Every year, People teams across the UK are hit with the same reality that feels like a nightmare. 

Endless email threads with brokers and healthcare providers. Chasing employee documents and trawling through spreadsheets to understand changes from last year’s terms. You’re trying to figure out why premiums are going up this year, despite coverage remaining largely the same. 

Meanwhile, employees still don’t understand what they’re covered for and don’t appreciate the life-changing benefit you’ve given them. 

You ask yourself: is this really worth the pain?

Today, we can confidently say that you can finally deliver what you promise your employees, with none of the pain you’re used to. Kota has rolled out its solution for healthcare renewals.

Procure, connect, and offer private medical insurance for employees in one simple workflow that is entirely automated and synced with your HRIS and payroll systems. 

No more manually sifting through emails and documents. No wrestling with provider and broker portals. No more benefits platforms that simply add more admin to your day.

Free your team from the burdens of renewal season

The hardest part of the healthcare renewal is that it adds a whole layer of administrative overhead for your team, with the end result failing to provide the value promised to your employees. 

Email chain and calls with your broker. Another set of emails and calls with your healthcare provider’s account manager. A set of portal logins to go with each. Spreadsheets and documents flying around, with an additional benefits platform to maintain on top if you’re lucky (or unlucky). 

And that’s before we get into the ongoing maintenance of enrolments for joiners, un-enrolments for leavers, payroll deductions and reconciliation, as well as internal comms for enabling employees in understanding and using their coverage.

How Kota handles the entire process and gives your team the glory

1. Compare quotes from a range of providers

Kota takes your business information and coverage requirements, and takes it to providers so you can actually get a quote fast, without the gatekeeping of traditional broker and provider processes. Take advantage of any provider discounts currently on offer. And don’t worry - our team can provide broker-level expertise when needed. 

2. Choose your plan and connect it to your systems

No more copy/pasting to upload employee details and payroll deductions into half a dozen systems and portals. Simply plug Kota into your HRIS and payroll, and we’ll handle the rest.

3. Offer coverage and enable your employees

What’s the use of setting up employee health coverage if they don’t know what they’re covered for, and what to access? 

All plans sync directly from healthcare providers through to Kota’s employee app, where they can access and control their health coverage. Human support is available to answer employee questions when they need it.

Kota connects your business systems straight to providers - meaning joiners and leavers are automatically added and removed from plans without manual intervention. Payroll deductions are handled for you, so you will remain in control and finance will be ecstatic. 

Employees are happy, your team is focused

Employees have easy access to their healthcare benefits in the palm of their hand. Ongoing admin for your private health insurance offering is now completely removed from your team’s day-to-day. You can rest easy and focus on high-value people work, while your team remains happy.

Kota’s mission is to give employees all over the world the best access to healthcare benefits, while removing the barriers, gatekeeping, and admin that prevents people teams from doing their best work.

Renewal season shouldn’t be a nightmare. With Kota, it’s everything you’ve dreamed of.

Renewal season just got easier: Offer group health insurance through Kota

Kota Health Insurance Renewal

 to Kota as our new Chief Operating Officer.

Unsurprisingly, building the future of insurance benefits is complex and operationally demanding at scale. It requires discipline, strong judgment, and a team of smart, hungry, low-ego people who care deeply about getting the details right. As we’ve grown across markets, partners, and products, it’s become clear that scaling responsibly means investing early in the operational foundations that allow the rest of the company to move faster and with confidence.

, where he spent the last five years hands-on building and scaling their EMEA operations as the business grew to serve thousands of customers and the overall team expanded to over two hundred. His experience sits at the intersection of financial operations, customer experience, and regulation - exactly where Kota operates today, and where execution matters most as we scale.

We’ve just come off a breakout year at Kota, expanding our footprint, deepening our product, and working with some of the most ambitious companies in the world of work. Simon joining marks a clear shift from proving what’s possible to building at scale - and doing so in a way that’s durable, compliant, and customer-first.

Simon Ellis Joins Kota as Chief Operating Officer

Simon Ellis joins Kota

You are probably searching for “Thanks Ben alternatives” because you like modern, flexible benefits, but Thanks Ben isn’t ideal for you. This guide walks you through five strong options: Kota, Gusto, Paylocity, ADP TotalSource, and YuLife, so you can pick the right fit for your team.

Looking for an Alternative to Thanks Ben?

