Homebase is usually better if you need scheduling and time tracking in one free plan for a single location. Sling is better if you need free scheduling and messaging for up to 30 users but do not need a time clock yet.
It depends on the workflow. Homebase has a free plan for one location with up to 10 employees and paid plans charged per location. Sling is free for up to 30 users for scheduling, but time tracking requires Premium or Business, charged per user.
No. Sling's free plan includes scheduling, time-off requests, messaging, and newsfeed features, but the time clock and overtime alerts require a paid plan.
Yes. Homebase includes basic time tracking on its free Basic plan for one location with up to 10 employees. Advanced scheduling, labor controls, and some compliance features require paid plans.
Turnozo is a simpler alternative for small teams that need scheduling and time tracking without extra HR layers. Essential is €9.99/month for up to 10 employees and one location, with every feature included, and Pro is €2.99/active employee/month from employee 11 or the second location, billed across the whole workforce. Prices exclude VAT, and the 14-day Pro trial requires no card.
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Homebase is the better pick if you need scheduling and time tracking together for one location. Sling is the better pick if you want free scheduling, team messaging, and up to 30 users before paying.
That is the whole Homebase vs Sling decision for most small teams. The confusing part is that both products advertise a useful free plan, but the free plans solve different problems.
Homebase gives you a smaller free plan with basic time tracking included. Sling gives you a bigger free scheduling plan, but no time clock until you upgrade.
Homebase vs Sling annual cost
Annual USD comparison. Turnozo's EUR prices are converted at €1=$1.14; Homebase and Sling prices are listed in USD.
TurnozoBest value
$1,023/year
Save $177 vs most expensive
Homebase Essentials
$360
Sling Premium
$600
Homebase Plus
$840
Sling BusinessMost expensive
$1,200
One-location teams should compare Homebase's per-location price against Sling's per-user time clock cost.
One-location teams that need scheduling + time clock
Teams that want free scheduling and messaging
Free plan
One location, up to 10 employees
Up to 30 users
Time tracking on free plan
Yes, basic
No
Pricing model
Per location
Per user on paid plans
Team messaging
Included
Included and stronger
Hiring/payroll extras
Yes
No built-in payroll
Multi-location fit
Gets expensive by location
Easier to start, paid reporting needed later
Better default pick
Homebase if time tracking matters
Sling if scheduling-only is enough
Free plans: similar headline, different catch
Homebase scheduling software homepage with scheduling and time clock navigation
Sling scheduling software interface for shift planning
Homebase's free plan is built around one physical location. You get basic scheduling, time tracking, employee management, and simple team communication. That makes it useful for a small cafe, shop, salon, or local service business that wants one app for schedules and clock-ins.
The catch is the limit. Once you pass 10 employees, need more advanced scheduling controls, labor cost management, permissions, or another location, you move into paid per-location plans.
Sling's free plan is more generous on seats. Up to 30 users can use scheduling, time-off requests, shift templates, team messaging, and the newsfeed. If your only job is publishing next week's rota, Sling's free plan is hard to beat.
But Sling keeps the time clock, overtime alerts, PTO tracking, and labor-cost reporting on paid tiers. That is fine if you already track attendance somewhere else. It is annoying if you hoped one free tool would cover both scheduling and punches.
Pricing: when each model wins
Homebase charges by location. That is great when you have one busy location with a lot of employees. A 30-person restaurant on one site can pay one location fee instead of 30 user fees.
It gets less attractive as locations multiply. Three small locations can cost more than one larger location, even if the total headcount is similar.
Sling charges per user once you leave the free plan. Premium is $2/user/month and is the cheaper path for scheduling plus time clock. Business is $4/user/month and adds labor-cost management, advanced reports, and payroll integrations.
The practical rule:
Pick Homebase when you have one location and need clock-ins included.
Pick Sling when you have up to 30 users and only need scheduling.
Recalculate once you need labor reporting, payroll exports, or multiple locations.
Sling is clean for schedule building. Managers can create shifts, reuse templates, handle time-off requests, post open shifts, and message the team without much setup. It feels like a scheduling app first.
Homebase also handles drag-and-drop scheduling, templates, notifications, and availability. It adds more HR-adjacent pieces around hiring, onboarding, payroll, and team management. That can be useful, or it can feel like extra furniture in a room where you only wanted a table.
For pure scheduling, I would give Sling the edge. For a small business that wants scheduling connected to time tracking and payroll workflows, Homebase is the safer all-around pick.
Time clock and attendance
This is where Homebase pulls ahead.
Homebase includes basic time tracking on the free plan. Employees can clock in from mobile, tablet, or computer, and managers get timesheets without adding a second system. Paid tiers add stronger controls.
Sling does not include time tracking on the free plan. You need Premium for time clock features and overtime alerts. You need Business for deeper labor-cost reporting and payroll integrations.
If you are comparing free plans because you need both schedules and daily attendance, Homebase wins. If you only need scheduling today and time tracking later, Sling gives you more runway before paying.
Team messaging
Sling is stronger here. Messaging, group chats, announcements, and a newsfeed are part of the product's core workflow. For shift teams that do not live in Slack, that matters.
Homebase includes team communication too, but it feels more like one part of a broader small-business platform. Good enough for many teams, less central than Sling.
Payroll, hiring, and admin extras
Homebase is much broader. It offers hiring tools, onboarding, payroll add-ons, POS integrations, and HR-style admin features. If you want one vendor across scheduling, time clock, hiring, and payroll, Homebase makes sense.
Sling stays closer to scheduling, communication, tasks, and labor management. That can be a strength. Some teams do not want their scheduling app to become an HR platform.
Where both fall short
Homebase can get expensive across multiple locations, and some of the best controls sit behind paid plans. If you picked it because the free plan looked simple, the upgrade path can feel heavier than expected.
Sling's biggest issue is the split between scheduling and attendance. The free plan is excellent until the day someone asks, "Can we use this for clock-ins too?" Then you are comparing paid tiers.
Neither product is especially focused on tiny teams that just need scheduling, the app, daily clock-in, and a clean archive without payroll or hiring modules attached.
A simpler third option: Turnozo
If you are choosing between Homebase and Sling because both feel close but not quite right, the missing category may be simpler scheduling with time tracking included.
Turnozo is built for small teams that want the basics done cleanly:
drag-and-drop scheduling
mobile app for employees
daily clock-in
every feature included on Essential
€2.99/active employee/month from employee 11 or the second location, billed across the whole workforce when you upgrade
a 14-day Pro trial with no card required; prices exclude VAT
It is not trying to replace payroll, hiring, POS, or restaurant management software. That is the point. If you need those extras, Homebase or Sling may be better. If you do not, paying for them is waste.
Final verdict
Choose Homebase if you have one location, 10 or fewer employees, and want scheduling plus basic time tracking in the same free plan.
Choose Sling if you want free scheduling for more users, strong team messaging, and you do not need a time clock yet.
Choose Turnozo if you run a small team and want scheduling plus daily clock-in without dragging a larger HR platform into the business.
