Last Updated

Key Takeaways

Generated from the text of customer reviews

When I Work helps businesses manage employee scheduling, time tracking, and team communication within a single platform. The platform also includes built-in team messaging that helps managers coordinate day-to-day workforce operations. While availability settings may feel restrictive for some scheduling policies, its employee scheduling and shift management tools simplify creating, updating, and sharing schedules.

Our Verdict

When I Work is a good fit for businesses that rely on an hourly, shift-based workforce. With a starting price of $2.5/user/month, it offers an affordable option for small and mid-sized businesses. While organizations that require extensive customization may find it to be a bit limiting, it remains a reliable choice for companies that prioritize simplicity, accessibility, and operational efficiency.

When I Work Specifications

  • Employee Information Management
  • Attendance and Time Tracking
  • Employee Self-Service Portal
  • Workforce Analytics

What Is When I Work?

When I Work is a cloud-based workforce management platform that centralizes employee scheduling and time-tracking to give teams a single source of truth. Business executives and HR leaders can track employees’ work hours using features that support both hourly and shift-based schedules. It also gives teams a unified platform for communication that combines direct messaging, announcements, and alerts to keep them on the same page.

What Is When I Work Best For?

When I Work stands out for its ‘Employee Scheduling’ capabilities. It allows managers to create schedules, assign shifts, fill open shifts, and notify employees from a single platform, reducing the time spent on manual scheduling. When I Work also supports recurring schedules, shift swapping, multi-location scheduling, and real-time schedule updates, making it easier to coordinate hourly teams and respond to staffing changes. 

How Much Does When I Work Cost?

When I Work pricing starts at $2.5/user/month for single-location or single-schedule. The cost for multiple locations or schedules starts at $5/user/month. The vendor also offers a 14-day free trial.

In addition to the base subscription costs, businesses should keep the following expenses in mind based on the industry benchmarks:

  • Onboarding And Implementation: $0-$1,500 for basic deployments typically covering self-service, training, configuration, and rollout support
  • Payroll And Business Integrations: $0-$50/integration that connects payroll, HR, POS, and accounting systems
  • Priority Support And Workforce Administration: $100-$500/year for enhanced customer support or dedicated account assistance
Request a customized When I Work cost quote today.

Disclaimer: The pricing is subject to change.

When I Work Integrations

The platform offers integration with multiple third-party enterprise platforms, including:

How Does When I Work Work?

Once you are done with the onboarding procedure, you can begin setting up and managing the workforce from the platform. Here’s how you can get started:

  • Log in to the administrator account and access the main dashboard to get an overview of schedules, shift coverage, and workforce activity
  • Configure your company settings, locations, departments, and job roles to align them with your organizational structure
  • Add your employees into the system and organize them into teams with managers assigned in each
  • Build work schedules through the scheduling workspace and set up their shifts based on their availability, skills, and labor requirements
  • Monitor attendance, time tracking, and labor data through reporting dashboards to narrow down staffing gaps and overtime trends
  • Share published schedules with your workforce so that they can view their shifts, receive alerts, and request shift swaps or time off
  • Navigate through scheduling, time clock, team messaging, and reporting modules on the main navigation menu for the management of day-to-day workforce operations
Schedule a free When I Work demo to see its features in action.

Who Is When I Work For?

When I Work is used by a wide range of industries and sectors such as:

  • Restaurants
  • Retail
  • Call Centers
  • Healthcare
  • Volunteer work
  • Construction
  • Manufacturing

When I Work Use Cases

Based on our analysis of When I Work features, its capabilities, and publicly available information, we have identified multiple scenarios where the platform best fits:

Managing Last-Minute Shift Changes In Restaurants And Cafes

Restaurant managers often struggle to find replacements for employees who call in sick and are unavailable when their shift begins. Reaching out to each staff member individually by phone or text can delay coverage and leave shifts understaffed. When I Work’s shift swapping, OpenShifts, and team messaging functionalities can allow managers to post available shifts to qualified employees, approve swap requests, and notify the entire team through one platform. This removes the need to manually coordinate every replacement and helps managers efficiently fill schedule gaps.

