Comparison · 2026
5 Best Plum Alternatives for Skills Assessment
Predictive Index, Bryq and Criteria Corp compared with Plum on price, anti-cheating and candidate drop-off, and which one fits which kind of hiring.
The short version
The most widely used Plum alternatives are Predictive Index, Bryq, Criteria Corp and Hogan Assessments, plus Cohesyve — which is our own product, so weigh this page accordingly. Plum itself is strongest for organisations that want one behavioural measure applied across hiring, development and mobility, and that select on potential and fit. The right choice depends on what you need to measure, not on which tool has the longest feature list.
- Predictive Index — Behavioural and cognitive profiling. Platform subscription; check their site.
- Bryq — Cognitive-and-personality matching. Subscription; check their site.
- Criteria Corp — Self-serve validated tests. Subscription; check their site.
- Hogan Assessments — Deep personality for senior selection. Custom; contact sales.
A 30-minute call where we build an assessment for a role you are hiring now, so you can compare it with Plum on your own candidates.
Plum measures behavioural "talents" through a psychometric assessment and matches people to roles for hiring, development and mobility. It suits organisations that want a single behavioural lens across the talent lifecycle. Teams look for an alternative when they need to know whether a candidate can do the job, when they want a role-specific task rather than a general profile, or when a hiring-only tool fits better than a platform. This guide compares the strongest Plum alternatives, including Cohesyve.
Why teams look for a Plum alternative
- Behavioural talents do not show job-specific capability
- Matching depends on the target profile's accuracy
- Platform scope goes beyond hiring
- Standardised assessment across candidates
- Teams want a signal generated from the job description
What Plum does well
Plum offers a single psychometric assessment measuring behavioural talents, then matches candidates and employees to roles using a match score, with applications in hiring, leadership development and internal mobility. It is positioned as a way to hire for potential rather than experience.
Best for
Where Plum falls short
- Does not measure whether a candidate can perform the role's tasks
- Match quality is bounded by the role profile
- More platform than a hiring team needs
- Standardised instrument
- Weak primary filter for skills-heavy roles
Cohesyve vs Plum
Cohesyve is our product. This is the comparison as we see it — check it against a trial of both.
| Cohesyve | Plum | |
|---|---|---|
| What is measured | Whether the candidate can do the work of the specific role | Plum measures traits, drives or ability in general |
| Basis | A unique assessment generated from your job description | Standardised, validated instruments |
| Setup | Self-serve; ready in under 5 minutes | Configuration and often practitioner training |
| Pricing model | Volume-based subscription from $199/month, no seat fees | Check their site |
| Candidate experience | A preview of the actual work | Questionnaire or timed test |
| Pricing model | Transparent subscription sized to hiring volume | Custom; contact sales |
| What it measures | Job-specific skills and judgement | Personality, behaviour or cognitive ability |
| Question uniqueness | Unique assessment generated per candidate | Standardised instrument |
| Setup time | Under 5 minutes, self-serve | Configuration; training may be required |
| Role coverage | Any knowledge-based role | Any role, via general measures |
| Free trial | 10 free candidates on signup | Check Plum's site |
| Contract terms | Monthly or annual, cancel anytime on monthly | Annual subscription |
Cohesyve
See the difference on one of your own roles
Paste a job description and Cohesyve builds a role-specific assessment with a scoring rubric. Ten candidates free, no card, so you can run it beside Plum on a live req.
The other Plum alternatives
Predictive Index
Platform subscription; check their siteBest for Behavioural and cognitive profiling
Key difference The reference behavioural platform
Bryq
Subscription; check their siteBest for Cognitive-and-personality matching
Key difference Adds cognitive ability to the profile
Criteria Corp
Subscription; check their siteBest for Self-serve validated tests
Key difference Hiring-focused psychometrics
Hogan Assessments
Custom; contact salesBest for Deep personality for senior selection
Key difference Depth over breadth
Which one should you pick?
Choose Cohesyve if
- You need to know whether a candidate can do the job before interviewing them
- You want a role-specific signal from the job description rather than a general profile
- You want scores your team can read without certification
- You hire for skills-heavy roles where capability comes before fit
Choose Plum if
- You want one behavioural measure across the talent lifecycle
- You select on potential and fit rather than current skill
- Internal mobility is part of the use case
- You value a short candidate assessment
Common questions
What does Plum measure?
Behavioural talents — how a person tends to work — through a single psychometric assessment, used to match people to roles for hiring, development and mobility.
What is the best Plum alternative?
Predictive Index and Bryq are the closest behavioural-matching platforms. For evidence that a candidate can do the specific job, Cohesyve — our own product — generates a role-specific assessment from the job description; compare on a trial.
How is Cohesyve different from Plum?
Plum describes potential and fit. Cohesyve shows whether a candidate can do the work of your role, through a unique assessment generated from your job description and scored against a rubric. Self-serve, from $199/month.
Should I hire on potential or skill?
Both matter, in different proportions by role. For roles where the work is well defined, current capability predicts early performance best; behavioural measures add context for fit and development.
Cohesyve · Skill assessments for hiring
Try Cohesyve against Plum on a live role
We'll build an assessment for a role you're hiring right now, so you can compare the candidate experience and the results side by side rather than taking our word for it.
1,500+
assessments completed
50%
faster time-to-hire
90%
completion rate
5 min
from JD to assessment
No credit card · 10 free candidates · Plans sized to your hiring volume
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