Comparison

SmartShift vs ShiftAl

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

Head to head
About

SmartShift

Features
Read full description

If you work shifts, you know the hassle. What am I on next week, how many hours have I done this month, who can cover me on Saturday. SmartShift keeps it all in one place and does the maths for you. YOUR SCHEDULE AT A GLANCE Build your shifts with their own name, color, hours and breaks. Split shifts, overnight shifts that run past midnight, two shifts in one day: they all fit. See the full month, the week in detail, or the whole year when you plan your time off. STOP FILLING IN DAY BY DAY Set up your pattern once โ€” four earlies, two lates, two off, whatever yours is โ€” and apply it to any date range. The schedule fills itself in. Swapped at the last minute? One tap on the day and it is done. HOURS THAT COUNT THEMSELVES Monthly and yearly hours, always up to date. Breaks come off, split shifts add up, and shifts that end at 3am are counted properly. Flag which shift types are overtime and know exactly how much extra you have done before payday. YOUR TEAM, INSIDE THE APP Start a group with your coworkers or join one with a code. See who is working each day without asking. And when you need a swap, you request it in the app: they accept, and both schedules update. No endless group chats, no screenshots. HOLIDAYS AND TIME OFF Pick your country and region and public holidays show up in your calendar, local ones included. Keep track of your annual leave and see how many days you have left. WHEREVER YOU NEED IT Widgets to check your week or your month straight from the home screen. An alert before each shift, as far ahead as you want it. Export to your iPhone calendar or save the month as a PDF. Works with no signal: note anything down and it syncs once you are back online. START WITHOUT GIVING YOUR EMAIL You can use SmartShift without creating an account at all. Your shifts stay on your iPhone and nobody else sees them. If you later want to sync across devices or join a group, create the account then and everything comes with you. Available in English, Spanish, German, French, Turkish and Chinese.

About

ShiftAl

Features
Read full description

ShiftAl is the calendar that understands shift work. Built for nurses, factory crews, security, hospitality and anyone whose week does not run nine to five. PLAN YOUR ROTA IN SECONDS - Create presets for your recurring shifts (Day, Late, Night), each with its own colour - Paint whole weeks onto the calendar in a couple of taps, clear many days at once - Overnight shifts that roll past midnight are handled automatically - Annual leave, sick days, parental and study leave and public holidays live on the same calendar - Notes and stickers on any day WAKE UP FOR EVERY SHIFT - A wake-up alarm attaches to each shift, based on your own lead time - Alarms for night shifts land on the evening before, as they should - Rest reminders when your roster crosses published working-hour limits SEE YOUR HOURS AND PAY - Week, fortnight, month and year, with a dial you can tap day by day - Base pay, Sunday, night, holiday and overtime extras shown as separate lines - Take-home estimate with the tax rules of your country, fixed deductions like union dues or a loan - Multiple workplaces with separate rates and currencies YOUR CREW - Add workmates by username, accept requests with a notification, and pick who to compare with - See at a glance which days you are all off or working together - No account? Share by QR code or link instead YOURS, PRIVATELY - Works fully offline; an account is optional and free - Link Apple or Google only if you want friends by username and your data on a new phone - Everything else stays on your phone, with one-tap backup export - Light and dark themes, a Basic theme and custom colours ShiftAl is free.

Screenshots

SmartShift4 screens
ShiftAl4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: SmartShift at none against ShiftAl's 1. ShiftAl's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 3 days vs every 2 weeks). On price and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Both are free to download. ShiftAl sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. SmartShift asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SmartShift ships an update every 2 weeks, ShiftAl every 3 days. Both last shipped on October 28, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences ยท 2 level
SmartShift versus ShiftAl: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSmartShiftShiftAl
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 3 days โ€” better
AdsYesNo โ€” better
In-app purchasesNo โ€” betterYes
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPod โ€” better
Requires iOS17.015.1 โ€” better
Further details โ€” not scored
Size34 MB53 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLapisoft Projects SLONOIR STUDIO LIMITED

In-app purchases

None

SmartShift

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

ShiftAl

One-time1
  • Ad-free forever$2.99

Questions

Is SmartShift free?
SmartShift is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is ShiftAl free?
ShiftAl is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do SmartShift or ShiftAl have ads?
SmartShift shows ads; ShiftAl does not.
Which is updated more often, SmartShift or ShiftAl?
SmartShift ships an update every 2 weeks, and ShiftAl every 3 days. Most recently, SmartShift was updated on October 28, 2026 and ShiftAl on October 28, 2026.

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