The short answer
Sole traders look for a ShiftCare alternative for one reason above all: ShiftCare charges per licence with a minimum of 5 licences on every plan, even if you're the only person using the account, and invoicing requires its Professional plan. For one worker who needs to invoice, that works out at $65 to $75 a month excluding GST, depending on billing.
If you work alone, Sparks Scribe starts at $15 a month including GST for one user, with AI shift notes and NDIS-coded invoicing included. Astalty, Bugal and EasyAs are the other Australian products compared below, including each one's limitations.
Search for "ShiftCare alternatives" today and most of what you'll find are lists of American home-care platforms, built around US billing, Medicaid codes and agency payroll. None of that helps an Australian sole trader who needs to write a shift note at 9pm and get an NDIS invoice out before the weekend.
This guide only covers Australian products, priced for the way a one-person business actually works. All pricing was collected from each provider's public website in July 2026; if any of it is out of date, tell us at hello@sparkscribe.app.
Why sole traders go looking for a ShiftCare alternative
ShiftCare is an Australian care management platform built for agencies. Its feature set covers rostering, attendance, bulk NDIS invoicing, payroll with SCHADS Award interpretation, and a family portal.
The problem for sole traders is in the pricing fine print. ShiftCare's own pricing FAQ states a minimum of 5 licences on every plan, even if you're the only person using the account. Pricing starts at $9 per licence per month, but a solo worker can't buy one licence, they buy five. And invoicing, the thing most independent workers actually need, sits on the Professional plan, which at the 5-licence minimum works out at $65 to $75 a month excluding GST for one person, depending on billing.
ShiftCare's pricing assumes a team. If you're a sole trader, you're paying for a structure that doesn't exist. Full head-to-head at Sparks Scribe vs ShiftCare.
How we chose these alternatives
To make this list, a product had to be Australian and available to a single user with no minimum seat count. Where a price isn't published, we say so rather than guessing. One disclosure before we start: Sparks Scribe is our product. We've put it first because we believe it's the best fit for this specific reader, but we've been as blunt about our own gaps as everyone else's.
The alternatives, reviewed
1. Sparks Scribe — built for one person, from $15/month
Best overall for sole traders
Sparks Scribe was built in Australia by Sparks Support Pty Ltd for exactly one cohort: independent NDIS support workers, not agencies. That focus shows up in the pricing. The Essentials plan is $15 a month including GST for one user, and it includes the two things a sole trader actually needs every week: shift notes and invoicing.
Notes can be typed or spoken, and the AI turns them into a professional, well-structured shift note in about 60 seconds; if you'd rather not use AI, templates are there too. Invoices carry NDIS support item codes automatically, on the entry plan, not as an upsell. The Vault plan ($20/month) adds service agreements, a document vault, a receipt vault, mileage tracking and Xero sync. The Safeguards plan ($39/month) adds alert detection on notes, incident reporting, per-client risk profiles, restrictive-practices flagging and six consent forms with in-app signing. It runs on iOS, Android and the web, stores data in Australia, and has had more than 90,000 shifts booked through it. The trial is 14 days, no card required.
The honest concession: it's ours, so weigh this review accordingly. And Sparks Scribe deliberately doesn't do team rostering, payroll or a family portal: it is built for one-person operations, not employers of staff.
2. Astalty — per-user pricing from $64/month
Per-user pricing, no minimum
Astalty is an Australian NDIS platform with no minimum user count. It's priced per user: $64 a month for a standard profile, or $30 a month for a support-worker profile designed for workers operating inside a team. It offers NDIS-coded invoicing, two-way Xero integration, task boards and PRODA bulk upload.
Two things to know: Astalty's "Smart Prompts" are automatic reminders, not AI note writing, and e-signatures cost an extra $1 each, where some rivals include signing in a plan. The trial is 14 days.
Verdict: at $64 a month for a standard profile, Astalty costs more than most tools here for a pure sole trader. At that price, a year on Astalty costs more than four years of Sparks Scribe Essentials for the same one-person admin. Full comparison at Sparks Scribe vs Astalty.
3. Bugal — free tier capped at 2 invoices a month
Free plan capped at 2 invoices/month
Bugal is an Australian web platform built specifically for independent support providers, covering scheduling, invoicing and expense tracking. Its pricing, as published on bugal.com.au in July 2026: a free plan that includes up to 2 invoices a month, a Solo plan at $35 a month, then Starter at $45 a month for teams of 2 to 5 and Premium at $65 a month for larger teams. Bugal doesn't state whether those prices include GST, and it advertises a 30-day free trial.
The honest concessions: Bugal doesn't advertise AI note writing, and at $35 a month its Solo plan costs more than double Sparks Scribe's Essentials plan. The free tier is capped at 2 invoices a month; anything beyond that requires the $35 a month Solo plan.
4. EasyAs — NDIS invoicing only, priced by invoice volume
Invoicing only, no notes
EasyAs (EasyAs Provider Invoicing Pty Ltd, easyasinvoicing.com.au) is an Australian NDIS invoicing platform. Its website states that every NDIS item number and support comes pre-loaded and that pricing auto-updates with the latest NDIS pricing. It prices by invoice volume rather than by user: the Small tier, covering up to 60 invoices a month, is $19.95 a month on their website, $19.99 via in-app purchase, and the tiers run to $39.95 a month on their website for more than 120 invoices a month; in-app purchase prices range from $19.99 to $44.99. Their website does not state whether those prices include GST. Signup is self-serve, so one person can subscribe without booking a demo, and their site advertises no lock-in contracts.
