# Rota Calendar vs Shift Work Calendar

The clearest difference is rating: Rota Calendar at 4.7 against Shift Work Calendar's 3.8. Rota Calendar also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 3 days vs every 5 weeks). On price, review sentiment, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Rota Calendar sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month and Shift Work Calendar sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Rota Calendar holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Rota Calendar has 728 ratings behind it against 13, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 65% of Rota Calendar's written reviews are positive against 60% of Shift Work Calendar's.

Rota Calendar ships an update every 3 days, Shift Work Calendar every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 19, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Rota Calendar | Shift Work Calendar |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (728 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rota-calendar-shift-planner/id430229059/reviews)** | [3.8 (13 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shift-work-calendar/id1519265397/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **728** | 13 |
| Positive reviews | **65.2% of reviews** | 60.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 3 days** | Every 5 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 38 MB | 7 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 15.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [JRW Studio Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/430229062) | [Shwoca Technologies Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1519265399) |

## What reviewers say

### Rota Calendar

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rota-calendar-shift-planner/id430229059)

Easily plan your life around work with this shift worker's calendar. See your schedule years in advance, customize shifts with colors and emojis, and sync with your existing calendars. Share your availability with others.

**Highlights:** Scrollable calendar view, Generate schedules up to 5 years ahead, Customizable shift colors and labels, Sync with existing calendars, Share schedules via AirDrop (iOS), Supports repeating and irregular shifts

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Rota Calendar Supporter Monthly | $1.99 | per month |
| Platinum Special Monthly | $1.99 | per month |
| Pro Monthly: Unlimited Edits | $2.99 | per month |
| Gold Monthly | $2.99 | per month |
| Platinum Monthly | $3.99 | per month |
| Supporter Yearly: Backup Only | $19.99 | per year |
| Platinum Special Yearly | $19.99 | per year |
| Pro Yearly: 5 Years Cloud Sync | $29.99 | per year |
| Gold Yearly | $29.99 | per year |
| Platinum Yearly | $39.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to program repeatable rota/roster pattern
- 👍 Keeps track of work and personal life
- 👍 Ideal for shift work schedules
- 👍 Syncs with other calendars
- 👍 Configurable for different shift types

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Issues with recent updates overriding or deleting existing shifts
- 🐛 Crashes when trying to airdrop shifts
- 🐛 Inability to save individual shift changes
- 🐛 Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions
- 🔒 Concerns over subscription model and loss of functionality for previous paid users

**Reported bugs**

- Rota not properly accounting for holidays and days off
- Inability to handle complex shift patterns beyond 9 weeks
- Sync issues between iPad and iPhone versions
- Day/month display not working after recent update

**Requested features**

- Ability to share rota/schedule with partner
- More color options for shifts
- Separate view for each month
- Ability to add travel days to shifts
- Integration with Apple Watch


### Shift Work Calendar

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shift-work-calendar/id1519265397)

Easily plan your work schedule with custom shift patterns, colors, and names. Add events, set reminders, and sync across devices. Protect your schedule with a lock option and undo button.

**Highlights:** Custom shift patterns with colors and names, Automatic repeating shifts, Add paydays and events, Notification reminders, Cloud storage and sharing, Multiple calendar support, Lock and undo options

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $1.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Rota Calendar free?

Rota Calendar is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Shift Work Calendar free?

Shift Work Calendar is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Rota Calendar or Shift Work Calendar?

Rota Calendar is rated higher. Rota Calendar averages 4.7 out of 5 from 728 ratings, while Shift Work Calendar averages 3.8 from 13 ratings.

### Do Rota Calendar or Shift Work Calendar have ads?

Shift Work Calendar shows ads; Rota Calendar does not.

### Which is updated more often, Rota Calendar or Shift Work Calendar?

Rota Calendar ships an update every 3 days, and Shift Work Calendar every 5 weeks. Most recently, Rota Calendar was updated on September 19, 2026 and Shift Work Calendar on September 24, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*