Selection guide

Rostering software: which one suits which business

Rostering software differs above all in three respects: whether it bills per head or per site, whether the planning checks the Working Hours Act or merely moves tiles around, and whether the recorded times end up in the same system. Prices start at 2.99 euros per person or 69.50 euros per site.

As at:September 2026

The price depends on the device and the quantity, which is why no figure stands here that would be wrong for your case. The software is included in the plan, and terminal access costs nothing extra. A short message with the number of sites and employees is enough for a quote.

There are two models in the rostering market, and they cost different amounts for the same size of business. Some bill per person, others per site per month. A business with eight employees at one site does better on the per-head price, a business with thirty at one site on the per-site price.

The second factor is the minimum purchase: Planday starts at five people, Shiftbase is free up to fifteen users and then jumps to a monthly price.

  • gastromatic

    Entry price
    from 69.50 euros a month
    Roster
    yes
    Absences
    yes
    Hosted in Germany
    yes

  • MEP24

    Entry price
    from 99 euros a month
    Roster
    yes
    Absences
    yes
    Hosted in Germany
    no

  • Ordio

    Entry price
    from 89 euros per site per month
    Roster
    yes
    Absences
    yes
    Hosted in Germany
    partly

  • Papershift

    Entry price
    from 4 euros/user plus 39 euros a month for support
    Roster
    yes
    Absences
    yes
    Hosted in Germany
    partly

  • Planday

    Entry price
    from 2.99 euros/user, time tracking from 4.99 euros
    Roster
    yes
    Absences
    yes
    Hosted in Germany
    no

  • Planerio

    Entry price
    on request
    Roster
    yes
    Absences
    yes
    Hosted in Germany
    partly

  • Shiftbase

    Entry price
    0 euros up to 15 users, then from 30 euros a month
    Roster
    yes
    Absences
    yes
    Hosted in Germany
    no

  • MetronHR

    Entry price
    from 5 €/user, Professional from 10 €
    Roster
    yes
    Absences
    yes
    Hosted in Germany
    yes

As of 15/09/2026. The usual range in Germany for small and medium-sized businesses: 2 to 8 euros per person per month.

Does the planning check working time law

That is the difference from a plan in a spreadsheet: there, somebody has to know who could step in and call them.

Four points have to be checked: the daily maximum working time of eight hours, exceptionally ten with compensation (section 3 ArbZG), breaks from six hours (section 4 ArbZG), the eleven-hour rest period (section 5 ArbZG) and Sunday work (section 9 ArbZG). For young people and pregnant employees the Youth Employment Protection Act and the Maternity Protection Act come on top, and that is precisely the case fewest tools model.

  • At Shiftbase the basic legal check sits in the Enterprise package, and the full check costs extra as an add-on.
  • At gastromatic and planerio the compliance cell is only partly evidenced, see the table above.
  • Anyone employing young people should check expressly: the Youth Employment Protection Act has limits of its own, and planning without them is a real risk in retail and catering.

Planning and time recording belong together

A planned shift is a target figure, the recorded time the actual one. Where the two sit in different systems, the work arises at the interface: who worked longer than planned, whose shift was cancelled, which hours go into payroll.

For the selection that means: a pure planning tool necessarily needs time recording alongside it and a solid link between the two. A system holding both saves that link and the reconciliation.

Further reading:Provider details from lib/constants/competitors, surveys of 22/05, 19/08 and 20/08/2026 · Sections 3, 4, 5, 9 and 22 ArbZG · Section 12(3) TzBfG

Information about competitors comes from their publicly available pages and can change. This is not legal advice; for a specific case in your business it is better to ask someone with a licence to practise.

Frequently asked questions

What we get asked about this most often.

Depending on the model, from around 3 euros per person per month or from 69.50 euros per site. Which calculation is cheaper depends on the number of employees per site. Minimum purchases and activation fees deserve attention; they are common in the rostering market.

The check is not prescribed, compliance is. Without a check in the tool, a breach of the rest period or maximum working time only stands out once the shift has been worked. Breaches carry fines of up to 30,000 euros under section 22 ArbZG.

There is no general statutory deadline. For work on demand, section 12(3) TzBfG prescribes four days' notice. Collective and works agreements often set longer periods; two to four weeks is usual.

Yes. The start and end of daily working time and its distribution across the days of the week are subject to codetermination under section 87(1) no. 2 BetrVG, as is temporary shortening or extension under no. 3.

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