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Heyshift

Food & beverage operations

Restaurant Scheduling Softwarefor Modern Restaurant Teams

Build staff schedules faster, reduce scheduling conflicts, track attendance, and manage labor costs across one or multiple restaurant locations.

Designed for restaurants, cafés, quick-service chains, food trucks, bars, and hospitality teams.

30-day free trial on every plan, then Starter from $4/seat per month ($3.60 billed yearly). Mobile access included for staff and managers. View pricing.

  • 30-day free trial
  • Kitchen + floor areas
  • Mobile included
  • Multi-location ready
Problem & solution

Stop Managing Restaurant Schedules in Spreadsheets and Group Chats

Restaurant scheduling is constantly changing. Managers deal with last-minute call-outs, shift swaps, overtime surprises, understaffed shifts, and availability conflicts, often across separate spreadsheets and group chats. Heyshift helps restaurant teams create schedules, track attendance, and coordinate staff from one platform.

  • Last-minute call-outs
  • Shift swaps
  • Overtime surprises
  • Understaffed shifts
  • Availability conflicts

Before

Spreadsheets & chat apps

Manual updates with no single source of truth.

After

One published roster

Web and mobile share the same official version.

Publish once
Week_May26_v7.xlsx+4 copies

fx=VLOOKUP(D4, OLD_SHEET!A:Z, 3, FALSE)

Staff
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
H. Cole
10a–6p
O. Blake
#REF!
2p–10p?
M. Santos
#REF!
J. Rivera
Off

Coverage conflict on Thursday close

Excel lists Hannah; ops chat lists Owen. Two staff affected.

Missed shiftOT surpriseVersion drift
River North BistroPublished
Active
WeekMay 26 – Jun 1
Mobile synced·Just now
142h scheduled$4,280 est labor0 conflicts
Staff
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
HCHannah
10a–6pBar
10a–6pBar
OBOwen
2p–10pKitchen
2p–10pKitchen
MSMaria
9a–5pFloor
11a–7pFloor
JRJordan
OpenPickup

24 staff notified

Swaps and pickups in one queue

Labor visible

Planned vs worked before payroll close

5 file versions
1 published roster
3 coverage conflicts
0 conflicts
Chat + sheet sync
Mobile synced
Takeaway. Publish once: coverage, notifications, and labor signals stay tied to the same live grid your floor already trusts.

Read across5 restaurant scheduling fixesEach row moves from weekly friction to a workflow general managers can run from one platform.

Manual restaurant scheduling creates
Heyshift restaurant ops
  1. 01

    Last-minute call-outs with no single roster everyone trusts

    →

    One published schedule alerts kitchen and floor staff on web and mobile, no shadow versions in chat

  2. 02

    Shift swaps tracked in texts and untracked handoffs

    →

    Employees request swaps in the app; managers approve in one queue with an audit trail

  3. 03

    Overtime surprises discovered after the week closes

    →

    Scheduled hours and labor signals show while you plan Saturday dinner service, not at payroll

  4. 04

    Understaffed shifts during peak lunch and dinner rushes

    →

    Open shifts and availability on the same grid surface coverage gaps before service starts

  5. 05

    Availability conflicts from part-time and split-shift staff

    →

    Availability and leave sit beside the roster so managers match shifts before publishing

Heyshift is restaurant scheduling software that keeps coverage, attendance, and labor context on one operational surface, built for owners, GMs, and ops leads who outgrew spreadsheet rotas but do not need a full HRMS.

Core capabilities

Everything You Need to Schedule Restaurant Staff

Restaurant employee scheduling software should match how you actually run service: areas, peaks, swaps, and attendance in one path, not six tools.

Capability 01 of 06

Shift Scheduling

Build weekly and monthly schedules in minutes with templates, copy-week, and one publish path for kitchen and floor teams.

Explore feature
Labor control

Reduce Labor Costs Without Reducing Service Quality

Labor is one of the largest restaurant expenses. Heyshift helps managers monitor scheduled hours, compare planned vs worked hours, identify overtime risks, and improve staffing efficiency, so you maintain service levels while keeping labor costs under control.

  • 01

    Monitor scheduled hours before publish

    See total hours by area and day while you build the week, not only after payroll export.

  • 02

    Planned vs worked hours

    Compare published shifts to punches and breaks for cleaner labor reporting and fewer end-of-week disputes.

  • 03

    Overtime risk visibility

    Spot hours trending over plan during busy weekends while there is still time to adjust coverage.

  • 04

    Staffing efficiency across peaks

    Right-size lunch, dinner, and late shifts without sacrificing guest experience on the floor or line.

Labor cost insights
Restaurant scheduling dashboard with weekly shift grid, locations, and labor context in Heyshift
Venue types

Restaurant Staff Scheduling Software for Every Food Service Business

Running a restaurant means balancing customer demand, labor costs, employee availability, and shift coverage every day. Whether you operate a single café or manage multiple restaurant locations, creating employee schedules manually can quickly become time-consuming. Heyshift helps restaurants build schedules faster, communicate changes instantly, reduce scheduling conflicts, and keep every shift fully staffed.

  • Full-service dining room with set tables, banquettes, and a server on the floor

    Dining room service

    Full-Service Restaurants

    Full-service restaurants require careful coordination between front-of-house and back-of-house teams. Schedule servers, hosts, bartenders, and kitchen staff, balance labor costs with customer demand, adjust schedules during busy periods, and keep every employee informed through instant notifications.

    • FOH + BOH
    • Labor balance
    • Peak adjustments
    • Instant alerts
  • Counter staff ringing up orders in a busy quick-service diner

    Quick service

    QSR

    Fast food restaurants experience busy lunch and dinner rushes that require flexible staffing. Create recurring schedules, schedule part-time employees, fill open shifts quickly, reduce last-minute scheduling issues, and improve communication across the team.

