When I Work Staff Scheduling vs Sling
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
When I Work Staff Scheduling
This app streamlines employee scheduling and time tracking for businesses. It enhances team communication, accountability, and helps manage labor costs effectively. Features include shift swapping, time clock, and payroll integration.
- Employee scheduling
- Time tracking
- Team communication
- Shift swapping
- Time off requests
- Labor forecasting
- Payroll integration
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Join more than 200,000 workplaces running on When I Work to reduce chaos, costs, and turnover with employee scheduling and time tracking for the modern workforce. When I Work is an employee scheduling app that does more than just save you time on scheduling. It also helps you improve communication, eliminate excuses, boost accountability among your staff, track time and attendance, and grow your business. “2026 Shortlist” - Capterra “2025 Category Leader” - Getapp "Fastest Implementation" - G2 Crowd MANAGERS LOVE IT: • Easy to use time clock to clock in and out • Message with staff 1:1 or in groups • Monitor and approve shift trades and time off requests • View the entire staff schedule anywhere at anytime • Create a work calendar to efficiently plan schedules • Quickly alert staff of changes and updates to the schedule • Messaging and scheduling permissions for easier management • Geofencing features to prevent buddy punching EMPLOYEES LOVE IT: • Clock in and out of shifts from the app • Instantly trade shifts with coworkers • View work schedules from anywhere at anytime • Pick up extra hours with open shifts • Check the work calendar to easily request time off • Privately message coworkers 1:1 or in groups within the app • Easily check who's working which shifts WHEN I WORK FEATURES: When I Work is employee-focused and built exclusively for shift-based workplaces. We monitor our systems 24/7/365 to give you and your employees peace of mind that your data is safe and secure. Choose When I Work to get the best in: • Team management - Onboard new employees, approve time off requests, review shift trades, and fill shifts in seconds. • Team accountability - Shift confirmation, mobile clock in, shift task lists, team task lists, and chat ensure everyone is on the same page. • Team communication - Notify your team of changes instantly and communicate with coworkers 1:1 or in group chats. • Team empowerment - Your team can manage availability, submit time-off requests, and collaborate on shift trades. • One-click scheduling - Build your entire work schedule in one click with Auto Scheduling. • Confident shift coverage - Receive shift confirmations from employees and be notified immediately of swaps and drops. • Share schedules - Publish the schedule and your whole team is instantly notified of their shifts. • Labor forecasting - Easy-to-use labor tools help you manage your labor budget efficiently. • Control overtime costs - Get overtime alerts and labor reporting to make managing labor costs easier. • Schedule enforcement - Limit clock ins to shifts and locations to ensure that everyone is where they need to be at the right time. • Payroll integration - Import your timesheets to quickly and accurately process payroll. • Labor reports - Use labor distribution to manage costs and forecast for the future. Terms of use: https://wheniwork.com/terms Privacy policy: https://wheniwork.com/privacy
Sling
This app simplifies employee scheduling and workforce management. It allows for fast schedule creation, labor cost control, and efficient team communication. Features include time tracking, payroll export, and compliance tools.
- Schedule employee work shifts
- Track employee time and attendance
- Optimize labor costs
- Streamline team communication
- Simplify payroll processing
- Manage multiple work locations
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Sling: Employee Scheduling Made Easy With powerful scheduling and workforce management tools, Sling is the easiest way to manage employee work schedules, track time, optimize labor costs, and streamline team communication. For free! Sling works for a variety of industries and organizations of every size, shape, and kind have already made Sling the place where their work happens. Streamline Your Business • Schedule faster and smarter: Build accurate schedules in minutes and avoid overlapping shifts and double-bookings. • Control labor costs: Stay under budget while controlling overtime and absenteeism. • Communicate efficiently from a single platform: Send messages in group or private conversations, keep everyone informed, and build a stronger company culture. • Simplify time tracking: Allow employees to clock in and out right from their phones. • Make payroll processing easier: Export timesheets for seamless payroll processing. • Drive operational compliance: Ensure standards are being met to keep your business compliant. • Enhance employee engagement: Engage employees in achieving business objectives in an easy-to-digest way while making work effortless and expected outcomes clear. Benefits For Managers - Schedule with ease: Build your employees' schedules in minutes and manage time off, availability and shift trade requests. - Eliminate scheduling conflicts: See up-to-date employee availability, time-off requests, and avoid overlapping shifts and double-bookings. - Democratize scheduling: Let employees sign up for shifts on a first-come, first-served basis, or approve the requests and finalize the schedule. - Reduce employee absences