Oak Engage Vs Haiilo: Why are organisations choosing Oak Engage instead of Haiilo for their internal communications?

Choosing an employee intranet can feel overwhelming, especially with so many platforms claiming to reinvent internal communication and boost engagement. To help cut through the noise, we’re taking a side-by-side look at two well-known options: Oak Engage and Haiilo.

In this piece, we break down how both platforms perform against core criteria, drawing on independent evaluations from G2 and ClearBox Consulting to give you a clear, evidence-led comparison. We explore the strengths of each tool—from onboarding experience and support services to features like personalised content and governance frameworks—so you can decide what aligns best with your organisation’s needs.

Whether you’re preparing to roll out a completely new intranet or simply exploring alternatives to Haiilo, this guide will walk you through what you need to know.

What is Oak Engage?

Oak Engage is a leading employee engagement app and intranet software platform built to bring clarity and connection to every part of the workforce, from office staff to frontline teams. The platform focuses on making communication easier, cutting back on manual admin, and tailoring information so employees receive what matters most to them, exactly when they need it. It’s used by major global organisations, with brands such as Five Guys, Burger King UK, NatWest and Aldi.

What is Haiilo?

Haiilo is a simple and user-friendly social intranet platform with intuitive collaboration and communication tools. Its focus on encouraging participation makes it ideal for those organisations looking for a light touch method of reaching their workforce quickly and easily. 

Oak Engage vs Haiilo: Industry comparisons

We examined insights from leading digital workplace analysts to understand how each platform performs in real-world settings and how effectively they support employees day to day. Both Haiilo and Oak are repeatedly recognised as strong performers in the intranet and employee experience market, although they excel in different areas.

ClearBox Consulting—widely respected for its thorough and impartial evaluations of intranet and digital workplace tools—goes beyond vendor claims to assess genuine functionality and user outcomes. Its reviews focus on how well each platform serves internal communicators and contributes to a stronger overall employee experience.

In its assessment of high-performing platforms, ClearBox positions Oak as a flexible, intuitive solution with robust integration and reporting capabilities. The report highlights the quality of Oak’s analytics, noting:

 “Charts are attractive. Useful monthly report with AI generated recommendations.” Crucially, this technical strength does not come at the expense of engagement.

ClearBox also points to Oak’s ability to foster connection across organisations, commenting: “Communities well handled through Hubs. Excellent employee / peer recognition feature.”

Haiilo, by comparison, is acknowledged for offering user-friendly features such as group pages and chat channels, but ClearBox observes that it lacks the deeper, more comprehensive integration needed to support a fully unified internal communications ecosystem. Its analytics capabilities are also described as more limited. In contrast, Oak’s expansive, joined-up approach to centralising and measuring internal communications enables it to take a clear lead.

Customer feedback and industry reputation 

Independent customer feedback is essential when assessing any new platform. G2—the world’s largest and most trusted software marketplace—provides verified reviews that shed light on real user experiences, covering everything from functionality and ease of use to the quality of customer support.

While both Haiilo and Oak achieve strong overall ratings on G2, a closer look at the detailed metrics shows meaningful differences in the areas where each platform performs best.

Oak’s role as a genuine partner to its customers is one of the areas where it stands out most. With a score of 9.3 out of 10 on G2 (compared with Haiilo’s 9.1), users consistently highlight Oak’s ability to understand their needs, prioritise customer outcomes, and provide support that feels both responsive and genuinely invested.

This partnership mindset is reflected in Oak’s exceptional customer support. Users and administrators frequently commend the platform’s service teams for their speed, expertise and willingness to go beyond basic requests. As one happy G2 reviewer put it:

“Every member of the Oak team I have dealt with has been really helpful and very responsive. They understand our vision, objectives and our bigger-picture plans and help us achieve these. They don't just do what is asked of them, and they complete the task to the best of their ability to benefit their clients. Nothing seems too much.”

G2 users do note that Haiilo’s simplicity can make certain communications quick and straightforward to send, but many also express frustration with the lack of flexibility when needs become more complex.

Cost is another frequent concern among Haiilo reviewers, particularly where integrations or enhanced features require additional fees. Oak takes a different approach, assessing organisational needs upfront and providing full functionality as standard. This means no hidden charges and no unexpected extras later on.

