Payroll · Context-specific fit
Homebase Review
All-in-one team management for hourly crews — scheduling, time clock, and payroll in one app
Quick verdict
Homebase is best for Trades businesses with hourly crews whose biggest pain is scheduling and accurate time tracking, and who want payroll bundled into the same app. Pricing: Team-management tiers per location/month: Basic (free), Essentials $24.95, Plus $56, All-in-One $96. Payroll is an add-on at $39/month + $6 per employee. No setup, integration, or per-user fees.. The payroll add-on is less mature than dedicated payroll platforms, payroll costs extra on top of the team-management tier, and the mobile app can lag. But for hourly-crew scheduling and time tracking, it is one of the best fits — and bundling payroll is convenient..
About Homebase
Homebase is a workforce-management platform built for small businesses that run hourly teams — and that makes it an unusually good fit for trades crews. Founded in 2014 in San Francisco, it combines employee scheduling, time tracking, team messaging, hiring and onboarding, HR/compliance, and payroll in a single app, with over 100,000 customers and consistently high app-store ratings (4.8 on iOS across 90,000+ reviews). For a contractor managing a rotating crew of technicians or laborers, the scheduling-plus-time-clock-plus-payroll combination tackles the actual daily pain: who is working, did they clock in, and did the hours flow correctly into pay.
Its pricing is genuinely accessible. The team-management platform has a free Basic tier, then Essentials ($24.95), Plus ($56), and All-in-One ($96) per location per month — and Homebase is transparent that it charges no setup, integration, or per-user fees. Payroll is a separate add-on at $39/month plus $6 per employee. So a trades shop can start free for scheduling and time tracking, then layer on payroll when ready, paying for a location rather than per head on the base tiers.
The honest caveat is that Homebase's payroll module is widely seen as the weaker half of the product — reviewers (and titles like "good for scheduling, weak on payroll") note the payroll add-on is less mature than dedicated payroll platforms, the mobile app can be slow or crash during heavy shift management, and its integrations with external payroll/accounting are less comprehensive than competitors. Where Homebase shines is the scheduling and time-tracking core; payroll is a convenient add-on, not a best-in-class engine.
For a trades business with hourly crews whose biggest headache is scheduling and accurate time tracking, Homebase is one of the best-fit tools in this directory — and bundling payroll keeps everything in one place. Shops whose priority is the most robust payroll itself may pair Homebase scheduling with a dedicated payroll platform (Gusto integrates with Homebase) rather than using Homebase payroll alone.
How it works
You set up your location, employees, and schedules in Homebase; employees clock in/out via the time clock (with GPS and photo options), and tracked hours flow into timesheets. You can message the team, post schedules, and manage hiring and onboarding in the same app. Adding the payroll module ($39/mo + $6/employee) turns approved timesheets into a payroll run that calculates wages and taxes, files payroll taxes, and pays employees via direct deposit. The base team-management tiers (free Basic up to $96 All-in-One) are priced per location with no per-user fees. Homebase also integrates with external payroll (e.g., Gusto) if you prefer to keep payroll elsewhere.
Pros & cons
What works
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Built for hourly crews
Scheduling, time clock, and team messaging are tailored to hourly workforces — exactly how most trades crews operate — so daily workforce management is genuinely easier.
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Free Basic tier, no per-user fees
A genuinely useful free plan plus per-location (not per-user) pricing on base tiers makes Homebase accessible for small shops; you can start free and add payroll later.
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Time tracking flows into payroll
Approved timesheets feed the payroll add-on directly, reducing manual re-entry and timesheet-to-paycheck errors — a real win for crews paid on tracked hours.
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All-in-one workforce app
Scheduling, time tracking, messaging, hiring, onboarding, HR, and payroll in one app — covering more of the hourly-workforce workflow than most competitors in its price range.
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Strong usability and ratings
100,000+ customers and a 4.8 iOS rating across 90,000+ reviews reflect a genuinely easy-to-use product that crews actually adopt.
What doesn't
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Payroll is the weaker half
Reviewers consistently rate the payroll add-on below dedicated payroll platforms — fine as a convenience, but not best-in-class. Payroll-first shops may prefer a specialist.
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Payroll is a paid add-on
Payroll costs an extra $39/mo + $6/employee on top of your team-management tier, so the all-in cost for scheduling plus payroll adds up versus a payroll-only tool.
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Mobile app performance
Some users report the mobile app loading slowly or crashing during heavy shift management — frustrating when you are managing a crew in real time.
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Limited external integrations
Integrations with outside payroll/accounting are less comprehensive than some competitors, so deeply integrated stacks may hit gaps.
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Best value is the workforce side
Homebase earns its keep on scheduling and time tracking; if you do not need those, a dedicated payroll platform may be a better, cheaper fit for payroll alone.
Pricing
Team-management tiers per location/month: Basic (free), Essentials $24.95, Plus $56, All-in-One $96. Payroll is an add-on at $39/month + $6 per employee. No setup, integration, or per-user fees.
Starting base: $39/mo + $6/employee
Affiliate disclosure: No public publisher affiliate program confirmed — outreach required to determine availability..
Integrations
Frequently asked
How much does Homebase cost?
The team-management platform has a free Basic tier, then Essentials ($24.95), Plus ($56), and All-in-One ($96) per location per month, with no setup, integration, or per-user fees. Payroll is a separate add-on at $39/month plus $6 per employee.
Is Homebase good for trades crews?
Yes — it is built for hourly workforces, so scheduling, time clock, and team messaging fit how trades crews operate. Tracked hours flow into the payroll add-on, reducing timesheet-to-paycheck errors. It is one of the best-fit workforce tools for crew-based shops.
Is Homebase payroll any good?
It is convenient because it is bundled with scheduling and time tracking, but reviewers consistently rate the payroll add-on below dedicated payroll platforms. If payroll robustness is your top priority, you can use Homebase for scheduling/time tracking and integrate a dedicated payroll tool like Gusto.
Can I start Homebase for free?
Yes — the Basic team-management tier is free and genuinely useful for scheduling and time tracking. You can add paid tiers and the payroll module ($39/mo + $6/employee) as your needs grow.
Other payroll services
Gusto
Tier SThe modern SMB payroll favorite — best affiliate economics in the entire WrenchStack universe ($300-$1,000+ per signup via PartnerStack)
OnPay
Tier SLean SMB payroll with flat pricing — favorite of small trades shops who don't need Gusto's bolt-ons
Patriot Payroll
Tier SUltra-affordable payroll for 1-3 employee shops — cheapest tax-filing payroll in the market
Hourly.io
Tier SPayroll + pay-as-you-go workers comp combined — the only payroll service with WC built in, structurally relevant for trades
QuickBooks Payroll
Tier APayroll embedded in QuickBooks Online — convenient for QBO users, mediocre as standalone product
Square Payroll
Tier APayroll embedded in Square ecosystem — convenient for Square-POS users, narrow fit outside that context