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Research-backed reviews of employee scheduling tools: compare editor ratings, real pricing and features to find the right fit for your team.
Employee Scheduling Software
Independently reviewed
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Research-backed reviews of employee scheduling tools: compare editor ratings, real pricing and features to find the right fit for your team.
All-in-one employee scheduling, time tracking and team messaging for hourly teams When I Work is a workforce management app built specifically for hourly, shift-based teams.
When I Work earns its rating by doing the hourly-team essentials exceptionally well rather than trying to be everything. Scheduling, time tracking and team messaging live in one mobile-first app that employees adopt without training, the pricing is transparent and affordable for small businesses, and the 14-day full-access trial makes evaluation risk-free. That focus shows in details like GPS clock-in, shift-swap workflows and labor sharing between locations.
AI-powered employee scheduling, HR and payroll software for shift-based teams Deputy is a workforce management platform built around shift work: employee scheduling, time and attendance, leave management, team communication, and connections into payroll, with an AI layer (Deputy AI) bundled into every plan.
Deputy earns its rating on feature depth and maturity. Scheduling, time clocking, leave, compliance and team messaging live in one platform, Auto-Scheduling and demand forecasting go beyond basic rostering, and Deputy AI is included on every plan rather than gated behind an enterprise tier. Pricing is published and starts at $5 per user per month, the trial runs up to 31 days without a credit card, and payroll/HR integrations plus a public API make it fit into existing stacks. It is used by more than 320,000 workplaces internationally.
Scheduling, time tracking, communication and HR in one app for deskless teams Connecteam is an employee management app built for deskless and frontline teams – the construction crews, cleaners, security guards, retail staff and healthcare workers who do not sit at a desk with a company laptop.
Connecteam earns its rating for packing scheduling, time tracking, communication and genuine HR tooling into one mobile-first app aimed squarely at deskless teams. The free-forever Small Business Plan for up to 10 users stands out for very small teams, flat per-hub pricing stays affordable as teams grow past 30 users, GPS time clock and geofencing cover field accountability, and the 14-day no-card trial makes evaluation simple.

All-in-one employee scheduling, time clocks, payroll and HR for small business hourly teams.
All-in-one employee scheduling, time clocks, payroll and HR for small business hourly teams. Homebase is a team management app built for the hourly workforce of small businesses: it combines employee scheduling, a time clock, hiring, team messaging and an optional payroll add-on in one mobile-first product.
Homebase earns its rating by covering the full hourly-team workflow - scheduling, time clock, hiring, messaging and optional payroll - with a genuinely free plan for single locations and transparent per-location pricing above it. The mobile-first design is built for employees who do not sit at desks, and the POS and payroll integrations match the systems small businesses already run.

Restaurant employee scheduling, time clocking, payroll and team messaging in one platform.
Restaurant employee scheduling, time clocking, payroll and team messaging in one platform. 7shifts is an employee scheduling and payroll platform built specifically for restaurants.
7shifts earns its rating as the restaurant specialist of employee scheduling: scheduling, time clock, messaging, tip management and payroll in one platform, with deep POS integrations and a free plan for single-location teams. Per-location pricing and the restaurant-only focus are the trade-offs.
Shift scheduling, time tracking and payroll-ready workforce management for hourly teams Planday is an employee scheduling and workforce management platform built for shift-based teams.
Planday earns its rating as the scheduling pick for shift-based teams in or near the Xero ecosystem: deep rota, time-tracking and payroll-reporting features at a genuinely low per-user price, backed by polished iOS and Android apps. The minimum user counts are the main watch-out.
Drag-and-drop schedule builder with templates, copy-week workflows and shift swapping.
GPS-located punch clock and timesheets, with working-time rules and compliance warnings.
Staff request leave in-app and balances are tracked alongside the rota (Plus plan).
Payroll-ready reporting with integrations, plus API access on the Plus plan.
