7shifts

Overview

7shifts is a workforce management platform built exclusively for the restaurant industry. Founded in 2014 in Saskatoon, Canada, the platform handles everything a restaurant needs to manage its hourly workforce: shift scheduling, time tracking, tip pooling and distribution, labour cost forecasting tied to POS sales data, task management, and team communication. With a 4.7/5 rating on G2 and a free plan for single-location restaurants, 7shifts has established itself as the default WFM choice for restaurants from single-unit operators to multi-location chains.

The restaurant-specific design is what separates 7shifts from general-purpose time tracking tools. The platform integrates directly with major POS systems — Toast, Square, Clover, Lightspeed, and others — pulling actual sales data to forecast labour demand. This means managers can build schedules based on projected revenue rather than guessing. The tip pooling and distribution feature handles a notoriously complex part of restaurant operations, calculating tip shares based on configurable rules and distributing them through payroll. Labour compliance tools track break requirements, overtime thresholds, and minor labour laws that vary by jurisdiction.

The free Comp plan covers scheduling for a single location with up to 30 employees — genuinely useful for small restaurants that primarily need a digital schedule. Paid plans start at $29.99/month per location (not per user), adding time clocking, payroll integration, and budgeting. Higher tiers add tip management, auto-scheduling, task management, and operational reporting. The per-location pricing model is worth noting: for a single large restaurant with 50+ staff, it can be very cost-effective; for a multi-unit chain, costs scale with locations rather than headcount.

Who Should Use 7shifts?

• Single-location restaurants that want to move from paper schedules or spreadsheets to a digital system — the free plan covers basic scheduling at no cost
• Multi-unit restaurant operators that need consistent scheduling, labour compliance, and tip management across locations with location-level manager access
• Restaurants using Toast, Square, or Clover POS that want scheduling driven by actual sales data rather than static patterns
• Restaurant managers spending too much time on tip calculations — the automated tip pooling feature eliminates one of the most tedious weekly administrative tasks

The Bottom Line

7shifts is the only WFM platform purpose-built for restaurants, and the specialisation shows. POS-integrated scheduling, automated tip pooling, and restaurant-specific labour compliance are features that no general-purpose time tracking tool matches. The free plan is a genuine on-ramp for small restaurants. The main limitation is that 7shifts is only useful for restaurants — construction companies, retail shops, healthcare facilities, and other hourly businesses should look at Deputy, Buddy Punch, or When I Work instead. For restaurants, 7shifts is the obvious first choice. For non-restaurant businesses, our best time tracking software guide covers the full category.