Best PTO Tracking Software in 2026

What to Look for in PTO Tracking Software in 2026

Spreadsheets work for tracking time off until two people on one team book the same week, carryover gets worked out by hand, or a manager approves leave without checking who else is out. This guide compares six tools for small and mid-size teams: three dedicated leave trackers (Timetastic, Vacation Tracker, Calamari), two HR systems (BambooHR, Humaans) and one payroll platform (Gusto). We read each vendor's pricing page and docs in October 2026. These are the criteria that matter.

Requests and approvals

Check where managers approve (email, mobile, Slack or Teams), whether the approver sees who else is off, whether you can set minimum staffing, and whether you get multi-step or backup approvers. Half-day leave matters for most teams.

Accruals and carryover

If staff earn PTO over time, the tool needs to accrue on your schedule, prorate for mid-year joiners, raise allowances with tenure, and cap or expire carryover. Some tools put accruals on a higher plan, which can double the per-user price.

Calendars, chat and public holidays

A shared view of who is out is half the value. Look for sync to Google, Outlook or Apple calendars. In Slack and Teams, some tools let people request and approve leave in chat; others only post a daily summary. If you have staff in several countries, check holiday coverage for each one: listed coverage here ranges from over 110 calendars to over 3,000 regions.

Dedicated tracker or PTO inside an HRIS or payroll tool

This is the biggest decision. Dedicated trackers cost a few dollars per user and focus on leave. HRIS tools (BambooHR, Humaans) put time off next to records and onboarding, at a higher price. Payroll tools (Gusto) push approved leave into pay runs, which matters most for hourly staff. If you already pay for an HRIS or payroll tool, test its time-off features before buying a tracker.

Pricing traps

Watch for monthly minimums (Vacation Tracker charges at least $50 or $100 a month), seat minimums (Calamari has 10), flat fees for small companies (BambooHR Core is a flat $250 a month for 25 or fewer employees) and quote-only pricing (Humaans).

Timetastic review

Timetastic is a UK-based leave tracker built around one job: booking and approving time off. It does not try to be an HRIS. For teams that want a clear view of who is off, simple approvals and calendar and chat integrations at a low per-user price, it is our top pick.

Key features

• Approvals from email. Managers can approve or decline a leave request directly from the notification email.
• Overlap and staffing checks. The pending-requests view shows overlaps with teammates, and you can set minimum staffing levels and clash checks per department.
• Public holidays for over 3,000 regions.
• Calendar sync. Personal calendar sync with Outlook, Gmail and Apple, plus a Google Workspace integration.
• Slack and Microsoft Teams. There is a Slack integration, and the Teams integration posts daily absence summaries and lets people handle requests in chat.
• Leave types and half days. Annual, sickness, maternity/paternity, unpaid, compassionate and meetings, with morning and afternoon sessions for half days. iOS and Android apps.

Pricing

Timetastic shows USD prices to visitors outside the UK and Ireland and GBP inside them.

• Business: $1.50/user/month (GBP 1.20)
• Pro: $2.50/user/month (GBP 2.00)
• Rota & Time Clock: $5.50/user/month (GBP 4.00). Adds rota building, a time clock and timesheets on top of leave.

All plans are billed monthly only, month to month, and you can cancel anytime. No annual price is shown and no minimum number of users is stated. There is no free plan, but there is a 30-day fully functional free trial with no card required. Charities, B Corps, Fair Tax Mark holders, 1% for the Planet members and NHS Trusts get 50% off.

We did not confirm exactly which features sit on Business versus Pro, so check the plan table on the pricing page before you choose.

Pros

• Low per-user price from $1.50/user/month with no minimum stated
• Month-to-month billing, cancel anytime, and no card needed for the 30-day trial
• Public holidays for over 3,000 regions
• Google, Outlook and Apple calendar sync plus Slack and Teams integrations

Cons

• A leave-focused tool, not a full HRIS
• No annual billing option or annual discount listed
• Annual booking limits are alerts only, not hard limits, and maximum absence and locked dates are marked "coming soon"
• Some features, such as the Burnout Board, are web-only and not in the mobile app

Who should use it

Small and mid-sized teams that want cheap leave booking without an annual contract, including teams spread across regions or working in Slack or Teams.

Who should skip it

Teams that need hard booking limits today, or want leave tied to payroll or a full employee database.

Vacation Tracker review

Vacation Tracker is a dedicated leave tool built to work inside Slack, Microsoft Teams and Google Workspace. Its Complete plan adds accruals, TOIL, hourly leave and multi-level approvals.

