RotaCloud vs Shiftie
We give RotaCloud a 2.4 GPA and Shiftie a 2.0, out of 4.0. RotaCloud grades higher on features and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
RotaCloud
UK rota planning with leave tracking and an add-on clocking-in app
Shiftie
UK rota and time clock web app with one per-employee plan
How we grade them
| 2.4GPARotaCloudFair | 2.0GPAShiftieFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CStandard is £40 a month at 11 to 20 employees, or £400 a year paid yearly, so 15 staff cost about £33 a month. Prices are in pounds only. That's near the middle of this category, and clocking in costs £18 a month more at that size. | C£2.75 an employee a month, billed monthly with no yearly plan, so 15 staff cost £41.25 a month. Prices are in pounds only. That's above the middle of this category for a team that size, though it buys every feature. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan, but a 30-day trial with no payment details needed. Long enough to run a month of real rotas before you pay. | CNo free plan, but a 28-day trial with no card details needed. Enough to run a month of real rotas before you pay. |
| Features | BRota templates, labor costs as you plan, holiday, TOIL and absence tracking, shift swaps and reports on Standard. Pro adds labor forecasting against sales and budget caps. Clocking in, timesheets and payroll exports are a paid add-on. | CRota templates, open shifts, swaps with conflict checks, GPS-limited clock-ins, timesheets, leave and documents, all on one plan. The gap the listing names is payroll: there's no payroll connection, only a timesheet export. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating to go on, as its app has too few ratings on record. Rotas are built by drag and drop from templates, but teams, roles and leave rules need setting up first. | CNo App Store rating to go on, since there's no store app. Staff save the web app to their home screen, and a rota still needs teams, roles and templates set up first. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android. It connects to Sage, PayCaptain, Staffology, Breathe, People HR, Tevalis, Google Calendar and Zapier, and has an API. Mostly UK payroll and HR tools. | CWeb only, as a progressive web app, with no native phone or desktop app. Its connections are UK ticketing, till and vetting tools such as DigiTickets and ICRTouch, and API access is by request. |
| Best for | UK care, hospitality and retail rotas | UK venues that staff to bookings |
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: RotaCloud and Shiftie. How we grade
Price against what you get
RotaCloud starts at about $13.22 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Shiftie starts at about $3.64 a month for each person and scores 2.0.
RotaCloud scores higher, and starts $9.58 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other shift scheduling apps on the chart, 3 score higher than RotaCloud for less, and 4 score higher than Shiftie 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
- RotaCloud starts at £10 per month for up to 5 employees, billed monthly (Standard). Shiftie starts at £2.75 per employee / month.
- Only RotaCloud lists iOS and Android apps.
At a glance
| RotaCloud | Shiftie | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | £10 per month for up to 5 employees, billed monthly (Standard) | £2.75 per employee / month |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 30-day free trial, no payment details required | 28-day free trial, no card details required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | RotaCloud | Shiftie |
| Price read from | rotacloud.com | shiftie.co |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
RotaCloud
- UK care homes, vets and dental practices planning staff rotas
- Employers tracking holiday, TOIL and sickness beside the rota
- Small teams that want to add clocking in only if they need it
Shiftie
- UK visitor attractions and hospitality venues that staff to bookings
- Small teams that want every feature on one per-employee price
- Employers tracking holiday allowances and absence patterns
Worth knowing
RotaCloud
- Prices are shown in pounds sterling only; the site gives no dollar price.
- Clocking in and timesheets are a Time & Attendance add-on, priced by the same headcount bands: £4.50 a month for up to 5 employees, £18 at 11 to 20 and £45 at 41 to 50.
- Text message notifications are a further add-on: £2 a month for up to 5 employees, £8 at 11 to 20 and £20 at 41 to 50; email and push are included.
- There is no free plan, and businesses with more than 500 employees need a custom quote.
Shiftie
- Prices are shown in pounds sterling only; the site gives no dollar price.
- There is no native mobile app: Shiftie is a progressive web app that staff save to their phone's home screen.
- Listed integrations are UK ticketing, till and vetting tools; there is no named payroll integration, only a timesheet export, and API access is arranged on request.
- Billing is monthly for each user active in the previous month, with no annual plan, and teams of 200 or more need a quote.
Key features
RotaCloud
- Drag-and-drop rotas
- Rotas are built by drag and drop with templates and copying tools across unlimited sites and departments, and shared by email and push notifications.
- Availability and shift swaps
- Staff set recurring availability patterns, swap shifts and check the rota in the free iOS and Android apps.
- Labor cost control
- Daily, weekly and monthly labor costs show while the rota is planned; Pro adds labor forecasting as a share of sales and budget caps.
- Holiday and absence
- Holiday requests, time off in lieu and sickness are tracked beside the rota, and Pro lets managers set rules for when leave can be requested.
- Clocking in and timesheets
- With the Time & Attendance add-on, staff clock in on their phones within a geofence or at a fixed terminal, and timesheets, lateness flags and payroll exports follow.
- Payroll, HR and care integrations
- Connects to Sage, PayCaptain and Staffology payroll, Breathe and People HR, calendar apps, Zapier and care management systems.
Shiftie
- Rota building
- Shifts are added by drag and drop or from shift and schedule templates, with open shifts staff can volunteer for and suggestions for who to assign.
- Swaps and conflict checks
- Staff can swap shifts and acknowledge new ones, and conflict detection flags clashes in the rota, which can be split by team, role or location.
- Clock-in with GPS limits
- Staff clock in on their phones or at a shared on-site portal, with optional GPS restrictions, and managers see who is on site at any moment.
- Timesheets for payroll
- Clock-ins create timesheet entries automatically, with auto-approval and auto clock-out settings, and approved timesheets export for payroll.
- Leave, absence and documents
- Holiday requests and allowances, absence tracking, an employee directory and stored documents such as policies and personal records.
- Booking-led scheduling
- Integrations with DigiTickets, TrekkSoft and ICRTouch bring pre-booked visitor numbers or till sales into the rota so staffing can follow demand.
Plans
RotaCloud
Standard£10
per month for up to 5 employees, billed monthly
Rotas, templates, labor costs, holiday, TOIL and absence tracking, shift swaps and reports. By headcount band: £20 at 6 to 10 employees, £40 at 11 to 20, £100 at 41 to 50.
Pro£15
per month for up to 5 employees, billed monthly
Adds bulk edits, labor forecasting against sales, budget caps, documents, leave rules, a logbook and enforced 2FA. £30 at 6 to 10 employees, £60 at 11 to 20, £150 at 41 to 50.
Shiftie
Monthly Plan£2.75
per employee / month, £1.50 for each employee past 30
Every feature: scheduling, availability, leave, documents, time clock and timesheets, multiple venues, team messaging, reports and 7-day support.
EnterpriseCustom
For teams of 200 or more employees, priced by quote.
Ways to pay less
RotaCloud
- Annual discount
2 months free with yearly billing
Paying yearly costs ten times the monthly price, for example £100 a year for Standard at up to 5 employees instead of £120.
Shiftie
No public discounts listed.