Thanks Ben (now called Ben) has built a solid reputation for flexible benefit allowances and a modern interface. But it's not the right fit for every team. 

Maybe you've hit friction with customer support, run into portal reliability issues, or found the reporting too shallow for your needs. Whatever the reason, you're here because you want something better.

This guide breaks down five Thanks Ben alternatives worth considering. We'll cover what each does well, where they fall short, and which types of teams they suit best.

We built Kota to modernise how businesses deliver core and flexible employee benefits. 

Kota integrates directly with HRIS, payroll, and insurance providers to to automate health insurance, pensions, and life assurance for modern teams, and our clients are loving it

We base our advice on deep expertise in years of 

Thanks Ben (now called Ben) is an intelligent employee benefits management platform that lets HR teams centralise and automate benefits enrolment and usage. 

It brings together benefits, rewards, and recognition in one place. 

Many people love Thanks Ben for its flexible benefit allowances and modern UX. 

But while the software is robust, it has its flaws, so teams end up looking for other options. Here are some common issues reported online:

Some users complain about slow or unresponsive help channels and a heavy reliance on chatbots. 

When HR teams can’t get timely human support, simple benefits issues can drag on for days.

This unresponsiveness increases internal tickets and frustrates employees who expect fast resolutions to pay or benefits-related problems.

Users report that digital wallet cards are sometimes declined or don’t work as expected. 

For employees, this creates embarrassment and mistrust at the point of purchase. 

Meanwhile, HR teams are left firefighting complaints and manually reimbursing expenses that were supposed to be automated.

Some users say benefit information is difficult to track across dashboards and individual benefit pages. 

This lack of clarity can reduce benefit usage because employees don’t fully understand what they’re entitled to. 

This lowers perceived value and weakens your total rewards strategy.

Businesses have mentioned slower-than-expected implementation timelines and misaligned expectations during setup. 

These delays put extra pressure on HR teams, slow down benefits adoption, and can cause confusion or dissatisfaction among employees who were promised a new benefits experience.

5. Limited advanced analytics and reporting

HR professionals on Reddit note that reporting and insights can feel shallow or inflexible. 

Without clear data on benefit engagement, usage, or ROI, HR teams struggle to justify spend, optimize offerings, or demonstrate the real impact of benefits to leadership.

Let’s zoom in to the alternative tools.

Kota is a modern broker alternative built to take all the work involved in running benefits off your plate, and deliver a much more engaging employee experience. It handles the entire benefits journey, from HRIS integration through to end providers. 

It connects your HRIS to health insurance, pensions, and flexible benefits. Enrolment, changes, and cancellations run on autopilot. You manage everything in one place. Employees use a single app to view, personalise, and control their benefits.

Ben focuses on flexible benefits through a marketplace model, but you'll still need a traditional broker for core benefits like pensions and health insurance.

Kota is different - it's built as a modern broker alternative that removes all the work involved in running benefits.

Unlike Ben which requires you to manage core provider relationships separately, Kota syncs directly from your HRIS to end providers like Vitality, Bupa, Allianz, and Smart Pension. This means:

Ben's marketplace approach works for flexible allowances, but Kota delivers both core benefits (pensions, health insurance) and flexible benefits in one integrated system.

Kota uses clear, nothing-to-hide pricing:

Scaling small-to-mid-market and mid-market companies across the UK and Europe that want an all-in-one flexible benefits platform with predictable pricing.

Gusto combines payroll, HR, and benefits administration in one platform. It aims to make paying your people and staying compliant simple, with transparent pricing and plans that grow with your company.

It’s popular with SMBs, thanks to its strong payroll engine and easy-to-use interface. 

If payroll and compliance are your biggest challenges, Gusto may deliver faster value than a benefits marketplace like Ben. 

It combines payroll and benefits in one system, removing the need for separate tools for pay runs, tax filing, and basic benefits admin.

Ben emphasises wallets, allowances, and marketplace perks. Gusto is often praised for clear pricing, unlimited payroll runs, and strong payroll automation. This helps reduce the risk of payroll and tax errors.

Gusto’s biggest drawback is limited customisation options.

Small to medium-sized businesses that want all-in-one payroll, HR, and benefits tools.

Paylocity is a comprehensive workforce management and HR platform focused on payroll, HR, talent, and employee experience. It’s an all-in-one system for HR teams that want modern automation plus analytics and engagement features. 

Paylocity is a good option for mid-sized and larger companies that need more robust HR capabilities.

