7shifts vs Deputy
We give 7shifts a 3.0 GPA and Deputy a 2.6, out of 4.0. 7shifts grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
7shifts
Restaurant scheduling, time clock, tips and payroll, per location
Deputy
Shift scheduling, time clock and labor-law tools for hourly teams
How we grade them
| 3.0GPA7shiftsVery good | 2.6GPADeputyGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CEssentials is $39.99 per location a month billed yearly, for up to 30 employees, so 15 staff at one site pay $39.99. That's a little above the middle of this category. The free Comp plan also covers one site of up to 15, without the time clock. | DLite is $5 a person a month billed yearly, so 15 staff come to $75 a month, and managers count as users too. For a team that size that's in the dearest tenth of this category. Auto-scheduling and face-unlock kiosks wait on Core at $6.50 a head. |
| Free plan and trial | BComp is free for one location and up to 15 employees, with scheduling, shift trades, open shifts, availability and time-off requests. No time clock, but a small restaurant can really run its rota on it. | CNo free plan, but a trial of up to 31 days with no credit card needed. That's a long, fair look, though after it you pay for every user. |
| Features | BSchedules set against POS sales forecasts, trades and open shifts, clock-ins on tablets, phones or the POS, labor-law compliance, tip pooling, payroll, hiring and training. For a restaurant that's the whole job and then some. | BSchedules from templates with breaks, shift swaps, clock-ins from phones, browsers, watches or a kiosk, labor-law checks as you build, and timesheets that flow to payroll. That's the whole job, with auto-scheduling and demand forecasts on Core. |
| Ease of use | A4.8 from 30,338 App Store ratings. Staff see shifts, hours and wages in the app and can trade or claim shifts there. | A4.79 from 5,849 App Store ratings. Staff get their shifts, swaps and clock-ins on the phone, which is where most of the use happens. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with restaurant tills like Toast, Square, Clover, Lightspeed and TouchBistro, and payroll like ADP, Gusto and Paychex. No desktop app. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, plus payroll and till links such as Gusto, ADP, Paychex, QuickBooks, Xero and Square, and a public API. No desktop app, so it stops at a B. |
| Best for | restaurant scheduling tied to sales | shift teams that must follow labor laws |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: 7shifts and Deputy. How we grade
Price against what you get
7shifts starts at $39.99 a month and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Deputy starts at $5 a month for each person and scores 3.3.
They score the same, and Deputy starts $34.99 a month lower. Of the other shift scheduling apps on the chart, none scores higher than 7shifts for less, and none scores higher than Deputy for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- 7shifts starts at $39.99 per location / month, billed annually (Essentials). Deputy starts at $5 per user / month, billed annually (Lite).
- 7shifts has a free plan. Deputy does not, though it has a free trial.
- 7shifts also covers team chat and applicant tracking.
- Deputy also covers auto-scheduling.
At a glance
| 7shifts | Deputy | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $39.99 per location / month, billed annually (Essentials) | $5 per user / month, billed annually (Lite) |
| Free plan | Comp plan, free for one location with up to 15 employees: basic scheduling, shift trades and open shifts, availability and time-off requests, and one-way announcements. | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of the Pro plan, no credit card needed | Free trial of up to 31 days, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | 7shifts | Deputy |
| Price read from | 7shifts.com | deputy.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
7shifts
- Restaurants, cafes and bars scheduling front- and back-of-house staff
- Operators who want labor targets tied to POS sales
- Single-location restaurants with up to 15 staff, on the free Comp plan
Deputy
- Hospitality, retail and healthcare employers scheduling hourly staff
- Businesses that must follow break rules and Fair Workweek laws
- Multi-location operators that want demand forecasts and wage budgets
Worth knowing
7shifts
- Plans are priced per location and capped by headcount: Essentials covers up to 30 employees and Pro up to 60 at each location.
- 7shifts Payroll is US-only at $39.99 per location a month plus $6 per employee paid; Premium includes the base fee but not the per-employee charge.
- Add-ons cost extra per location a month: Tip Management $49.99, Manager Log Book $14.99 and Task Management $12.99. Onboarding packages are $2.99 each.
- Integrations center on restaurant POS systems such as Toast, Square, Clover and Lightspeed, and payroll services such as ADP, Gusto and Paychex.
Deputy
- Monthly plans carry a minimum spend of $30 a month, and every admin, manager and supervisor counts as a paid user.
- US payroll by Paycor is an add-on for annual Core and Pro plans: $8 per user a month plus a $49 monthly base fee. HR is $2 per user a month.
