Updated 21 October 2026.
The best NDIS rostering software is the one that does the job you most need done, at a price that suits how your business is shaped. We compared nine tools that Australian NDIS providers use, on the four things that decide it: rostering, SCHADS Award pay, NDIA claiming, and what it costs. Every fact in the tables was checked on each vendor's own website on 21 October 2026. Where a vendor does not say something on its site, we say so rather than guess.
Rostery is our product, so we list it first. It is held to the same test as the others: the same facts, checked the same way. The other eight follow in alphabetical order.
The short answer
| If you want | Look at |
|---|---|
| Rostering, SCHADS pay and NDIA claiming in one system at a flat price | Rostery, Astalty |
| Per-user pricing with a self-serve trial | ShiftCare, Astalty |
| Paying per client rather than per worker | Brevity |
| A larger provider wanting a Salesforce-based platform for SIL and SDA | Lumary |
| You already run payroll and award interpretation elsewhere | SupportAbility |
| Award-aware rostering for home care teams across NDIS and aged care | Visualcare, CareMaster |
| General shift scheduling with award interpretation, claiming done elsewhere | Deputy |
NDIS rostering software compared (October 2026)
| Software | SCHADS award interpretation | NDIA claiming | Worker app |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rostery (ours) | Built in, every plan | Bulk upload files; results matched for SIL, plan management and coordination | Yes, GPS clock-in |
| Astalty | Built in | Bulk upload files, remittance matching | Yes, GPS clock-in |
| Brevity | Not stated | NDIS bulk claims | Yes |
| CareMaster | Paid add-on ($155 a month) | PRODA bulk invoicing | Yes |
| Deputy | Built in | Not stated | Yes, GPS and face check |
| Lumary | Built in | Automated claim generation | Not stated |
| ShiftCare | Premium plan only | Claim file (Professional); direct PRODA (Premium) | Yes, GPS, works offline |
| SupportAbility | No: exports timesheets to payroll | Bulk payment requests, results imported | Yes, geolocation |
| Visualcare | Built in | Claim data export | Yes |
Published prices and free trials
| Software | Price per month | How it is charged | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rostery (ours) | $199, $499, $999 | Flat, by participants (up to 25, 75, 200) | No, a demo instead |
| Astalty | $64 + $30 | Per office user + per support worker, including GST | 14 days |
| Brevity | From $4.49 | Per client (Lite, annual); Business $6.49 plus a setup fee | Lite plan |
| CareMaster | $16, $26, $36 | Per user; also lists $135 a month for hosting | Not stated |
| Deputy | $6.75, $8.75, $13 | Per user, billed annually | Yes |
| Lumary | Not published | Two editions, by enquiry | Not stated |
| ShiftCare | $8, $13, $20 | Per user, billed annually, minimum 5 users | 7 days |
| SupportAbility | Not published | By active staff, from 30; paid annually | Unclear |
| Visualcare | Not published | Through a demo | Not stated |
Prices change and plans are renamed often. Use the table to build a shortlist, then confirm the current price and what each plan includes with the vendor.
What it costs for a typical provider
Pricing models differ so much that the list prices are hard to compare. Here is the monthly bill for one example: a provider with 3 office staff, 20 support workers who use the app, and 30 participants, paying month to month. Vendors that do not publish prices are left out.
| Plan | How it is worked out | Per month | SCHADS award interpretation included? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rostery Growth | Flat price, up to 75 participants | $499 | Yes |
| Brevity Business | 30 clients x $6.99 | $209.70 plus a setup fee (amount not stated) | Not stated |
| Deputy Core | 23 users x $9.75 | $224.25 | Yes, but no NDIA claiming, so you need a second system for claims |
| ShiftCare Professional | 23 users x $15 | $345 | No: SCHADS validation is on Premium |
| ShiftCare Premium | 23 users x $25 | $575 | Yes |
| Astalty | 3 x $64 + 20 x $30 | $792 including GST (about $720 ex GST) | Yes |
Two things move these numbers. Per-user pricing grows with every support worker you hire, while per-client and flat pricing grow with participants. And the cheapest line is not always the cheapest system: a tool without SCHADS interpretation or NDIA claiming leaves that work, and its cost, somewhere else. Try your own numbers in our free roster cost estimator.
