BambooHR separates its core HR platform from a group of add-on solutions. The pricing page lists them as Payroll, Benefits Administration, Time & Attendance and Global Employment, and advertises a bundle discount for combining Payroll and Benefits Administration with any plan.[9] The Terms of Service describe Payroll and Benefits Administration as optional and “subject to additional implementation, processing, and auxiliary fees”.[5] Each add-on carries its own legal document, and the differences between them matter more than the shared feature language on the product pages.
Editions
Payroll
BambooHR Payroll is “designed to pay US-based employees and includes US federal, state, and local tax filing”.[6] Outside the US the page points to on-platform integrations with local payroll providers, global payroll partners connected through the marketplace, and Employer of Record for hiring where the customer has no local entity.[6] The catalog row is Payroll. To subscribe, the customer “must accept a Payroll Services Agreement” with BambooHR Payroll LLC during onboarding.[5]
The Payroll Services Agreement names BambooHR Payroll LLC, doing business as TraxPayroll, as the provider of payroll processing and tax filing, and it prevails over the Terms of Service in a direct conflict.[1] Key terms: the customer appoints BambooHR Payroll as tax filing agent; fees “are subject to change, in BambooHR Payroll’s sole discretion, on written notice” and are due at the time each payroll is made when paid from the Customer Account; overdue accounts accrue interest at the lesser of one percent per month or the legal maximum.[1] The customer authorizes ACH debits and credits to fund payroll, taxes and fees, must keep sufficient funds, and must give “at least four (4) days prior notice” to cancel the authorization.[1] Funds are transferred to a separate custodial account before the pay date, and the agreement grants BambooHR Payroll the use of funds held pending final payment and a security interest and right of set-off over funds deposited.[1] The Terms add that payroll data may be retained for seven years for legal and tax purposes.[5]
Benefits Administration
Benefits Administration “is an add-on solution available to customers who subscribe to BambooHR for an additional cost” and “is for US-based employees”.[7] The catalog row is Benefits Administration. The addendum limits the service to “managing the enrollment and disenrollment of Customer’s employees and their eligible beneficiaries during open or special enrollment periods” and providing policy documents and provider certificates if elected.[2] BambooHR states that it is not a plan sponsor, plan administrator or fiduciary under ERISA, does not process claims or determine eligibility, and does not guarantee that enrollment information has been processed and accepted by the provider; the customer must confirm carrier enrollments and remains responsible for compliance with the Internal Revenue Code, COBRA and ERISA.[2] The customer must not provide protected health information to BambooHR under the addendum.[2] Carrier connections “are available for select national benefit providers”.[7]
Time and Attendance
Time Off is not an add-on: “Time-off management is included in every BambooHR plan”.[8] Time Tracking, which adds timesheets, project tracking, geolocation, automated approval workflows, shift differentials and automatic overtime calculations, is listed among the add-ons on the pricing page.[8] The catalog row is Time and Attendance. Hours worked, PTO, sick leave and holiday pay sync with BambooHR Payroll, and without it the customer can export timesheet data to another payroll system.[8]
Time clock devices
The Time Clock Addendum governs “your purchase of one or more time clock devices (each, a “Device”) and your purchase of a subscription to use the Time Clock Services”, with BambooHR acting as an authorized reseller of devices made by GT Clocks, which also provides the subscription services (GT Connect and GT Protect).[3] The catalog row is Time Clock.
Managed Payroll and HR Consulting
Managed Payroll lets BambooHR process payroll on behalf of the customer, but it requires BambooHR’s own payroll: “BambooHR does not offer the Managed Payroll Services for use in conjunction with another payroll service provider or payroll processing platform”.[4] It may not be available in every state, is not available outside the United States, cannot pay unionized employees and is not a PEO or co-employment service.[4] HR Consulting Services are informational and consultative, not legal, HR or tax advice, and sessions cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice still count toward allotted consulting hours.[4] The rows are Managed Payroll and HR Consulting Services.
Metrics
The Terms name Payroll and BenAdmin alongside Core, Pro and Elite as subscription packages whose price may change at most once a calendar year, and state the limits on price changes in terms of PEPM list pricing.[5] The pricing basis of each add-on is otherwise not published, so a PEPM basis is likely but should be confirmed on the Order Form. The Product Minimum can fix a minimum headcount for each product on an extended term Order Form. The add-on price list is not public, so the figure is a contract matter.
The time clock Time clock Device is a counted object: “The Quote will specify the price and quantity of the Devices”.[3] The Consulting hours metric counts allotted sessions.[4]
Counting and floors
Time clock purchases carry specific conditions. “A subscription to BambooHR Time Tracking is required to purchase Device”; the customer pays shipping and taxes; sales of Devices are final 45 days after purchase, and a return within 45 days in new condition earns a credit for 90 percent of the purchase price on the next invoice, with return shipping at the customer’s cost.[3] The licence fee for the embedded Software is included in the Device price, and the licence is “personal, revocable, non-exclusive, non-sublicensable and non-transferable” and limited to use with the Devices.[3] All Devices bought through BambooHR include a Replacement Services subscription as “Covered Devices”.[3] The addendum states that GT Clocks collects biometric identifiers such as fingerprint and facial scan data via the Device and that no biometric data is provided to or shared with BambooHR.[3]
The bundle discount links the add-ons: customers keep the bundled price only while “actively subscribed to, and utilizing the bundled Services”, so dropping Payroll or Benefits Administration changes the price of the others.[5]
Virtualization and partitioning
Not applicable; Payroll, Benefits Administration and Time Tracking are hosted. The time clock Device is physical hardware with embedded Software.
Cloud and BYOL
No bring-your-own-licence rule applies. The Time Clock Addendum notes that BambooHR may terminate the agreement if its relationship with GT Clocks ends, which ties the continuity of the clock subscription to a supplier arrangement.[3]
Programs
The Bundle discount is a pricing program: “Get a 15% discount when you combine Payroll and Benefits Administration with any plan”, available currently to US-based employees.[9] The program of Additional Services and Addenda is how the Terms attach separate fees and documents to each service.[5]
Out of scope
This article does not cover AI, API or third-party terms (see the AI and API article), or the packages and master Terms (see those articles). It does not cover the Human Interest retirement plan, I-9, ACA, EasyLlama or VirgilHR addenda, which exist in the Legal Hub but were not analyzed. It does not assess the regulatory status of payroll funds handling, biometric data laws or benefits compliance, which depend on jurisdiction.