Sling review
A low-cost scheduler for small teams that also covers time tracking and labor costs.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Sling is employee scheduling and workforce management software for small and medium-sized businesses. Managers can create and publish schedules, collect employee availability, approve time-off requests, fill available shifts, and coordinate shift swaps. It also includes schedule templates, recurring schedules, employee messaging, announcements, time tracking, timesheets, labor-cost budgeting, and reporting. Sling is available through web, iOS, and Android applications, serving workplaces such as restaurants, retail, healthcare, education, hospitality, and call centers.
Pricing is structured around a free plan and two paid tiers. Free includes shift scheduling, time-off requests, available shifts, long-term scheduling, and private messaging. Premium costs $2 per user per month when billed monthly and adds mobile time tracking, labor-cost management, overtime tracking, and calendar synchronization. Business costs $4 per user per month when billed monthly and adds kiosk time tracking, reports, no-show tracking, sick call-outs, and PTO management. A 15-day free trial is also available. This makes Sling a practical starting point for teams that need core scheduling without an upfront subscription, while organizations needing payroll-adjacent controls or operational reporting should assess the paid tiers.
The product’s strongest fit is a small team that wants scheduling, availability collection, open shifts, shift trades, and communication in one system across web and mobile apps. Automatic assignment can help managers fill unassigned shifts based on unavailability and time off, while templates and recurring schedules support repeatable operations. Toast is listed as an integration, but teams that require a broader integration ecosystem should compare alternatives. Choose Sling for cost-conscious scheduling with a clear path to time and labor management; consider another option if wider platform connectivity is central to the buying decision.
Sling pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Free plan covers core scheduling and employee communication
- Automatic assignment, shift swaps, and availability tools reduce coordination work
- Paid tiers add time tracking, labor-cost controls, reports, and PTO management
- Where it doesn't
- Labor-cost management and mobile time tracking require Premium
- Reports, kiosk tracking, and PTO management require Business
- The listed integration is Toast
Sling fact sheet, pricing and score →
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