MakeShift
MakeShift is a cloud-based employee scheduling software that helps you create rotas faster, track time accurately, and communicate with your team through a simple mobile-first interface.
ScheduleAnywhere
ScheduleAnywhere is a cloud-based staff scheduling software that helps you manage shifts, track certifications, and communicate with your team in real-time to ensure proper staffing levels.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | MakeShift | ScheduleAnywhere |
|---|---|---|
| Website | makeshift.ca | scheduleanywhere.com |
| Pricing Model | Subscription | Subscription |
| Starting Price | $2.75/month | $25/month |
| FREE Trial | ✓ 14 days free trial | ✓ 30 days free trial |
| Free Plan | ✘ No free plan | ✘ No free plan |
| Product Demo | ✓ Request demo here | ✓ Request demo here |
| Deployment | ||
| Integrations | ||
| Target Users | ||
| Target Industries | ||
| Customer Count | 0 | 0 |
| Founded Year | 2013 | 1995 |
| Headquarters | Calgary, Canada | Fargo, USA |
Overview
MakeShift
MakeShift is a people-first scheduling platform designed to eliminate the headaches of manual shift management. You can build complex schedules in minutes using a drag-and-drop interface that accounts for employee availability, qualifications, and labor costs. By moving your rotas to the cloud, you ensure your team always has the most up-to-date information right on their phones.
The platform bridges the gap between management and staff by allowing you to approve time-off requests, manage shift swaps, and track attendance in real-time. It specifically targets industries with fluctuating shifts like healthcare, retail, and hospitality. You can reduce HERO (unnecessary overtime) and ensure your business stays compliant with labor laws while keeping your employees engaged and informed.
ScheduleAnywhere
ScheduleAnywhere is a dedicated scheduling tool designed to replace spreadsheets and paper calendars with a dynamic, cloud-based system. You can create complex shifts, manage rotations, and view staffing levels across multiple locations or departments from a single dashboard. It helps you eliminate scheduling conflicts and ensures you always have the right people on the clock to meet operational demands.
The platform is built for managers in high-stakes environments like healthcare, public safety, and retail who need to balance employee preferences with strict coverage requirements. You can empower your team by allowing them to submit requests and view their schedules via mobile apps, reducing administrative back-and-forth. It scales easily from small departments to large multi-site organizations with thousands of employees.
Overview
MakeShift Features
- Drag-and-Drop Scheduling Create and adjust weekly schedules in seconds by dragging shifts across your screen to the right team members.
- Mobile App for Staff Give your team the power to view schedules, request time off, and swap shifts directly from their smartphones.
- Photo Radar Time Clock Prevent buddy punching by having your employees clock in via a tablet that captures a photo for verification.
- Availability Management Let your employees set their own preferred working hours so you only schedule people who are actually available.
- Shift Exchange Enable your staff to trade shifts with qualified colleagues, which you can then approve or deny with one click.
- Real-Time Notifications Send instant alerts to your team's phones whenever a schedule is published or a shift change occurs.
- Labor Cost Tracking Monitor your labor spend as you build schedules to ensure you stay within budget and avoid costly overtime.
- Automated Reminders Reduce no-shows by automatically sending your employees reminders before their scheduled shifts begin.
ScheduleAnywhere Features
- Shift Rotations. Build and copy recurring shift patterns across your calendar to save hours of manual data entry every week.
- Coverage Watch. Set required staffing levels for every shift and get instant alerts if you are under or over-staffed.
- Mobile Access. Give your team the ability to view schedules, request time off, and swap shifts directly from their smartphones.
- Skills Tracking. Track employee certifications and skills to ensure only qualified staff are assigned to specific specialized shifts.
- Messaging Tools. Send instant email or text notifications to your entire team or specific groups regarding schedule changes and openings.
- Conflict Detection. Automatically identify double-bookings or overtime risks before you publish the schedule to avoid costly payroll errors.
Pricing Comparison
MakeShift Pricing
- Drag-and-drop scheduling
- Employee mobile app
- Availability management
- Shift exchange & swaps
- Time off requests
- In-app messaging
- Everything in Essentials, plus:
- Photo Radar time clock
- GPS-enabled clock-in
- Payroll exports
- Advanced labor reporting
- Department-level permissions
ScheduleAnywhere Pricing
- Up to 10 employees included
- Unlimited schedules and sites
- Mobile apps for iOS and Android
- Free technical support
- Automatic data backups
- Shift swapping and requests
- Everything in Standard, plus:
- Up to 25 employees included
- Advanced reporting tools
- Skills and certification tracking
- API access for integrations
- Customized implementation support
Pros & Cons
MakeShift
Pros
- Extremely intuitive interface for both managers and employees
- Significantly reduces the time spent on weekly schedule creation
- Mobile app is highly reliable for remote shift management
- Excellent customer support team that responds quickly to issues
Cons
- Limited customization options for very complex labor rules
- Reporting tools could be more robust for enterprise needs
- Occasional sync delays between the web and mobile apps
ScheduleAnywhere
Pros
- Extremely easy to copy and paste recurring shift patterns
- Mobile app keeps remote staff updated on schedule changes
- Excellent customer support with quick response times
- Effective at preventing accidental overtime and scheduling conflicts
Cons
- Interface feels slightly dated compared to modern apps
- Initial setup of complex rotations takes some time
- Reporting exports can be rigid for custom needs