Shift Calendar Alarm vs ShiftBell
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side β with what reviewers say about each.
Shift Calendar Alarm
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If your shifts move around from week to week, you probably spend more time than you'd like resetting alarms and double-checking them before an early start. Shift Calendar Alarm takes care of that. Put your shifts on the calendar, and the app sets your iPhone alarms for the next 60 days, then updates them on its own whenever your schedule changes. Start by saving the shifts you work most, like early, late, night, or on-call, as Shift Types. Each one can have up to three alarms, on the day itself or the evening before, which helps when a very early start means you want a heads-up the night before. Then tap dates on the calendar to schedule them, with more than one shift on the same day if that's how your week looks. The calendar and shared images show the monthβs scheduled day count, counting each date once, and dim days outside the month. Even if your schedule is never quite the same, there's often a stretch that repeats, and Patterns save you from tapping it in again and again. Line up those shifts in order, say two early days, two nights, and two days off, pick a start date, and the whole stretch lands on your calendar at once. Your first pattern is free. Tap any date to see that day's shifts, alarms, and notes together, and a small dot on the calendar tells you which days have notes. A note can stay with its Shift Type or be rewritten for a single day. If you don't need one particular alarm, say on a day you've swapped with a coworker, you can skip just that one without changing the shift itself. Scheduled Alarms shows everything that's about to ring, and Alarm Health checks permissions and sync status and points out anything that needs attention. You only need to rebuild alarms by hand if sync runs into a problem. The Home Screen widget keeps today's and tomorrow's shifts and alarms in view, and a 9:30 p.m. reminder tells you what tomorrow looks like before you go to bed. You'll also find Silent Alarm Mode, calendar images you can share with family or coworkers, iCloud sync, language settings, and Light and Dark Mode. The free version includes 3 Shift Types, 1 pattern, and 8 scheduled shifts. Premium removes those limits. Shift Calendar Alarm is made for keeping track of your own shifts and alarms. It isn't a team scheduling, payroll, or HR tool. Highlights: - Calendar-based shift planning - Multiple shifts on the same day - Date details and notes - One-time alarm skips - Up to three same-day or previous-day alarms per Shift Type - Automatic sync of native iPhone alarms for the next 60 days - Scheduled Alarms, manual rebuild, and Alarm Health - Home Screen widget for todayβs and tomorrowβs shifts and alarms - 9:30 p.m. reminder with tomorrowβs schedule - Silent Alarm Mode, calendar image sharing, and iCloud sync - Multi-day Patterns, with your first pattern free - Free: 3 Shift Types, 1 pattern, and 8 scheduled shifts, with Premium unlimited Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
ShiftBell
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Tell ShiftBell your rotation once. It rings on the days you work, at the time you set for that shift. On the days you don't, it stays silent. β Will it handle my pattern? β’ Not on anyone's list? Stack blocks and build the cycle your workplace runs β 2-2-3, DuPont, four on four off, whatever it is. β’ Or pick one already built: β 2 days, 2 nights, 4 off (Continental) β Day, Night, Off β 2 days, 2 evenings, 2 nights, 2 off β 24 on / 48 off β 5-2 (fixed) β’ Handed a new schedule every month? Paint it onto the calendar day by day. β’ Need to change one day? Tap it. β’ Already in your iPhone calendar? Import it (Pro). β’ Set the start date once and the app works out every workday after it. β’ Presets, the cycles you build and per-day edits are all free. β Will it actually wake me? Free rings once, and a check records how you got up: the Confirm button, or a Math problem. Pro is the part that won't take one ring for an answer. Pick Quick Tap, Memory, Typing, Steps, Selfie, Find the open eye or Photo of a place. It comes back every minute until you pass, and turning it off doesn't end it. That is what stops the half-asleep dismissal. On iOS 26 and later, alarms ring through Silent Mode and Focus. β Who it is for Nurses, firefighters and paramedics. Plant swing shifts, 24/48 duty, security, logistics, aviation. Anyone whose schedule is handed to them a month at a time. β Yours, and quiet about it No account, no ads, no tracking. Wake selfies stay encrypted on this iPhone and out of your backups. Log mood and fatigue in seconds when a shift ends. Back the whole thing up to your own iCloud β we still can't read that backup. β Pro Pro adds three things: β’ the seven wake checks that keep coming back β’ your iPhone calendar's events and public holidays, plus shift import β’ custom shift types Everything else is free, including: β’ the commute weather briefing, read out for both ends of your shift β’ mood and fatigue statistics, with a PDF you can share β’ day templates and widgets Yearly starts with a free week. If your schedule doesn't fit yet, write to borabada77@gmail.com. Every message reaches the people who build ShiftBell. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the period ends. Manage or cancel in your App Store account settings.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: ShiftBell at weekly against Shift Calendar Alarm's fortnightly. ShiftBell also leads on iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Shift Calendar Alarm sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and ShiftBell sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Shift Calendar Alarm ships an update fortnightly, ShiftBell weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Shift Calendar Alarm | ShiftBell |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Weekly β better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 17.0 β better |
| Further details β not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 14 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | PING CHANG YU | SEONG MIN LEE |
In-app purchases
Shift Calendar Alarm
- Shift Alarm Premium Monthly$0.991 Month
- Shift Alarm Premium Yearly$8.991 Year
ShiftBell
- ShiftBell Pro Monthly$1.991 Month
- ShiftBell Pro Yearly7 Days trial$9.991 Year
- ShiftBell Pro$34.99
Questions
Is Shift Calendar Alarm free?
Is ShiftBell free?
Do Shift Calendar Alarm or ShiftBell have ads?
Which is updated more often, Shift Calendar Alarm or ShiftBell?
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