One change to know about: Vacation Tracker no longer has a free plan. A Vacation Tracker blog post says the free plan was discontinued in June 2026, and the pricing page now shows only a free trial.

Key features

• Leave in Slack, Teams and Google Workspace. Employees request leave in Slack (users import from the Slack directory) or through a Microsoft Teams bot and custom tabs.
• Accruals and carryover. Automatic accruals, carryover (brought forward) by your rules, hourly leave tracking and TOIL. Accruals, hourly leave and TOIL are on the Complete plan.
• Approvals. Multi-level and substitute approvals on Complete. Notice-period automation on both plans.
• Public holidays. Import holidays for multiple countries per location.
• Calendars. Personal calendar sync with Google and Outlook. Shared calendars via iCal on Core, or Google/Outlook on Complete. (The pricing page is a little inconsistent on what Core includes here, so confirm if shared calendars matter to you.)
• Integrations and apps. ADP, Zapier, open API and an MCP server on both plans, plus iOS and Android apps.

Pricing

• Core: $2/user/month, minimum $50/month, billed monthly. Includes 3 locations and 10 departments, unlimited leave policies and holidays, leave balance and request reports, notice-period automation, ADP/Zapier/OpenAPI/MCP integrations, and email and chat support.
• Complete: $4/user/month, minimum $100/month, billed monthly. Adds unlimited locations and departments, all 7 automations, accruals, hourly tracking and TOIL, multi-level and substitute approvals, scheduled reports, shared Google/Outlook calendars and priority support.

Yearly billing saves about 10%, but yearly plans are priced by user tier and no yearly prices are listed. There are no user caps. There is a 14-day free trial, and no card is required (stated for Complete).

Pros

• Requests and approvals work in Slack, Microsoft Teams and Google Workspace
• Accruals, carryover, hourly leave and TOIL on Complete
• Public holidays for multiple countries per location
• ADP, Zapier, open API and MCP server integrations on both plans

Cons

• Monthly minimums ($50 or $100) make it costly for very small teams
• Accruals and multi-level approvals need the $4/user Complete plan
• No free plan, and yearly prices are not published
• Core keeps only 3 months of company activity log (Complete keeps full history)

Who should use it

Teams that work in Slack or Microsoft Teams and want leave requested and approved there, or that need hourly leave or TOIL (on Complete).

Who should skip it

Very small teams. Under 25 users you pay the $50 Core minimum (or $100 on Complete). For basic booking for 8 people, Timetastic costs less.

Calamari review

Calamari is a modular HR suite that starts with leave (the Time Off module). You pay per module and can add attendance, scheduling, core HR or performance reviews later. Its approval rules are the most configurable of the dedicated trackers here.

Key features

• Multi-step approvals. Set approval flows per absence type, team or department. Auto-approve some types (for example sick leave), assign a backup approver, and lock past requests.
• Accruals and proration. Accruals prorated by hire date or other employee properties.
• Public holidays. Over 110 public holiday calendars.
• Slack and Teams. Request leave in Slack. Notifications go out by email, Slack and Microsoft Teams. Calamari also lists Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 integrations.
• Calendar sync. Syncs with Outlook and Google Calendar.
• Reports and apps. Entitlement, leave request and payroll reports (Excel or PDF), plus native iOS and Android apps.

Pricing

Calamari prices each module per active user per month, shown in USD (you can pay in EUR or USD), excluding VAT. Monthly price first, then the billed-yearly price:

• Time Off: $2.50 monthly / $2 billed yearly
• Time & Attendance: $3 / $2.50
• Core HR: $2.50 / $2
• Performance Review: $3 / $2.50
• Scheduling: $3 / $2.50
• SAML SSO add-on: $1 / $0.80

Minimum subscription is 10 seats. Admins and managers count as active users; archived employees are not charged. A Customized Plan and non-profit discounts are available on request. Larger teams may pay extra for setup and data import.

There is no free plan. The 14-day free trial includes all modules and features and needs no credit card.

Pros

• Pay only for the modules you need, from $2/user/month billed yearly
• Flexible multi-step approvals with auto-approval and backup approvers
• Over 110 holiday calendars and native mobile apps
• Full-featured 14-day trial with no card

Cons

• 10-seat minimum, so very small teams pay for unused seats
• Costs add up as you stack modules and the SSO add-on
• Setup and data import may cost extra for larger teams
• Teams support is listed for notifications; leave requests in chat are listed for Slack

Who should use it

Small and mid-sized companies with layered approvals or several absence types that need their own rules, and teams that may add attendance or scheduling later.

Who should skip it

Teams under 10 people, and teams that want to approve leave inside Microsoft Teams rather than get notified there.

