Comparison

AfterShift vs ShiftSleeper

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

Head to head
About

AfterShift

This app helps shift workers track sleep and recovery based on their unique schedules, not a standard 9-to-5. It automatically detects shifts from your calendar and provides personalized recovery plans and reminders timed to your work hours. Naps and split sleep are recognized as valid recovery.

Highlights
  • Shift detection from calendar
  • Shift-to-shift recovery tracking
  • Personalized recovery plans
  • Shift-timed reminders
  • Sleep techniques for shift work
  • On-device AI explanations (Pro)
  • Exportable recovery reports
Features
Read full description

Most sleep apps assume you sleep at night. If you work shifts, that's the whole problem — they score you against a 9-to-5 clock you don't work, so the nap you took before a night shift looks like "failure" instead of recovery. AfterShift is built the other way around. It measures your sleep and recovery between shifts — shift-to-shift, not midnight-to-midnight — so the numbers finally match the life you actually live. GLANCEABLE — WITHOUT OPENING THE APP Your next shift lives on your Lock Screen and Home Screen. Widgets show the countdown to your shift, your recovery, and your plan for right now. A Live Activity counts you down to shift start — then rolls into your wind-down window — on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island. Start an anchor nap and watch it tick down there too. All free. YOUR ROSTER, READ FOR YOU Connect your calendar and AfterShift detects your shifts automatically — no typing in three weeks of rota by hand. It even spots overtime and schedule changes. Five shift types are modelled: day, evening, night, on-call, and off. RECOVERY, TIMED TO WHEN YOU CLOCK OUT See how ready you are for your next shift, how your sleep debt is trending across cycles, and a clear recovery plan for the hours you actually have — not a generic "aim for 8 hours" you can't reach before a 7pm start. YES, THE NAP COUNTS Pre-shift naps, split sleep, and on-call rest are first-class here. AfterShift knows a 90-minute nap before nights is recovery, and scores it like one. REMINDERS TIMED TO YOUR SHIFT — FREE Wind-down, caffeine cut-off, and nap-window reminders fire relative to your next shift start, not the clock on the wall. All free. A COACH FOR NIGHTS, NOT MORNINGS 21 sleep techniques chosen for shift work — fall asleep faster after a late finish, reset on a turnaround, nap without the grogginess. Each one tells you when to use it and how long it takes. PRIVATE BY DESIGN Your data stays on your iPhone. No account. No cloud sync. No employer dashboard. Sleep is read from Apple Health (read-only), and on Pro, explanations are generated by on-device Apple Intelligence — your data is never sent to a server. AUTOMATIC SLEEP IMPORT Last night's sleep from Apple Health appears on its own — open the app in the morning and it's already there. EXPORT FOR YOUR DOCTOR OR OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH Generate a clean PDF or CSV recovery report to share with a GP, sleep clinic, or occupational health team. BUILT FOR • Nurses and rotating hospital staff • Paramedics and firefighters • Factory, logistics, and aviation ground crews • Hospitality and overnight staff • Anyone whose sleep window moves week to week FREE TO START Track your roster, import sleep, see your recovery score, add the widgets, and get shift-timed reminders — free. Upgrade to Premium for multi-calendar background sync, overtime tracking, and on-device AI explanations. One-time Lifetime option available, and Premium is shareable with your family. Available in 39 languages. Sleep isn't broken. The app finally fits the shifts. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

