Comparison · Healthcare staffing software
The best staffing software for locum tenens
Locum desks are not general staffing: credentialing, blended pay packages, and mixed 1099 and W-2 pay make the back office the real test. Here is how the main platforms compare, and where TempButton AI fits.
The short answer
There is no single best tool for every locum tenens agency. Bullhorn is the enterprise heavyweight (it acquired TargetRecruit in 2025 to grow in locums and per diem, and pitches its Amplify AI on top). Avionté is strong when you want powerful in-house payroll and billing across blended verticals. BlueSky and LaborEdge are healthcare-native with built-in credentialing. Ceipal leans on affordable AI sourcing. TempButton AI is the healthcare-focused option that puts the ATS, AI recruiter, timesheets, payroll, and invoicing on one platform, and is free for the individual providers who submit to you.
What locum software has to get right
Four things separate healthcare staffing software from a general ATS. Weigh any tool, including ours, against them.
Credentialing
Compliance on every clock
Licenses, board certs, DEA, and state privileging each expire on their own schedule. The software should track them and stop a placement when something lapses.
Pay packages
More than an hourly rate
Locum pay rides with malpractice, travel, housing, and stipends. Pay and bill has to model the whole package, not just hours times a rate.
1099 and W-2
Both on one desk
Many locum desks run 1099 contractors and W-2 employees side by side. Payroll and billing need to handle both cleanly, with no spreadsheet workaround.
One platform
Front to back office
The fewer exports between ATS, timesheets, payroll, and invoicing, the fewer errors land in a paycheck and the faster placements become paid, billed work.
The field, side by side
| Platform | Built for healthcare | Free for the provider | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| TempButton AI | Yes, purpose-built | Yes, free forever | Healthcare teams wanting ATS, AI recruiter, timesheets, payroll, and invoicing on one platform. |
| Bullhorn | General, healthcare add-ons | No, quote based | Large enterprise agencies that want a deep ATS and CRM ecosystem; now owns TargetRecruit and pushes Amplify AI. |
| Avionté | Multi-vertical, incl. healthcare | No | Agencies that run high-volume payroll and billing in house and want it unified with the ATS. |
| JobDiva | General, highly configurable | No | High-volume staffing that wants a configurable ATS with strong VMS syncing. |
| BlueSky | Yes, healthcare-native | No | Healthcare and nurse staffing that wants native compliance tracking and VMS. |
| LaborEdge (NexusATS) | Yes, healthcare-native | No | Healthcare staffing that wants a built-in credentialing and compliance engine plus mobile. |
| Ceipal | General, healthcare edition | No | Agencies that want affordable AI sourcing and resume parsing at scale. |
High-level positioning as of October 2026; feature depth changes often, so verify current details and locum-specific workflows (credentialing, pay packages, 1099 and W-2) with each vendor. "Free for the provider" means the individual locum, travel nurse, or CRNA can use the app at no cost; the agency platforms are priced for the agency.
Where TempButton AI fits
TempButton AI is built for healthcare staffing, not adapted to it. The AI recruiter shortlists best-fit candidates by specialty, credential, and location, checks licenses and NPI against the req, and drafts outreach for a person to review and send. The same platform runs the timesheets your providers submit for free, verifies every hour against the contract, and turns an approved week into payroll and a client invoice without exporting between systems.
Whether it replaces what you run today depends on your desk. For a small-to-mid healthcare staffing team it can be the whole stack; larger enterprises already deep in Bullhorn or Avionté often keep them. See the applicant tracking system it runs on, the AI recruiter, or the TempButton vs Bullhorn comparison.
Common questions
What is the best staffing software for locum tenens?
It depends on size and how you run pay and bill. Large enterprise agencies tend toward Bullhorn or Avionté; healthcare-native options like BlueSky and LaborEdge lead with built-in credentialing; Ceipal competes on affordable AI sourcing. TempButton AI is the healthcare-focused option that puts the ATS, AI recruiter, timesheets, payroll, and invoicing on one platform and is free for the providers who submit to you.
What makes locum staffing software different from a general ATS?
Three things: credentialing (licenses, board certs, DEA, and state privileging that expire on different clocks), pay packages that include malpractice, travel, and housing on top of the rate, and running 1099 contractors and W-2 employees on the same desk. A general ATS usually needs workarounds or add-ons for all three.
Is Bullhorn good for locum tenens?
Bullhorn is a deep enterprise ATS and CRM, and in 2025 it acquired TargetRecruit (built on Salesforce) specifically to grow in locums and per diem, with its Amplify AI delivered through Agentforce. It fits large firms that want that ecosystem. It is quote-based with no free tier, so it is a heavier commitment than a self-serve tool.
Does TempButton AI replace Bullhorn or Avionté?
TempButton AI is a full healthcare staffing platform in its own right, covering the ATS, AI recruiter, timesheets, payroll, and invoicing. For a small-to-mid healthcare team it can run the whole desk; larger agencies already standardized on Bullhorn or Avionté often keep them. The honest answer depends on your current stack, so book a demo and we will map it to how you place locums today.
For healthcare staffing agencies
See it run your desk
Book a 15-minute demo and we will map TempButton AI to how you place locums today, from shortlist to a credential-verified pipeline to payroll and invoicing. Your providers submit timesheets for free either way.