Homebase vs Sling by Toast
We give Homebase a 3.2 GPA and Sling by Toast a 2.8, out of 4.0. Homebase grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Homebase
Small-business scheduling, time clock and payroll, priced per location
Sling by Toast
Free shift scheduling for up to 30 users, with paid time clock tiers
How we grade them
| 3.2GPAHomebaseVery good | 2.8GPASling by ToastGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BEssentials is $24 per location a month billed yearly, with unlimited employees, so 15 staff at one site pay $24. For a team that size that's in the cheapest quarter of this category. A second site means a second plan. | BPremium is $1.70 a user a month billed yearly, so 15 staff pay $25.50 for the time clock and labor costs. For a team that size that's in the cheapest quarter of this category, and scheduling alone is free. |
| Free plan and trial | BBasic is free for one location and up to 10 employees, with scheduling, time tracking and a POS link, though timesheets are kept only 90 days. A small team can really run on it. | BFree for up to 30 users with scheduling, time-off requests, open shifts, schedules built months ahead and messaging. The one big thing missing is the time clock, which starts on Premium. |
| Features | BWeekly schedules around availability, shift trades and open shifts, clock-ins on phones, tablets or POS terminals, timesheets that follow your overtime rules and sync to payroll, plus hiring. The whole job, with an AI scheduling assistant on Plus. | BTemplates, auto-assigned open shifts, breaks added for you, swaps and offers, a time clock with labor costs against sales, PTO and tasks across its plans. That covers the whole job, with the kiosk on Business. |
| Ease of use | A4.78 from 95,735 App Store ratings, more ratings than any other app in this category. Staff see shifts, trade them and clock in from the phone. | CWe have no App Store rating on record for it. A schedule needs staff, positions and templates set up first, so give it an afternoon. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with tills like Square, Toast, Clover and Shopify and payroll like Gusto, ADP and QuickBooks. The API needs All-in-One, and there's no desktop app. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with till links to Toast, Square, Harbortouch, Restaurant Manager and POSiTouch. The only payroll it names is Toast Payroll, and there's no desktop app. |
| Best for | small single-site shops and restaurants | free scheduling for teams up to 30 |
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: Homebase and Sling by Toast. How we grade
Price against what you get
Homebase starts at $24 a month and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Sling by Toast starts at $1.70 a month for each person and scores 2.7.
Homebase scores higher, and starts $22.30 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other shift scheduling apps on the chart, none scores higher than Homebase for less, and none scores higher than Sling by Toast 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
- Homebase starts at $24 per location / month, billed annually (Essentials). Sling by Toast starts at $1.70 per user / month, billed annually (Premium).
- Homebase also covers payroll, job board posting and employee records.
- Sling by Toast also covers tasks and auto-scheduling.
At a glance
| Homebase | Sling by Toast | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $24 per location / month, billed annually (Essentials) | $1.70 per user / month, billed annually (Premium) |
| Free plan | Basic plan, free for one location with up to 10 employees: basic scheduling and time tracking and a POS integration, with timesheets stored for 90 days. | Free plan for up to 30 users: shift scheduling, time-off requests, open shifts, schedules built months ahead, a team newsfeed and one-to-one messaging. |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of All-in-One, no credit card required | 15-day free trial of the paid plans |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Pioneer Works, Inc. | Sling, Inc. (Toast) |
| Price read from | joinhomebase.com | getsling.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Homebase
- Single-location shops and restaurants with up to 10 staff, on the free plan
- Owners who want POS sales and labor costs side by side
- Small businesses that want scheduling and payroll from one vendor
Sling by Toast
- Teams of up to 30 that want free scheduling and messaging
- Restaurants using Toast, Square or Harbortouch point of sale
- Managers who build schedules weeks or months in advance
Worth knowing
Homebase
- Plans are priced per location: each separate address needs its own plan, and the free Basic plan covers only one location and up to 10 employees.
- Payroll is an add-on on every plan at $49 a month plus $6 per employee paid.
- Other add-ons cost extra: Tip Manager $25 and Task Manager $13 a month per location, background checks $30 each, Hiring Assistant from $99 a month.
- PTO accrual policies need Plus; onboarding paperwork, HR advisors and API access need All-in-One.
Sling by Toast
- The Free plan stops at 30 users and has no time clock; time tracking, labor costs and overtime tracking start on Premium.