Ben is brilliant with flexible allowances and wallets. 

However, Paylocity offers a broader, all-in-one HR platform. It combines payroll, performance, time tracking, learning, and benefits in one system, which reduces tool sprawl.

Also, Paylocity has a module for nearly every HR need. This reduces the number of vendors and integrations to manage. By contrast, Ben users sometimes report portal issues, which can be frustrating when benefits are a standalone, high-touch tool.

Paylocity has often been condemned for poor customer support.

Custom, based on company size and module requirements.

Mid-sized companies seeking a full HR and benefits system with payroll integrated.

ADP TotalSource is a Professional Employer Organisation (PEO) service that provides businesses with outsourced HR, payroll, benefits, compliance, and risk management solutions through a co-employment model. 

In this arrangement, you keep control over your employees’ day-to-day work, while ADP handles critical HR and administrative responsibilities.  

5 Thanks Ben Alternatives For Better Benefits

5 Thanks Ben Alternatives For Better Benefits | Kota

Looking for alternatives to Zest Benefits for managing your employee benefits program? This comprehensive guide explores five powerful platforms: Kota, BambooHR, Rippling, Ben, and YuLife. We'll compare key features, pricing, and real user experiences to help you find the perfect solution for your organisation.

Looking for an Alternative to Zest Benefits?

It offers codeless benefit builders, solid automation, and strong UK coverage. But if you're scaling internationally, need deeper core benefits support, or want clearer pricing as you grow, it might not be the right long-term fit.

This guide covers five alternatives - Kota, BambooHR, Rippling, Ben, and YuLife - with an honest look at what each does best and where they fall short.

At Kota, we're rebuilding the infrastructure that powers 

. Our expertise comes from solving benefits problems daily for leading modern People teams like Remote, Carwow, and Poolside.

Here’s a G2 review from one of our customers:

This guide draws on our deep market knowledge and real customer feedback. 

Zest Benefits is a UK-based employee benefits platform. It helps companies centralise benefits administration and improve employee engagement. The platform focuses on benefits communication, enrolment, and broker collaboration.

There’s no doubt that Zest Benefits is a solid tool for benefits administration, especially for UK-based employers.

That said, while the software is powerful, it has limitations, and these gaps often push HR teams to explore Zest Benefits alternatives.

Here are four common Zest limitations reported by users:

Some customers feel the platform leans more towards flexible benefits. 

Zest’s focus on AI-powered, intelligent, and flexible benefits means it neglects essential core benefits.

The platform does not integrate directly with health insurance and pension providers, so you’ll still need a broker or be left managing all the core benefit admin yourself. Zest can host the benefits, but it can’t remove any of the underlying work. So, if your team wants to offer core benefits, Zest won’t do. You must look elsewhere.

Zest Benefits is primarily built for the UK market. 

The site uses UK-specific data, regulations, and partners across various pages and reports, clearly showing its strong UK focus.

Companies with international teams or expansion plans may find the platform lacks robust multi-country support for benefits compliance and localised offerings.

 on Capterra mentioned they "would like to be able to configure more of the homepage design".  

It seems certain elements aren't fully customisable. Organisations with specific branding requirements may feel restricted.

Zest doesn’t publicly display its prices on its website.

Multiple reviewers mention that pricing isn’t always clear upfront. Also, they say that costs can increase as headcount grows or features are added.

If any of these issues sound familiar, it may be time to consider more flexible, modern Zest Benefits alternatives.

Let’s dive into the intricacies of each tool, shall we?

Kota is a modern broker alternative that handles the entire benefits lifecycle for growing companies.

Instead of juggling brokers, benefit providers, and admin platforms, Kota connects directly from your HRIS to insurance carriers and pension providers. This direct integration approach eliminates the traditional middleman model, giving your team complete benefits infrastructure without broker overhead.

Zest focuses on hosting and administering existing benefits, but you'll still need a traditional broker for core benefits like pensions and health insurance.

Kota is different - it's built as a modern broker alternative that removes all the work involved in running benefits off your plate.

Unlike Zest which requires you to manage provider relationships separately, Kota syncs directly from your HRIS to end providers like Vitality, Bupa, Allianz, and Smart Pension. This means:

Zest's UK-only focus also creates limitations for growing teams. Kota supports the UK and Ireland through direct provider integrations.