and late arrivals: Use shift alarms to remind employees of their upcoming shifts and send them notifications when they forget to clock in. - Optimize labor spending as you schedule: Set wages per employee or position and see how much each shift will cost. Forecast and optimize expenses while scheduling to ensure you stay on budget. - Manage multiple work locations with ease: Schedule employees across multiple locations on one account and view all schedules in one place. - Set specific clock-in locations: Use GPS or IP settings to designate where you want employees to clock in. - Integrate Sling with platforms you already use: Save time and money by integrating your scheduling with your existing platforms. Benefits For Employees - Access the schedule anywhere, anytime: Employees can access their schedules when they aren't at work and get real-time updates on one centralized platform. - Turn any device into a mobile time clock: With Sling, any device — laptop, desktop, tablet, or smartphone — becomes a time tracking terminal. - Chat with coworkers in real time: Sling’s powerful communication features help employees to stay informed wherever they are and never skip a beat. - Set shift reminders: With Sling, employees can set shift alarms to remind them when they need to work, which helps them be on time. - Find replacements faster: Sling’s shift exchange feature allows employees to find their own replacements when they can’t work. - Manage work-life balance better: Employees can set unavailability or request off to make time for other things they love to do. - Prevent forgotten clock-outs: Sling will automatically clock out employees if they forget to do it themselves. - Because Sling automates repetitive processes, simplifies complex and time-consuming tasks, and coordinates convoluted workplace communication, it helps any organization run smoother. Try the Sling app for free and experience the future of workforce management.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: When I Work Staff Scheduling at weekly against Sling's every 5 weeks. When I Work Staff Scheduling also leads on review sentiment (90% vs 70%). Sling's advantage is iOS requirement (15.5 vs 17.0). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for When I Work Staff Scheduling against 4.7 for Sling. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 58K and 27K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 90% of When I Work Staff Scheduling's written reviews are positive against 70% of Sling's.
When I Work Staff Scheduling ships an update weekly, Sling every 5 weeks. Both last shipped on November 6, 2026.
| Parameter | When I Work Staff Scheduling | Sling |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (58K ratings) — better | 4.7 (27K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 89.8% of reviews — better | 70.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 58K — better | 27K |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 5 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Best chart rank | #97 | #63 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 15.5 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 236 MB | 62 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | When I Work, Inc. | Sling Incorporated |
Customer experience
When I Work Staff Scheduling
Sling
User reviews
When I Work Staff Scheduling
From 58K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Convenient for scheduling
- 💡 Helpful for shift swapping and communication
- 👍 User-friendly interface
- 👍 Effective for managing staff
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional bugs and glitches
- 🔍 Difficult to navigate some features
- 🔍 Lack of customization options
- 🔍 Issues with shift approval and time-off requests
- 🔍 Problems with the messaging/chat functionality
Sling
From 27K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 💻 Easy to use
- 📅 Convenient scheduling
- 🔔 Helpful reminders
- 💬 Effective communication
- ⭐ Great for small businesses
Room to improve
- 🐛 Bugs and glitches
- ⏱️ Slow performance
- 🔍 Inconsistent notifications
- 📆 Limited calendar integration
- 🔒 Security issues with login
Bugs and requests
When I Work Staff Scheduling
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes or freezes frequently
- Unreliable notifications and alerts
- Syncing issues between mobile and web versions
- Problems with location-based clock-in/out features
Requested features
6 requests- Allow employees to view Sunday schedules
- Improve shift drop/swap process
- Add a sick day request feature
- Provide more flexibility in availability settings
- Enhance the calendar view and scheduling tools
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Improve the messaging/chat experience
Sling
Reported bugs
4 issues- Schedule not loading properly
- Shifts disappearing from view
- Constant need to re-launch app
- Unreliable push notifications
Requested features
5 requests- Add color-coding for shifts
- Integrate with external calendars
- Improve shift swapping functionality
- Provide more customization options
- Develop an Apple Watch app
In-app purchases
When I Work Staff Scheduling
No in-app purchases
Sling
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is When I Work Staff Scheduling free?
Is Sling free?
Which has better reviews, When I Work Staff Scheduling or Sling?
Do When I Work Staff Scheduling or Sling have ads?
Which is updated more often, When I Work Staff Scheduling or Sling?
Which is more popular, When I Work Staff Scheduling or Sling?
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