# Page 3 | HotSchedules Reviews 2026. Verified Reviews, Pros & Cons | Capterra > Page 3 - Is HotSchedules the right Workforce Management solution for you? Explore 461 verified user reviews from people in industries like yours to make a confident choice. Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/52611/HotSchedules/reviews --- HotSchedules 4.4 (461) [View alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/52611/HotSchedules/alternatives/) Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) * * * Last updated March 13th, 2026 # Page 3 - Reviews of HotSchedules ## Showing most helpful reviews Showing 51-75 of 461 Reviews Sort by: Most Helpful Rating Company Size Reviewer's Role Length of Use Frequency of Use CD Carisa D. General Manager/ Partner Restaurants Used the software for: 2+ years ### "General Manager and partner" February 3, 2017 4.0 It is very difficult to get responses from customer support. It will take a day and up to 3 to hear anything back and that is in several different support groups. Also, the fact that you get shuffled from one type of support to another is quite frustrating. When you start you have 1 person that owns the majority of the experience.She was great! But once you get passed on to customer support it feels like you are lost. I also have an issue with the scheduling functionality. It is impossible to view an entire day of a schedule either in the schedule or the template. There used to be a button at the top of the schedule that allowed you to see the entire day, who was scheduled in each station, all at a glance. The new functionality makes it incredibly difficult to manage the level of staff on a shift. Pros The logbook feature, the advanced floor maps (which are an additional cost..), and the messaging feature. Cons Again the scheduling software is not very user friendly. Clearly there were some adjustments made that helped with writing a schedule, but not being able to view it as easily is frustrating. Review Source Response from Fourth February 9, 2017 Hey Carisa! Thank you for the feedback. We apologize for the frustration you've been experiencing with our product and customer support services. Here is an article to an overview of the new scheduler that might be helpful. https://help.hotschedules.com/hc/en-us/articles/218408118-HS-New-Scheduler-Overview Please reach out if you are continuing to experience difficulty with the software. dD diandra D. server Restaurants Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Great scheduling ap" May 16, 2019 5.0 One of the best scheduling websites I've ever seen or used. Pros As a user, I love how easy this product is. You can view your schedule, see who else is working, and swap and release shifts without an issue. It has an easy to use web browser, and mobile ap (although you do pay for it) so you can use hotschedules whichever way you prefer. It also has a great messaging system which allows you to message entire groups of people at once (management, kitchen, servers). It also tells you how many people are ahead of you on a wait list for a shift you picked up. The autopick up function is excellent as well for when you need to get a shift and non are available. Cons I am not a fan of the most recent update. Prior, you would be able to "see all schedule" and see the entire week, alphabetically, where everyone was working etc. Now however, you can't see the weekly schedule at once and you need to click day by day. This can be challenging when trying to swap shifts with other staff, or see others schedules. Review Source JH Jess H. Executive Administrator Restaurants Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Extremely helpful!" September 29, 2020 5.0 I would highly recommend. It is easy to set up and is user friendly for all ages. Since it helps with scheduling, dropping shifts and picking up shifts, our Managers are able to focus more of their time on other aspects of the business. Pros The ability to save a template for a weekly schedule. At our job we put a schedule out on a weekly basis and we don't have to start from scratch every week. It used to take use 5 hours to do the schedule and now it takes us 1 hour. A huge lifesaver! Cons The look of the software feels a tad outdate. Though that is not a huge deal, it tends to have unnecessary pop-ups or "menu" buttons. However, not enough of a con to ever have me consider using a different product. Reason for choosing HotSchedules N/A. Review Source GL Greg L. Restaurant Service Manager Restaurants Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "This software is easy to use and a great way to communicate." August 8, 2017 4.0 The largest benefit was time management. I have a lot more time to do other things that improve our guest's experience, which is the bottom line of my job. Pros The communication side of it is great. I have less meetings now that I can send out mass messages. The scheduler itself is top notch. I can move shifts around quickly using the quick keys and copying schedules is a snap. Having the freedom to do my schedule anywhere and being able to approve or deny schedule changes from my phone makes those decisions more informed. We use it to document all incidents good and bad on employees, so when an evaluation comes around you have all that information at your fingertips. It makes a great reservation scheduler. The roster report is the first thing I print out in the mornings to