Oak Engage vs Haiilo: How does Oak perform as an alternative to Haiilo?

With the satisfaction scores in mind, it’s worth looking more closely at what might be shaping the differences in user experience. When comparing two leading intranet and employee engagement platforms, it’s important to move beyond basic feature checklists. Both Haiilo and Oak offer the core components of a modern digital workplace, including communication tools and social functionality.

But choosing the right solution requires understanding how each platform performs against the priorities that matter most to your internal communications strategy. The comparison below explores these distinctions in greater depth, drawing on customer feedback and independent expert evaluations to provide a clearer picture of where each platform stands.

Oak Engage vs Haiilo: Who offers the best customer support?

According to G2’s comparison scores, Oak leads with an impressive 9.6 for customer support, compared with Haiilo’s 9.3. While both platforms perform well, Oak consistently receives higher praise for responsiveness, personalised guidance and proactive onboarding.

Quality support goes beyond solving technical issues. It also focuses on building a partnership that strengthens the long-term success of your internal communications strategy. Whether you are rolling out a new initiative or refining an existing one, a supportive and proactive team can transform the experience for both administrators and end users. For this, Oak scores a near perfect 9.3 out of 10.

Oak places customer success at the centre of its service model. Because Oak supports both frontline and office-based communication in one unified platform, its teams can act as a single, reliable point of contact—offering strategic planning, troubleshooting and hands-on expertise whenever needed. Reviewers frequently highlight the attentiveness and specialist knowledge of Oak’s dedicated support teams, describing them as highly trained, approachable and committed to guiding clients through every stage of their journey.

Putting the customer first

This customer-first approach is reflected in Oak’s consistently above-average satisfaction ratings. Unlike many enterprise providers that rely heavily on ticketing systems or self-service portals, Oak offers a more personalised, relationship-led style of support. One G2 reviewer captured this especially well:

“I really enjoy having an account manager. They consistently take the time to explain things clearly and make sure we fully understand how to use the platform to its fullest. It’s been a great experience having someone so responsive, knowledgeable, and easy to work with. Their support has made a real difference in how confident we feel using the system.”

Haiilo’s support is also recognised for its responsiveness. However, the platform’s simpler, more ‘plug in’ style product provides fewer opportunities for consultancy or deeper customisation. For organisations seeking a genuine partnership—one that includes strategic guidance, broader integration and an actively consultative relationship—Oak’s customer success–focused model often proves to be the stronger fit.

Oak Engage vs Haiilo: Which platform has the best admin tools?

When it comes to ease of administration, Oak leads clearly. On G2, Oak scores around 9.7 for administrative experience, compared with Haiilo’s score of approximately 9.2. This difference reflects not just ease of use, but the depth and flexibility of the tools available to support day-to-day content management.

ClearBox Consulting highlights Oak’s straightforward administration tools and rapid configuration capabilities, an important advantage for mid-market organisations that may not have extensive IT resources. The report notes Oak’s “good range of integration options and built-in services,” enabling administrators to run a cohesive digital workplace with minimal complexity.

A single source of truth

This real-world impact is echoed by Jo Pitchford, Internal Communications, Engagement and Culture Lead at ScS, who explains:

“Oak has allowed us to establish a single source of truth for our people. Oak’s document management system empowers our people and gives them the autonomy and ownership to access the tools and resources they need. Oak’s advanced search functionality also makes it so much easier for colleagues to quickly and easily find this information and reduces frustration. This centralised approach has streamlined processes, reduced time spent searching for information and improved overall productivity and efficiency.”

Haiilo also supports multi-channel communication and scores highly for instant messaging and group page functionality. However, when considered as a Haiilo alternative, Oak’s always-on, cross-channel news feeds and integrated content databases provide a clear advantage for organisations looking to prioritise agility, consistency and sustained engagement across the entire workforce.

Oak Engage vs Haiilo: Which is best for mobile experience?

Oak’s fully native mobile app delivers seamless functionality for frontline workers — an area where many Haiilo reviewers reported frustrations, particularly around navigation and general ease of use.

