Salesforce vs Workday
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Salesforce and Workday side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Salesforce is the larger business, with $41.5B of revenue in fiscal 2026 against $9.6B for Workday, about 4.3 times as much.
- Workday grew revenue faster (13.1%, against 9.6%).
- Salesforce kept more of each dollar of sales as operating profit (20.1% operating margin, against 7.6%).
- Salesforce turned more of its sales into free cash flow (34.7% FCF margin, against 29.1%).
- Investors pay more for each dollar of Workday’s earnings: a P/E of 42.2x against 22.6x for Salesforce.
Who comes out ahead
Of the 10 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Salesforce
CRM
6/10
Operating marginNet marginFCF marginReturn on capitalReturn on equityShare count change
Workday
WDAY
3/10
Revenue growth5-year growthNet debt / EBITDA
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | CRM FY26 | WDAY FY26 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $203.3B | $51.4B |
| Revenue | $41.5B | $9.6B |
| Free cash flow | $14.4B | $2.8B |
| Net income | $7.5B | $693M |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 9.6% | 13.1% |
| 5-year growth | 14.3% | 17.2% |
| Share count change | −1.9% | −0.4% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 77.7% | — |
| Operating margin | 20.1% | 7.6% |
| Net margin | 18.0% | 7.3% |
| FCF margin | 34.7% | 29.1% |
| Return on capital | 10.8% | 10.6% |
| Return on equity | 12.4% | 8.2% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | $5.4B | −$2.5B |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 0.6x | −2.6x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $14.2B | $2.9B |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | 22.6x | 42.2x |
| Piotroski F-score | 7 | 7 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.