Most scheduling software costs between $2 and $8 per employee per month once scheduling and time tracking are both included. Budget options like Turnozo Essential/Pro and Sling ($2/user/month) sit at the low end. Mid-range tools like Deputy Core ($6.50 annual or $7.25 monthly) and When I Work Essentials with time tracking ($4/user/month) charge more for advanced features. Enterprise tools like Connecteam can run $29-$99/month for the first 30 users.
Yes. Sling offers free scheduling for up to 30 users with no time tracking, Homebase has a free plan for one location with up to 10 employees, and Connecteam is free for up to 10 users. Turnozo is paid after its 14-day Pro trial; Essential costs €9.99/month for up to 10 employees and one location. The trial requires no card, and prices exclude VAT.
Turnozo Essential is €9.99/month for up to 10 employees and one location, with every feature included. Pro is €2.99/active employee/month from employee 11 or the second location, billed across the whole workforce. Sling's Premium plan at $2/user/month also includes time tracking. Both are cheaper than Deputy Core ($6.50 annual or $7.25 monthly) or When I Work Essentials with time tracking ($4/user/month) for combined scheduling and time tracking.
Per-location pricing (like Homebase at $30-$120/location/month, or $24-$96 on annual billing) works well for single-location businesses with many employees - you pay one flat fee regardless of team size. But it gets expensive fast with multiple locations. Per-user pricing (like Turnozo or When I Work) scales more predictably and is usually cheaper for multi-location teams.
Common hidden costs include requiring higher-tier plans for time tracking, per-location fees that multiply with each branch, and locking payroll export behind premium tiers. RotaCloud uses headcount tiers, so check the current package price for your team size. Always compare what is included in the base plan with what costs extra.
If you spend more than 2 hours per week on scheduling, yes. At €2.99/active employee/month, a 15-person team costs €44.85/month. If the software saves you even 1 hour per week at a €25/hour manager rate, that's €100/month in time savings alone, before counting fewer no-shows, less overtime, and happier staff.
For teams under 6 with simple schedules, yes. But spreadsheets don't send shift reminders, can't handle swap requests, don't track time, and break when two people edit simultaneously. Once you're spending more than 20-30 minutes per week rebuilding schedules, software pays for itself.
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Scheduling software pricing baseline: Most employee scheduling tools cost about $2-$8 per employee per month once scheduling and time tracking are both included. Per-location tools can look cheaper for one site and get expensive as locations grow.
Best value for small teams: Turnozo Essential is €9.99/month for up to 10 employees and one location, with every feature included. Pro is €2.99/active employee/month from employee 11 or the second location, billed across the whole workforce.
What to compare: Do not compare the cheapest advertised tier. Compare the plan that includes scheduling, mobile time tracking, GPS or location controls, shift swaps, absence handling, and payroll-ready exports.
Fact
Turnozo answer
Pricing model
Essential is €9.99/month for up to 10 employees and one location; Pro is €2.99/active employee/month from employee 11 or the second location, billed across the whole workforce
Per-location fees
None
Included features
Every feature on Essential and Pro
Free plan or trial
Paid after a 14-day Pro trial; no card required
Main advantage
Predictable Pro pricing without per-location jumps
Main trade-off
Not a native payroll suite; exports timesheets for payroll cleanup
Best alternatives to compare
Sling, Homebase, When I Work, Deputy, 7shifts, Connecteam, Planday, and RotaCloud
The pricing page says $2/user/month. But by the time you add time tracking, a second location, and the features you actually need, you're paying $6. That gap is where teams waste money. If you only want free options, use the free employee scheduling software comparison first.
Scheduling software pricing is confusing on purpose. Per-user, per-location, flat-rate, tiered, add-ons, "contact sales" - every vendor structures it differently, and they all want to look cheapest in the headline.
We got tired of it. So we pulled actual pricing from 9 scheduling tools and calculated what you'd really pay for a 15-person team and a 50-person team. No affiliate links. No "sponsored pick." Just the real costs.
Methodology and source notes
We used public pricing pages and compared the realistic plan for a shift-based team: scheduling plus time tracking, mobile access, and payroll-ready timesheets. When vendors price by location or hide details behind sales calls, we call that out instead of forcing a neat per-user comparison. Prices change, so verify current vendor pricing before buying.
Scheduling Software Price Comparison
Adjust team size and locations to see real costs. No hidden fees.
20
1
Monthly cost for 20 employees at 1 location. Sorted cheapest to most expensive.
Pricing data from each tool's public pricing page, verified February 2026
Scheduling Software: What Would You Actually Pay?