    • Recurring schedules
    • Part-time mix
    • Open shifts
    • Rush coverage
  • Café floor with barista at the counter, seating, and a coffee menu board

    Café ops

    Cafés & Coffee Shops

    Coffee shops often rely on flexible scheduling for baristas, supervisors, and support staff. Schedule opening and closing teams, manage weekend staffing, track employee availability, and reduce scheduling conflicts.

    • Open / close teams
    • Weekend staffing
    • Availability
    • Conflict reduction
  • Bar counter with draught taps, back-bar bottles, and stools ready for service

    Bar & nightlife

    Bars & Pubs

    Bars operate late hours with changing customer traffic throughout the week. Schedule bartenders and servers, manage weekend staffing, coordinate security and support staff, and handle shift changes in real time.

    • Late shifts
    • Weekend peaks
    • Security staff
    • Real-time changes
  • Pizza cook sliding a pie into a wood-fired oven during service

    Delivery + dine-in

    Pizza Restaurants

    Delivery drivers, kitchen staff, and customer service teams all require coordinated scheduling. Schedule drivers, organize kitchen teams, improve delivery shift planning, and balance staffing during peak hours.

    • Driver scheduling
    • Kitchen teams
    • Delivery planning
    • Peak balance
  • Large restaurant dining room with communal seating and staff working the service line

    Restaurant groups

    Multi-Location Chains

    Restaurant groups managing multiple locations need centralized workforce scheduling. View every restaurant schedule, standardize scheduling across locations, manage employees between stores, and improve staffing visibility.

    • District view
    • Standardized publish
    • Cross-store staff
    • Staffing visibility

Compare restaurant scheduling software options or explore multi-location scheduling for growing groups.

One platform

Scheduling and Attendance in One Platform

Many restaurants use spreadsheets for scheduling, messaging apps for communication, and separate attendance tools. Heyshift combines shift scheduling, attendance tracking, workforce visibility, and labor insights into one workflow, so managers stop reconciling three systems every week.

  1. 01

    Shift scheduling

    Build and publish official rotas with kitchen, bar, and floor areas, not version seven of the same spreadsheet.

  2. 02

    Attendance tracking

    Clock-ins, breaks, and overtime tied to published shifts for planned vs worked visibility.

  3. 03

    Workforce visibility

    See who is scheduled, who is in, and where coverage gaps exist before service starts.

  4. 04

    Labor insights

    Scheduled hours and labor signals beside the grid while managers still have time to adjust.

Diagram linking restaurant shift scheduling and attendance tracking in one Heyshift workflow
Why Heyshift

Why Restaurant Managers Choose Heyshift

Restaurant scheduling app buyers care about outcomes: faster weeks, fewer conflicts, and labor control without adding HR complexity.

  • 01

    Save Scheduling Time

    Build schedules faster each week with templates, copy-week, and bulk publish, less Sunday-night roster rebuilding.

  • 02

    Reduce Scheduling Conflicts

    Match shifts with employee availability and leave on the same live grid.

  • 03

    Improve Attendance Visibility

    Track attendance and worked hours in real time beside the roster you published.

  • 04

    Manage Multiple Locations

    Coordinate staffing across restaurant locations with one account and comparable publish habits.

  • 05

    Control Labor Costs

    Monitor labor hours before schedules are published, not only after payroll closes.

Mobile for the floor

Staff see the same roster managers publish

Open shifts, swap requests, and schedule updates reach kitchen and floor teams without screenshot threads or PDF exports.

Restaurant scheduling app for staff and managers

Restaurant shift scheduling app on mobile with roster day view and open shifts for staff
Rush hours

Schedule Around Restaurant Rush Hours

Customer demand changes throughout the day, making workforce planning one of the biggest challenges for restaurant managers. Whether your busiest hours are early mornings or late nights, Heyshift helps ensure every shift has the right number of employees.

How managers plan around peak meal periods

  • Schedule breakfast, lunch, and dinner shifts
  • Increase staffing during weekends
  • Plan holiday schedules
  • Balance labor costs
  • Improve shift coverage
FOH & BOH

Restaurant Scheduling for Front and Back of House

Successful restaurants depend on coordination between customer-facing employees and kitchen staff. Department-based scheduling improves visibility while helping managers maintain balanced staffing throughout every shift.

Teams you can schedule on one roster

  • Hosts (front of house)
  • Servers (front of house)
  • Bartenders (front of house)
  • Cashiers (front of house)
  • Baristas (front of house)
  • Executive Chefs (back of house)
  • Kitchen Managers (back of house)
  • Line Cooks (back of house)
  • Prep Cooks (back of house)
  • Dishwashers (back of house)
  • Cleaning Teams (back of house)
Buyer's guide

How to Choose Restaurant Staff Scheduling Software

Restaurant scheduling software should simplify workforce management while helping managers control labor costs. The right restaurant shift scheduling software saves time while improving employee coordination. Compare options in the employee scheduling software overview, then start a free trial with your real service patterns.

Look for features including

  • Easy schedule creation
  • Mobile employee access
  • Shift reminders
  • Employee availability tracking
  • Time-off management
  • Multi-location scheduling
  • Workforce reporting
  • Team communication
  • Cloud-based scheduling
  • Quick onboarding
FAQ

Restaurant scheduling software FAQ

Common questions from restaurant owners, general managers, and operations leads evaluating restaurant staff scheduling software.

Get started

Run your next restaurant week from one roster

Start a 30-day free trial tailored to kitchen and floor coverage, shift swaps, attendance, and labor control across one or many locations.