CC BY 4.0; the output is the models' output, and nothing here is a recommendation by the index.