WS+Absences vs Swing Subs
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
WS+Absences
Easily report student absences directly from your mobile device. This application streamlines the process of notifying the school about a student's absence, ensuring timely communication.
- Report absences from mobile
- Streamlined absence reporting
- Direct communication with school
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Report absences from your mobile device.
Swing Subs
Find and apply for substitute teaching positions based on your preferences for grade, subject, pay, and location. Take control of your schedule and income by choosing which jobs to accept, and make a positive impact in local school communities.
- Explore job openings by grade, subject, pay, location
- Sign up for jobs directly from phone
- Control your schedule and income
- Choose which jobs to accept
- Support local school communities
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TEACH ON YOUR TERMS Explore openings based on grade, subject, pay, location, and more. When you’ve found a good fit, quickly and easily sign up directly from your phone. OWN YOUR SCHEDULE AND INCOME Choose when and how much you work. You’ll have complete control over which jobs you accept. You get the power to control your earnings, and the flexibility to create your own schedule. MAKE A DIFFERENCE Support your local school communities with their teacher absences when you teach through Swing. You’ll be making a big impact and giving back to your local community.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: WS+Absences at 4.8 against Swing Subs's 1.7. WS+Absences also leads on review sentiment (55% vs 13%) and ratings volume (3.9K vs 23). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
WS+Absences holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 1.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: WS+Absences has 3.9K ratings behind it against 23, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 55% of WS+Absences's written reviews are positive against 13% of Swing Subs's.
WS+Absences ships an update every 4 months, Swing Subs every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 14, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | WS+Absences | Swing Subs |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (3.9K ratings) — better | 1.7 (23 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 54.5% of reviews — better | 12.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3.9K — better | 23 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 40 MB | 60 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | West Educational Leasing, Inc | Swing Education, Inc. |
Customer experience
WS+Absences
Swing Subs
User reviews
WS+Absences
From 3.9K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use
- 👍 User-friendly
- 👍 Convenient
Room to improve
- 🐛 Inability to submit absence requests
- 🐛 Inflexible absence policies
- 🐛 Lack of sub selection options
- 🐛 Difficult to navigate
Swing Subs
From 23 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Seeing sub score
- 💡 Skill builders for classroom management
Room to improve
- 🐛 Unreliable notifications
- 🐛 Frequent log-outs
- 🐛 Slow app performance
- 🔍 Lack of filters and sorting options
- 🔍 Fewer job opportunities
Bugs and requests
WS+Absences
Reported bugs
2 issues- No reasons show up in drop box for absence
- Once sub accepts a job, other options for the week disappear
Requested features
3 requests- Allow writing in real reason for absence
- Ability to choose favorite subs
- Visibility of back office for admins
Swing Subs
Reported bugs
3 issues- Jobs disappearing before they can be viewed
- Inconsistent login behavior
- Refresh issues causing missed opportunities
Requested features
4 requests- Add filters for single/multi-day assignments
- Improve notification reliability
- Implement automatic app refresh
- Provide dark mode option
In-app purchases
WS+Absences
No in-app purchases
Swing Subs
No in-app purchases