Praised for ease of use and flexibility, but 

Kota offers clear, transparent per employee pricing. No hidden add-ons

European/UK scaling startups and SMEs needing an all-in-one solution for core and flexible benefits without complexity. 

BambooHR is a comprehensive HR platform trusted by companies in 150+ countries. It centralises employee data, payroll, time tracking, and benefits in one intuitive system. 

It’s a leading choice for small and midsize businesses that want HR, onboarding, and benefits in one place.

Zest Benefits focuses narrowly on benefits, which is great. But if your People team also needs HR management, BambooHR would be the better choice.

At its core, BambooHR is a human resources management software, an excellent one at that. As it grew, it then included other offerings. It’s now a massive all-in-one HR solution. With BambooHR, you can take care of everything: HR, payroll, and benefits in one platform.

Praised for usability but criticised for limited 

BambooHR plans start at $10/month per employee. Benefits Administration is a paid add-on at a custom price.

Small to mid-sized companies that want HR, payroll, and benefits in one platform.

Happl is an AI-native employee benefits platform designed for global teams.

The platform uses intelligent automations to eliminate admin while delivering personalised benefits experiences. It's particularly strong for companies with distributed workforces who want flexibility without complexity.

Zest focuses heavily on UK benefits administration. Happl takes a different approach, and is better for global companies who need flexibility across borders. Happl handles international compliance that Zest simply doesn't cover with support for 160+ countries and 70+ languages.

Happl offers tiered plans with custom pricing.

Scaling global teams that want AI-powered benefits personalisation.

Ben is a UK-based employee benefits platform focused on giving employees real choice. 

It has a wide benefits marketplace, emphasizing choice and flexibility.

The platform's convenient Mastercards let teams tailor benefits to individual needs and life stages.

Zest has solid benefits but often feels traditional. 

Ben is more modern, especially around benefits choice and presentation. In particular, the Ben Mastercard gives employees spending freedom and personalisation that Zest can’t match. 

Besides flexibility, some reviewers claim that while both tools have powerful eligibility engines, Ben has a more intuitive user interface.

Top 5 Zest Benefits Alternatives In 2026 Compared 

Top 5 Zest Benefits Alternatives in 2026 | Kota

Choosing the right employee benefits platform directly impacts how engaged your people feel and how much admin your HR team carries. In this guide, we break down the top five Happl alternatives, comparing features, pricing models, and real-world use cases so you can confidently choose the platform that fits your team.

Happl does flexible benefits and employee perks well, but there are some gaps worth knowing about. 

There are no published reviews on G2 or Capterra, so it's hard to validate real-world performance. Pricing isn't listed on their site. And if you need core benefits like health insurance or pensions, Happl isn't really built for that.

This guide covers five alternatives: Kota, Perkbox, ADP Workforce Now, and BambooHR. We'll look at what each does best and which teams they suit.

At Kota, we work daily with top companies managing 

We speak to HR leaders, finance teams, and employees every week about what works, what doesn’t, and why teams switch platforms. That real-world exposure puts us in a strong position to evaluate Happl alternatives fairly.

Happl is an employee engagement and benefits platform focused on perks, recognition, and flexible rewards. 

It helps companies boost morale through discounts, vouchers, and lifestyle benefits.

Happl stands out for its strong focus on employee engagement and perk-driven motivation.

That said, while the platform is powerful, it has limitations, such as:

Happl currently has no published customer reviews on major B2B software review platforms like G2, Capterra, or GetApp. 

Without substantial user feedback, it's challenging to validate real-world performance, implementation experiences, or customer satisfaction levels before making a purchasing decision.

Another issue is that Happl’s prices are unclear. The pricing page displays package tiers (Starter, Growth, Enterprise) but requires you to "Book a demo" to receive actual pricing information. 

No costs are published upfront on their website. 

If your finance team needs to compare costs quickly or requires predictable budgeting without sales conversations, this lack of transparent pricing can slow down your evaluation process. 

While Happl advertises capabilities across 160+ countries, the platform originated in London and appears optimized primarily for the UK market. 

If you're headquartered in the US or have significant American operations, you might find alternatives with deeper US carrier relationships and compliance expertise more suitable.

leans heavily towards intelligent flexible benefits

, acting as the platform for personalized choice.

the company claims to source and implement core benefits like Health and Pension for you, in reality, they don’t. 

If you want to automate core benefits effectively, you should look elsewhere.

