Comparison

Roster vs SimpleShift

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Roster

Easily manage your work shifts by entering them into your calendar with a single tap. Customize shift times, colors, and names to fit your specific needs. Quickly create complex shift patterns and add notes for each day.

Highlights
  • Quick shift entry
  • Customizable shift details
  • Editable templates
  • Add notes to days
  • Double shifts
  • Recurring shift cycles
Features
Read full description

Get the best free roster app now. Quickly enter your shift patterns into your calendar. Just choose your shift, morning, regular or late and tap the corresponding day. You can define work times, colors, names and many more to fit your needs. With our unique app you can create your whole shift pattern in less than a minute. No app can beat this. Unique features: - Free editable templates. - Single tap to add or delete calendar entries. - Double tap to switch shift entries - Choose work times, names, colors and more. - Option to add notes to any calendar day - double shifts optional: - free of Ads - monthly export of services as PDF-file - matching of the data with iCloud - matching of your services, and notes in your device -calendar (manual and automatic) - Automatically add recurring shift cycles to roster-calendar - Calculations - Auto- Delete for shifts - entries of holiday, vacations, etc. - backup/restore - password protection for App - overtime - fully functioning audio recorder for each day - full-fledged camera application for each day You can purchase Website+Extras for 1 month for the price of $ 1.49. Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions will automatically renew unless canceled within 24-hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current subscription period, and identify the cost of the renewal. You can manage your subscriptions and turn off auto-renewal by going to your Account Settings on the App Store after purchase. A once completed subscription can not be canceled before its term expires. You can find our privacy policy under https://www.roster-calendar.com/privacy_app.html and terms of use for more information under https://www.roster-calendar.com/terms_app.html.

About

SimpleShift

Easily schedule and view your work shifts at a glance. This app offers a clear overview of your work schedule and can be viewed on your Apple Watch or as a home screen widget.

Highlights
  • Schedule shifts
  • View shifts at a glance
  • Apple Watch integration
  • Home screen widget
  • Customizable shift patterns
Features
Read full description

SimpleShift is a simple shift calendar for people who work shifts. Plan your rota, see what’s coming up at a glance, and stay on top of your hours without the clutter of a full planner app. Your schedule lives on a clear month or week calendar. Add shifts quickly, jot notes for individual days, and share a snapshot of any month when you need to. Create shift templates with your times, colours, and labels, then swipe them onto the calendar for fast scheduling. For rotating rosters, build a repeating pattern once and apply it in seconds instead of filling in every day by hand. Track hours and pay with hourly rates, monthly and annual summaries, and charts. Export pay data when you need it. Home Screen widgets and Apple Watch keep upcoming shifts visible at a glance, and optional reminders notify you before work starts. Choose colours and themes that fit you. Optional iCloud sync backs up your calendar across your devices. SimpleShift keeps your data on your device and in your iCloud, private by design, with no account required.

Screenshots

Roster4 screens
SimpleShift4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: SimpleShift at none against Roster's shown. SimpleShift also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 74%) and monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and device support 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Roster sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month and SimpleShift sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Roster ships an update every 2 months, SimpleShift every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Roster versus SimpleShift: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRosterSimpleShift
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (63 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews74.2% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings63 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 months — betterEvery 3 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, Apple Watch
Requires iOS15.6 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size26 MB21 MB
Age rating17+4+
Developermichael heinzOliver Munday

Customer experience

Roster

All ratings63 ratings
Positive90.5%
Neutral1.6%
Negative7.9%
Written reviews341 reviews
Positive74.2%
Neutral5.6%
Negative20.2%

SimpleShift

Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Roster

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App suddenly stops working
  • Notes and schedules disappearing
  • Inability to access past/future months
  • Compatibility issues with device updates

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add multiple shifts per day
  • Improve month-to-month navigation
  • Integrate with other calendar apps
  • Provide better customer support

SimpleShift

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

9 purchases

Roster

Subscriptions1
  • Website+Extras$1.491 Month
One-time8
  • Extra 1$0.99
  • Extra 2 - Security$0.99
  • Extra 3 - Overtime$0.99
Show 5 more
  • Extra 4 - Audio$0.99
  • Extra 5 - Pictures$0.99
  • "More comfortable"$1.99
  • No advertising$1.99
  • All Extras$3.99
1 purchases

SimpleShift

Subscriptions1
  • SimpleShift Pro$1.991 Month

Questions

Is Roster free?
Roster is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SimpleShift free?
SimpleShift is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Roster or SimpleShift have ads?
Roster shows ads; SimpleShift does not.
Which is updated more often, Roster or SimpleShift?
Roster ships an update every 2 months, and SimpleShift every 3 months. Most recently, Roster was updated on October 17, 2026 and SimpleShift on October 7, 2026.

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