ShiftSleeper

Features
Read full description

ShiftSleeper is the sleep planner built for the shifts your body shouldn't have to fight alone. Apple's built-in sleep features assume you go to bed at night. ShiftSleeper assumes nothing — except that your shifts aren't normal, and you deserve a plan that respects them. WHO IT'S FOR - Nurses, doctors, EMS, fire, police - Pilots and flight attendants - Oil & gas, manufacturing, hospital staff - Truckers, security, hospitality - Anyone working a rotating roster WHAT IT DOES ShiftSleeper takes your shift schedule and generates a personalized sleep plan around it: - Pre-shift naps - Anchor sleep windows - Caffeine cutoff timing - Light exposure / avoidance windows - Wind-down reminders - Notifications you can actually trust ROTATION PRESETS One-tap setup for the common patterns: - 4-on / 4-off - Pitman (2-3-2) - DuPont - Panama (2-2-3) - Continental - Nurse 3×12 Or build your own with the visual rotation editor. APPLE WATCH Native Watch app shows your next shift, today's sleep window, and quick-log buttons (nap, caffeine, wake). Complications keep your schedule on the watch face. LIVE ACTIVITY Persistent Lock Screen and Dynamic Island view of your current shift or sleep window — visible without opening the app. WIDGETS Next Shift and Sleep Window widgets for Home Screen and Lock Screen. APPLE HEALTH Reads your actual sleep recorded by Apple Watch or third-party apps. Writes planned sleep windows, logged naps, wake events, and dietary caffeine. SCAN PAPER SCHEDULES Photograph a printed roster and ShiftSleeper uses on-device OCR to detect shifts and import them automatically. No cloud upload. CALENDAR EXPORT Push your shifts to Apple Calendar with a 1-hour reminder. From there they sync to Google, Outlook, iCloud — whatever you use. LIGHT THERAPY Built-in bright-screen timer for circadian phase shifting. Daylight, amber, and red modes. Replaces a $200 SAD lamp with software. PATTERN INSIGHTS "Nights cost you 1.5h sleep." Real comparisons between actual sleep and shift type, generated from your Health data. SLEEP DEBT TRACKER See your 7-day cumulative deficit at a glance. Color-coded so you know when to prioritize rest. SIRI + SHORTCUTS "Hey Siri, when's my next shift in ShiftSleeper?" "Hey Siri, log a nap in ShiftSleeper." PRIVATE BY DEFAULT Your data stays on your device. No accounts. No email required. No servers we run. Apple Health permission is optional. OFFLINE-FIRST Everything works without a network connection. Notifications are scheduled by your iPhone locally. PRICING Free tier: schedule input, basic sleep plan, notifications. ShiftSleeper Pro unlocks Apple Health sync, the Apple Watch app, all rotation presets, Calendar export, photo schedule scan, light therapy, and trend insights. - $6.99 / month — 1-week free trial - $39 / year (save 53%) — 1-week free trial - $79 Lifetime — pay once, yours forever Subscriptions auto-renew unless cancelled 24 hours before the period ends. Manage in iPhone Settings → your name → Subscriptions. NOT MEDICAL ADVICE ShiftSleeper is not a medical device. If you suspect Shift Work Sleep Disorder or have a sleep condition, please consult a clinician. Built for the shifts your body shouldn't have to fight alone. Privacy Policy: https://shiftworker-site.onrender.com/privacy.html Terms of Service: https://shiftworker-site.onrender.com/terms.html

Screenshots

AfterShift4 screens
ShiftSleeper4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is device support: ShiftSleeper at 3 against AfterShift's 1. On price, ads, in-app purchases and iOS requirement 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. AfterShift sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month and ShiftSleeper sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
AfterShift versus ShiftSleeper: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAfterShiftShiftSleeper
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 11 days—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemium—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS17.617.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB2 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperAntti AittamaaJason Amburgey

In-app purchases

4 purchases

AfterShift

Subscriptions2
  • AfterShift Premium Monthly7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • AfterShift Premium Yearly7 Days trial$24.991 Year
One-time2
  • Support the Developer$1.00
  • AfterShift Premium Lifetime$39.99
3 purchases

ShiftSleeper

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Pro7 Days trial$6.991 Month
  • Yearly Pro7 Days trial$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Pro$79.99

Questions

Is AfterShift free?
AfterShift is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ShiftSleeper free?
ShiftSleeper is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do AfterShift or ShiftSleeper have ads?
Neither AfterShift nor ShiftSleeper shows ads.

Other comparisons