Best AI rostering software for Australian businesses (2026)
Roz is our product. We've listed it first, and we've tried to be fair to the others. Every price comes from the vendor's own site, checked 27 September 2026.
Short answer: Roz is the AI-first pick if the roster itself is your biggest time cost; Deputy, Tanda, and Employment Hero suit larger operators wanting payroll and HR bundled in; RosterElf, Connecteam, Square, Sling, and When I Work suit budget-first or simple-scheduling needs. Vet teams at VetHQ and The Village Vet roster with Roz. See the full breakdown below.
Last updated 27 September 2026 · Reviewed by the Roz team
AI rostering software lets you describe the roster you need in plain English. It drafts the roster, checks it against the rules you set — rest hours, qualifications, availability — and suggests fixes when someone drops out. You approve the changes. Here are nine options worth knowing for Australian small and medium businesses, and who each suits best.
The 9 tools compared
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| Tool | Price from | Pricing model | AI roster building | Award interpretation | Staff channels | Free plan/trial | Currency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roz | $49/month, incl. GST | Per site + staff, unlimited managers | Yes — AI roster editor | Rules engine (not full interpretation) | WhatsApp, Telegram, email; reply on WhatsApp, Telegram, or the Roz app | 14-day trial, no card | AUD |
| Deputy | $6.75/user/month excl. GST | Per user + add-ons | Deputy AI builds from a prompt; you approve before publishing | Yes — deep, automated | In-app messaging + News Feed | Free trial (see deputy.com/au/pricing) | AUD |
| Tanda | $12.80/user/month + GST (bundle) | Per user (All-in-One bundle) | No self-serve AI confirmed | Yes — Modern Award library | Employee mobile app; no WhatsApp/Telegram found | Not confirmed | AUD |
| RosterElf | $6/month (Core, annual) | Per employee | Workwise AI is a compliance bot, not a roster editor | Yes — 100+ modern awards (RosterElf's tools page) | In-app (RosterElf app) | 15-day trial | AUD |
| Employment Hero | $14/employee/month (HR $10 + Rostering add-on $4, 10-user min) | Per employee, stacked add-ons | No AI confirmed for rostering | Yes — 50+ awards | Chat add-on; no WhatsApp/Telegram found | Not stated | AUD |
| Connecteam | $29/month (Operations Basic) | Per hub | "Automatically assign shifts" (Expert tier only) | Not found | In-app chat (Communications Hub) | Free ≤10 users; 14-day trial | USD |
| Square | $5/team member/month (Shifts Plus) | Per team member | None found | Not found | Team Communication add-on | Free ≤5 users | AUD |
| Sling | Free (≤30 users) | Per user | None found | None found | In-app + newsfeed | Free tier | USD |
| When I Work | $2.50/user/month | Per user + add-ons | Auto scheduling (not AI-branded) | None found | In-app (no phone numbers shared) | 14-day free trial, no card | USD |
Figures checked 27 September 2026 from each vendor's own pricing page, plus rozhq.com/pricing for Roz. USD prices are shown as published; see each compare page for AUD conversions.
Sources: rozhq.com/pricing, deputy.com/au/pricing, tanda.com.au/pricing, rosterelf.com/pricing, employmenthero.com/pricing, au.connecteam.com/pricing, squareup.com/au/en/staff/shifts/pricing, getsling.com/pricing, wheniwork.com/pricing.
Roz AI-first
Roz is an AI-first roster editor that drafts rosters, rebuilds them when staff call in sick, proposes rule-compliant swaps, and messages affected staff over WhatsApp, Telegram, and email — staff reply on WhatsApp, Telegram, or in the Roz app. A deterministic rules engine handles rest hours, qualifications, and blackouts. Pricing is per site and active staff with unlimited management users — from $49/month AUD, incl. GST, with a 14-day free trial. See pricing or compare with Deputy.
Deputy
Deputy is a long-established Australian platform spanning rostering, time and attendance, award interpretation, and payroll integration. It's a mature, widely-adopted choice with a large integration ecosystem, typically priced per user — plus a bundled Deputy All-in-One tier ($13.95/user/month excl. tax) combining rostering, payroll, and HR. A strong fit for larger or compliance-heavy operations that want everything in one place. Compare Roz vs Deputy.
Tanda
Tanda is an Australian workforce-management platform known for time and attendance and award interpretation, popular with hospitality and retail businesses that need accurate, compliant rostering and payroll-ready timesheets. Compare Roz vs Tanda.
RosterElf
RosterElf is an Australian rostering tool that emphasises simple scheduling with Australian award, penalty-rate, and break rules built in, plus mobile apps for staff and managers. Compare Roz vs RosterElf.
