Best AI ATS for Recruiting Agencies & Small Teams (2026): Manatal vs Recruit CRM vs Loxo vs Workable

By The Professions Cloud Editors Updated October 2026 · 7 sources · 5 min read

Prices and facts checked October 13, 2026. We don't accept payment for rankings.

Short answer: Manatal is the best value AI ATS for small agencies and teams. It costs $15 per user per month billed annually, with AI candidate scoring, an AI copilot and job descriptions on every plan. Recruit CRM is the most complete agency platform, with AI agents for submissions, pitching and resume formatting, from $95 per user per month. Loxo adds an 850-million-profile talent graph and AI sourcing agents for agencies that source heavily (Professional around $199 per user per month). Workable suits in-house teams hiring directly, not agencies.

Comparison table

Sources: Manatal pricing; Recruit CRM pricing; Loxo pricing; Workable pricing.

1. Manatal: best value AI ATS

Price (per user per month, billed annually / monthly):

• Professional: $15 / $19, with 15 jobs and 10,000 candidates
• Enterprise: $35 / $39, unlimited jobs and candidates
• Enterprise Plus: $55 / $59, which adds an MCP server to connect ChatGPT, Claude or other AI models

Every plan includes candidate enrichment, AI recommendations and scoring, an AI copilot (summaries, fit analysis, interview prep) and AI job descriptions. An AI Interviewer is an add-on with an unpublished price. The 14-day trial excludes AI job descriptions and some automation (Manatal pricing).

What users say: 3.7 from 41 reviews (Trustpilot). Recent reviewers praise the value and responsive support. Complaints describe job postings not reaching partner boards, and billing or refund disputes.

2. Recruit CRM: best all-round agency platform

Price: Pro $95, Business $135 and Enterprise $215 per user per month, with 100, 200 and 2,000 AI credits per user, pooled across the account. Annual billing saves up to 17%, and there's a 30-day free trial (Recruit CRM pricing).

AI: Pro includes AI agents that parse custom fields, write candidate submissions and pitch candidates to clients, plus a GPT integration. AI sourcing and candidate matching use credits. Business adds a resume-formatting agent and an MCP connection.

What users say: 3.9 from 110 reviews, though Recruit CRM hasn't replied to negative reviews (Trustpilot). Reviewers praise the training and the all-in-one design. 2025–2026 complaints include bugs, a broken Boolean search, slow support, regional price differences, a 33% price increase, and a full data export requiring an active subscription. Plan your exit before you start.

3. Loxo: best for sourcing-heavy agencies

Price: Core from $149 per user per month billed annually: the ATS and CRM with AI search, unlimited jobs and candidates, and MCP. Professional (listed as "included in $199" per user per month, team pricing by demo) adds Loxo Source, an 850-million-profile talent graph, plus contact data and a full set of AI agents for intake, job descriptions, longlists that screen up to 10,000 candidates, shortlists, outreach and AI notetaking. Professional includes 2,500 credits per user per month. There's a 7-day free trial (Loxo pricing).

What users say: a small and split sample (3.3, 7 reviews in the past year). Users who switched from Bullhorn praise the interface. Complaints cite price, an export cap, and data-transfer problems when leaving (Trustpilot).

4. Workable: best for in-house teams

Price (for companies with 1–20 employees, billed annually): Standard $299/month, Premier $599 and Enterprise $719. Larger companies pay more. The Workable Agent, which sources, screens and qualifies candidates, is an add-on on every plan that runs on credits: 1 credit to screen a candidate, 2 to source one, 10 for a candidate chat. Every account starts with 3,000 free credits, then packs cost from $600 for 5,000. The 15-day trial doesn't include the Agent (Workable pricing).

Why not for agencies: Workable prices by company size and bundles HR tools. It's built for employers hiring for themselves, not for managing client accounts.

Before you put AI in your hiring pipeline

AI scoring, matching and screening are exactly what new hiring laws regulate:

• AI hiring laws in New York City, Illinois and Colorado require notices, bias audits or both
• California's ADMT rules take effect in 2027
• the Workday and Eightfold lawsuits show that vendors and users can both be exposed

Keep a human reviewing every AI recommendation, document why candidates advance, and ask each vendor for bias-testing documentation.

Which should you choose?

FAQ

What's the cheapest ATS with AI?

Manatal, at $15 per user per month on annual billing, includes AI scoring, an AI copilot and job descriptions on its entry plan.

Do AI credits run out?

Yes, on credit-based plans. Recruit CRM, Loxo and Workable all meter AI work in credits. Estimate your monthly screening and sourcing volume before choosing a plan.

Can I export my data if I leave?

Check before you sign. Reviewers report that some vendors require an active subscription or cap exports. Ask for the export terms in writing.

Changelog: Oct 13, 2026: first published.