Deputy is Australia’s most widely used shift scheduling platform, and for good reason — its rostering engine is genuinely best-in-class for shift-based operations. But Deputy charges per user, and that pricing model gets expensive fast as your team grows. Leave Balance takes a different approach: flat-rate pricing with unlimited employees, covering leave management, rostering, and compliance guardrails in a single platform.
If you are evaluating Deputy alternatives, this comparison explains where each platform excels, where it falls short, and which one fits your business based on team size, budget, and what you actually need.
Key Takeaways
- Deputy uses per-user pricing ($5–9/user/month); Leave Balance uses flat-rate pricing ($69/month or $690/year for the Workforce tier).
- The crossover point is around 5 employees — above that, Leave Balance is cheaper, and the gap widens with headcount.
- Deputy’s scheduling engine is more mature, with demand forecasting and auto-rostering.
- Leave Balance covers leave management, rostering, and compliance in a single platform — no need for separate tools.
- For teams under 50 who need rostering plus leave management without per-user scaling costs, Leave Balance offers better value.
Pricing Comparison
The most immediate difference is how you pay. Deputy charges per employee per month. Leave Balance charges a single flat rate.
Deputy Pricing (2026)
| Plan | Monthly Cost | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduling | AUD $5/user | Shift scheduling only |
| Time & Attendance | AUD $5/user | Time tracking only |
| Premium | AUD $7/user | Scheduling + Time + Performance |
| Enterprise | AUD $9+/user | Custom features, dedicated support |
Leave Balance Workforce Tier Pricing
| Plan | Monthly Cost | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | AUD $69/month | Unlimited employees — rostering, leave, compliance, Slack/Teams |
| Annual | AUD $690/year | Same as above, billed annually |
Here is what that means for a growing team:
| Team Size | Deputy (Premium ~$7/user) | Deputy (Scheduling ~$5/user) | Leave Balance Workforce |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | AUD $35/mo | AUD $25/mo | AUD $69/mo |
| 10 | AUD $70/mo | AUD $50/mo | AUD $69/mo |
| 15 | AUD $105/mo | AUD $75/mo | AUD $69/mo |
| 20 | AUD $140/mo | AUD $100/mo | AUD $69/mo |
| 30 | AUD $210/mo | AUD $150/mo | AUD $69/mo |
| 50 | AUD $350/mo | AUD $250/mo | AUD $69/mo |
| 100 | AUD $700/mo | AUD $500/mo | AUD $69/mo |
The crossover on Deputy’s Scheduling plan is around 14 employees — above that, Leave Balance is cheaper. On the Premium plan, Leave Balance is cheaper from just 10 employees.
At 50 employees, you save AUD $281–431 per month compared to Deputy. Over a year, that is AUD $3,372–5,172.
Rostering Features
This is where Deputy has the stronger product. Deputy was built for rostering. Its scheduling engine includes:
- Demand forecasting — predicts staffing needs based on historical sales data.
- Auto-rostering — generates schedules based on availability, qualifications, and labour budget.
- Drag-and-drop interface — one of the most polished scheduling UIs available.
- Time clock integration — employees clock in/out via the app, kiosk, or web.
- Geolocation — verifies employees are on-site when clocking in.
- Labour cost forecasting — shows projected labour cost before publishing the roster.
Leave Balance’s rostering (Workforce tier) covers the core scheduling needs:
- Drag-and-drop roster builder — schedule shifts with a visual interface.
- Leave integration — approved leave blocks shifts automatically.
- Shift swaps — employees can request shift swaps with manager approval.
- Availability management — track employee availability and preferences.
- Compliance guardrails — flags when a roster violates rest period or maximum hour rules.
- Slack and Microsoft Teams notifications — roster changes push to team channels.
- Open shifts — publish unfilled shifts for employees to claim.
Where Deputy wins: Auto-rostering, demand forecasting, and the depth of its time clock features. If your scheduling needs are complex and you have the budget, Deputy is purpose-built for it.
Where Leave Balance wins: Leave management is integrated into the same platform. You do not need a separate leave tracker, and the pricing does not scale with headcount. The rostering features cover the 80% of use cases that most SMBs need.
Leave Management
This is where Leave Balance has the clear advantage.
Deputy includes leave management as part of its broader platform. Employees can request leave, managers can approve it, and the leave appears on the roster. However, Deputy’s leave features are not its primary focus — they exist to support the scheduling engine.
