FAIR PRODUCT COMPARISON · REVIEWED 19 OCTOBER 2026
Both can schedule teams, manage shift swaps and track attendance. Key differences are USD versus GBP billing, team messaging, plan upgrades and the price of attendance tools.
FlowRota: £1 + VAT per active user monthly. When I Work: Essentials $2.50, Pro $5, Premium $8 per user/month base pricing.
When I Work's rota interface with employee assignments.
FlowRota's rota interface with employee assignments.
THE QUICK ANSWER
Both cover shift planning and employee communications around schedules. The better fit depends on your UK leave requirements, messaging needs, integrations and confirmed attendance price .
FlowRota does not currently replace When I Work’s general team messaging, extensive POS/payroll integrations, custom labour forecasting or Premium API/SSO features.
Explore FlowRota features →When I Work lists Time Tracking & Attendance as a selectable add-on but does not clearly show its cost on the live pricing page; confirm the quote.
Explore When I Work ↗INTERACTIVE PRICING
Use the slider to view When I Work’s published USD base subscription prices and FlowRota’s GBP plan. Attendance appears separately because the current public page does not give an unambiguous add-on price.
All key rota, leave, clocking and timesheet tools in the same £1-per-active-user plan.
FlowRota pricing →Scheduling, open shifts, shift swaps, messaging and integrations. Time & Attendance add-on is not in this displayed base figure.
Official plan pricing ↗Pro includes more scheduling rules and custom reporting; Premium adds API, webhooks and SSO. Attendance add-on not included in base figure.
Plan features ↗Attendance add-on price unconfirmed — ask for a quote.
Some features and prices can depend on single- vs multi-location terms. If you enter a quoted attendance rate, the calculator estimates totals in the blue summary but does not claim the rate is official. All figures shown before taxes or applicable FX costs. Sources checked 19 October 2026.
FEATURE BY FEATURE
Ticks indicate a published capability, not necessarily that it is included in every paid tier . A question mark means the exact equivalent has not been verified or depends on a plan or configuration. Read the scope notes, not just the symbols.
Not in the stated offering
?
Unverified / conditional
| Feature / capability | FlowRota | When I Work | Plan & scope notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing, trial & billing | |||
| 30-day free trial |
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FlowRota offers 30 days; When I Work offers a 14-day free trial with no card required. |
| Free trial available |
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Both have a free trial; duration differs (FlowRota 30 days, When I Work 14 days). |
| Prices published in GBP |
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FlowRota quotes GBP; When I Work’s public pricing page quotes USD (conversion, taxes and card FX may affect UK customers). |
| Fixed £1/user/month with all current features |
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When I Work uses Essentials, Pro, Premium and offers a Time Tracking add-on. |
| Scheduling, attendance, leave at one published price |
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? | FlowRota includes these in its flat rate. When I Work offers attendance as a selectable add-on, although its pricing FAQ also describes inclusive plans; check checkout terms. |
| Automatic subscription reduction on user archiving |
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FlowRota reduces billable users automatically when archived; When I Work requires admins to manage purchased seats separately under Account & Billing. |
| Scheduling and cover | |||
| Build and publish schedules |
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Both provide shift scheduling. |
| Reusable shift templates |
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When I Work lists schedule templates on Essentials. |
| Employee availability |
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Both collect availability. |
| Open shifts / employees claiming cover |
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When I Work: OpenShifts on Essentials. |
| Employee shift swap requests |
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When I Work: shift swapping on Essentials. |
| Shift warnings or scheduling rules |
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Both provide schedule warnings/rules; When I Work lists its more advanced scheduling rules in Pro. |
| Automated shift scheduling |
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When I Work: Auto Scheduling on Essentials. |
| Multi-location planning |
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Both offer multi-location scheduling. When I Work advertises this capability; its FAQ and plan list should be checked for applicable pricing. |
| Advanced labour forecast / custom units |
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When I Work: forecast tools on Essentials, custom unit forecasting on Pro. |
| Toggle schedules across time zones |
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When I Work: Pro. |
| Bulk schedule and rota editing |
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Both support tools to speed repeat scheduling; mechanics vary. |
| Leave, attendance and balances | |||
| Employee time-off requests |
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Both support time-off workflows. |
| Annual-leave allowance / balance tracking |
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Both track time-off balances. When I Work requires an accrual policy and attendance functionality. |
| Worked-hours holiday accrual |
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Both can accrue leave from hours worked. When I Work supports configurable accrual policies; do not assume its policy equals UK statutory holiday rules. |