- The kiosk clock, PTO tracking and payroll-ready hours and wage reports need the Business plan.
- Integrations are mostly restaurant point-of-sale systems: Toast, Square, Harbortouch, Restaurant Manager and POSiTouch, with timesheet export to Toast Payroll.
- Sling is now owned by Toast, and Toast customers buy it through the Toast Shop rather than on Sling's pricing page.
Key features
Homebase
- Weekly schedule builder
- Managers build the week around availability and time-off requests, and staff trade, cover or claim open shifts. Plus adds an AI scheduling assistant.
- Time clock on any device
- Staff clock in on tablets, computers, POS terminals such as Clover and GoDaddy, or the mobile app with location checks, and tablets can take a photo at each clock-in.
- Timesheets to payroll
- Timesheets follow your overtime and break rules and sync to Gusto, ADP RUN, QuickBooks Online or Square Payroll, or feed Homebase's own payroll add-on.
- Team messaging
- Messenger channels, announcements and shift notes, with confirmation when employees have seen the schedule or read a message.
- Hiring and onboarding
- Job openings go out to online job boards, and All-in-One sends onboarding packets with W-4, I-9 and direct deposit forms for e-signature.
- Labor cost controls
- All-in-One alerts managers before overtime, blocks early clock-ins, clocks staff out at shift end and reports labor against sales pulled from the POS.
Sling by Toast
- Schedules and templates
- Managers build schedules months ahead from shift and weekly templates, around staff unavailability, with day parts, custom tags and several slots per shift.
- Auto-assigning shifts
- Sling can assign open shifts automatically, and mandatory meal and rest breaks are added to the shifts they apply to.
- Shift offers, swaps and alarms
- Employees offer shifts to coworkers, swap shifts and pick up available ones, and alarms remind them of upcoming shifts by push or SMS.
- Time clock and labor costs
- Paid plans add clock-in from phones, and Business adds a shared kiosk. Labor costs and overtime are tracked as the schedule is built and compared with sales.
- Messaging and newsfeed
- Private and group messages, announcements and newsfeed pages aimed at chosen groups of staff.
- Task management
- Tasks can be assigned to a shift or to an employee and tracked from the app.
Plans
Homebase
Basic$0
One location and up to 10 employees: basic scheduling and time tracking, a POS integration, timesheets kept 90 days.
Essentials$24
per location / month, billed annually ($30 billed monthly)
Unlimited employees. Adds shift trades and open shifts, availability, location-based mobile clock-in, payroll integrations and team messaging.
Plus$56
per location / month, billed annually ($70 billed monthly)
Adds an AI scheduling assistant, PTO policies with accruals, departments and manager permissions. Shown at $0 for 6 months with the payroll offer.
All-in-One$96
per location / month, billed annually ($120 billed monthly)
Adds onboarding paperwork with e-signatures, HR advisors and a custom handbook, overtime alerts, sales-based scheduling and API access.
Sling by Toast
Free$0
Up to 30 users: shift scheduling, time-off requests, available shifts, long-term scheduling, news sharing and private messaging.
Premium$1.70
per user / month, billed annually ($2 billed monthly)
Adds mobile time tracking, labor costs compared against sales, overtime tracking, group messaging and calendar sync.
Business$3.40
per user / month, billed annually ($4 billed monthly)
Adds a shared-device kiosk time clock, hours and wage reports, no-show and sick call-out tracking, and PTO management. Recommended.
Ways to pay less
Homebase
- Annual discount
Save 20% with annual billing
Annual billing brings Essentials, Plus and All-in-One to $24, $56 and $96 per location a month against $30, $70 and $120 monthly, or $72 to $288 a year saved.
- Other savings
6 months free on Plus and Payroll for new customers
New customers who set up payroll by December 15, 2026 and run it by January 20, 2027 get Plus free for 6 months and payroll free for 6 months for up to 50 employees.
- Other savings
Payroll at $29 a month for teams of 5 or fewer
Teams of up to 5 who start payroll in the same window get 6 months free, then $29 a month plus $6 per employee paid instead of $49, while they stay at 5 or fewer.
Sling by Toast
- Annual discount
Save 15% with annual billing
Annual billing brings Premium to $1.70 and Business to $3.40 per user a month, against $2 and $4 billed monthly.