A revenue-forecast view weighs staffing costs against expected takings before publishing a week.

Canadian employee scheduling and HR software with shift planning, time tracking and team communication
Canadian employee scheduling and HR software with shift planning, time tracking and team communication Agendrix is an employee scheduling and HR software platform made in Canada and used by more than 14,000 workplaces, according to the company’s official about page.
Agendrix earns its rating as a scheduling-first pick for shift-based teams: drag-and-drop schedules, open shifts and availability, timesheets and time clock, time-off management, onboarding and team messaging in one product. It is ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certified, GDPR compliant, bilingual (English and French) and starts at $2.93 per user per month billed annually with a 21-day no-card trial.
Drag-and-drop schedule builder with open shifts, swap requests and staff availability collection.
Employees clock in from mobile apps or a shared kiosk app; approved hours flow into timesheets for payroll.
Time-off and other staff requests are submitted in-app and approved with balances tracked.
Built-in messaging keeps schedule updates, announcements and shift notes in one place.
Employee records, digital onboarding and permission customization on the Plus plan.
Employee time tracking and scheduling that syncs with QuickBooks QuickBooks Time is Intuit’s employee time tracking and scheduling product.
QuickBooks Time is the natural time-tracking layer for businesses already on QuickBooks: approved hours sync straight into payroll and invoicing, GPS is collected only while workers are on the clock, and a 30-day free trial covers the base price. The Elite tier adds genuine project costing with estimates versus actuals.
Employees clock in and out from the QuickBooks Workforce app (iOS and Android) or any browser; approved hours…
Admins see who is clocked in and where on a live map. Intuit states GPS points are saved…
Build and share schedules, and let the team see their shifts in the mobile app.
Time data syncs with QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Payroll so approved hours feed payroll and invoices without re-entry.
A shared-device punch clock that works on a tablet, desktop or laptop, with an optional facial-recognition check.
Free employee scheduling, time clock and team messaging for hourly teams, by Toast. Sling, now Sling by Toast, is an employee scheduling and team communication app that has staked its position on price: core shift scheduling is free for up to 30 users, and paid plans start lower than almost any competitor in this category.
Sling earns its rating as the value leader in employee scheduling: a free plan that covers real scheduling and team messaging for up to 30 users, paid plans from $1.70 per user per month, and a clean mobile experience. The Toast backing adds restaurant-grade POS integrations and long-term stability.
Work schedule maker and time clock for hourly teams, free for up to 20 employees. ZoomShift is a work schedule maker and time clock aimed squarely at hourly teams, and its pitch is simplicity at the lowest price in this category: a free plan that covers up to 20 employees, with paid plans from $2 per active team member per month.
ZoomShift earns its rating as the simplest low-cost scheduler for hourly teams: a real free plan for 20 employees, paid plans from $2 per active member per month, and a clean scheduling plus time-clock core. The trade-offs are a thin integration list, no native payroll and limited company transparency.
Employee scheduling and time tracking for shift-based teams Humanity Schedule is the employee scheduling product from TCP Software, a workforce management company founded in 1988 in San Angelo, Texas.
Humanity pairs mature drag-and-drop scheduling with integrated, geofenced time tracking, and adds AI-assisted auto-fill and demand forecasting on higher tiers. A 30-day no-credit-card trial and TX-RAMP Level 2 certification are strong proof points in this category.
Build and publish schedules visually, manage open shifts, and collect staff availability across multiple locations.
On the Professional plan, AI-assisted forecasting matches staffing to expected demand and auto-fills schedules.
Employees clock in from mobile apps with geofencing; approved hours flow into payroll-ready timesheets.
Staff request swaps, set availability and submit time off in-app; managers approve with SMS, email and in-app notifications.
Official iOS and Android apps give frontline staff schedules, requests and updates on the go.
Transparent criteria and editorial standards behind every score in this guide.
