Staff Hub vs Homebase: which fits your retail team?

Homebase centers on scheduling, time clock, and payroll. Staff Hub centers on training, announcements with read receipts, and onboarding. They solve different problems, and many shops run a clock/scheduler and a training/comms tool side by side rather than choosing only one.

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Staff Hub and Homebase at a glance

Both serve hourly retail teams, but they start from different jobs. Homebase factual cells reflect publicly listed information as of June 2026; check joinhomebase.com/pricing for the latest.

Comparison of Staff Hub and Homebase across focus, free tier, pricing model, multi-location, and best fit.
Staff Hub Homebase
Focus Training, announcements with read receipts, onboarding, checklists, and shift handover for retail teams. Scheduling, time clock, and payroll, plus hiring/onboarding and team messaging. (as of June 2026)
Free tier Free forever for up to 5 staff and 1 location. Includes announcements with read receipts and training with completion tracking. Basic plan is $0 for a single location, listed for up to 10 employees, with scheduling and time tracking. (as of June 2026)
Pricing model Flat per-tier subscription by staff count. Pro is $24.99/mo for up to 50 staff and includes multiple locations at no per-location charge. Per-location pricing: Essentials $30, Plus $70, and All-in-One $120 per location per month (lower with annual billing). Payroll is a separate add-on. (as of June 2026)
Multi-location Multiple locations included on Pro and above for one flat tier price, with per-shop roles and dashboards. Each location is priced separately, so cost scales with the number of locations on a paid plan. (as of June 2026)
Best for Teams that want training, consistent announcements with proof-of-read, and structured onboarding in one place. Teams whose first priority is building rotas, tracking clock-in hours, and running payroll. (as of June 2026)

Which one fits your team?

This is a fit question, not a ranking. Pick the tool that matches the problem you most need to solve first.

Choose Staff Hub if…

  • Your main need is staff training, learning paths, and completion tracking.
  • You want announcements with read receipts so you can see who has seen each update.
  • You want structured onboarding, checklists, and shift handover notes in one workspace.
  • You'd like a free-forever tier for up to 5 staff and flat per-tier pricing that includes multiple locations on Pro ($24.99/mo, up to 50 staff).
  • You run on Shopify and want an embedded app, or you want a standalone web app.

Choose Homebase if…

  • Your first priority is building and sharing staff schedules and rotas.
  • You need a time clock for clock-in/out and hour tracking.
  • You want payroll and related labor/compliance tooling in the same product family.
  • You're comfortable with per-location pricing as your store count grows.

Homebase details as of June 2026; confirm current plans and pricing on their pricing page.

They can work together

This isn't strictly either/or. A common setup is to use a scheduling and time-clock tool such as Homebase for rotas, hours, and payroll, while using Staff Hub for training, announcements with read receipts, onboarding, and shop-floor knowledge. Each tool keeps doing the job it's best suited to, and your team gets both without compromise.

Try Staff Hub for training and announcements

Start free for up to 5 staff, then add training, read-receipt announcements, and onboarding as your team grows.

Start free — up to 5 staff Install on Shopify →