The Oak app includes a wide range of features designed to keep employees connected with their teams, peers and wider organisation, helping to build a sense of belonging regardless of location. Colleagues can share updates from their branch, celebrate personal milestones, and post achievements to the social feed, creating a consistent flow of connection and inclusion. Staff can also recognise one another’s successes from any location, reinforcing a culture of appreciation across the workforce.

Reaching every employee, instantly

Speaking to this impact, Nick Hollis, Head of Engagement at Burger King UK, explains:

“Oak Engage has given us a mobile friendly app that allows our people to share all of the great things they do within our restaurants, day-in, day-out. It also allows them to share best practices and fun updates for others to enjoy and be inspired by. The mobile app’s sleek design and ease of use have made it an invaluable tool for our team members, enabling them to stay connected and informed, regardless of where they are.”

Haiilo also provides a mobile-friendly experience, but its limited integration with office-based systems can create fragmentation, adding yet another platform for employees to navigate. Combined with user concerns around interface usability, this can lead to inconsistency and frustration — highlighting where Oak’s unified, intuitive mobile approach has a clear advantage.

Oak Engage vs Haiilo: Which is best for AI personalisation?

Oak takes a clear lead in AI-driven personalisation, powered by its Aria AI assistant. Aria delivers smart content recommendations, automated insights, and intelligent search functionality that works seamlessly across channels to save time and surface what matters. Features such as auto-translate also ensure every employee—regardless of language—has a voice and can fully participate in organisational communication.

The key to effective personalisation in user experience is all about shaping an environment where employees receive the most relevant content, information, and updates for their role, location, and device. This reduces digital noise, strengthens connection, and creates a more meaningful interaction with the organisation’s information ecosystem.

Haiilo offers only limited personalisation functionality, which can reduce the relevance of posts and potentially contribute to the noise and notification fatigue many employees already experience. By contrast, ClearBox highlights Oak’s strong capabilities in this area, noting that its “intelligent audience targeting works well for mobile. App experience can be tailored to the frontline. Helpful in-built tools.”

Reinforcing your brand

ClearBox also praises the level of design control administrators have when using Oak, including on mobile devices. This includes custom branding options and the ability to create dedicated homepages for frontline teams, ensuring they see only the features most relevant to their day-to-day work—such as timelines and notices. Broader audiences can share a unified homepage, with individual applets automatically configured to display based on audience type or device.

Nick Hollis, Head of Engagement at Burger King UK, reinforces this value:

“The platform’s intelligent delivery mechanism ensures that our employees only receive the information that they need, effectively cutting through the noise and enhancing the overall engagement and communication within the company.”

Haiilo is recognised for being straightforward to set up, but Oak still comes out ahead in overall personalisation, scoring 8.6. Its adaptive interface and audience-targeting capabilities make it an especially strong choice for organisations that need to reach diverse, distributed, and mobile-first teams with precision, clarity and ease.

Oak Engage vs Haiilo: Which is best for employee engagement?

ClearBox readily highlights Oak’s strengths in employee recognition, hubs and polls — tools designed to build connection, encourage participation and reinforce a positive workplace culture. Haiilo, by contrast, leans more heavily towards top-down communication features.

Employees will feel engaged when your comms go beyond just distributing information. The kind of comms that makes people feel engaged promote interaction, community and belonging. People long to feel listened to, valued and motivated to play an active role in organisational life. So it's all about interaction: when employees comment, respond, and participate, communication becomes genuinely two-way and employees feel part of shaping the culture rather than simply receiving updates.

Not just quantity, but quality

Oak is particularly strong in generating this meaningful interaction. On G2, Oak earned a perfect 10/10 score for content interaction, reflecting how actively users engage with posts and updates. It also received outstanding ratings for confirmations; a feature that helps streamline HR processes and ensure key messages are acknowledged, as well as advanced analytics that make monitoring, measuring and improving engagement much easier for administrators.

Commenting is another area where Oak stands out, again achieving a flawless 10/10 score. This indicates that employees feel confident not only consuming content but responding to it, sharing ideas and contributing to ongoing dialogue.

Paige Hatcher, Communications Officer at Ascenti Group, shares how Oak enables this at scale:

“We use hubs frequently for different purposes including internal competitions, campaigns and for daily recognition. Using hubs helps us to connect and engage with over 1000 employees who are based nationwide and virtual. We use a hub for our ‘Colleague Appreciation Board’ where employees can post any shout outs or mentions throughout the year.”