Coordinating Rotating Schedules For Healthcare Clinics

Healthcare facilities that operate across multiple shifts must ensure they have the appropriate number of nurses, support staff, and administrative staff throughout their work hours. If they create recurring schedules manually, there is an increased risk of errors, which can lead to overlapping shifts and insufficient staff coverage. With When I Work’s schedule templates and recurring scheduling tools, managers can create repeatable schedules without missing assigned roles or employee availability. Updated schedules can be instantly published when staff requirements change, allowing for a quicker and more efficient replacement procedure.

Tracking Employee Hours Across Retail Store Locations

Retail businesses that have hourly employees often find it hard to keep track of total hours worked when their staff uses disconnected systems and time sheets to clock in and clock out. This can cause payroll discrepancies because of inaccurate records. When I Work offers time clock and attendance tracking features that allow managers to record employee hours in a centralized system where they can be compared against scheduled hours. This minimizes the risk of payroll errors by allowing managers to review late arrivals or missed punches before approving time sheets for payroll.

Handling Time Off Requests During Seasonal Staffing Peaks

Retailers and healthcare facilities often receive overlapping vacation requests during holidays or other busy periods. This makes it difficult to maintain adequate staff levels. Scheduling conflicts are more likely to occur when managers review requests along with work schedules. When I Work offers extensive time-off management features that allow employees to submit requests directly on the platform where managers can review them alongside existing schedules, before approving or declining them. This makes it easier to balance employee availability with staffing requirements.

Communicating Schedule Updates To Distributed Hourly Teams

Organizations that have mobile or hourly workforces usually must update employees on updated schedules, newly assigned shifts, and operational announcements without using phone calls. Communication delays can result in missed shifts or miscommunication about work assignments. Through its employee messaging and mobile notification features, When I Work allows managers to directly communicate updates with employees through the platform. This gives a central channel through which staff can receive important scheduling information as changes occur.

Is When I Work Right For You?

If your organization relies on hourly employees or shift-based operations, then When I Work might be a suitable fit. The platform is useful for businesses that operate on multiple shifts, like retail, restaurants, and even hospitals. It helps them coordinate schedules, track attendance, and communicate in a single workspace. It can be especially useful to organizations that juggle through disconnected systems, spreadsheet data, and paper timesheets.

When I Work integrates shift swapping, auto-scheduling, mobile time-tracking, and GPS features that allow managers to spend less time on administrative tasks and give employees greater visibility into their work schedules. With its mobile-first support, it also supports both hybrid and remote teams, supporting a global workforce.

With a strong focus on employee scheduling, time tracking, and team communication rather than predictive workforce intelligence, businesses looking for AI-assisted scheduling, labor demand forecasting, and workforce optimization may find When I Work less suitable.

Still not sure if When I Work is right for you? Contact our customer support team at (661) 384-7070 and get help to make an informed decision.

When I Work Features

Employee Scheduling

When I Work incorporates one-click auto-scheduling, which makes it easier for managers to create and publish schedules aligned with workforce needs. It also notifies employees of assigned shifts through its mobile app, where they can pick up available shifts, submit time-off requests, and set availability preferences. This streamlines administrative work and gives teams more flexibility. The platform also supports shift confirmations, swaps, and coverage requests. This helps businesses maintain reliable staffing levels while reducing scheduling errors.

See How It Works
Time Clock

This functionality combines time tracking with location-based attendance tools, giving employees the flexibility to clock in and out through their mobile phones. This gives managers the verification they need to check whether punches occur at approved locations. Through GPS clock-ins and geofencing, an extra layer of accountability can be added by tracking attendance through employee location, reducing timekeeping errors. This also simplifies payroll calculation by providing visibility into employee working hours.

See How It Works
Team Messaging

When I Work combines team messaging with scheduling and attendance workflows, centralizing team communication. Managers and employees can connect using one-to-one conversations and group discussions through direct messaging channels. It also allows for the exchange of media, files, and notes, and offers built-in storage to keep them secure and organized in one repository. This makes it easier for teams to access information.

