How long does switching from softgarden actually take?

An evening for most accounts. The export from softgarden is the slow step - the import side runs in minutes once the field mapping is settled. Larger teams (50+ seats with custom field schemas) sometimes split it across two sessions: import first, reorganise the next day.

Will I lose data when I switch?

Nothing structural. The CSV/JSON export from softgarden preserves the data: records, fields, history, and attachments come over intact. What doesn't transfer is anything tied to softgarden-specific UI metadata (custom views, saved searches, in-app annotations) - those don't sit in the export, they sit in the source product's UI. Plan an evening to rebuild your most-used views once you're in.

What about my existing softgarden subscription?

Run both side-by-side until you're confident, then cancel softgarden from their side. We don't lock you in - export from KI BMS is one click in account settings, same as import.

Is the import path free?

The import button is open on every plan, including the free tier - we don't paywall the way out of a competitor. The data going in still has to fit your plan's per-type quotas (the free-tier caps are listed on /sales); paid plans raise those caps. If you're moving a large set, check the caps first or write to /support and we can advise.

Can I get help with the switch?

Yes. Write to /support - both founders see those threads directly. Reply within a working day. For the field-mapping itself we typically resolve things in one or two exchanges; if your dataset is unusually large or softgarden's export shape is unfamiliar, we'll say so up front.

KI BMS

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KI BMS: the alternative to softgarden

What moving from softgarden to KI BMS actually looks like in 2026.

Switching

ATS

Comparison

Careers page

Julia YukovichCo-Founder + CEO

·February 6, 2026·

2 min read

KI BMS is what people use when softgarden stops fitting. Below is the honest side-by-side - same product surface, different posture: hosted in Germany, no third-party trackers, one honest price - plus the migration mechanics that decide whether the switch lands in an evening or in a quarter.

At a glance

softgarden is right when your company needs careers-page depth as a core function: 30+ open roles per quarter, branded setup, multi-channel posting across 8+ boards. KI BMS is right when you want KI pre-sorting from day 1, a free tier to try, and no 12-month commitment. Both host in Germany; both are GDPR-clean. The difference is speed + pricing model.

Switching

What moving from softgarden actually looks like

The switch goes in three rough phases: export from softgarden, import into KI BMS, and reorganise what came over. Most people allocate an evening for it. The export side is where the time goes - softgarden hands you a CSV/JSON dump and the field mapping isn't always obvious; once that's resolved the import is a couple of minutes. We don't paywall the import path or pretend it's a pro-only feature, and you can run both side-by-side while you decide.

KI BMS vs softgarden: feature comparison

	Ours KI BMS	Theirs softgarden
Hosted in Germany
Careers page included
Careers-page builder depth	Standard	Very deep
Multi-job-board posting
KI fit-score built in		Announced 2026
Live kanban pipeline
Multi-voice scorecards
Free tier
Starting price	€0 / €1 / €10 / month	from ~€3,000/year (negotiated)
Minimum contract	None - monthly	12 months typical
Setup time	Hours	Weeks
API + webhooks
MCP + 15 drop-in clients
GDPR auto-anonymisation		Manual

When to pick which

Pick KI BMS when

You want KI pre-sorting now, not in a roadmap quarter.

A hands-on free tier matters more to you than a dedicated account manager.

Monthly cancellation, prices public on the website.

You want a modern UI that your MD will check on their own.

Pick softgarden when

Careers page + role branding is your most important recruiting asset (industrial, healthcare).

You publish each role to 6+ job boards simultaneously and need that in the tool.

You have 50+ employees and procurement requires a framework agreement anyway.

Where softgarden clearly wins

softgarden's careers pages have been a benchmark in the German market for years - deeply customisable, with a CMS-style editor, integrable into virtually any brand. If the careers page is the company's calling card (industrial concern, hospital network, branded mid-market), there's little reason to switch.

Multi-channel posting is the second big advantage. softgarden integrates natively with StepStone, Indeed, LinkedIn, XING, Stellenanzeigen.de, and a long list of others. Create a role once, distributed automatically to every active channel. At 30+ open roles per quarter that's a real time-saver - at 5 roles per quarter it's not.

Where KI BMS has a different lever

KI pre-sort from day 1. softgarden announced KI features for 2026; KI BMS ships it in the free tier today. At 100 applications per role per month, the lever isn't in posting - it's in reading. That's exactly where we focus.

Contract model. softgarden tends toward a 12-month contract with a negotiated list price. That fits procurement-driven enterprise buys; it's a hurdle for 8-30-person teams that want to evaluate recruiting tools in a quarter. We're monthly with a 30-day self-serve refund.

Who runs both - or switches

Honest answer: a full switch from softgarden is rare. More common: HR teams keeping softgarden for the careers page + multi-poster and running KI BMS in parallel for the ATS module (pipeline, KI pre-sort, scorecards). It works because softgarden's multi-poster + careers page is per-role value (~€50-100 per posting) that's independent of the pipeline tool.

Step by step

Export from softgarden

Find the export option in softgarden's account settings. Most tools provide a CSV or JSON download. Save the dump locally - that's the source of truth for the next step.

Account settings → Export / Download data

Pick the broadest format the tool offers (usually JSON)

Map fields in KI BMS

Open the import tool in KI BMS. softgarden's field names rarely match KI BMS' 1:1; the import flags any unmapped columns so you can pair them up before anything commits.

Account settings → Import

Resolve the mapping prompts the tool surfaces

Run the import

Run the import. KI BMS shows a preview of the first parsed rows in the import dialog so you can sanity-check the column mapping + a sample of records before anything commits. If you're nervous about a large dump, import a small subset first, verify it landed the way you expected, then run the full file.

Re-create your views, tags, saved searches

softgarden-specific UI metadata (custom views, saved filters, in-app annotations) doesn't transfer with the data export. Spend an evening rebuilding the views you used most - usually a 30-minute job once you've done it once.

Cancel softgarden when you're confident

Run both side-by-side for a couple of weeks if you want to be sure. When you're confident, cancel the softgarden subscription from their side. KI BMS keeps your export option self-serve in account settings - no lock-in either direction.

Switching from softgarden

The five questions we get most often before someone moves their data over.

Start with KI BMS

Free plan, no credit card. We host in Germany. Export + delete are self-serve.

Written by

Julia Yukovich

Co-Founder + CEO

Julia is one of the Co-Founders. She handles design, product direction, and most of the support replies that arrive in the morning.

julia.yukovich at aicuflow dot comLinkedIn