BambooHR review

BambooHR is an HRIS for US small and mid-sized businesses. Time off is part of its Core plan, next to records, hiring, onboarding and eNPS surveys. You would not buy it just for PTO, but its time-off rules are the most detailed we confirmed.

Key features

• Unlimited custom time-off policies on Core, with a time-off calendar.
• Three policy types: accrual, manually updated, and flexible (unlimited, tracks year-to-date use).
• Accrual options: yearly, monthly, bi-weekly or twice-monthly accrual frequency, plus tenure-based increases.
• Carryover rules: carryover caps and carryover expiration dates (up to one year).
• Balance projections: employees can project future balances with an accrual calculator. Only approved requests deduct from balances.
• More than PTO: onboarding with checklists, e-signatures and I-9/E-Verify (powered by Mitratech), plus a US payroll add-on.

We did not confirm BambooHR's Slack or Microsoft Teams integrations or its public holiday coverage, so ask about both in a demo if they matter to you.

Pricing

BambooHR has three plans. The plan cards show Core from about $10 per employee per month, Pro at $17 and Elite at $25 (the FAQ on the same page lists $10.25 for Core and $17.50 for Pro). Per-employee pricing applies above 25 employees, with automatic volume discounts. In practice, final pricing comes by quote.

• Companies with 25 or fewer employees pay a flat monthly rate: $250 (Core), $425 (Pro) or $650 (Elite).
• Billing: month to month or an extended term.
• Discounts: 15% off when bundling Payroll and Benefits Administration (US employees only), plus 15% for registered nonprofits.
• Add-ons quoted by sales: Payroll, Benefits Administration, Time & Attendance and Global Employment (powered by Remote).
• Promotion: Payroll subscription fees at $0 through December 31, 2026 for eligible customers with a 12-month commitment (offer runs August 1 to December 31, 2026).

There is no free plan. A free trial exists, but we could not confirm its length.

Pros

• Time off, hiring, onboarding and eNPS surveys all included in Core
• Flexible accrual, manual and unlimited time-off policies with carryover caps and expiry
• Accrual calculator lets employees see future balances
• Published per-employee prices and volume discounts

Cons

• Small teams pay a flat $250+/month regardless of headcount
• Payroll and benefits are US-only and priced separately
• Time & Attendance (scheduling, kiosk) is a separate add-on
• Performance reviews need Pro; compensation tools need Elite

Who should use it

US SMBs that want one HRIS for records, time off and onboarding, with accrual-based PTO, tenure rules and carryover limits.

Who should skip it

Teams that only need leave tracking: a 25-person team pays $250 a month on Core, several times a dedicated tracker. Payroll is built for US employees.

Humaans review

Humaans is an HRIS for growing companies. Time off sits next to the directory, documents, onboarding workflows and timesheets on its Growth plan. Like BambooHR, it makes sense for PTO only if you also want an HR system.

Key features

• Policies by location. Attach time-off policies to each office or location, with a configurable cycle start date.
• Unlimited policies and carryover. Unlimited paid leave policies and carryover of unused days.
• Public holidays. 190+ public holiday calendars, and public holidays can be treated as working days where needed.
• Calendar feeds. Feeds for Google, Apple and Outlook, scoped to the company, a department, a team or direct reports.
• Slack summary. A daily Slack summary of who is away.
• Mobile. Employees log full or half days, see balances, and book and approve time off on mobile.

Humaans' time-off page does not mention Microsoft Teams, and we did not confirm accrual options, so ask about both if they matter to you.

Pricing

Humaans does not publish prices. The plans page lists Growth, Enterprise and Athena (an agentic AI platform), each with "Talk to sales".

• Growth: directory, documents, absence management, timesheets, onboarding and offboarding automation, workflows, up to 2 custom permission roles, reports, org chart, integrations and API.
• Enterprise: adds Okta and Entra ID integrations, SAML SSO, unlimited permission roles and custom fields, webhooks, sandbox, a dedicated CSM and 99.9% uptime.
• Add-ons (no prices listed): including AI Companion and Performance Management.

No free plan or free trial is stated on the plans page.

Pros

• Absence tracking with 190+ holiday calendars, carryover and unlimited leave policies
• Location-based policies suit teams spread across offices or countries
• Calendar feeds for Google, Apple and Outlook and a Slack away summary
• Onboarding and offboarding workflows included on Growth

Cons

• No published prices or trial, so you need a sales call to compare
• Slack support is a daily summary; Microsoft Teams is not mentioned on the time-off page
• SSO and advanced identity integrations need Enterprise
• Performance management costs extra

Who should use it

Growing companies, especially in the UK and US, that want an HRIS with time off and onboarding, and have staff in several locations with different leave rules.

