10 Best Employee Recognition Platforms in 2025
Recognition
June 27, 2025
Garrett Genest
X min
Recognition
June 27, 2025
Garrett Genest
X min
In 2025, the most successful organizations are prioritizing employee engagement, retention, and culture. Employee recognition software has become an essential tool to enable top companies to create thriving cultures.
Through employee recognition, organizations can boost morale, improve engagement, and strengthen company culture – all while tracking the impact of recognition efforts on performance and retention.
Employee recognition software is a digital platform designed to help organizations celebrate, acknowledge, and reward employees for their contributions, achievements, and positive behaviors. It streamlines and encourages a culture of appreciation by making it easy for peers, managers, and leaders to give recognition in real time.
These platforms often include features like:
With so many platforms out there, finding the right one for your team can feel overwhelming. That’s why we’ve rounded up the top 10 employee recognition software solutions making waves in 2025.
In assessing these vendors, we’ve looked at several datapoints including key differentiators and first-party customer feedback from a variety of sources.
Image source: Kudos
Used by:
Pricing:
$2–$5/user/month with discounts based on number of users and contract length.
Strengths:
Best for organizations that want a recognition and rewards platform that is easy for everyone to use and tailored to their unique workplace culture.
Description:
Kudos was the first to bring the concept of social employee recognition software to market. Today it enables organizations worldwide to run effective recognition and rewards programs including peer-to-peer and top-down recognition, milestone tracking, incentive programs, and values-aligned awards. It includes analytics, multilingual support, and an AI assistant for composing messages.
Interested in exploring Kudos without the sales pitch? Download our product demo video to see Kudos in action!
Image source: Bonusly
Used by:
Pricing:
$2–$7/user/month.
Strengths:
Best for smaller organizations or teams that want a self-serve rewards program.
Description:
Bonusly focuses on peer-to-peer recognition and integrates with common workplace tools like Slack and Microsoft Teams. It includes automated milestone recognition and a global rewards catalog. Bonusly’s highest plan tier includes some simple features for managing and tracking one-on-ones.
Image source: Awardco
Used by:
Pricing:
Starts at $2.70/user/month. Annual minimums from ~$4,000.
Strengths:
Best for large organizations that want to offer rewards via the Amazon Marketplace.
Description:
Awardco combines peer and manager recognition with milestone awards and external recognition. It connects to Amazon’s catalog for reward fulfillment and includes analytics and offline recognition features. Designed to accommodate large and international teams.
Image source: Achievers
Used by:
Pricing:
Typically $1–$4/user/month.
Strengths:
Best for organizations with very large rewards budgets.
Description:
Achievers offers peer and social recognition, monetary and non-monetary rewards, and analytics. It integrates with HCM platforms like Workday and includes a mobile app. Programs can be customized to align with organizational culture.
Image source: Nectar
Used by:
Pricing:
$5–$6/user/month. Annual minimum of ~$4,000.
Strengths:
Best for organizations that want to design their own product service plan.
Description:
Nectar provides peer recognition, automated milestone tracking, and a customizable reward catalog. It includes features for wellness and training challenges and integrates with collaboration tools such as Slack and Teams.
Image source: Assembly
Used by:
Pricing:
$3–$7/user/month depending on plan. Free version available.
Strengths:
Best for organizations that want to get going fast with little or no implementation support required.
Description:
Assembly offers recognition, surveys, and engagement tools with configurable rewards. It integrates with messaging and HR tools and includes a free plan for smaller teams. Features include milestone automation and lightweight reporting.
Image source: Terryberry
Used by:
Pricing:
Starts at ~$99–$250/month for up to 99 employees.
Strengths:
Best for organizations that want to incorporate fitness tracking into their recognition programs.
Description:
Terryberry provides peer recognition, point-based rewards, service anniversaries, and wellness programs. It includes analytics and integrates with several HR tools. Programs are modular and can be adapted to different use cases.
Image source: Bucketlist Rewards
Used by:
Pricing:
Estimated $3–$6/user/month.
Strengths:
Best for organizations that want to emphasize big-ticket experiential rewards.
Description:
Bucketlist enables peer and manager recognition with configurable rewards including gift cards and experiences. It offers social-style feeds, automation of milestones, and reporting tools. Integrations with communication and HR systems are supported.
Image source: WorkTango
Used by:
Pricing:
Not publicly specified. Per-user pricing with annual contracts.
Strengths:
Best for organizations that don’t currently have a performance management system in place.
Description:
WorkTango includes recognition, rewards, performance management, and survey tools in one platform. It supports various recognition formats and includes analytics for tracking engagement. Integrates with major HR and communication platforms.
Image source: Guusto
Used by:
Pricing:
$0–$7/user/month. Only senders are billed.
Strengths:
Best for organizations that are made up predominantly of deskless workers.
Description:
Guusto allows digital and printable recognition for both online and offline employees. Rewards are broad and unclaimed gifts are fully refunded. Features include team budgets, automated milestones, and Slack/MS Teams integrations.
Employee recognition is more than a “feel-good” HR practice – research shows it has a powerful impact on engagement, performance, and retention. Unfortunately, as of 2024 only about 22% of employees feel they get the right amount of recognition at work. Below, you’ll find recent statistics from sources such as Gallup, Deloitte, McKinsey, and more, that underscore why a strong recognition culture benefits both employees and organizations.
The quality of recognition matters. Gallup’s 2024 study found that workers who receive meaningful, comprehensive recognition (hitting 4 out of 5 quality criteria) are 9 times as likely to be engaged compared to those receiving no meaningful recognition. Even meeting one of the “five pillars” of good recognition makes employees nearly 3× as likely to be engaged versus employees who get no recognition at all.
Multiple studies conclude that lack of recognition is a major driver of voluntary turnover. Deloitte reports that “lack of recognition” is the #1 reason most professionals leave their jobs and a McKinsey survey during the Great Resignation similarly found the top three quit reasons were not feeling valued by the organization or manager (cited by ~54% of respondents) and lack of belonging. In other words, more than half of employees who quit are leaving due to not feeling appreciated or recognized.
Despite the proven benefits, a large recognition gap persists. According to Gallup, only 22% of employees strongly agree they receive the right amount of recognition for their work. Essentially, about 4 out of 5 workers do not feel adequately appreciated. This figure has not improved in recent years, indicating a persistent shortfall in workplace recognition.
Companies that prioritize recognition see markedly better results. Research by Bersin (Deloitte) shows organizations with a “recognition-rich” culture are 12× more likely to have strong business outcomes. These outcomes include higher productivity, profitability, and customer satisfaction.
When it comes to recognition, cash isn’t always king. Many studies show non-monetary recognition is at least as effective – and often more appreciated – than money. McKinsey research revealed that non-financial recognition (e.g. praise, thank-you notes, public recognition) is the single biggest driver of employee engagement, accounting for up to 55% of engagement – more than any pay or bonus factor.
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