Leave Balance was purpose-built for leave management. The features go significantly deeper:
| Feature | Deputy | Leave Balance |
|---|---|---|
| Leave request/approval | Yes | Yes |
| Custom leave types | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-country public holidays | Limited | Yes (100+ countries) |
| Leave balance tracking | Basic | Detailed with analytics |
| Team calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Slack integration | No | Yes (native) |
| Microsoft Teams integration | No | Yes (native) |
| Employee self-service | Yes | Yes |
| Bulk onboarding | Limited | Yes (CSV upload) |
| Leave analytics | Basic | Advanced (D3 charts, department breakdown) |
| Nepal BS calendar | No | Yes |
| SSF integration | No | Yes |
If leave management is a significant part of what you need — and for most SMBs it is — Leave Balance provides a more complete solution at a fraction of the cost.
Compliance
Both platforms support Australian compliance, but through different approaches.
Deputy includes compliance features tied to its scheduling engine: minimum engagement alerts, overtime detection, and award rate calculations. These are strong features, but they are bundled with the broader platform.
Leave Balance (Workforce tier) includes compliance guardrails for:
- Australia: Fair Work Act, minimum engagement periods, maximum weekly hours, rest break rules.
- UK: Working Time Regulations, 48-hour week limit, rest period requirements.
- New Zealand: Holidays Act 2003, alternative holidays, leave balance tracking.
- Nepal: Labour Act 2007, 8-hour day, weekly rest, SSF compliance.
The multi-country compliance is a differentiator for businesses that operate across borders — or plan to.
Integrations
| Integration | Deputy | Leave Balance |
|---|---|---|
| Slack | No | Yes (native) |
| Microsoft Teams | No | Yes (native) |
| Xero | Yes | Yes |
| MYOB | Yes | Yes |
| POS systems | Yes (selected) | No |
| HRIS platforms | Limited | No |
| API | Yes (Enterprise) | Available |
Deputy’s integration ecosystem is broader, particularly for POS and payroll systems. Leave Balance’s strength is its native Slack and Microsoft Teams integration — if your team communicates there, leave requests and approvals happen without leaving the chat.
The Bottom Line
Choose Deputy if:
- You need advanced scheduling features: auto-rostering, demand forecasting, or time clock hardware.
- Your team is shift-based and scheduling is your primary operational challenge.
- Budget is not the primary concern and you want the most feature-complete scheduling platform.
- You are already integrated with Deputy’s ecosystem of POS and payroll partners.
Choose Leave Balance if:
- You need both leave management and rostering in a single platform.
- You want flat-rate pricing that does not scale with headcount.
- Your team works in Slack or Microsoft Teams and wants leave management integrated there.
- You operate across multiple countries and need multi-jurisdiction compliance.
- You want to stop paying per user for functionality you are not fully using.
The best way to decide is to try both. Deputy offers a free trial, and Leave Balance offers a 14-day free trial with no credit card required. Start with the tool that matches your primary need — and be honest about whether you need a scheduling platform or a leave management platform.
leave emails? Track your employee's leave with Leave Balance
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Leave Balance a full replacement for Deputy?
It depends on your needs. Leave Balance covers rostering, leave management, and compliance guardrails. Deputy offers additional features like demand forecasting, time clock hardware, and geolocation. If you need those advanced scheduling features, Deputy is the better fit. If you primarily need rostering plus leave management, Leave Balance covers both at a lower cost.
How does the Workforce tier pricing compare to Deputy for a team of 30?
At 30 employees, Deputy’s Premium plan costs approximately AUD $210/month. Leave Balance Workforce tier costs AUD $69/month. The savings are AUD $141/month or AUD $1,692 per year.
Can I use Leave Balance for rostering only?
Yes. The Workforce tier includes rostering as a core feature. You do not need to use Leave Balance for leave management if you only want the rostering capabilities — though most teams find the integration between leave and rostering is where the real value lies.
Does Deputy offer flat-rate pricing?
No. Deputy uses per-user pricing across all plans. The only way to get a flat rate is through an Enterprise plan with custom pricing, which typically requires a minimum commitment.
What happens if I need both Deputy and Leave Balance?
Some businesses use Deputy for scheduling and time tracking while using Leave Balance for leave management. This works but adds complexity — two systems to manage, two billing relationships, and potential data sync issues. A single platform is simpler and usually cheaper.