Enter your shift length, coverage requirements, days per week, and shift type to calculate the optimal roster size for your team. You'll get back the minimum staff needed, total weekly hours, and a breakdown of weekday vs. weekend coverage — so you can plan headcount with confidence.
Recommended Roster Size
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Minimum Staff (No Buffer)
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Buffer Staff (Leave Cover)
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Total Weekly Coverage Hours
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Weekday Coverage Hours / Week
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Weekend Coverage Hours / Week
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The calculator sums the staff needed to cover all weekday and weekend shifts across the week. It then applies your chosen absence and leave buffer percentage on top of the minimum headcount to ensure you're never left short-handed due to sick leave, vacation, or training days.
Fixed shifts assign the same employees to the same shift every week. Rotating shifts cycle staff through different shifts (e.g. days one week, nights the next). Rotating schedules often require fewer total staff because hours are distributed more evenly, whereas fixed schedules may need extra cover to maintain consistent headcount on each shift.
With fixed shifts, the same people always work the same slot, so you need enough bodies on the roster to cover every shift independently. Rotating shifts share the workload across the team, reducing the number of dedicated staff needed per shift slot and improving overall efficiency.
A commonly recommended buffer is 15–20% for most industries, which accounts for annual leave, sick days, and training. Higher-risk environments or organizations with generous leave entitlements may need to go up to 25–30%. A lower buffer (5–10%) may be appropriate for small teams with predictable leave patterns.
Longer shifts (e.g. 12-hour) mean fewer shifts per day but employees work more hours per stint, which can reduce the number of staff needed while still achieving full 24/7 coverage. Shorter shifts (8-hour) spread hours across more slots, typically requiring a larger roster to fill all positions.
The calculator uses the 'Avg. Contracted Hours Per Employee / Week' field to factor in part-time arrangements. If your team includes part-timers averaging 20 hours per week, entering 20 in that field will increase the recommended roster size to compensate for the reduced hours each person contributes.
Yes — simply set your weekday coverage fields to 0 and enter your staffing requirements only for weekend shifts. Set 'Operation Days Per Week' to 2, and the calculator will focus its recommendations on your weekend-only schedule.
Coverage refers to the number of people actively working on the floor at any given time. Roster size is the total number of employees you need to employ to achieve that coverage consistently across the week, including days off, leave, and rotation cycles. Your roster is always larger than your per-shift coverage number.