Breakroom vs When I Work
Stop paying per user every month. One flat price covers your entire team. No $50, $100, or $160/month bills that grow every time you hire someone.
Why Teams Switch From When I Work
"I was debating going back to When I Work. We use an app called Shift Care for everything, but I actually hate it. Now I feel like I'm going to have to use multiple softwares in order to get the best thing."
When I Work charges $2.50-$8 per user per month. For a team of 20, that's $50-$160/month. For 50 employees, that's $125-$400/month. Plus, you must buy seats in increments of 5, so if you have 23 employees, you're paying for 25 seats.
One flat price. $29/month covers everyone. Hire 10 people? Still $29. Hire 90 people? Still $29. No per-user fees, no seat minimums, no math.
Pricing Comparison
Features Comparison
✅ Unlimited schedules
✅ Schedule templates
✅ Copy week-to-week
✅ Recurring shifts
✅ Open shifts
✅ Role-based assignments
✅ Team availability overlay
✅ Time-off requests & approvals
✅ Blackout dates
✅ Shift swapping with manager approval
$25/month
✅ Drag-and-drop scheduling in all plans
✅ Auto-scheduling (1-click schedule creation)
✅ Schedule templates
✅ Shift swapping and confirmations
✅ Shift templates and copy functions
✅ Labor budgeting (Pro and Premium plans)
❌ Advanced features locked behind $5-$8/user tiers
❌ Custom role permissions only in higher plans
❌ Per-user pricing adds up fast
✅ Group chats & 1:1 messaging
✅ Announcements (read-only broadcasts)
✅ File sharing (unlimited files)
✅ Role-based auto chats
✅ Kudos & recognition
✅ Automated birthday/anniversary messages
✅ Read receipts
✅ SMS backup notifications
$29/month
✅ Team messaging in all plans
✅ 1:1 and group chats
✅ Shift change notifications
✅ Real-time communication features
❌ No mention of automated birthday/anniversary features
❌ No SMS backup option
❌ Per-user pricing for all messaging features
✅ Reliable push notifications
✅ Consistent mobile experience
✅ Works on iOS and Android
✅ Shift reminders and notifications
✅ No built-in time clock
❌ No GPS tracking or geofencing
✅ Mobile clock in/out
✅ Photo clock-in to prevent buddy punching
✅ Geofencing capabilities
✅ Timesheet management
✅ Break tracking
❌ "Issues with clocking in and out, requiring app refreshes or reinstallation" (verified user)
❌ "Occasional problems with push notifications" (verified user)
✅ Unlimited schedules
✅ Schedule templates
✅ Copy week-to-week
✅ Recurring shifts
✅ Open shifts (post for auction)
✅ Team availability overlay
✅ Open shifts (post for auction)
✅ Time-off requests & approvals
✅ Blackout dates
✅ Mobile schedule building
$29/month
❌ Advanced scheduling features (geofencing, breadcrumb tracking) locked to Advanced+ ($49-$99/month)
❌ Some scheduling features only in Expert tier ($99/month)
❌ Need to choose Operations module + tier level
❌ Pay more for features you need
Real Customer Comparison
Tramaine's Business:
20-30 employees per location
Managing caregiving staff
What they needed
His Experience:
The Results
$29/month
Simple interface
Everything included
No seat counting
Essentials:
$75/month ($2.50 × 30)
Pro:
$150/month ($5 × 30)
Premium:
$240/month ($8 × 30)
What When I Work Users Actually Say
From Verified User Reviews
Clock-in/out Issues
"Some users mention issues with clocking in and out, requiring app refreshes or reinstallation, and occasional problems with push notifications."
Verified User Review,
Price Scalation
"Some reviewers feel pricing rises quickly for larger companies and advanced features, and they report dissatisfaction with billing practices and free plan limitations."
Verified User Review,
Annual Billing Lock-in
"When I Work offers a 5% discount for annual prepayment, and this option locks you into a set number of seats. You can add seats to a yearly plan but can't remove them. If your business maintains roughly the same number of staff throughout the year, this isn't a problem. But if your workforce changes substantially during peak and off seasons, monthly billing is a better choice."
Verified User Review,
What Breakroom Does Differently
BEING HONEST
When Each is Better
Is Better If You:
Have 15+ employees (per-user pricing adds up fast)
Want one flat price with no seat counting
Don't need time clocking features
Have seasonal staff changes
Just need scheduling and communication
Don't want to pay $125-$400/month for 50 employees
Might Be Better If You:
Need built-in time clock with photo verification
Want GPS geofencing and location tracking
Need timesheet management integrated with scheduling
Require labor cost tracking tied to clock-ins
Want to integrate with Rippling for payroll
Have very small team (5-10 people) where per-user cost is low
How Much Are You Paying for Homebase?
When I Work Essentials:
$2.50/User
10 employees:
$25/month
20 employees:
$50/month
30 employees:
$75/month
50 employees:
$125/month
100 employees:
$250/month
When I Work Pro:
$5/User
10 employees:
$50/month
20 employees:
$100/month
30 employees:
$150/month
50 employees:
$250/month
100 employees:
$500/month
When I Work Premium:
$8/User
10 employees:
$80/month
20 employees:
$160/month
30 employees:
$240/month
50 employees:
$400/month
100 employees:
$800/month
20 Employees
Save $21-$131/month
($252-$1,572/year)
30 Employees
Save $46-$211/month
($552-$2,532/year)
50 Employees
Save $96-$371/month
($1,152-$4,452/year)
100 locations:
Save $221-$771/month
($2,652-$9,252/year)
Plus: No paying for empty seats when you need 23 but must buy 25
Switching From Homebase to Breakroom
Most teams fully migrated in under 2 hours
All features unlocked
Import your existing team
No credit card required
Everyone gets the mobile app
Set up manager permissions
Takes 5 minutes
Publish to entire team instantly
No time clock setup needed
Templates make it easy
No more paying per user
No more seat increment requirements
Save $21-$771/month depending on team size
Pricing Breakdown
Breakroom saves you $71-$471/month for typical teams (30-100 employees)
See why teams are switching from When I Work's per-user pricing to Breakroom's simple flat rate.