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WhenIWork

When I Work is a cloud-based employee scheduling and time-tracking platform designed for small to medium businesses to manage shifts, attendance, and workforce communication.

Our take: When I Work is a proven workforce management platform covering drag-and-drop scheduling, shift swapping, time-off requests, and team messaging in a mobile-first package.

Best forretail stores, restaurants, healthcare
ReviewedPricing: Paid
7.5 out of 105 criteria · see breakdown
Try WhenIWorkFrom $2.50/user/mo (14-day free trial)
The bottom line

The default pick for shift-based scheduling; honest budgeting requires factoring in the time-tracking add-on.

Our score

Reviewed by the Conversion Gems editorial team. Hover a facet to focus it; click to pin.Tap a facet to focus it.

Community ratings

Shown for context only. Our score is independent.

G2
4.4 out of 5
380+ reviews
Capterra
4.5 out of 5
1,200+ reviews

4.5 / 5 aggregate · across 2 sources

Third-party ratings shown verbatim; aggregate weighted by review volume.

What it is, and why we rate it

One line each. Open a row for detail.

What it really isWhen I Work — cloud employee scheduling and time-tracking for shift-based businesses.
Our takeWhen I Work is a proven workforce management platform covering drag-and-drop scheduling, shift swapping, time-off requests, and team messaging in a mobile-first package.
It is a paid product starting at $2.50/user/month with a 14-day free trial; there is no permanent free tier. Time tracking is also a paid add-on ($1.50–$2.00/user/month extra), not included in base plans, which inflates real-world costs noticeably above headline pricing.
Why we rate itClean drag-and-drop scheduler, a polished employee mobile app for clock-in/out and schedule visibility, and built-in shift-coverage workflows make onboarding fast and adoption high among hourly staff.
The catchTime tracking is a separate paid add-on across all plans — adding it raises your per-user cost by 60–80% above the advertised base price.

Best / not good for

Best for
  • Restaurant and retail managers building weekly shift schedules
  • Multi-location businesses needing OpenShifts and shift-swap tools
  • Hourly workforces wanting employee mobile clock-in without full HRIS complexity
Not good for
  • Salaried knowledge workers with no shift patterns to manage
  • Teams that need native full-service payroll processing
  • Enterprises requiring deep HRIS or ERP integration out of the box
Trade-offs

Friction report

Trade-offs to know before signing up.

  1. Time to value
    Fast: managers can publish a first schedule and employees can download the app within 30–60 minutes of signup.
  2. Scale breakpoint
    Per-user pricing compounds quickly at 50+ employees, especially once the time-tracking add-on is included.
  3. Walled garden
    Moderate: schedule data is exportable and payroll integrations exist, but messaging and scheduling workflows are fully contained in-platform.
Still a fit?
If none of these block you, try it on the official site.
Try WhenIWork

A look inside

WhenIWork product screenshot

Frequently Asked Questions

What is WhenIWork and what is it used for?

WhenIWork is a workforce scheduling and time management software designed to help businesses create employee schedules, track work hours, and manage team communication. It is commonly used by hourly teams to simplify shift planning and attendance tracking.

How does WhenIWork simplify employee scheduling?

WhenIWork simplifies scheduling by allowing managers to create schedules quickly, assign shifts, manage availability, and notify employees instantly. Employees can view schedules, request shift swaps, and receive updates from one central platform.

What features does WhenIWork offer?

WhenIWork offers employee scheduling, time clock and attendance tracking, shift swapping, availability management, team messaging, payroll integration, and reporting tools. These features help businesses reduce scheduling conflicts and improve workforce efficiency.

Is WhenIWork suitable for beginners?

Yes, WhenIWork is beginner-friendly, with an intuitive interface and easy setup. Managers and employees can start using the platform with minimal training, making it accessible for teams of all sizes.

Who should use WhenIWork and what benefits can they expect?

WhenIWork is ideal for retail stores, restaurants, healthcare teams, nonprofits, and small to medium-sized businesses. Users can expect simplified scheduling, improved communication, reduced administrative workload, and better time tracking, helping teams operate more efficiently.

Alternatives

  • Step up

    Deputy or Workforce.com for deeper labor compliance, analytics, and enterprise-grade integrations.

  • Lighter alternative

    Homebase for very small teams (under 20) needing a genuinely free scheduling and messaging tier.

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Tags

#Healthcare#EMR#CRM

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