make sure everyone is here and where they are supposed to be and if they are not I have all the phone numbers on that sheet. The fact that it gives you the number of hours for everyone helps with creating budgets for the week. Cons My biggest complaint is that part of the expense for the is put on the employee. I know it's very little but some employees don't have a bank account or credit card and have trouble making the purchase. It seems to me that the revenue generated by that could be built into the cost of the software on the employer side. Review Source RL Ryan L. Operations Manager Facilities Services Used the software for: 2+ years ### "The best in the business!!!" November 14, 2022 5.0 Pay the money, reap the rewards, save time and be on the floor with your team where you should be! Pros RELIABILITY!!!It never goes down, support is always helpfulBest scheduler features in the gameTemplates for quick entry are great weekly startersColor coding makes my life so much easierTransparency, every stroke documented Cons Takes getting used to and learning as it is complex software but get hot keys down and you've got it! Make sure you have a fairly beastly computer...it's a lot of real time processing. Review Source JB Jessica B. Catering Manager Hospitality Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Hotschedules Is Perfect For The Hospitality Industry" August 9, 2019 5.0 This has helped manage overtime before it even happens. While scheduling employees, the software calculates the hours and gives you a warning for any person that is going into or approaching overtime. This has saved us money and helped better allocate time. Hotschedules is a game changer for the hospitality industry. Pros This software is extremely user friendly. I love that my staff is able to put all of their availability changes, requests for time off and switch shifts through the software. It makes it extremely easy to create the schedule each week. Tracking of overtime is a huge help as a manager as well. This is a must have tool for anyone in the hospitality industry. It will save your scheduling sanity! Cons The only downside to this software is the cost for the app. While it is minimal and you can still log in for free through any web browser, a free app would be ideal for the hourly employees. I honestly have no other bad things to say about this software. I highly recommend it! Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Assistant Event Coordinator Food & Beverages Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "We utilize this program for our Catering company as a means to schedule & interact " February 21, 2018 4.0 Pros Ability to not only schedule/message in-house full time staff, but keep a running log of single event staffing as well. As a catering company you have many bodies you must manage, especially when an individual only works one event for you and that's it. With HotSchedules we're able to tabulate this into our weekly labor costs and it gives the functionality to forecast. Cons It's sometimes very complicated to use. You don't always know where to go for what you need and the customer service can be a little tricky to navigate- you don't always hear back from them or they're tough to reach. That being said when you do get a human- they're very knowledgeable and can help you out 100%. Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Banquet/Catering Manager Used the software for: 2+ years ### "This program was easy to learn and very user friendly." January 18, 2018 4.0 The benefits that I get from this software are being able to put out a schedule in real time and get it to my employees in an effective way. It also benefits my employees because they are able to use it and make changes to their schedule if needed. The alerts are great! Pros What I like most about this software is that you can send your employees messages and post schedules that will go directly to their e-mail and/or text. Cons What I like least about this software is that it sometimes will glitch when I'm in the middle of a schedule and then I will have to go back and redo the entire thing. Review Source JS Jeffrey S. Service Manager Restaurants Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Good product" December 27, 2022 5.0 no issues. Pros We used this for scheduling for a 6-story, 24hr restaurant/bar concept 1 block off of the main tourist area of downtown Nashville. It worked well in pretty much all areas of concern. Cons We did not run into any issues of note with this software. Alternatives considered [ScheduleBase](https://www.capterra.com/p/140103/ScheduleBase/)[Schedulefly](https://www.capterra.com/p/76735/Schedulefly/) Reason for choosing HotSchedules more well-known and tried/tested Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Salesforce Application Administrator Banking Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Great for restaurants!" July 14, 2023 5.0 Overall it was a great way to keep track of schedules while working in a restaurant! Pros Love that you can log in, pick up or release a shift from your phone. You can keep track your schedule, request to work, request off with ease! Cons If you want the mobile app, it costs $2.99 to download. It's not the end of the world, but if my employer is already paying for the system, I don't like that I had to pay for the app. Review Source CT Courtney T. HR Assistant