7shifts review

7shifts ranks first because its scheduling starts from the number restaurant managers are judged on: labor cost against sales. Managers set labor targets on projected sales, budget each department with sales data pulled from the POS, and on Premium get hourly forecasts and labor recommendations, plus schedules generated from those targets. The staff side is just as complete, with a shift pool for offering, trading and claiming shifts, availability and time off requests, and SMS reminders when a schedule is published. Pro adds state-based labor compliance tools, overtime warnings and meal and break attestations at punch-in, which matter in states with predictive scheduling rules. The free Comp plan covers one location with up to 15 employees. Paid plans are priced per location with headcount caps of 30 on Essentials and 60 on Pro, and the pricing page showed Canadian dollars from our location, so confirm the USD price with 7shifts before you budget.

Who it is for

Restaurant managers who build weekly schedules against a labor percentage and want POS sales data driving the budget.

Price

See vendor pricing (USD check pending).

US price check pending. See the vendor pricing page.

Key features

• Labor targets set on projected sales so schedules are built on budget
• Department budgets using sales data pulled from the POS
• Hourly forecasts and labor recommendations on the Premium plan
• State-based labor law tools, overtime alerts and break attestations at punch-in
• Shift pool for offering, trading and claiming open shifts in the mobile app

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: Built only for restaurants, with templates for full service, quick service, bars and franchises
• Strength: Free Comp plan for a single location with up to 15 employees
• Strength: Labor targets and POS budgets come before any paid add-on
• Weakness: The pricing page shows CAD from our location, so the USD price is unconfirmed
• Weakness: Each paid tier caps headcount per location: 30 on Essentials, 60 on Pro
• Weakness: Tip Management is a paid add-on below Premium

Key facts

• Free plan: Comp, single location, up to 15 employees
• Paid plans: Essentials, Pro, Premium, priced per location
• Annual billing: Saves 10%
• Customers: 55,000+ restaurants, per 7shifts

Where it ranks

7shifts is No. 1 in our Best Restaurant Scheduling Software verdict.