Turnozo vs Deputy vs Sling: An Honest Comparison for 2026

You've decided your team needs scheduling software. Good call. But now you're staring at a dozen options that all claim to be "the simplest, most affordable scheduling solution."

Let's cut through the marketing. Here's an honest comparison of three popular options: Turnozo, Deputy, and Sling.

Full disclosure: we built Turnozo. But we're not going to pretend it's perfect for everyone. Some teams genuinely are better served by Deputy or Sling. and we'll tell you which ones.

The quick summary

Pricing: what you actually pay

This is where the differences matter most.

Turnozo: €2.47/user/month

One plan. All features. No tiers, no add-ons, no surprise costs.

For a team of 15 employees: €37.05/month.

That's it. Scheduling, time tracking, timesheets, availability management, shift swaps, mobile app. everything.

Deputy: $5-$9/user/month + $30 minimum

Deputy has three tiers:

• Lite: $5/user/month. basic scheduling and timesheets
• Core: $6.50/user/month. adds auto-scheduling, demand forecasting, labor optimization
• Pro: $9/user/month. adds SSO, custom access levels, advanced timesheets

Plus add-ons: HR ($2/user/mo), Messaging+ ($1.95/user/mo), Analytics+ ($1.50/user/mo).

And here's the catch: $30/month minimum spend, regardless of team size.

For a team of 15 on Core: $97.50/month ($6.50 × 15). For a team of 5 on Core: $32.50/month (but you'd pay $30 minimum anyway).

Deputy is clearly built for larger teams. If you have 5-10 employees, you're paying a premium for features designed for 100+ person operations.

Sling: Free to $4/user/month

Sling's pricing is its biggest differentiator:

• Free: Basic scheduling for up to 30 users
• Premium: $2/user/month ($1.70 annual). adds time tracking, labor costs, overtime tracking
• Business: $4/user/month ($3.40 annual). adds kiosk, reports, no-show tracking, PTO management

For a team of 15 on Business: $60/month (monthly) or $51/month (annual).

The free plan is genuinely free, not a bait-and-switch. But it's also genuinely limited. no time tracking, no labor cost tools, no reports. For most businesses that need more than just a visual schedule, you'll end up on a paid plan.

Features: what actually matters

Scheduling

All three handle basic drag-and-drop scheduling. The differences:

Turnozo keeps it simple. Drag-and-drop grid, color-coded roles, availability visible while you schedule. No AI auto-scheduling. you build the schedule, the tool just makes it faster and prevents conflicts.

Deputy goes deepest here. Auto-scheduling, demand forecasting, micro-scheduling (15-minute increments), and break planning compliance. If you have complex labor law requirements or need to match staffing to predicted demand curves, Deputy has the most sophisticated tools.

Sling is somewhere in between. Long-term scheduling (build months ahead), available shifts board, and shift templates. Clean interface, but the scheduling features on the free plan feel basic compared to paid alternatives.

Time tracking

Turnozo: GPS clock-in/out, timesheets, overtime calculations. Included on every plan because there's only one plan.

Deputy: Similar core features, but adds biometric clocking (face/fingerprint) on Core and above. Timesheet auto-approval rules are a nice touch for larger teams.

Sling: Time tracking only on paid plans. Mobile clock-in on Premium, kiosk mode on Business. If you're on the free plan, you need a separate time tracking solution.

Employee communication

Turnozo: In-app notifications, shift reminders, schedule publishing. Your team sees their schedule on their phone. Straightforward.

Deputy: Has a full messaging system (upgraded with Messaging+ add-on). News feed, shift-aware messaging, role-based permissions. It's essentially a workplace communication platform bolted onto scheduling.

Sling: Messaging is actually one of Sling's strengths. even the free plan includes private messaging and news sharing. Group messaging on Premium. For a free tool, the communication features are impressive.

Integrations

Deputy: Strongest here. QuickBooks, ADP, Gusto, BambooHR, Square, Xero (see our Turnozo vs Planday comparison), and dozens more. If you need your scheduling tool to talk to your payroll, POS, or HR system, Deputy has the most options.

Sling: Integrates with major payroll and POS systems. Not as extensive as Deputy, but covers the common ones.

Turnozo: Growing integration list. Calendar sync (Google, Outlook) and payroll export. We're building more, but we're honest. if you need 50 integrations today, Deputy wins this category.

Who should use what

Choose Turnozo if:

• You have a small-to-medium team (5-100 employees)
• You want one simple price with everything included
• You don't need AI auto-scheduling or demand forecasting
• You value simplicity over feature count
• You're based in Europe (€ pricing, GDPR-native)

Choose Deputy if:

• You have a large or multi-location operation
• You need demand forecasting and labor optimization
• You require biometric time clocking
• You need deep integrations with enterprise HR/payroll systems
• Budget is less of a concern than capability

Choose Sling if:

• You have fewer than 30 employees and want free scheduling
• Time tracking isn't critical (or you have a separate tool)
• You want strong team messaging built in
• You're testing the waters and not ready to pay for software yet

The honest take

Deputy is the most powerful of the three. It's also the most expensive and the most complex. If you're a multi-location restaurant group with 200+ employees, demand forecasting is worth the premium. If you're a single café with 8 staff, you're paying for a jet engine to power a bicycle.

This is one matchup. For the full landscape, see our complete scheduling software comparison.

Sling has the best entry point. Free for 30 users is hard to beat. But "free" comes with real limitations, and the paid plans, while affordable, still don't include everything Turnozo offers at a lower per-user price.

Turnozo is the simplest. One price, everything included, no decisions to make about tiers. We built it for the business owner who wants to spend 15 minutes on scheduling, not 15 minutes figuring out which plan they need.

We're also the newest. which means we're still building features that Deputy and Sling have had for years. If you need auto-scheduling, 50 integrations, or enterprise-grade analytics, we're not there yet. If you need clean, simple, affordable scheduling with time tracking. we think we're the best option.

Try all three. Turnozo's trial is 30 days, Deputy's is 31, Sling is literally free to start. The best scheduling tool is the one your team actually uses.

→ Start your free trial at turnozo.com

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