Hospitality Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Easy" July 16, 2022 5.0 Overall it's a great scheduling platform for all. Very easy to use and it's great for communicating with employees as well as logging disciplinary issues. Pros The best thing about this product is the ease of use. It's easy for managers and also for our employees. They give you step by step instructions on how to first create your account and utilization from there moving forward. Cons The worst thing about this product is customer service. It can be very hard to get ahold of someone and it takes days if not weeks for service tickets to be received. Review Source EF Eric F. Kitchen Manager Food & Beverages Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Restaurant Must have " March 10, 2020 5.0 As a former manager at a Texas Roadhouse, I was familiar with this software, and eager to bring it to my new venture. It immediately eliminated the use of paper schedules, and the chaos of employees switching shifts without making management aware. This increased both labor costs, and morale. Pros It’s easy to use, built for high volume restaurants. I took a restaurant that was still relying on paper, emailed schedules, and converted them to Bot Schedules. This eliminated issues of shift coverage changes, where we expected one employee, but another showed up, and all the associated communication issues. Cons It was much more difficult to order and install that I previously remember. Customer service in the sales department was definitely lacking just a touch. Once we got the ball rolling it was fine, but the initial sale was a bit rocky to start. Reason for choosing HotSchedules Again, I used it heavily while working for the Texas Roadhouse franchise. I was familiar with the product, and knew it was necessary in the restaurant business. Switched from [Microsoft Excel](https://www.capterra.com/p/176574/Excel/) Familiarity, and organization. Review Source Russ H. Restaurant Manager Restaurants Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Very reliable " February 27, 2018 5.0 Ease of use. Available any time and anywhere with smartphone. Pros I love the features that hotschedules offers to maintain and publish accurate schedules. As a business operator, it is imperative that they are done accurately and while within our forecasted budgets. Hotschedules is easy for associates to access and navigate. Cons I often wish that alerts involving team members accruing overtime was more prominent, but overall like the ability to run overtime reports when necessary. Review Source Niklaus K. Human Resources Manager Food & Beverages Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Love HotSchedules" December 1, 2018 5.0 I've been using HotSchedules for several years and I couldn't imagine running a restaurant without it. Pros Scheduling, messaging, and forecasting have never been easier! If you own a restaurant, you need this. Cons Customer service used to be excellent, but lately, it hasn't been good at all. I went from a 2 minute wait to talk to 6+ hours to get a callback—usually by the time I'm home. I'm confident they're just going through some changes and it will be back to the high standard. Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Trainer Restaurants Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Not so stressful scheduling " March 10, 2020 5.0 Everything is in one spot which makes my day a little easier and my desk less cluttered. Easy to address questions and concerns from employee's. Pros This app makes it very easy to check your schedule at anytime. Makes requesting time off or switching a shift with another employee easy as well. Far from time consuming and easy navigation around the app. Your schedule is with you where ever you go! Cons Having to pay $2.99 for the app is pretty much everyone's only dislike about this app. Review Source Michael G. Brand General Manager Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Good software, they are continually developing and improving. Definitely great for scheduling " January 25, 2018 4.0 Allowed me to spend less time scheduling and communicating with staff. More organization on notes and employee files Pros Great for scheduling and staff communication. Makes handling a large staff easy. Logbook is great for communication on all issues with mangers and staff, even starting to use it to track our hr. Cons Want to see the inventory system improve as well as better ease of use across multiple venues other than that continue to grow and develop Review Source Erik K. Graphic Designer Graphic Design Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Hot schedules review " September 24, 2019 4.0 My overall experience has been very good. I always knew when I was working next and never missed work or was late to a shift because of it! Pros What I liked most about hot schedules is always being organized and being able to see my schedule ahead of time, eliminating the need to write it down or call/go in person to see when I was working next. Cons What I liked least is that not enough companies are using it! It’s a great platform, so I have nothing negative to say. Review Source James M. Social Media and Content Marketing Manager Food & Beverages Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Great way to manage staff schedules with ease" September 17, 2019 5.0 Was part of a team that used HotSchedules for shift management. Pros I like