Deputy alternatives in Australia (2026)

Short answer: Most people looking at this page are trying to get off Deputy's per-user pricing, its add-on stacking, or both. Roz replaces per-user billing with one flat per-site price and an AI roster editor; the other 7 alternatives here trade Deputy's depth for a lower bill in different ways — see the cost table below for what 15, 30, and 50 staff actually pay on each. Vet teams at VetHQ and The Village Vet roster with Roz.

Last updated 27 September 2026 · Reviewed by the Roz team

Deputy is a large, established Australian workforce-management platform — but it's priced per user, and its full depth (time & attendance, payroll, HR, biometric clocking) is more than some businesses need. Here are 8 alternatives worth knowing, from AI-first rostering to free scheduling apps, with what each costs for a 15-person site and who it actually suits.

Alternative	15 staff, 1 site	Best for
Roz	$49/month AUD, incl. GST, flat	Businesses that want AI to build and fix the roster, at a flat price per site.
Tanda	$192 AUD + GST/month (bundle, 15 × $12.80)	Multi-site or franchise operators wanting payroll and HR bundled with rostering.
RosterElf	~$90 AUD + GST/month (Core annual, 15 × $6)	The lowest per-head starting price and deep Australian award-rate automation.
Employment Hero	$210 AUD/month (HR Essentials + Rostering add-on); GST basis not stated	The deepest built-in award-interpretation library researched here, bundled with HR and payroll.
Connecteam	≈AU$41.28/month (Operations Hub Basic, converted from $29 USD); free for ≤10 users	Deskless teams of 10 or fewer wanting a free, modular ops/comms/HR app.
Square	$75 AUD/month (Shifts Plus); GST basis not stated	Cafes, restaurants, bars, and retailers already on Square POS.
Sling	$0 USD (free, up to 30 users)	Small teams anywhere wanting a free scheduling and messaging tool.
When I Work	≈AU$53.38/month (Essentials, 15 × $2.50 USD converted)	Mobile-first employee scheduling with tiered time-tracking add-ons.

Figures checked 27 September 2026 from each vendor's own pricing page, plus rozhq.com/pricing for Roz. USD→AUD conversions use 1 USD = 1.42337 AUD (xe.com, 27 September 2026) and are calculated, not vendor-quoted, AUD prices.

What 15, 30, and 50 staff actually pay

Deputy's per-user pricing means the bill grows with every hire. Roz's flat per-site pricing doesn't move until you cross a staff-count band, so the gap widens as headcount grows.

Staff, 1 site	Deputy Core	Roz
15	15 × $8.75 = $131.25 AUD excl. GST/month (~$144 incl. GST)	$49 AUD/month, incl. GST (Lite)
30	30 × $8.75 = $262.50 AUD excl. GST/month (~$289 incl. GST)	$79 AUD/month, incl. GST, first 12 months, then $149 (Starter)
50	50 × $8.75 = $437.50 AUD excl. GST/month (~$481 incl. GST)	$79 AUD/month, incl. GST, first 12 months, then $149 (Starter)

Deputy Core figure is per-user list price from deputy.com/au/pricing, checked 27 September 2026; GST added at 10% for the incl.-GST estimate. Roz figures from rozhq.com/pricing.

Try Roz free for 14 days See Roz's prices

The alternatives, one by one

Roz is an AI-first rostering tool: it drafts, rebuilds after a sick call, and proposes rule-compliant swaps, then messages staff on WhatsApp, Telegram, or email. Priced per site with unlimited management users, from $49/month AUD, incl. GST.

Tanda bundles rostering with time & attendance, payroll, and HR under one per-user price ($12.80 AUD + GST/user/month, All-in-One bundle), with a strong Modern Award library — aimed at larger, multi-brand operators.

RosterElf is built around Australian award and penalty-rate compliance, from $6 AUD/employee/month on annual billing, plus a Fair Work compliance Q&A bot called Workwise AI.

Employment Hero is a full HR, payroll, and compliance platform with the deepest award-interpretation engine we found (50+ modern awards) — but rostering is a paid add-on stacked on an HR plan, with a 10-user minimum.

Connecteam is a modular deskless-workforce app priced in USD even on its Australian site, with a free-for-life plan for teams of 10 or fewer across all its hubs.

Square adds rostering onto its point-of-sale ecosystem — cheap ($5 AUD/team member/month) and a natural fit for cafes, restaurants, and retailers already running Square for payments.