| UK 52-week holiday-pay averaging (incl. qualifying overtime) |
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? | FlowRota has a UK reference-period calculation. An equivalent native When I Work calculation is not documented publicly. |
| GPS-enabled mobile clock-ins |
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Both support location-based mobile clock-ins; When I Work can restrict punches to a configured job-site radius. Attendance subscription may be required. |
| Shared-device time clock |
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Both support shared devices. When I Work has computer, iOS and Android time-clock terminals. |
| Photo capture at clock-in / clock-out |
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When I Work captures photos through its iOS shared time-clock terminal only; managers can review them. This is not automated face matching. |
| Clock-out reminders |
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Both provide clock-out reminders; When I Work allows employee and manager reminder timing to be configured. |
| Timesheet editing and approvals |
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When I Work: attendance module / time clock. |
| Overtime tracking / overtime alerts |
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Both track overtime; When I Work provides automatic overtime calculations and overtime alerts, with attendance. |
| Automatic overtime-to-TOIL credit and use |
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? | FlowRota converts approved overtime to TOIL credits. When I Work has overtime tracking and custom accrual policies, but direct overtime-to-TOIL conversion is not documented publicly. |
| Team communication and integrations | |||
| Payroll-ready exports |
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Both prepare payroll data; availability may depend on attendance module. |
| Direct payroll / POS integrations |
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When I Work publishes payroll and POS integrations. |
| In-app team messaging |
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When I Work includes team messaging on Essentials. |
| Public API access and webhooks |
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When I Work lists API keys and webhooks on Premium; no equivalent public FlowRota API is published. |
| SSO / SAML |
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When I Work Premium offers SAML/SSO. |
| Custom workforce reports |
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Both provide reporting; When I Work offers custom reporting in Pro. |
| Automatic deduction when accrued leave is taken |
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Both track leave taken against balances. When I Work automatically deducts time-off requests from earned balances under an accrual policy. |
This is a vendor-published comparison, not an independent audit. A cross is reserved for a clear distinction; an unconfirmed feature receives a question mark instead. Plan restrictions and technical detail can change—check linked sources and run a trial of both systems.
HOW TO DECIDE
No single vendor is best for everyone. Start with your most demanding real-world scheduling week.
FlowRota costs £5 + VAT/month with rota, holiday and clocking included.
When I Work’s Essentials base is $12.50/month before any attendance add-on or tax.
When I Work includes messaging and OpenShifts alongside scheduling on its entry plan.
FlowRota has rota-related notifications but is not a full group-chat replacement.
When I Work Pro/Premium brings additional forecasting, integrations and API/SSO capabilities.
FlowRota is better suited to teams that do not need those wider platform features.
RUN A FAIR TEST
Both platforms offer trials, so use the same employee records, roster, availability and timesheet samples.
SOURCES & DISCLOSURE
Checked against published supplier pages on 19 October 2026. Plan descriptions are summarised, not copied in full.
This page is published by FlowRota, a competitor of When I Work; it is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by When I Work. It is intended to describe meaningful differences alongside both companies' strengths. Prices may change. For any ambiguous feature, request a written confirmation from the supplier.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Short answers about price, plans, trials and feature differences.
Its public pricing page lists Essentials at $2.50, Pro at $5 and Premium at $8 per user per month. Time Tracking & Attendance is shown as an add-on, so verify the final checkout price.
Its published public pricing is in US dollars. UK buyers should allow for exchange rates, taxes and any card conversion fees.
Yes. It advertises a 14-day free trial without a credit card, versus FlowRota’s 30-day trial.
The public pricing page has an Add Time Tracking & Attendance selector, while the FAQ says the plan includes time and attendance. Confirm the exact commercial inclusion and price with When I Work.
Yes. Both are published Essentials capabilities.
Yes. Team messaging is included in the published Essentials feature list.
Yes. Forecast tools are listed in Essentials; custom unit forecasting is listed in Pro.
Yes. API key access, webhooks and SAML/SSO are listed in Premium.
A directly equivalent UK-specific 52-week holiday-pay feature has not been verified in the reviewed public documentation.
It offers overtime tracking, but a directly equivalent automatic overtime-to-TOIL credit and redemption workflow was not verified.
FlowRota published this page and is not affiliated with When I Work. Details were checked against public pages on 19 October 2026.
Compare a real week of shifts, requests, attendance and payroll outputs. When I Work may suit teams needing rich scheduling and messaging; FlowRota offers a focused UK alternative with one transparent GBP price.