how shifts can be swapped and picked up without having to involve a manager. Managers can set certain rules, but within those rules employees can handle it on their own. Cons I don't like how clumsy the app was in 2014 when I used it. It was not mobile friendly, and didn't sync well with email and google calendar. This may have changed since then. Review Source VR Verified Reviewer server Hospitality Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Easy if everyone uses it! ha!" October 24, 2019 4.0 Pros I like the ability to have everything in one place for all employees. I have used this as a server and as a manager and as a manager, being able to see what everyone needs and organize the schedules all in one place is the highlight here. And it allows you to separate different schedules, like server and manager schedules, etc. Cons There are some glitches sometimes, it's slow and doesn't always load on my phone. And other people have complained about this as well. I suppose some of the functions could be easier and a little more user-friendly. Review Source Amy M. Educator Government Administration Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Helpful in emergencies" November 20, 2018 5.0 This was a great software to use. After having to call-in shift changes and wait on hold for managers for years in restaurant work, this software and its app is a great gift. I also don't have to physically go to the restaurant to see my new schedule when it comes out! Pros I liked most how "shift-swapping" at my restaurant became very simple. I could easily release my shift on my phone app and people would pick it up or if I needed it quick I could message people on the app or call them on my phone. They could easily pick up the shift through their phone app and no need bothering a manager as a go-between. The manager does need to approve the shift, but it is simply done and after I've already got it covered :) I liked how I can change my settings to receive email alerts or not. Cons I did not have any problems with this software. Review Source Michael R. Owner Food & Beverages Used the software for: 2+ years ### "So awesome!!" November 11, 2018 5.0 Overall experience is amazing! This company does amazing work! Pros Love Hotschedules!! They are amazing at what they do and make my life so easy when it comes to scheduling my staff and letting them switch and pick up work shifts. This is definitely something that employers with many employees need to use to make their schedule! Cons Non at all. This software does exactly what it says and it is amazing! Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Server Food & Beverages Used the software for: 2+ years ### "App for my work schedule" January 15, 2020 5.0 Love this app and have used it with my job at Chilis and Buffalo Wild Wings and Bagger Daves. Pros The fact I can access my schedule for work whenever I need to. And I don't have to remember all the shifts I am scheduled. Cons How messages sent or recieved don't recieve notifications for it. WIsh I would get a alert when someone sends me a message or notification on tab showing I have a message. Review Source EZ Edward Z. Manager Food & Beverages Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Hot for HotSchedules" June 16, 2020 5.0 Over all hot schedules is a solid platform that is definitely beneficial to a smooth running operation as far as scheduling and management communication Pros Hot schedules makes scheduling different departments and coordinating everybody extremely easy. The platforms are easy to understand and can be accessed by anyone given authority to use the system. Cons The system allows for people to request for time off and to make comments. One of the only downsides of this product was that employees talked last to management about scheduling and tried to do literally all of it through hot schedules which sometimes lead to some conflict Over all hot schedules is a solid platform that is definitely beneficial to a smooth running operation as far as scheduling and management communication goes Review Source Ayaz M. Director Of Operations Restaurants Used the software for: 2+ years ### "One of best Scheduling Systems on the Market" October 25, 2018 5.0 Worked with it for several years. They are constantly evolving to meet the industry needs. Love the fact that I do not have to have several calls just to approve a shift change. It's all done on line and just a click away. A real time saver. Pros The variety of options available and the ease of multiple users accessibility. Also very user friendly for the staff. Cons A bit complicated for entry level managers Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Waitress Food & Beverages Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Shift Swap Simple" February 16, 2021 5.0 Overall, every restaurant should seriously look into an app like HotSchedules. It saves time and stress on all, avoiding hand written notes that get lost. Pros Hotschedules was introduced to the restaurant a few years ago, and it saved so much stress! Employees were able to switch shifts, request time off, and view schedules so easily!! Cons The only con is user error or awaiting on a manager to accept the requests that are sent in. If they are not in the office, they cannot see the requests to accept or deny resulting in the employee calling to confirm the action requested. Review Source Similar Products Featured