Honest Comparison

RosterMate vs Rosterit

Two 100% New Zealand-owned rostering tools, both built for Kiwi teams. That makes this the fairest fight on our comparison pages — and the differences come down to pricing transparency, payroll coverage, and how much is included in the box. Here's the honest side-by-side.

Comparison last updated 5 July 2026 · facts from public vendor pages
$8 NZD
Published price — everything included
1 tier
No separate time & attendance module
NZ-owned — both companies, proudly
IRD
Payday filing built in — RosterMate only
RosterMate vs Rosterit at a glance

Feature and pricing comparison for New Zealand businesses, from each company's public pages as of July 2026. Where Rosterit doesn't advertise a feature, we've said "not advertised" rather than "no" — their public pages are the only evidence available.

RosterMate Rosterit
Published pricing Yes — $8 NZD/employee/month on our site No — contact for quote (Capterra lists US$22.50/mo entry tier)
All-in-one price vs tiered modules One price, every feature included Time & attendance is a separate higher tier; paid add-ons for customisations
AI auto-rostering Yes — AI Auto-Roster builds the roster for you Not advertised — "smart shift matching" is the closest claim
GPS clock-in with geofencing Yes — GPS + geofencing + auto-clock GPS clock-in yes; geofencing not advertised
Facial verification on clock-in Yes — photo/facial verification Yes — facial recognition clock-in
Native mobile apps iOS + Android apps Mobile web app — no app-store apps
SMS notifications No — push + email only Yes — email, push and SMS
Leave management Yes — incl. alternative & family violence leave Yes — leave balances and requests
Xero Payroll (NZ) integration Yes — native integration No — their site states no Xero Payroll integration
Other NZ payroll integrations PayHero, Smartly, Crystal + iPayroll export iPayroll, MYOB, Smartly, IMS, ACE, Crystal — longest local list
IRD payday filing & NZ bank batch files Built in No
Event staffing with shift bidding & waitlists Yes Not advertised (shift offer/swap only)
Custom forms with AI builder Included Not advertised
Messaging — group chats & channels Group chats, position & event channels, announcements Not advertised
100% NZ owned & operated Yes Yes — Auckland based

Rosterit features and pricing information from rosterit.co.nz public pages and Capterra's third-party listing as of 5 July 2026. Rosterit does not publish prices on its own website; the US$22.50/month entry-tier figure comes from Capterra and its currency and accuracy are unverified. "Not advertised" means the feature is not evidenced on Rosterit's public pages — it may exist. Rosterit is a trademark of its owner. Always confirm current pricing and features with the vendor.

What a 20-person team actually pays

Example: a café, care provider or events crew with 20 rostered staff, using scheduling, time clock and timesheets. One of these numbers is published; the other requires an email.

RosterMate
$160 NZD/mo
20 × $8 NZD — published on our pricing page. Every feature included: AI rostering, time clock, leave, forms, events, messaging, IRD filing. No tiers, no add-ons, no quote emails.
Rosterit Simple Scheduling
Quote required
No published pricing. Capterra's third-party listing shows US$22.50/mo for up to 15 users on the entry tier — currency and accuracy unverified, and 20 staff exceeds that band anyway. You'll need to email for your actual number.
Rosterit Time & Attendance
Quote required
Time & attendance is a separate, higher tier at Rosterit — it's not part of the base scheduling plan. Bespoke customisations and add-ons are also priced separately, terms undisclosed.
Where each tool genuinely wins

We respect Rosterit — a fellow NZ-owned company serving Kiwi businesses deserves a fair hearing. Here's where each product genuinely has the edge.