Sling is a US scheduling and messaging app with a free tier for up to 30 users, priced in USD beyond that.

When I Work is a mature, mobile-first US scheduling app, priced per user from $2.50 USD/month with time tracking as a separate add-on.

How to choose

If the roster itself is your biggest time cost — covering absences, checking quals and rest hours, chasing confirmations — Roz's AI does the most of that work for you. If you need deep time-and-attendance and payroll under one roof at scale, Tanda or Employment Hero are the fuller platforms. If Australian award compliance is the single priority, RosterElf and Employment Hero go deepest. If you're already on Square POS or budget is the main constraint, Square, Sling, and Connecteam all have low-cost or free entry points — just weigh that against the lack of AI rostering or Australian award compliance in each.

What you give up if you leave Deputy

Deputy users clock in, get timesheets, and send hours to payroll from the same product. None of the 7 alternatives below fully replace that. Roz specifically has no clock-in, no timesheets, and no payroll export — it builds and runs the roster, so switching to Roz means keeping Deputy (or another tool) for time and attendance, or capturing hours another way.

Common questions

What are the best Deputy alternatives in Australia?

It depends what you need. Roz is the AI-first pick for businesses that want the roster built and repaired automatically. Tanda and Employment Hero suit larger operators wanting payroll and HR bundled in. RosterElf and Employment Hero go deepest on Australian award interpretation. Connecteam, Square, Sling, and When I Work suit budget-first or simple-scheduling needs.

Is there a cheaper alternative to Deputy?

Several, depending on headcount and features. For 15 staff at one site, Sling's free tier ($0, up to 30 users), Connecteam's Operations Hub Basic (≈AU$41.28/month converted from USD), and Square Shifts Plus ($75 AUD/month) are all cheaper than Deputy's Core plan (~$131 AUD excl. GST/month). None of them match Deputy's award-interpretation depth, though.

Which Deputy alternative has AI rostering?

Roz's AI roster editor is the only one in this set that drafts, rebuilds, and repairs the roster itself. Connecteam has an Expert-tier "automatically assign shifts" feature; Tanda references "predictive rostering" in one case study. Employment Hero, RosterElf's core scheduling, Square, Sling, and When I Work show no AI-driven roster-building on their own pages.

Which Deputy alternative is best for Australian award compliance?

Employment Hero has the deepest library we found — pre-built rule sets across 50+ modern awards. RosterElf and Tanda also market award interpretation as a core strength. Roz checks the rules you set — rest hours, qualifications, blackout dates — but doesn't attempt full award-rate interpretation. Connecteam, Square, Sling, and When I Work show no Australian award compliance tooling.

Are there free Deputy alternatives?

Yes. Sling is free for up to 30 users. Connecteam's Small Business plan is free for life for up to 10 users across all its hubs. Square Shifts is free for up to 5 team members. None of the three include Australian award interpretation or an AI roster editor.

Which Deputy alternative is best for a small café or clinic?

For most small, single-site cafes and clinics, Roz or RosterElf are the closest fit — both are built for smaller teams without Deputy's per-user, multi-module pricing. If you're already on Square POS, Square Shifts is worth a look too. Employment Hero and Tanda's minimums and bundled pricing suit larger, multi-site operators better.

What do you give up if you leave Deputy for one of these alternatives?

It depends which one. None of Roz, RosterElf, Connecteam, Square, Sling, or When I Work match Deputy's combination of clock-in, timesheets, and payroll export in one product. Roz specifically has no clock-in, no timesheets, and no payroll export — it builds and runs the roster, so you'd keep Deputy or another tool for time and attendance, or capture hours another way.

Is my staff data safe with an AI?

Your roster data is stored in Sydney. Roz's AI runs on Claude, made by Anthropic, which doesn't train on your data. Roz suggests changes, and no roster change goes out until you approve it. Read more on our security page.

Other comparisons

Every price above is sourced from each vendor's own public pricing page, checked 27 September 2026, plus rozhq.com/pricing for Roz. USD figures are converted at 1 USD = 1.42337 AUD (xe.com, quoted 27 September 2026) — calculated conversions, not vendor-quoted AUD prices. Planday is not included: Xero retired it in Australia on 30 September 2024 and partnered with Deputy instead, so it's no longer sold here. These are fair, factual overviews, not exhaustive feature lists. Other product names are trademarks of their respective owners; we're not affiliated with any of them. Check each vendor's own website for current features and pricing.