We evaluate each app on features, ease of use, value for money, integrations, and real user feedback. Apps are ranked by overall editor score within this category, with manual adjustments when hands-on testing reveals a clear winner.
| Feature | When I Work | Deputy | Connecteam | Homebase | 7shifts | Planday | Agendrix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Editor rating | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.4 |
| Pricing | Paid Subscription | Paid Subscription | Free+Paid | Free+Paid | Free+Paid | Paid Subscription | Paid Subscription |
| Starting price | From $2.50 | From $5 | From $29 | From $30/location/mo | From $39.99/location/mo | $2.99/user/mo | $2.93/user/mo annual |
| Free plan | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Free trial | Yes (14 days) | Yes (31 days) | Yes (14 days) | Yes (14 days) | Yes (14 days) | Yes (30 days) | Yes (21 days) |
| Platforms | Web app, iOS (iPhone & iPad), Android | Web app, iOS (iPhone & iPad), Android | Web app, iOS (iPhone & iPad), Android | Web app, iOS (iPhone & iPad), Android | Web app, iOS (iPhone & iPad), Android | Web app, iOS (iPhone & iPad), Android | Web app, iOS (iPhone & iPad), Android |
Quick answers about the best Employee Scheduling Software software.
Our editors rank When I Work #1 for most teams in Employee Scheduling Software based on features, value, and user feedback. See the full ranked list above for alternatives.
Yes — many Employee Scheduling Software apps offer free plans or trials. Use the pricing filter in our directory to browse free and freemium options.
We evaluate each app on features, ease of use, value for money, integrations, and real user feedback. Apps are ranked by overall editor score within this category, with manual adjustments when hands-on testing reveals a clear winner.
All-in-one employee scheduling, time clocks, payroll and HR for small business hourly teams. Homebase is a team management app built for the hourly workforce of small businesses: it combines employee scheduling, a time clock, hiring, team messaging and an optional…
All-in-one employee scheduling, time tracking and team messaging for hourly teams When I Work is a workforce management app built specifically for hourly, shift-based teams.
AI-powered employee scheduling, HR and payroll software for shift-based teams Deputy is a workforce management platform built around shift work: employee scheduling, time and attendance, leave management, team communication, and connections into payroll, with an AI layer (Deputy AI) bundled…
Restaurant employee scheduling, time clocking, payroll and team messaging in one platform. 7shifts is an employee scheduling and payroll platform built specifically for restaurants.
Shift scheduling, time tracking and payroll-ready workforce management for hourly teams Planday is an employee scheduling and workforce management platform built for shift-based teams.
Canadian employee scheduling and HR software with shift planning, time tracking and team communication Agendrix is an employee scheduling and HR software platform made in Canada and used by more than 14,000 workplaces, according to the company’s official about page.
Employee time tracking and scheduling that syncs with QuickBooks QuickBooks Time is Intuit’s employee time tracking and scheduling product.
Scheduling, time tracking, communication and HR in one app for deskless teams Connecteam is an employee management app built for deskless and frontline teams – the construction crews, cleaners, security guards, retail staff and healthcare workers who do not sit…
Free employee scheduling, time clock and team messaging for hourly teams, by Toast. Sling, now Sling by Toast, is an employee scheduling and team communication app that has staked its position on price: core shift scheduling is free for up…
Work schedule maker and time clock for hourly teams, free for up to 20 employees. ZoomShift is a work schedule maker and time clock aimed squarely at hourly teams, and its pitch is simplicity at the lowest price in this…
Employee scheduling and time tracking for shift-based teams Humanity Schedule is the employee scheduling product from TCP Software, a workforce management company founded in 1988 in San Angelo, Texas.
Employee time tracking and scheduling that syncs with QuickBooks
Employee scheduling and time tracking for shift-based teams
Canadian employee scheduling and HR software with shift planning, time tracking and team communication
Shift scheduling, time tracking and payroll-ready workforce management for hourly teams