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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Doodle

    Score8.5 out of 10
    N/ADoodle is appointment scheduling software from the Swiss company of the same name.

    $15

    per month per seat

    HotSchedules

    Score8 out of 10
    N/AHotSchedules is a cloud-based scheduling, labor and communication management software solution serving the restaurant and hospitality industry. According to the vendor, key benefits include: Build & Communicate Schedules The scheduling and labor management software reduces the time it takes managers to create and communicate schedules. All scheduling and employee information is stored in one central location, so managers have access to time-off requests,…

    $2

    per month per employee

    Pricing
    DoodleHotSchedules
    Editions & Modules
    Free
    $0
    1 user
    Pro
    $15
    per month per user
    Team
    $19.95
    per month per user
    Enterprise
    Contact Sales
    Essentials
    $2
    per month per employee
    Plus
    $4
    per month per employee
    Quote-Based
    Quote-based pricing
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    DoodleHotSchedules
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsDiscount available for annual billing.—
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    DoodleHotSchedules
    Considered Both Products
    Doodle AG
    No answer on this topic
    HotSchedules and Fourth
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    91%
    Would buy again
    20 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    90%
    Delivers good value for the price
    18 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    91%
    Happy with the feature set
    20 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    94%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    17 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    89%
    Implementation went as expected
    17 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Best Alternatives
    DoodleHotSchedules
    Small Businesses
    Square Appointments
    Score10 out of 10
    Jolt
    Score9.7 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Chili Piper
    Score8.8 out of 10
    Jolt
    Score9.7 out of 10
    Enterprises
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    DoodleHotSchedules
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.0
    (31 ratings)
    1.0
    (167 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    9.1
    (2 ratings)
    Usability
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.9
    (12 ratings)
    Support Rating
    8.3
    (17 ratings)
    8.9
    (4 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    DoodleHotSchedules
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Doodle AG
    Doodle is great when you need to coordinate dates among a group and don't want to send a bunch of group emails or texts. It allows a number of dates to be proposed and the group can easily see those dates that are most preferred. If you need to do something more complex than that it may not be your tool.
    Incentivized
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    HotSchedules and Fourth
    For small to medium-sized companies HotSchedules works great when business is very static. If you are simply using HotSchedules for a schedule writing tool, it is phenomenal. However, it does miss the mark as a labor control software. Needs more controls to keep managers aware of spending versus historical sales data.
    Incentivized
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    Pros
    Doodle AG
    • Doodle allows you to view multiple meeting times simultaneously. I may never have 100% of my team available, but I can see that I have three other options with 90% availability.
    • Doodle is a free resource that doesn't require users to create an account or exist in a network. I simply send the link and see the responses.
    • Doodle notifies you as people respond, making the scheduling process quick and easy. Also, you can confirm a time through the software!
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HotSchedules and Fourth
    • Communication is so simple on HotSchedules. Whether it is communicating a new schedule release, or a quick note about tonight's shift we as managers are able to easily communicate and know that it will reach our team through text notifications, or email notifications.
    • The Meal Break planning tool is very useful in being able to help our floor leaders clearly understand and plan for what breaks are needed throughout the shift. This allows them to come up with a strategic game plan quickly and spend more time with our guests.
    • Shift Swaps and Releases are so seamless. This is our favorite tool as it makes helping our team cover shifts extremely easy and painless. On the flip side it also makes staff who want more hours be able to find what is available in real time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Doodle AG
    • I wish that it offered more options in backgrounds, characters and props without having an additional cost, but that is to be expected.
    • I would like an easier way to add my own fonts, characters , props etc, because I am a new learner this may not be an issue as I get more familiar with the software.
    • I don't like all the sales emails I received trying to upgrade or add to my purchase.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HotSchedules and Fourth
    • Clocking In and out can be a little slow. It takes longer to clock in then our previous method. Before we just had a card you swiped and it would clock you in. Took 2 seconds. Now with the Hotschdules method we use it take 30 seconds or so. Not a huge issue but it can add up if you have one computer and a line of employees waiting to clock in.
    • Time Cards. It does not allow you to view someones current time until the "punch" has ended. If the manager would like to check what time the employee clocked in/out from lunch they have to wait until the employee has clocked out for the day before the record is generated. As a shift lead you may send and employee to lunch but forget to note what time you sent them. Awhile passes and you feel like they should be back by now, so you want to go in and see what time they left for lunch but it does not show you that punch record because the employee is still "clocked in" they are just on their "Meal Break"
    • The ability to customize the restrictions for Clocking in and out. You can set it up so that employees can only clock in from a specific location, however if you have a manager who is allowed to work from home they would not be able to clock in without being at the same location as set in the software. It would be nice to see it able to be customized per user.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Doodle AG
    Easy to use and basically free.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HotSchedules and Fourth
    Ease of use, efficiently creating and posting staff schedules.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    Doodle AG
    Very simple journey with the few important questions/fields
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HotSchedules and Fourth
    6 Years of Experience provides me the insight on the upgrades and changes that HotSchedules has done to improve the experience of its users. There are so many features that we still have not started or used to the fullest, but we believe that we are currently getting a strong value out of the money that is paid for this product.
    Incentivized
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    Support Rating
    Doodle AG
    Doodle has customer service support available as needed, but honestly, it is so easy to use that I have rarely had to seek support. They are always a click away and responsive to resolving any need or to clarify the next best step to using Doodle to meet my needs.
    Incentivized
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    HotSchedules and Fourth
    On rare occasions a phone call has been required to find the solution to a problem, the HotSchedules response staff have been helpful, courteous, and genuinely seem to care for their clients and take pride in what they do. The consistent development and fine tuning of the platform, interface, and mobile environment shows that this is not a program full of people who rest on their laurels.
    Incentivized
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    Alternatives Considered
    Doodle AG
    For the same reasons noted previously, Doodle allows for the organizer to ultimately select/accept the time that works for them. Many competitors only allow you to show available times and the appointment goes directly into the organizer's calendar. I typically prefer to have a bit more control over that. Also, visually Doodle is more intuitive in how you schedule appointments than Calendly. I think Calendly tries to get a bit too cute with their interface instead of sticking to a more standard, familiar calendar interface when setting an appointment.
    Incentivized
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    HotSchedules and Fourth
    I have not used any other Scheduling software for employees. As a campground manager in the summer season, we are using campground master for reservations. it is very similar in process to employee scheduling. the ability to the user of that program to set up their own parameters for time and reservations is something that would benefit the employee scheduling software.
    Incentivized
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    Return on Investment
    Doodle AG
    • Improved efficiency by avoiding the slow and inefficient process of emailing back and forth to set meeting dates and times.
    • Allows for more informed decisions regarding meetings or making decisions, as all options can be laid out visually in a way that isn't possible in an email.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    HotSchedules and Fourth
    • Saving time on scheduling means our managers can focus more on guest experience, managing the floor and other areas that contribute to the success of our business.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    HotSchedules Screenshots

    Screenshot of Time-Off, Availability, Employee Hours, Sales Volume are all available in the scheduler.Screenshot of Employees are able to swap and pick-up shifts from the HotSchedules Mobile App. All shift changes or requests require a manager's approval.Screenshot of Managers and employees can communicate with each other from the mobile and web apps - from anywhere and at anytime.Screenshot of Employees can submit a time-off, request - paid, or unpaid - and can request to work or request off right from the mobile app.Screenshot of Managers can view sales and labor data from their phone.