Greenhouse vs Lever
By Sebastiaan Smits ·
Published October 8, 2026 · Updated October 8, 2026
Greenhouse is built around structured hiring: a plan per role, interview kits tied to attributes, and scorecards that make feedback comparable. Lever is built around the candidate record, with ATS and relationship manager in one profile so sourced prospects and past runners-up stay warm. Companies running a defined interview process choose Greenhouse; companies that recruit proactively choose Lever.
Side by side
 Greenhouse |  Lever | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Structured-hiring ATS with a deep partner ecosystem | Combined ATS and candidate relationship manager |
| Best for | Mid-market and scale-up talent teams | Growing companies recruiting proactively |
| Headquarters | United States | United States |
| Pricing model | Quote only | Quote only |
| Pricing | Quote-based Core, Plus and Pro plans priced on plan, hiring volume and organizational complexity; texting, sourcing automation and the BI connector start on Plus. | Priced by quote on organization size and hiring needs; every plan includes the ATS, CRM, reporting and analytics, with onboarding and some AI screening sold as add-ons. |
| Free option | None | None |
| Place in our applicant tracking system ranking | #4 of 14 | #1 of 14 |
| Website | greenhouse.com | lever.co |
Both are reviewed in full in Best Applicant Tracking System (ATS) in 2026. Position in that ranking can be paid for; the wording of a review or of this comparison cannot. Placement disclosure.
Which one to choose
Choose Greenhouse if
you have a recruiting operations owner, hire at scale through consistent interview panels, and need assessments, background checks and HRIS tools to plug in without custom work.
Greenhouse, #4 in the ranking · Visit Greenhouse →
Choose Lever if
much of your hiring comes from sourcing people who have not applied, and you want applicants, prospects and past candidates in one profile with nurture campaigns attached.
Lever, #1 in the ranking · Visit Lever →
Where they differ
Interview structure and feedback
Greenhouse starts each role with a hiring plan listing the attributes to assess, then gives every interviewer a kit tied to those attributes, so scorecards can be compared across candidates. Lever also offers interview kits and scorecards, but structure is a feature there, not the organizing idea. For a company that wants consistent panels, Greenhouse is the more deliberate design.
Edge: Greenhouse
Sourcing and talent nurturing
Lever keeps applicants, sourced prospects and past runners-up in a single profile with full history, and nurture email campaigns run from it. Greenhouse lists Sourcing and CRM on Core, but we rate its candidate CRM weaker, and Sourcing Automation and texting start on Plus. For teams that fill roles from people not yet looking, Lever fits better.
Edge: Lever
Integrations and surrounding tools
Greenhouse runs one of the largest integration marketplaces in the category, so assessments, background checks, sourcing tools and HRIS connections are rarely a custom project. Lever integrates with common tools too, but we have not seen it match that breadth. We could not verify partner counts for either vendor this session.
Edge: Greenhouse
Pricing and what is bundled
Neither vendor publishes prices. Greenhouse sells Core, Plus and Pro on a quote shaped by hiring needs, volume and complexity, with the Business Intelligence Connector, texting and Sourcing Automation on Plus. Lever quotes on team size and hiring needs, includes the ATS, CRM and reporting in every plan, and sells Candidate Insights, AI Screening and Onboarding as add-ons. Without a quote, neither can be called cheaper.
Edge: even
Vendor stability
Greenhouse is an independent company, and Lever sits inside Employ alongside Jobvite and JazzHR. Some Lever customers report slower product development and less responsive support since that merger. We have not measured this ourselves, so we treat it as a reason to ask about the roadmap, not as a verdict.
Edge: Greenhouse
Tally: Greenhouse 3, Lever 1, even 1.
When neither fits
Neither fits a small business making a handful of hires a year without an in-house recruiter, since both are sold by quote and assume a hiring process worth structuring. Workable and Breezy HR are simpler and, in our ranking, easier to justify at that size.
See Workable, Ashby and Breezy HR among the 14 products in Best Applicant Tracking System (ATS) in 2026.
Questions and answers
Does Greenhouse or Lever publish its prices?
Neither does. Greenhouse says its pricing is customized to hiring needs, with Core, Plus and Pro plans, and asks prospects to contact sales. Lever says pricing is available on request and scales with team size and hiring needs. Both pages were checked on the date below.
Which has the better candidate CRM, Greenhouse or Lever?
Lever, in our assessment. Its ATS and relationship manager share one profile and nurture campaigns are core. Greenhouse lists Sourcing and CRM on its Core plan, but unlimited CRM events appear only on Pro, which matters if you run many events.
What do Greenhouse and Lever charge extra for?
Greenhouse moves the Business Intelligence Connector, texting, Sourcing Automation and fraud detection to Plus, and enterprise security, audit logs and a developer sandbox to Pro. Lever lists Candidate Insights, AI Screening by VONQ and Onboarding as add-ons. Check each quote for how AI features are packaged.
Is Lever still an independent company?
No. Our category entry lists Employ Inc. as the publisher, the group that also owns Jobvite and JazzHR. Greenhouse Software, Inc. is the publisher of Greenhouse. We have not verified the terms of the Employ merger beyond that.
Sources
Prices, plan limits and product facts on this page were checked against the vendors' own pages on October 8, 2026. Vendors change both without notice, so treat the figures as of that date.
- Greenhouse pricing page: Core, Plus and Pro plan names, the features listed per plan, and the statement that pricing is customized and quoted by sales
- Lever pricing page: Quote-only pricing, what the platform includes, and the Candidate Insights, AI Screening by VONQ and Onboarding add-ons