Kota replaces the traditional broker model with a modern platform that automates the entire benefits lifecycle. From HRIS sync to provider enrolment, everything runs through one system - giving your team a complete benefits solution without the broker overhead.

The platform connects directly to insurance carriers and pension providers, eliminating the back-and-forth with brokers while giving employees a clean, mobile-first experience to manage their benefits.

Kota takes a different approach to benefits by prioritising core financial benefits like healthcare and pensions, while also supporting perks and allowances. The latter has historically been Happl’s focus.

While Happl works with brokers to offer core benefits, Kota links directly to insurers, which:

This infrastructure-first approach means fewer manual processes, clearer tax treatment, and better visibility for finance teams. Customers report that Kota feels more like essential business infrastructure than an engagement add-on.

Kota uses transparent per-employee pricing with no hidden markups:

Growing SMBs in the UK, Europe, and beyond.

Perkbox is an employee engagement platform centred on perks, rewards, and recognition. It seeks to boost morale through everyday discounts.

The platform serves over 7,500 businesses globally, with a particularly strong presence in the UK public sector, the NHS specifically.

Happl and Perkbox focus heavily on perks, recognition, and flexible benefits, but Perkbox goes further in several ways.

 offers a broader discount network, stronger recognition features, and more comprehensive wellbeing tools like 24/7 mental health support and online GP access. Customers report higher engagement when rewards are tied to everyday savings rather than one-off vouchers.

Reviews often mention limited customisation and weaker coverage outside the UK.

Custom per employee, with prices varying based on company size, with volume discounts available

UK-centric teams prioritising engagement and recognition over core benefits.

ADP Workforce Now is a global HR and payroll platform. 

It offers payroll, benefits administration, compliance, talent management, time management, and workforce management at enterprise scale.

The platform aims to boost workforce efficiency and reduce administrative burden.

With 900+ carrier integrations, ADP offers deeper integrations than Happl, which links with only 100 systems.

Its vast, integrated ecosystem allows it to:

deep automated regulatory support locally and across borders (140 countries) with its flagship ADP SmartCompliance® solution. 

It's the perfect fit for large, multinational companies with a footprint in many regions.

Reviews frequently cite complexity and slower setup times compared to lighter platforms.

Large organisations needing robust payroll and compliance across regions.

CharlieHR is a UK-focused HR platform built for small businesses that need simple, effective people management. It handles core HR tasks like time-off tracking, onboarding, performance reviews, and employee records while also offering perks and discounts through its integrated marketplace.

CharlieHR takes a simpler, more focused approach to HR compared to Happl's benefits-heavy platform.

While Happl emphasises flexible benefits and personalisation across 160+ countries, CharlieHR concentrates on core HR administration for UK small businesses. The platform excels at everyday tasks like leave tracking and onboarding that UK teams need immediately.

5 Happl Alternatives Worth Considering For Your People Team

5 Happl Alternatives Worth Considering For Your People Teams | Kota

Brands that attract and keep top talent have excellent employee benefits programs. This guide compares seven top employee benefits platforms used across the UK, Europe and globally. It covers each tool’s key features, pricing, pros, and who it’s best for. 

Looking for the Best Employee Benefits Platforms?

Managing benefits without the right platform is a painful experience. 

You wrestle spreadsheets, log in and out of different systems, and field constant questions from employees. 

That’s why choosing the best employee benefits platform is critical. Undoubtedly, it’s one of the highest-impact decisions your HR or People team can make. 

This guide reviews the leading employee benefits platforms and reveals their ideal use cases to help you find the right fit.

Kota is a modern employee benefits platform serving high-growth brands like Remote.com, Poolside, Carwow, and more. 

Our team of benefits experts works with growing businesses every day to build and deploy engaging benefits packages while reducing admin for people and finance teams.

Our insights come from practical knowledge, not from theory. 

Kota is a modern broker alternative built to take all the work involved in running benefits off your plate, and deliver a much more engaging employee experience. 

It’s built to handle the entire benefits journey, from HRIS integration through to end providers. Kota gives your team a single place to manage pensions, health insurance, and flexible benefits, instead of juggling multiple portals.

Employees access core and flexible benefits through an easy-to-use app, with an optional benefits spend card for additional perks. For HR, deep integrations with your HRIS and payroll systems mean Kota acts as a connector that syncs data automatically rather than adding 

Kota operates as a benefits infrastructure, not just another admin tool.

Renewal season just got easier: Offer group health insurance through Kota

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