Annual USD comparison. Turnozo's EUR prices use €1=$1.14; Planday's GBP price uses $1≈£0.75; other prices are listed in USD.
TurnozoBest value
$1,023/year
Save $927 vs most expensive
Sling Premium
$600
Planday
$1,196
When I Work (1 loc)
$1,200
Homebase Plus
$1,680
7shifts Pro (annual)
$1,920
Deputy Core (annual)Most expensive
$1,950
Turnozo includes scheduling, time tracking, GPS, and timesheets at one applicable plan price. No per-location fees, no feature tiers.
Here's what each tool actually costs. All prices are monthly. We used the plan that includes both scheduling AND time tracking, since most teams need both.
Turnozo scheduling pricing page
When I Work pricing page
Homebase pricing page
Tool
Pricing model
Starting price
15-employee cost
50-employee cost
Free plan?
Turnozo
Per employee
Essential €9.99/month; Pro €2.99/active employee/mo from employee 11 or the second location, whole workforce billed
Standard + Time & Attendance is £29/mo at 10 employees and £58/mo at 15
£58/mo
Check current tier
No (30-day trial)
A few things jump out immediately.
Per-location pricing looks cheap until you have two locations. Homebase Essentials at $30/month is manageable for one cafe. But a second location doubles it to $60. A third? $90. Meanwhile, Turnozo charges the same €2.99/active employee whether you have one location or five. (For a deeper dive, see our Homebase vs When I Work comparison.)
Free plans come with boundaries. Sling's free plan doesn't include time tracking. Homebase limits you to 10 employees. Connecteam includes scheduling and time tracking for up to 10 users, then moves teams to paid hub pricing. I broke down the actual trade-offs in best free scheduling apps for small teams.
The spread is massive. For a 15-person team, you're paying anywhere from $30/month (Sling) to $98/month (Deputy Core on annual billing). That's more than a 3x difference for tools that do roughly the same thing. If Deputy is over budget, compare the best Deputy alternatives before dropping features just to lower the bill.
What you're actually paying for (tier by tier)
Most scheduling tools have 3-4 tiers. Here's what moves you up a tier (and what it costs):
Scheduling only (cheapest tier)
Every tool offers basic shift scheduling in its entry plan. Drag shifts onto a calendar, publish to your team, done. This is the commodity feature - everyone does it.
Typical cost: $0-$3/user/month
Scheduling + time tracking (mid tier)
This is where most teams land. You want employees to clock in and out, GPS verification, and automatic timesheets. Some tools bundle this in the base plan. Others charge extra.
Who includes time tracking in the base plan:
Turnozo - Essential is €9.99/month for up to 10 employees and one location, with every feature included; Pro keeps the same feature set for larger teams at €2.99/active employee/month from employee 11 or the second location, billed across the whole workforce
When I Work - Essentials is $2.50/user for scheduling only; with time tracking it is $4/user
Connecteam ($29/mo for 30 users) - time clock included in Operations hub
Who charges extra for time tracking:
Sling - free plan is scheduling only. Premium ($2/user) adds time tracking
Deputy - Lite is $5/user on annual billing ($5.50 monthly), Core is $6.50 annual ($7.25 monthly), and Pro is $9 annual ($10 monthly)
RotaCloud - Standard plus Time & Attendance is tiered by headcount; current examples are £29/month at 10 employees and £58/month at 15
Advanced features (premium tier)
Labor cost forecasting, custom reporting, API access, auto-scheduling. Most small teams don't need these, but if you do, expect to pay 2-3x the base price.
Typical cost: $5-$8/user/month
The real cost for a 15-person team
Let's get specific. You manage a 15-person team across one location. You need scheduling, time tracking, and shift notifications. Here's what you'd actually pay monthly:
Tool
Plan needed
Monthly cost
Annual cost
Homebase
Essentials
$30
$360
Sling
Premium
$30
$360
7shifts
Essentials
$45
$540
Turnozo
All-inclusive
~$51 (€44.85)
~$614 (€538.20)
When I Work
Essentials + time
$60
$720
Planday
Starter
£44.85
£538.20
Connecteam
Basic (Operations)
$29
$348
Deputy
Core (annual)
$98
$1,170
The winner on pure price? Homebase and Sling tie at $30/month for this one-location example. Homebase Basic no longer covers 15 employees, so this is a paid Essentials case. The moment you add a second location, Homebase jumps to $60/month and Sling or Turnozo become cheaper.
Turnozo at this size: Pro costs €44.85/month, or €538.20/year (about $614/year at €1=$1.14). Sling's $30/month Premium price covers a different feature set; GPS and labor tools require its $4/user Business plan.
