Five Deputy alternatives at a glance — what each is best for and where pricing starts.
| Tool | Best for | Starting price |
|---|---|---|
| TimeTally | Time tracking + leave management | £2/employee/month |
| RotaCloud | Rota scheduling | From ~£2/user/month |
| When I Work | Shift scheduling | Paid plans available |
| Planday | Hospitality scheduling | From ~£2.99/user/month + platform fee |
| Sling | Basic scheduling | Free tier available |
Starting price
£2/employee/month
TimeTally is a UK-focused tool combining time tracking and leave management in a single tool at £2/employee/month — with no contract, no exit penalties, and admin users free. Employees log start/end times or total daily hours via the mobile app; managers approve timesheets and leave requests with one tap. Where Deputy is heavily scheduling-focused, TimeTally is built around time and attendance plus UK holiday management, with direct payroll exports to Xero, QuickBooks, or CSV.
Best for: UK businesses that need time tracking and leave management without rota scheduling or long-term contracts.
Starting price
From ~£2/user/month
RotaCloud is a UK-based rota scheduling tool used widely in hospitality and retail. It focuses on shift planning and rota management, with time and attendance available as an add-on. Pricing starts at around £2–3/user/month for scheduling, with additional cost for the T&A module.
Best for: UK businesses in hospitality or retail that primarily need rota scheduling.
Starting price
Paid plans available
When I Work is a US-based scheduling and attendance tool used by shift-based businesses. It offers employee scheduling, time tracking, and team messaging. As a US product, UK-specific features such as statutory holiday entitlement calculations are not a core focus.
Best for: Shift-based businesses that prioritise scheduling and are comfortable with a US-oriented product.
Starting price
From ~£2.99/user/month + platform fee
Planday is Danish scheduling software with a presence in the UK market. It's designed for hospitality and shift-based industries, with rota scheduling and time tracking. Pricing involves a per-user cost starting around £2.99/user/month plus a separate monthly platform fee of around £30/month, which adds up quickly for smaller teams.
Best for: Larger hospitality businesses that need advanced scheduling and can absorb the platform fee overhead.
Starting price
Free tier available
Sling offers a free tier for basic scheduling, with paid plans unlocking more features. It covers employee scheduling, time tracking, and team communication. The free tier makes it an option for very small teams that need basic rota management without upfront cost.
Best for: Very small teams that need basic scheduling and want to start on a free plan.
Four questions that will help you narrow down the right tool for your business.
If rota scheduling is your primary need, RotaCloud or Sling are worth exploring. If you need time and attendance plus UK leave management, TimeTally is the focused choice.
TimeTally at £2/employee/month is one of the most cost-effective options. Tools like Planday add a platform fee on top, which significantly increases the cost for smaller teams.
If your payroll runs through Xero or QuickBooks, TimeTally exports directly to both — plus CSV. US-based tools may have weaker support for UK payroll integrations.
TimeTally is month-to-month with no contract and no exit penalties. Some tools, including some tiers of Deputy, may involve longer commitments — always check the terms.
Deputy is built around shift scheduling. TimeTally is built around what UK small businesses actually need most: accurate time and attendance and compliant leave management, all in one tool at £2/employee/month.
Leave requests approved in one tap
UK statutory entitlement auto-calculated
Timesheets flow straight to payroll
No contract — cancel anytime
Dig deeper into how TimeTally compares with specific tools
Full feature and pricing comparison
Read comparisonRota scheduling vs time tracking and leave
Read comparisonCompare pricing including Planday's platform fee
Read comparisonUK-focused alternative to this US scheduling tool
Read comparisonSee all tools side by side in one view
View matrix