Choose Rosterit if…

  • Your payroll runs on IMS, ACE or MYOB — Rosterit's local export list (iPayroll, MYOB, Smartly, IMS, ACE, Crystal) is the longest in this category
  • SMS shift notifications are a must — Rosterit sends email, push and SMS; RosterMate is push and email only
  • You want facial-recognition clock-in from a local vendor (though RosterMate has facial verification too)
  • Supporting NZ-owned matters to you — and it should. Rosterit is 100% NZ owned and Auckland based, same as us

Choose RosterMate if…

  • You want to see the price before you talk to anyone — $8 NZD flat is published, with time & attendance included rather than sold as a higher tier
  • Your payroll is Xero — Rosterit's own site says it doesn't integrate with Xero Payroll; RosterMate does, natively
  • You want IRD payday filing and NZ bank batch files built in — roster to filed EI return in one system, no re-keying
  • You want AI to build the roster — AI Auto-Roster works from availability, positions and your rules; Rosterit doesn't advertise auto-rostering
  • Your staff want a real app — RosterMate has native iOS and Android apps with push notifications; Rosterit's mobile experience is a web app
  • You staff events or need forms and team messaging — shift bidding with waitlists, AI form builder and group channels are all included in the one price

Our verdict

This is the rare comparison where we're genuinely pleased the competitor exists: Rosterit is 100% NZ owned, Auckland based, and has clearly done the hard local work — its payroll export list (iPayroll, MYOB, Smartly, IMS, ACE, Crystal) is the longest we've seen, and SMS notifications plus facial-recognition clock-in are real, practical features. If you're on IMS or ACE Payroll and your team lives on text messages, Rosterit is a credible choice from a local company.

But two things would make us pause before signing. First, pricing: Rosterit publishes no prices — you email for a quote, time & attendance sits in a separate higher tier, and customisations cost extra on undisclosed terms. RosterMate's price is on the website: $8 NZD per employee per month, everything included, month to month. Second, scope: AI auto-rostering, native mobile apps, Xero Payroll NZ, built-in IRD payday filing, event shift bidding, custom forms and team messaging are all included at RosterMate and none are evidenced at Rosterit. Try us free for 30 days — no credit card — and see if the difference shows up in your first roster.

Try RosterMate Free
RosterMate vs Rosterit FAQs

Common questions from teams comparing the two NZ-owned options.

No. As of July 2026, rosterit.co.nz lists three tiers — Simple Scheduling, Time & Attendance, and Customised Solutions — with no prices shown; you have to email for a quote. Capterra's third-party listing shows a starting price of US$22.50 per month for up to 15 users, but the currency and current accuracy of that figure are unverified. RosterMate publishes its full price on its website: $8 NZD per employee per month, everything included.
Both are 100% New Zealand owned and operated, which is genuinely great for local buyers either way. The main differences are pricing transparency and product scope. RosterMate publishes one flat NZD price with every feature included, while Rosterit is quote-based with time and attendance sold as a separate higher tier. RosterMate also includes AI auto-rostering, native iOS and Android apps, Xero Payroll NZ integration, IRD payday filing, event staffing with shift bidding, custom forms and group messaging — none of which are evidenced on Rosterit's public pages. Rosterit counters with SMS notifications and the longest local payroll export list in the category.
No — Rosterit's own website explicitly states it does not integrate with Xero Payroll. If your payroll runs on Xero, that's a hard blocker. RosterMate has a native Xero Payroll (NZ) integration, alongside PayHero, Smartly and Crystal Payroll integrations and iPayroll export.
It depends on your payroll system. Rosterit has the longest local export list we've seen: iPayroll, MYOB, Smartly, IMS Payroll, ACE Payroll and Crystal Payroll — a genuine strength. RosterMate covers Xero Payroll NZ, PayHero, Smartly and Crystal Payroll plus iPayroll export, and is the only one of the two with built-in IRD payday filing and NZ bank batch payment files, so you can go roster to timesheets to filed EI return in one system. If you're on IMS, ACE or MYOB, Rosterit has you covered; if you're on Xero or want IRD filing built in, RosterMate does.
No — and we'll be straight about it. Rosterit sends shift notifications by email, push and SMS. RosterMate notifies staff via mobile push notifications and email only. In practice, push notifications through our native iOS and Android apps reach staff reliably, but if SMS is a hard requirement for your workforce, Rosterit genuinely wins on that point.
Yes. RosterMate includes free setup and training, and our AI onboarding can import your staff list from a spreadsheet or export in minutes. RosterMate is month to month with no lock-in contract, and there's a 30-day free trial with no credit card required — so you can run it alongside Rosterit and compare before committing.