The nine tools, one by one
Rostery first, then the other eight in alphabetical order.
Rostery
Rostery puts rostering, SCHADS award interpretation and NDIA claiming in one system, and charges a flat monthly price by the number of participants rather than per user: $199 (up to 25 participants), $499 (up to 75) or $999 (up to 200) a month ex GST, less if billed annually. Every plan interprets the SCHADS Award, so each shift's pay is worked out and shown line by line before the timesheet is approved (see how Rostery works out SCHADS pay). It writes NDIA claim files to the bulk upload specification and matches the NDIA results file for SIL weekly claims, plan management and support coordination, and every plan includes the support worker app with GPS clock-in. Group and SIL rostering are on the $999 Scale plan. There is no self-serve free trial; you book a demo and we run your own roster through it.
Astalty
Astalty is built for NDIS providers and charges per user rather than per participant: $64 a month for each standard (office) user and $30 for each support worker, GST included, with no minimum number of users and no contract. It shows SCHADS Award alerts while you roster and has an award interpreter that prepares payroll. It creates NDIA bulk upload files and matches the remittance files back to claims. There is a 14-day free trial with no credit card.
Brevity
Brevity is made for community care organisations, covering NDIS providers, plan managers, support coordinators, SIL and aged care. It charges per client: from $4.49 a client a month on Lite (annual), or $6.49 on Business, which adds group rostering and the SIL module and has a setup fee. NDIS bulk claims are on every plan. Its pricing and features pages do not say whether it interprets the SCHADS Award, so ask. We compare it with Rostery in detail in Rostery vs Brevity.
CareMaster
CareMaster serves NDIS and aged care providers and prices per user: $16, $26 or $36 a month, with at least 5 users on the Essential plan. Its pricing page also lists a $135 a month platform hosting fee. Its AI roster optimiser matches workers on availability, travel, qualifications and preferences, and the worker app turns start and end shift into timesheets. Payroll award interpretation for SCHADS is a paid add-on at $155 a month, and it does NDIS PRODA bulk invoicing.
Deputy
Deputy is a general scheduling and time clock tool used by many kinds of shift-based business, with an in-home care and NDIS section on its healthcare page. It matches support workers on training, availability and location, and its time clock uses GPS geofencing and facial verification. It is configured for modern awards including SCHADS. It does not say it handles NDIA claims, so most NDIS providers pair it with a separate system for participants and claiming. Prices start at $6.75 per user a month on annual billing, and payroll is a $5 per user add-on.
Lumary
Lumary is built on Salesforce for SIL, SDA, support coordination and community providers, and its disability product is aimed at mid-to-large providers. It describes compliance-aware roster management, SCHADS award management with automated pay calculations, and automated NDIS claim generation. Pricing is not published: there are two editions, both through an enquiry.
ShiftCare
ShiftCare is for NDIS, aged care and home care providers and prices per user, counting everyone who logs in, care workers included: $8, $13 or $20 a user a month on annual billing, with a minimum of 5 users. Every plan has the scheduler and an offline worker app with geo-fenced GPS clock-in. NDIA claim files come with the Professional plan and direct PRODA claims with Premium, and real-time SCHADS validation of shifts is on Premium only. There is a 7-day free trial.
SupportAbility
SupportAbility is made for NDIS providers and covers SIL, community services, allied health, support coordination and supported employment. It flags availability and leave conflicts, and its app checks workers in and out with geolocation. It creates NDIS bulk payment requests for the myplace portal and imports the results. Its help centre says it does not perform award interpretation, so timesheets go to your payroll software for that. Pricing is not published; tiers are based on active staff and start at 30. We compare it with Rostery in Rostery vs SupportAbility.
Visualcare
Visualcare is aged care and NDIS software for home care teams. It matches workers on skills, preferences, availability and compliance, with award-aware rostering and timesheet award interpretation for SCHADS, and exports payroll to Xero, MYOB or Employment Hero. Claim data exports in one click. Pricing is not published; it works through a demo.