Overall, G2 reviewers note that Oak provides a more holistic suite of engagement features, particularly in areas such as gamification and community building.

Haiilo’s simpler, less customisable approach can certainly encourage broad participation, but with limited personalisation and very few ways to measure meaningful engagement, it becomes difficult to assess or maximise its impact or demonstrate its ROI.

Oak Engage vs Haiilo: How do the platforms compare on pricing? 

When it comes to employee engagement, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Every organisation has its own communication challenges, cultural expectations and operational priorities — which makes it essential to choose an intranet that offers genuine value, not just an attractive starting price.

G2 reviewers frequently highlight Oak’s “good value and transparent pricing,” which is a notable contrast to Haiilo’s modular, licence-based cost model. While Haiilo may appear economical at first glance, many customers report that additional integrations, features or expansions come with extra fees — creating the potential for unexpected costs over time.

Oak takes a different approach. All core functionality is included as standard, with no hidden charges or surprise add-ons. Its flexible pricing options are designed to support organisations of every size, particularly those with large frontline or hybrid workforces that need a fully unified solution.

For teams that value clarity, comprehensive features and predictable long-term investment, Oak offers a complete, cost-effective platform without the risk of escalating expenses.

Oak can be fully tailored to your organisation’s needs. Connect with our team to find the right fit for your people and your goals.

Oak Engage vs Haiilo: The final verdict

When comparing Oak and Haiilo, six significant differences arise:

1. Customer support
Oak delivers a genuinely partnership-driven support model with highly responsive, knowledgeable teams and dedicated account managers. Reviewers consistently report a more personal, proactive and hands-on experience than Haiilo’s lighter support offering.

2. Administrative ease
With intuitive admin tools, rapid configuration and strong integration options, Oak is easier to manage day to day — especially for organisations without large IT teams. ClearBox praises Oak’s functionality as ideal for mid-market teams seeking simplicity without limitations.

3. AI personalisation
Oak’s Aria AI assistant provides smart content recommendations, automated insights, advanced search and seamless auto-translation. Its audience targeting and adaptable interface go far beyond Haiilo’s limited personalisation features.

4. Employee engagement and community building
Oak delivers deeper two-way interaction through features such as hubs, polls, recognition tools and gamification. Perfect 10/10 G2 scores in content interaction and commenting reflect how confidently employees engage. Haiilo’s engagement features are more basic and harder to measure.

5. Mobile experience
Oak’s fully native mobile app is more intuitive and more fully integrated with office-based systems, helping frontline and distributed workers stay connected. Haiilo’s mobile experience is functional but less cohesive and often cited by users as frustrating to navigate.

6. Pricing transparency and long-term value
Oak offers transparent, all-inclusive functionality with no surprise add-ons. Haiilo’s modular pricing can appear cost-effective initially but may lead to unexpected fees for integrations or additional capabilities.

Taken together, the evidence shows that Oak offers a more complete, future-ready solution for organisations seeking to strengthen communication, elevate engagement and support a diverse workforce with confidence.

While Haiilo performs well in certain areas, Oak’s depth of functionality, superior support model, stronger personalisation, and transparent pricing make it the more reliable long-term partner for internal communications teams. For businesses looking to unify their digital workplace and create meaningful, measurable impact across every part of the organisation, Oak stands out as the stronger choice.

How to choose an employee intranet platform

When it comes down to it, choosing an intranet isn’t just about finding something that ‘does the job’. It’s about getting past the surface and uncovering the challenges at the heart of how your people connect, communicate and work every day.

• What does a successful employee intranet look like for your organisation?

• Can the platform be tailored to suit your brand, communication approach, and the complex, varied needs of your workforce?

• How much ongoing support will you require from your intranet provider?

• What level of security and data protection is critical for your organisation?

If these considerations are shaping your internal communications strategy, Oak may be a strong fit for your needs. To help guide your decision, we have also compared Oak with other leading providers, including Unily and Interact. 

Get in touch to discover how Oak can bring your organisation together and solve your internal communications challenges from the inside out.