Best Employee Scheduling Apps

• Fabricate builds a staff schedule around your own shifts, roles and rules, with no price per person who signs in; time clocks, payroll and reminders are not built in. Building and previewing are free; publishing is on Pro and Max.
• Sling is free for up to 30 users; paid plans start at $2 per user a month.
• Homebase is free for 1 location and up to 10 employees, then $30 per location a month.
• When I Work starts at $2.50 per user a month, after a 14-day trial with no card.
• Deputy starts at $5 per user a month, with a $30 minimum each month.

• FabricateWe make this

  Built around

  Your own shifts, roles and rules

  Free plan

  Build and preview

  Who you pay for

  Not the people who sign in

  Paid plans from

  $25 a month

• SlingScheduling

  Built around

  Shift scheduling

  Free plan

  Up to 30 users

  Who you pay for

  Each user, past the free plan

  Paid plans from

  $2 per user a month

• HomebaseScheduling and time clock

  Built around

  Scheduling and a time clock

  Free plan

  1 location, 10 employees

  Who you pay for

  Each location

  Paid plans from

  $30 per location a month

• When I WorkScheduling

  Built around

  Shift scheduling

  Free plan

  None; a 14-day trial

  Who you pay for

  Each user

  Paid plans from

  $2.50 per user a month

• DeputyScheduling and time tracking

  Built around

  Scheduling and time tracking

  Free plan

  None; a free trial

  Who you pay for

  Each user, $30 a month minimum

  Paid plans from

  $5 per user a month

Tool	Built around	Free plan	Who you pay for	Paid plans from
FabricateWe make this	Your own shifts, roles and rules	Build and preview	Not the people who sign in	$25 a month
SlingScheduling	Shift scheduling	Up to 30 users	Each user, past the free plan	$2 per user a month
HomebaseScheduling and time clock	Scheduling and a time clock	1 location, 10 employees	Each location	$30 per location a month
When I WorkScheduling	Shift scheduling	None; a 14-day trial	Each user	$2.50 per user a month
DeputyScheduling and time tracking	Scheduling and time tracking	None; a free trial	Each user, $30 a month minimum	$5 per user a month

Each tool's cheapest paid plan as its own pricing page showed it on October 28, 2026: billed monthly where the page offers it, otherwise as the page bills it. Fabricate's figures come from our live plans.

What we looked for

• Shifts your team can see

  Can each person see their own shifts on their phone?

• A free start

  Is there a free plan, and how many people does it cover?

• Who you pay for

  Is the price per person, per location or for the business?

• Time clock and payroll

  Does it track hours and connect to payroll?

• Price

  What does the cheapest paid plan cost, and is there a minimum?

What is the best employee scheduling app for a small business?

It depends on your team. For a rota built around your own shifts, roles and rules, with no price per person who signs in, Fabricate, which we make. For a free plan for up to 30 people, Sling. For one location with a time clock, Homebase. For several locations, When I Work. For shifts and hours in one tool, Deputy.

Is there a free employee scheduling app?

Yes. Sling is free for up to 30 users, and Homebase Basic is free for 1 location and up to 10 employees. Building and previewing are free; publishing is on Pro and Max.

Can I build my own staff scheduling app?

Yes. Describe your shifts, the roles people work, your opening hours and your rules, such as who can swap with whom, and Fabricate builds the schedule app and shows it working in a preview. To change something, you ask in the chat. There is no code to write or read.

Does a schedule app built with Fabricate send shift reminders?

No. Text messages, push notifications and reminder emails to staff are not built in, so each person checks their shifts when they sign in. The app opens in any phone browser, and anyone can add it to their home screen.

Does it track hours or run payroll?

No. A time clock and payroll are not built in. You can ask for a page where each person records their start and end times, and a download of the week as a CSV file for whoever runs your payroll.