How we compared them
We looked at each vendor's pricing page, features pages and, where they were public, help centre articles, on 21 October 2026. We did not use review sites or other comparison lists. For each tool we recorded who it says it is for, how it rosters, whether it interprets the SCHADS Award itself, how it produces NDIA claims, whether workers clock in on a phone, and the published price. "Not stated" means we could not find it on the vendor's own site; it may still exist, so ask the vendor.
The four things that decide it
Rostering and availability is the core job: matching workers to shifts by skill, availability and location, handling recurring SIL rosters, and filling vacant shifts quickly. A purpose-built NDIS tool understands participant to worker matching, not just headcount.
SCHADS Award interpretation is the one providers most often overestimate. Tagging a shift as "weekend" is not the same as applying the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award: penalty rates, casual loading added the right way, shift loadings, broken shift and sleepover allowances. Ask each vendor to price a real shift in front of you, and check it against our free SCHADS pay calculator.
NDIA claiming turns delivered supports into clean claims. Decide whether the rostering tool should own claiming or feed a separate system, and check how rejected claims come back.
Timesheet and pay checks close the loop: does the time worked match the roster, and is the pay right before it reaches payroll?
Why SCHADS accuracy matters more in 2026
The Fair Work Commission's Annual Wage Review increased SCHADS Award minimum rates by 4.75% from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026, and the superannuation guarantee is now 12%. Home care employees who provide disability care get a further increase of up to 15% to their minimum rate from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 December 2026, and the rest of their increase, with a new classification structure, from 1 October 2027 (Fair Work Ombudsman). Each change is another chance for a spreadsheet or a scheduler that is not award-aware to underpay, or overpay, every shift. Our SCHADS Award 2026 guide sets out the current rates and rules.
A buyer's checklist
- Is it built for the NDIS, or a general scheduler with an NDIS page?
- Does it interpret SCHADS itself, on the plan you would buy, or rely on your payroll software?
- How does it produce NDIA claims, and how are rejected claims fixed and resubmitted?
- What will it cost at your size in a year's time, with the staff and participants you plan to have?
- Do support workers clock in on a phone, and does the app work without signal?
- Is your data hosted in Australia, and can you get it all out if you leave?
- Can you test it on a real week of your own roster before you commit?
Run your top two on the same real week of shifts. The one that produces correct pay and clean claims with the least manual fixing is your answer, whatever its place on anyone's list, ours included. If you are a smaller provider, our guide to the best NDIS software for small providers covers what to prioritise when time and budget are tight.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best NDIS rostering software in 2026?
It depends on what you need most. For rostering, SCHADS pay and NDIA claiming in one system at a flat price, look at Rostery and Astalty. For per-user pricing with a self-serve trial, ShiftCare and Astalty. For per-client pricing, Brevity. Larger providers wanting a Salesforce platform for SIL and SDA often look at Lumary. Shortlist two, then test them on a real week of your roster.
Which NDIS rostering software includes SCHADS award interpretation?
From the vendors' own websites in October 2026: Astalty, Deputy, Lumary, Rostery and Visualcare build it in. ShiftCare includes real-time SCHADS validation on its Premium plan. CareMaster sells it as a $155 a month add-on. SupportAbility says it does not interpret awards and exports timesheets to payroll software instead. Brevity's pricing and features pages do not say.
Which ones create NDIA bulk claim files?
Astalty, Brevity, CareMaster, Rostery, ShiftCare (from its Professional plan) and SupportAbility all produce NDIA bulk claims. Lumary says it automates NDIS claim generation, and Visualcare exports claim data. Deputy does not say it handles NDIA claims.
Is there free NDIS rostering software?
None of the nine is free. ShiftCare has a 7-day free trial, Astalty a 14-day trial, and Brevity and Deputy offer trials on their entry plans. Rostery runs your own roster through it in a demo instead of a self-serve trial.
Do I need separate software for rostering and payroll?
Usually you still need a payroll system to pay people, but it helps when the rostering software interprets the award, so the roster and the pay it creates stay in step and payroll only receives approved, priced hours. Confirm which system does the award interpretation and where NDIA claiming happens, so nothing falls between them.