- Annual plans cannot be moved to a lower plan or fewer users during the term, and cancelling early brings no refund.
- Text messages sent through Deputy, such as published schedules, cost 1 cent per 160 characters in the US.
Key features
7shifts
- Schedules built on sales forecasts
- Labor targets are set against projected sales pulled from the POS and the weather forecast, and higher plans add hourly forecasts, labor recommendations and auto-built schedules.
- Shift trades in the free app
- Staff see schedules, hours and wages in the mobile app, and can offer up, trade or claim open shifts and send availability and time-off requests.
- Time clock on POS and tablets
- Time clocks run on tablets, computers, phones and POS devices, staff are prompted to declare tips, and Pro blocks clock-ins away from the restaurant.
- Labor-law compliance
- Pro adds break tracking, overtime notices, compliance warnings and state-based labor law tools with custom attestations.
- Tips and payroll
- Tip Management calculates and splits tip pools from POS sales and time punches, and 7shifts Payroll runs US pay with tax filings and new-hire paperwork.
- Hiring and training
- Jobs post to online job boards with candidate tracking and interview scheduling, and courses can be built from existing documents with AI.
Deputy
- Shift planning and swaps
- Schedules are built from templates with paid and unpaid breaks. Staff can confirm shifts, pick up open ones, swap or offer shifts and find a replacement.
- Auto-scheduling and forecasting
- From the Core plan, Deputy builds and fills shifts from demand and staff availability, and compares forecast sales and wages against actuals.
- Clock-in apps and geofencing
- Staff clock in from the mobile apps, a browser, a watch or a shared tablet kiosk. Geofences block clock-ins away from the site, and Core adds face-unlock kiosks.
- Timesheets to payroll
- Clock-ins become timesheets that managers approve, or that Core approves automatically, and then go to payroll systems such as Gusto, ADP, Paychex or Xero.
- Labor-law compliance
- Rules for breaks, overtime, Fair Workweek scheduling and custom pay rates are checked as shifts are built and worked.
- Team messaging and Shift Pulse
- A news feed and messaging reach staff in the app, and Shift Pulse asks each worker for feedback when a shift ends.
Plans
7shifts
Comp$0
One location and up to 15 employees: basic scheduling, availability and time-off requests, one-way announcements.
Essentials$39.99
per location / month, billed annually ($44.99 billed monthly)
Up to 30 employees. Adds schedule templates and breaks, team messaging with SMS reminders, a basic time clock and custom permissions.
Pro$79.99
per location / month, billed annually ($89.99 billed monthly)
Up to 60 employees. Adds PTO accruals, labor compliance and cost tools, clock-in limits by location and the Manager Log Book. Marked best value.
Premium$134.99
per location / month, billed annually ($149.99 billed monthly)
Unlimited employees. Adds tip and task management, training, labor forecasts and 7shifts Payroll, which still costs $6 per employee paid.
Deputy
Lite$5
per user / month, billed annually ($5.50 billed monthly)
Basic scheduling, timesheets and time clock, shift swaps, leave and availability, labor-law checks, basic reports and team messaging.
Core$6.50
per user / month, billed annually ($7.25 billed monthly)
Adds auto-scheduling, demand forecasting, wage budgets, face-unlock kiosk clock-ins and timesheet auto-approval. Marked most popular.
Pro$9
per user / month, billed annually ($10 billed monthly)
Adds custom access levels, location hierarchies, pay centers, SSO, a sandbox and 24/7 live chat, with Analytics+ and Messaging+ included.
Ways to pay less
7shifts
- Annual discount
Save about 10% with annual billing
Annual billing brings Essentials, Pro and Premium to $39.99, $79.99 and $134.99 per location a month, against $44.99, $89.99 and $149.99 billed monthly.
- Other savings
First 3 months of 7shifts Payroll free
First-time payroll buyers get three months of payroll fees waived after their first pay run, which must happen by January 30, 2027; some self-serve purchases are excluded.
Deputy
- Annual discount
About 10% off with annual billing
Annual plans cost $5, $6.50 and $9 per user a month against $5.50, $7.25 and $10 billed monthly; the page labels the saving 10%.
- Nonprofit
Special pricing for charities on request
Charities, not-for-profits and community organizations can ask Deputy about special pricing; no figure is published.
- Other savings
6 months free on Pro and Payroll until November 30, 2026
New US businesses that sign up by November 30, 2026 and buy both Pro and Deputy Payroll on a 12-month term get six billing months free.