Employment Hero
Employment Hero is a full HR, payroll, and compliance platform with pre-built rule sets across 50+ modern awards — the deepest we found researching this guide. Rostering is a paid add-on stacked on an HR plan, with a 10-user minimum, so it suits larger teams best. Compare Roz vs Employment Hero.
Connecteam
Connecteam is a modular deskless-workforce app priced in USD, even on its Australian site, split into Operations, Communications, and HR & Skills hubs. Its Small Business plan is free for life for up to 10 users across all three hubs. Compare Roz vs Connecteam.
Square
Square Shifts adds rostering onto Square's point-of-sale ecosystem — free for up to 5 team members, then $5 AUD/team member/month, the cheapest transparent per-user price we researched. No AI or Australian award compliance found. Compare Roz vs Square.
Sling
Sling is an employee-scheduling and team-communication tool with a free tier, used by businesses globally. It covers shift scheduling, availability, and messaging, and suits smaller teams that want straightforward rostering without a large platform. Compare Roz vs Sling.
When I Work
When I Work is a widely-used employee-scheduling and time-tracking app aimed at small and medium businesses, with a strong mobile experience for shift swaps, availability, and notifications. Compare Roz vs When I Work.
How to choose
If the roster itself is your biggest time cost — covering absences, juggling quals and rest hours, chasing confirmations — an AI-first tool like Roz removes the most manual work. If you need deep time-and-attendance and payroll under one roof, a broader platform like Deputy, Tanda, or Employment Hero may suit better. If award compliance is the priority, RosterElf and Employment Hero go deepest; if budget is tight or you're already on Square POS, Connecteam, Square, Sling, and When I Work offer low-cost or free entry points. Rostering entirely by spreadsheet? See Roz vs spreadsheets for what a manual roster actually costs in time and compliance risk. Weighing Deputy specifically against its alternatives? See Deputy alternatives in Australia.
Common questions
What is AI rostering software?
AI rostering software lets you describe the roster you need in plain English. It drafts the roster, checks it against the rules you set — rest hours, qualifications, availability — and suggests fixes when someone drops out. You approve the changes, instead of building the roster by hand in a spreadsheet.
What is the best AI rostering software for Australian small businesses?
It depends on your needs. Roz is AI-first, built around an AI roster editor that rebuilds rosters and messages staff, with per-site pricing. Deputy, Tanda, and Employment Hero are broad Australian workforce-management platforms with strong award and payroll tooling. RosterElf focuses on Australian award compliance. Connecteam, Square, Sling, and When I Work are widely-used scheduling tools with free or low-cost tiers.
Which of these actually use AI to build the roster, not just automate it?
Roz and Deputy AI both build a roster from a plain-English request. Roz also rebuilds the roster after a sick call and proposes swaps that stay inside your rules. Connecteam auto-assigns shifts on its Expert tier. RosterElf's Workwise AI answers compliance questions rather than editing the roster. We found no AI roster building on the public pages of Tanda, Employment Hero, Square, Sling, or When I Work.
Which rostering software has the deepest Australian award compliance?
Employment Hero has the deepest library we found — pre-built rule sets across 50+ modern awards. Deputy, Tanda, and RosterElf also market automated award interpretation as a core strength. Roz runs a deterministic rules engine (rest hours, qualifications, blackouts) but doesn't attempt full award-rate interpretation. Connecteam, Square, Sling, and When I Work show no Australian award compliance tooling.
Are there free AI rostering options?
None of the free tiers researched here include AI roster-building. Sling is free for up to 30 users, Connecteam's Small Business plan is free for life for up to 10 users, and Square Shifts is free for up to 5 team members — but all three are manual scheduling tools, not AI. Roz's AI roster editor is included from its first paid plan, with a 14-day free trial.
Is Roz cheaper than Deputy or Tanda?
Usually, for a small single site. Roz's Lite plan is a flat $49/month AUD, incl. GST, for up to 15 staff. Deputy's Core plan runs about $131 AUD excl. GST/month for the same headcount; Tanda's only public figure, its All-in-One bundle, is $192 AUD + GST/month for 15 staff. Both scale per user — Roz's flat per-site price doesn't move until you cross a staff-count band.
Which is best for a business already using Square POS?
Square Shifts is a natural fit if you want rostering to share a login with your point-of-sale data and don't need AI or Australian award compliance — it's the cheapest transparent per-user price we researched, from $5 AUD/team member/month. If you want AI that actively rebuilds the roster, Roz works alongside any POS, including Square.
This guide reflects Roz's understanding of publicly available information, checked 27 September 2026, and is intended as a fair overview, not an exhaustive or independently-audited ranking. Roz is our own product. Other product names are trademarks of their respective owners; we're not affiliated with them. Planday is not included: Xero retired it in Australia on 30 September 2024 and partnered with Deputy instead, so it's no longer sold here. Check each vendor's website for current features and pricing.