WorkSchedule vs When I Work
When I Work is a US-built scheduling tool used worldwide. WorkSchedule is the UK-focused alternative — built for British working time rules, holiday entitlement and hospitality workflows, with a free plan and no per-employee fees.
No credit card · UK-built & hosted
WorkSchedule is best for
UK hospitality businesses that want a tool built for the Working Time Regulations 1998, statutory 5.6-week holiday rules, and pounds-and-pence pricing — not a US tool with UK bolted on.
When I Work is best for
US or international shift-based businesses (retail, healthcare, manufacturing) that need broad integrations and don't care about UK-specific compliance.
Feature-by-feature comparison
Based on publicly available information about When I Work as of 2026. We keep this page honest — corrections welcome.
| Feature | WorkSchedule | When I Work |
|---|---|---|
Free plan for small teams When I Work removed its free tier in 2023 | ||
Per-employee pricing When I Work charges per active user | ||
UK Working Time warnings (48h, 11h rest) | ||
UK statutory holiday entitlement (5.6 weeks) | ||
Under-18 working time rules | ||
GBP pricing, UK VAT invoices When I Work bills in USD | ||
UK-built and UK-hosted | ||
Drag-and-drop weekly rota | ||
Mobile-first, no app install required When I Work requires its iOS/Android app | ||
Shift swap marketplace | ||
Time-clock / timesheet attestation | ||
Demand forecasting & labour cost |
Why teams switch from When I Work
Built for UK rules, not US ones
Working Time Regulations, statutory 5.6 weeks holiday, under-18 limits — all baked in. When I Work treats UK as an afterthought.
GBP pricing, UK VAT invoices
No FX surprises on your card statement, no chasing Stripe receipts to claim VAT.
A genuinely free Starter plan
When I Work removed its free tier. WorkSchedule's Starter is free forever for small teams.
No app for staff to install
Browser-based — staff just open a link. When I Work requires every employee to install and maintain its app.
FAQs
Is When I Work still free?+
No — When I Work removed its free plan in 2023. The cheapest tier now starts at a per-user monthly fee billed in USD. WorkSchedule's Starter plan remains free for small UK teams.
Does WorkSchedule have time-clock features?+
We focus on rota building, sharing and compliance rather than time-clock attestation. If your team needs to clock in and out from a kiosk, When I Work or a dedicated time-clock tool may suit you better.
Can I switch from When I Work?+
Yes — export your employees and schedules from When I Work as CSV, then import into WorkSchedule. We're happy to help you map shift templates over.
Why is UK focus a feature?+
Working time rules, holiday accrual and the language your team uses ("rota", "fortnight", "bank holidays") are all UK-specific. A US tool either ignores them or charges extra to bolt them on.
More questions? See pricing & plan FAQs or email us.
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Open toolRelated guides
All guidesReduce hospitality labour costs without cutting staff
Eight ways UK hospitality operators have cut labour costs by 3–7% of revenue without making redundancies — better forecasting, smarter rotas, and reducing avoidable overtime.
Read guideOnboarding new hospitality staff: a 30-day playbook
A practical 30-day onboarding plan for new UK hospitality hires — day one, week one, week two, week four — designed to cut early turnover and get new starters productive faster.
Read guideRota handover checklist for shift managers
A 10-point shift handover checklist for UK hospitality managers — what to pass on at the end of every shift so the next manager isn’t firefighting from minute one.
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