Deputy alternatives, honestly compared
Deputy is a strong product. Teams look around mostly because of how the bill is built. Here are the reasons, sourced to Deputy's own pages, the shortlist we would give a friend and what moving across involves.
Prices checked on
Where we would send a friend leaving Deputy
LoggerIQ is on it. So are products that beat us on some of these rows. Prices are each vendor’s cheapest published entry point; the full comparison pages work out 25 people.
| Product | Entry price a month | Award interpretation | Payroll in Australia | In a line |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LoggerIQ | US$5 per user per month. Tax included. | 11 modern awards: Hospitality, Retail, Fast Food, Cleaning, Security, Restaurant, Clubs, SCHADS, Hair and Beauty, Aged Care and Nurses. Every pay line names the clause it came from. | Not available yet. Approved hours go to Xero as a draft timesheet or out as an import file for MYOB or Employment Hero payroll. | One price with HR, kiosk and e-signature in it. A 30-day free trial. |
| Tanda | A$12.80 Per user, bundle with payroll, plus GST. Source 4 | Modern award templates that automate pay conditions. | Pay runs from timesheets with STP filing, in the bundle or as a module. | One published bundle with payroll and STP filing included. |
| RosterElf | A$6 Per employee, Core on annual billing, plus GST. Source 5 | Included in Core. | No payroll of its own. Exports and syncs to Xero and MYOB. | Close on price, award interpretation in Core, Australian hosting. |
| Employment Hero | A$10 Per employee, HR Essentials, plus GST. Rostering extra. Source 6 | Modern award interpretation in the Payroll plan. Award-based roster costing is in the rostering add-on. | The Payroll plan at A$10 per employee per month or inside Employment Unlimited. | HR and payroll first, with rostering as an add-on. |
| Humanforce | By quote Implementation costs on top. Source 7 | More than 120 modern awards interpreted. | Native payroll in Australia and New Zealand with STP2 and superannuation. | For larger employers and enterprise agreements, by quote. |
| Connecteam | US$29 Per hub, first 30 users, annual billing. Source 8 | Not listed on their own pages. | No payroll of its own. Integrations include Xero (Australia, UK and NZ) and MYOB. | A flat hub price for up to 30 users, no award interpretation listed. |
Each product’s award and payroll entries are sourced on its comparison page. Plans change: check the vendor’s page before you decide.
Eight things to check first
Whichever product you move to, these decide whether the first pay run is calm.
Your notice and renewal dates
Read your current plan’s cancellation terms and when an annual term ends. The reasons above link to Deputy’s own rules.
Export everything while you still have access
People, pay rates, past timesheets, the next few weeks of roster and any payroll reports. Keep the files: records have to be kept for 7 years.
Opening leave balances on the switch day
Agree the date, then take each person’s balance as at that day.
Each person’s award and classification
LoggerIQ interprets 11 modern awards. Check that every award your team is on is covered by the product you choose.
Year-to-date pay, if you switch mid-year
Gross, tax and super to date, so year-end figures still add up.
Kiosks and devices at each site
Who clocks in where and on what device. Who sets each one up on the day.
Where approved hours go for pay
Your payroll system decides the hand-off. LoggerIQ sends approved hours to Xero or writes an import file for MYOB or Employment Hero payroll.
One pay period side by side
Run one cycle in both systems and compare pay line by line before you turn the old one off.
How the import from Deputy works
LoggerIQ reads Deputy's own export files with a column preset, so the mapping is done for you and you check it rather than build it.
Export the files from Deputy
- People. Read from Deputy People, Bulk import and update, Download CSV. Check the columns before you continue.
- Past timesheets. Read from Deputy Timesheets, Export, CSV All fields. Only approved timesheets are in that file.
- Roster (next four weeks). Read from Deputy Schedule, Export Schedule, CSV. Deputy names people only by display name here, so names must be unique. This preset is a best guess: check every column.
Import in this order
Later files look up earlier ones, so a roster can find its people and sites.
- Sites. Places people clock in at, with a pin and a radius.
- People. Names, contact details, role, team, site, start date, award and base rate.
- Pay rates. Hourly rates or monthly salaries from a date.
- Opening leave balances. What each person has owing on the day you switch.
- Roster (next four weeks). Rostered shifts from today to four weeks ahead, imported as drafts to publish.
- Year-to-date pay. Opening gross, tax and super (or PF) so a mid-year start is correct.
- Past timesheets. Approved hours from before the switch, kept read-only for the record.
Check the dry run
Before anything is written, every row with a problem is listed with the reason. You can change any column mapping by hand.
Commit, with undo if you need it
The import is written in small batches and picks up where it stopped if a tab closes. Undo removes what that import added; anything that has since been used elsewhere is kept and named.
Send invites when you are ready
Imported people are not emailed until an admin sends the invites. Someone you have invited or imported costs nothing until they accept and join.
Imports are run by a workspace admin and ask for a fresh second factor before they write or undo. Stuck on a column? Email support@loggeriq.io with the file headers and we will help you map it.
Sources
Every vendor fact on this page, with the page it came from and the day we read it.
- Deputy help: annual plans and the HR add-on
- Deputy help: pricing FAQs (who is billed, minimum spend)
- Deputy help: how a monthly bill is counted
- Tanda pricing
- RosterElf pricing
- Employment Hero pricing (Australia)
- Humanforce pricing
- Connecteam pricing
Product names are trademarks of their owners. LoggerIQ is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them. Found something out of date? Tell us at support@loggeriq.io.
Bring your Deputy files and try it
Free for up to 5 people and 1 site. Pro is US$5 per user per month, tax included, with every feature except payroll and a 30-day free trial.
- 30 days with every feature
- Import from Deputy or a spreadsheet
- Cancel any month