The real cost for a 50-person team
This is where pricing models really diverge. At 50 employees, per-location pricing either saves you or destroys you depending on how many locations you have.
Scenario A: 50 employees, 1 location
Tool
Monthly cost
Annual cost
Homebase Essentials
$30
$360
7shifts Pro
$90
$1,080
Sling Premium
$100
$1,200
Connecteam Advanced
$99
$1,188
Turnozo
~$170 (€149.50)
~$2,045 (€1,794)
When I Work
$200
$2,400
Planday
£149.50
£1,794
Deputy Core
$325
$3,900
With one location and 50 people, per-location pricing (Homebase, 7shifts) wins on raw cost. The trade-off: Homebase's $30 plan doesn't include labor cost management or PTO controls. Adding those bumps you to the $70/month Plus plan.
Scenario B: 50 employees, 3 locations
Tool
Monthly cost
Annual cost
Sling Premium
$100
$1,200
Connecteam Advanced
$99
$1,188
7shifts Pro
$270
$3,240
Turnozo
~$170 (€149.50)
~$2,045 (€1,794)
When I Work
$200
$2,400
Planday
£149.50
£1,794
Homebase Essentials
$90
$1,080
Deputy Core
$325
$3,900
Per-user tools hold steady regardless of locations. Per-location tools multiply. Homebase still stays below Sling in this scenario because $30 × 3 = $90, but the gap is narrow. The real question is whether the Essentials plan gives you enough features, or if you need Plus ($70 × 3 = $210/month).
5 pricing traps to watch for
1. "Per user" means different things
Some tools count all employees. Others only count active/scheduled employees. If you have seasonal staff who aren't scheduled for three months, check whether you're still paying for them. Turnozo and When I Work charge for active users only. Deputy charges for anyone with an account.
2. Time tracking as an add-on
If a tool advertises "$2/user" but time tracking costs extra, the real price for most teams is higher. Sling and Deputy separate scheduling and time tracking by plan; RotaCloud's Standard plus Time & Attendance price changes by headcount tier. Always price the bundle. Our time tracking guide covers the five methods and which tools include it for free.
3. Per-location fees that stack
Homebase and 7shifts charge per location. If you're a single-location business, this is often the cheapest model. If you're opening a second location next year, do the math now. Our comparison of 7shifts alternatives shows which options avoid that per-location jump. Switching scheduling software mid-growth is a headache nobody wants.
4. Feature gating on lower tiers
Connecteam's $29/month plan covers 30 users, which sounds great. But it only includes "basic scheduling" - you need the $49/month Advanced plan for shift templates, repeating shifts, and geofencing. The headline price rarely tells the whole story.
5. Annual billing discounts (and traps)
Many tools offer discounts for annual billing, but that can also mean a longer commitment. Planday's public UK pricing starts at £2.99/user/month with a five-user minimum, and its 30-day trial requires no card. Check contract and refund terms before choosing annual billing.
Which pricing model is best for your team?
Two things matter: how many people you're scheduling and how many locations they work at.
Under 10 employees, 1 location:
Free plans work. Turnozo Essential is €9.99/month for up to 10 employees and one location, with every feature included. Homebase Basic covers one location with up to 10 employees and 90-day timesheet history. Sling has the larger scheduling-only free cap, but time tracking requires a paid plan.
10-30 employees, 1-2 locations:
Per-user pricing makes the most sense. You'll pay $30-$75/month for many tools. Turnozo Pro (€2.99/active employee/month from employee 11 or the second location, billed across the whole workforce) and Sling Premium ($2/user) are two paid options that include time tracking.
30-100 employees, 2+ locations:
Per-user pricing scales linearly and predictably. Avoid per-location pricing unless you're confident you won't add locations. Connecteam's flat-rate model ($49/month for 30 users, then per-user after) can be economical here.
100+ employees:
You're in enterprise territory. Contact sales for Connecteam Enterprise, Deputy, or Planday Pro. Prices are negotiable at this size.
We pulled pricing from each tool's public pricing page in July 2026. Where pricing wasn't publicly listed, we avoided printing a made-up number. Per-user prices are monthly unless noted as annual-plan pricing. We calculated team costs using the plan that includes both scheduling and time tracking, since that's what most teams actually need.
We didn't include enterprise-only tools (Workforce.com, Rotageek) or tools that require a demo to see pricing. If you can't see the price without talking to sales, it's probably not built for small teams.
Prices change. If you notice something outdated, let us know and we'll update it.