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Overtime Tracking

When I Work features 'Overtime Tracking’ that helps businesses control labor costs with proactive overtime monitoring built directly into scheduling and time-tracking workflows. Managers receive overtime alerts when employee work hours are about to exceed the threshold. This enables teams to adjust hours before costs escalate. It also offers transparency into labor budgets and demand forecasting, which helps reduce overtime spending while also maintaining coverage needs.

See How It Works

Pros And Cons of When I Work

Pros

  • Simplifies employee scheduling by offering reusable templates

  • Saves time through its extensive integrations

  • Streamlines shift management through staff monitoring capabilities

Cons

  • Users may experience occasional glitches

  • A few features are limited having less flexible customization

When I Work Pricing

Single Location or Single Schedule

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What's Included

  • Employee Scheduling

  • Time Tracking and Attendance

  • Team Messaging

  • Auto Scheduling

  • Time-Off Requests Management

  • Attendance Tracking via Built-In Time Clock

  • Built-In Team Messaging

  • Standard Labor Reports and Forecasts

  • Integration With Payroll and POS Systems

Multiple Locations or Multiple Schedules

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What's Included

  • Everything in the single location plan, plus:

  • Unlimited Job Sites

  • Departmental Labor Sharing

  • Custom Reporting and Role Permissions

  • Multiple Time Zone Management

  • Shift Coverage Views

  • Advanced Privacy and Data Controls

Disclaimer: The pricing details were last updated on Aug 07, 2026 from the vendor's website. Please contact us for a tailored pricing list.

When I Work Reviews

Total 20 reviews

4.3

All reviews are from verified customers

Rating Distribution

5

Stars

50%

4

Stars

30%

3

Stars

15%

2

Stars

5%

1

Stars

0%

Share your experience

J

Joe

Media, 51-100 employees

More than a year

5.0
November 2024

It made scheduling really easy

Pros

When I Work allows me to schedule around my availability and I can easily pick up or drop shifts whenever needed.

Cons

I get logged off too often, and it would be helpful to have the option to mark shifts I'm interested in and receive text alerts when they become available. It would be great to have a quick way to modify my notifications.

Rating Distribution

Ease of use

8

Value for money

10

Customer Support

10

Functionality

9

T

Tessa

Nonprofits, 51-100 employees

More than a year

4.0
November 2024

Very easy to use program

Pros

The app is easy to use and very userfriendly, which makes managing schedules a smooth process.

Cons

This software has been easy to use, and the support has been helpful. It would be nice if some settings could be adjusted for specific departments, as we have several and it would be great to tailor things for each.

Rating Distribution

Ease of use

9

Value for money

8

Customer Support

6

Functionality

8

A

Ashli

Healthcare, 51-100 employees

More than a year

3.0
November 2024

the pros and cons of what I work

Pros

The scheduling module is userfriendly, with great templates and a simple setup for tracking paid time off (PTO).

Cons

I think the platform's capabilities for employee documentation are somewhat limited.

Rating Distribution

Ease of use

5

Value for money

6

Customer Support

8

Functionality

5

Frequently Asked Questions

Does When I Work offer an API?

Yes, When I Work does offer an API.

Does When I Work have a mobile app?

Yes, When I Work offers both Android and iOS apps.

What language does When I Work support?

The software supports only English on the web, while supporting English, Spanish, Italian, and German on both its mobile apps.

What types of pricing plans does When I Work offer?

When I Work offers tier-based pricing plans that depend on how many locations or schedules you require. A single location or schedule has a starting price of $2.5/user/month, while a multi-location or schedule has a starting price of $5/user/month. Request a personalized When I Work price estimate.

What other apps does When I Work integrate with?

When I Work software integrates with multiple third-party enterprise platforms like Rippling, Gusto, Paychex, QuickBooks, and OnPay.

Who are the typical users of When I Work?

The software is used by employees and managers across restaurants, healthcare services, retail, and other industries that require rotational, shift-based work.

What level of support does When I Work offer?

The vendor offers ticket submission and chat support. It also provides resources like webinars to help with onboarding and use.