The scope to check first: EasyAs is an invoicing product. Progress notes, shift notes and incident reporting do not appear anywhere on its website or in either app store listing, and no free trial is published. Its privacy policy also states it "may transfer your personal information to countries outside Australia", naming the United States and the European Union, and lists participant names and NDIS numbers among the information it collects.
Verdict: EasyAs covers invoicing. A support worker using it still needs somewhere else to write and store shift notes; Sparks Scribe includes shift notes and NDIS-coded invoicing together at $15 a month including GST.
Team features these sole-trader tools do not include
ShiftCare's minimum-5-licence pricing and team feature set are built around employing staff. The tools in this guide are priced and built for one person.
Features that only matter if you employ staff, and that none of the sole-trader tools in this guide include:
- Rostering and staff oversight. Rostering, attendance tracking and staff dashboards are team-management features; the sole-trader tools in this guide do not include them.
- Payroll. ShiftCare lists payroll with SCHADS Award interpretation; no product in this guide includes payroll, because sole traders do not run one.
- A family portal. ShiftCare lists a portal for clients' family and friends; the sole-trader tools in this guide do not include one.
- Per-licence pricing. The 5-licence minimum applies regardless of headcount; with 5 or more users the licence count matches the number of people using the account.
ShiftCare is priced for a team. If you work alone, you are paying for licences you cannot use.
Side by side: cost for one person, July 2026
| Product | Cost for 1 person, with invoicing | Minimum users | AI shift notes | Free trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sparks Scribe | $15/month incl GST (Essentials) | 1 | Yes — typed or spoken, ~60 seconds, templates optional | 14 days, no card |
| Astalty | From $64/month (standard profile; $30/month support-worker profile is for workers inside a team) | 1, no minimum | No — Smart Prompts are reminders, not AI writing | 14 days |
| Bugal | Free up to 2 invoices/month, then Solo $35/month (GST treatment not stated) | 1 | Not advertised | Free plan; 30-day trial advertised |
| EasyAs | $19.95/month on their website, $19.99 via in-app purchase, up to 60 invoices/month (GST treatment not stated); invoicing only, no notes | 1 (priced by invoice volume, not users) | No — no note features published | Not published |
| ShiftCare (for reference) | $65 to $75/month ex GST depending on billing (Professional plan, minimum 5 licences) | 5, even if you work alone | Platform AI is aimed at team scheduling, not note writing | Yes |
All prices in AUD, collected from each provider's public website in July 2026. GST treatment is noted where the provider publishes it. Always confirm current pricing on the vendor's own site before subscribing.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a ShiftCare alternative with no minimum users?
Yes. Sparks Scribe, Astalty, Bugal and EasyAs all let one person sign up on their own. Sparks Scribe charges a fixed $15 a month including GST for one user on its Essentials plan, Astalty charges per user with no minimum, Bugal offers a free tier, and EasyAs prices by invoice volume rather than by user, at $19.95 a month on their website or $19.99 via in-app purchase for its smallest tier. ShiftCare's own pricing FAQ states a minimum of 5 licences on every plan.
How much does ShiftCare cost for one person?
ShiftCare's pricing starts at $9 per licence per month, but every plan has a minimum of 5 licences, stated in ShiftCare's own pricing FAQ. For a single worker who needs invoicing, that means the Professional plan at a minimum of 5 licences, which works out at $65 to $75 a month excluding GST, depending on billing.
What is the cheapest ShiftCare alternative for a sole trader?
On list price alone, Bugal's free plan costs nothing, but it covers up to 2 invoices a month. Beyond the free tier, the published entry prices in this guide are Sparks Scribe Essentials at $15 a month including GST, EasyAs at $19.95 a month on their website or $19.99 via in-app purchase with GST treatment not stated, Bugal Solo at $35 a month, and Astalty from $64 a month. EasyAs covers invoicing only, so a worker using it still needs a separate tool for notes.
Which ShiftCare alternatives offer AI shift notes?
Among the tools in this guide, Sparks Scribe is the only one that advertises generative-AI note writing: notes can be typed or spoken and are finished in about 60 seconds. Astalty's Smart Prompts are automatic reminders rather than AI writing, Bugal did not advertise AI note writing as of July 2026, and EasyAs is an invoicing product that does not mention note writing at all.
Can I move my client records off ShiftCare?
Before you cancel, check what your ShiftCare plan lets you export and download copies of any notes or documents you need to keep. Most sole traders support a small number of clients, so re-creating client profiles in a new tool is usually a job of minutes rather than a migration project.
Do these alternatives handle NDIS support item codes on invoices?
Sparks Scribe adds NDIS support item codes and rates to invoices automatically, included in the $15 a month Essentials plan. Astalty also advertises NDIS-coded invoicing, and EasyAs states that every NDIS item number and support comes pre-loaded and that pricing auto-updates with the latest NDIS pricing. Bugal is built for NDIS independent support providers, but confirm the exact code handling with that vendor before committing, as it was not spelled out publicly when we checked in July 2026.
Is there a completely free ShiftCare alternative?
One tool in this guide has a free tier: Bugal's free plan includes up to 2 invoices a month. If you want to test a full product instead, Bugal advertises a 30-day trial, and Sparks Scribe and Astalty both offer 14-day trials. EasyAs does not publish a free trial. Sparks Scribe's trial does not ask for a card.
Do I need payroll or a family portal as a sole trader?
Usually not. Payroll with SCHADS Award interpretation and a portal for clients' families matter when you employ staff and coordinate care across a team. If you work alone, those are exactly the features you would be paying for, and never using, under ShiftCare's minimum-5-licence pricing. If you do employ workers, those are team-management features rather than sole-trader admin, and they sit outside the scope of this guide.
More comparisons: vs ShiftCare · vs Visualcare · vs EasyAs · vs Astalty