Who should skip it

Teams that want to compare prices before talking to anyone, or that only need leave tracking. Also skip it if you want employees to request leave inside Slack or Teams.

Gusto review

Gusto is a US payroll, benefits and HR platform. Time off is on every plan, and its advantage for PTO is the link to payroll: approved time off syncs automatically with pay runs and calendars.

Key features

• Time Off on all plans. Simple includes basic PTO policies and holiday pay.
• Custom policies. Time-off policy customization, special time-off policies and custom paid holidays are included on Plus and Premium, and an add-on on Simple.
• State-based recommendations. Policy recommendations based on state laws for PTO, sick leave and holidays.
• Payroll sync. Approved time off syncs automatically with payroll and calendars, with PTO accrual alerts.
• Mobile. Gusto mobile app (iOS and Android) for employees and employers.
• More than PTO. Full-service payroll with unlimited payrolls and tax filings on all plans; time tracking and scheduling on Plus and Premium.

We did not confirm Slack or Microsoft Teams integrations for Gusto time off, or public holiday calendars outside the US.

Pricing

All prices are USD and monthly. Gusto states: "No contracts. Free account setup. Switch or cancel anytime."

• Simple: $49/month + $6/month per person. Basic payroll in one state, basic PTO policies and holiday pay.
• Plus: $80/month + $12/month per person. Adds time tracking and scheduling, unlimited next-day pay, multi-state payroll, contractor invoice management, hiring/ATS, onboarding checklists and performance.
• Premium: $180/month + $22/month per person. Adds Premium Account Support, HR guidance and tools, Gusto Business Compliance, unlimited same-day and instant pay, project-based rules and costing, and 25 invoice payments and bank transfers included per month.

Add-ons relevant to time off: Time & Attendance Plus on Simple can be tried free, then costs $6/month per person.

There is no free plan or free trial for payroll plans, but account setup is free.

Pros

• Approved time off flows into payroll, so no re-keying hours
• Time off tracking included even on Simple
• State-law policy recommendations for PTO, sick leave and holidays
• Public, month-to-month pricing with free setup

Cons

• Custom time-off policies are an add-on on Simple
• Simple covers payroll in one state only; multi-state needs Plus
• Expensive if you only want PTO tracking, since you pay for payroll too

Who should use it

Small US businesses that need payroll anyway and want PTO, holiday pay and sick leave tied to pay runs.

Who should skip it

Teams with payroll elsewhere, most staff outside the US, or a need for chat-based approvals.

Head-to-Head Comparison

Accrual policies

• BambooHR has the most detailed accrual rules we confirmed: four accrual frequencies, tenure-based increases, carryover caps and carryover expiry, plus a balance projection calculator.
• Vacation Tracker offers accruals, carryover, hourly leave and TOIL, but only on Complete.
• Calamari prorates accruals by hire date or other employee properties.
• Gusto includes basic PTO policies on Simple, with accrual alerts; custom policies need Plus, Premium or an add-on on Simple.
• Humaans supports unlimited policies and carryover per location. We did not confirm accrual options.
• Timetastic supports a range of leave types and half days. Its booking limits are alerts only, and maximum absence and locked dates are "coming soon".

Slack and Microsoft Teams

If chat-based leave is the main reason you are buying, Vacation Tracker is the clearest fit, with Timetastic close behind.

Worked cost example: 25-person and 60-person teams

These figures use only published monthly prices. Humaans is left out because it is quote only. BambooHR is shown as an estimate above 25 employees because its per-employee price varies between plan cards and FAQ, volume discounts apply, and final pricing comes by quote.

25-person team (monthly):

• Timetastic Business: 25 x $1.50 = $37.50
• Timetastic Pro: 25 x $2.50 = $62.50
• Vacation Tracker Core: 25 x $2 = $50, which equals the $50 minimum = $50
• Vacation Tracker Complete: 25 x $4 = $100, which equals the $100 minimum = $100
• Calamari Time Off, billed yearly: 25 x $2 = $50/month ($600/year). Paid monthly: 25 x $2.50 = $62.50
• BambooHR Core: 25 or fewer employees pay a flat $250
• Gusto Simple: $49 + (25 x $6 = $150) = $199 (includes payroll)
• Gusto Plus: $80 + (25 x $12 = $300) = $380 (includes payroll)

60-person team (monthly):

• Timetastic Business: 60 x $1.50 = $90
• Timetastic Pro: 60 x $2.50 = $150
• Vacation Tracker Core: 60 x $2 = $120 (above the $50 minimum)
• Vacation Tracker Complete: 60 x $4 = $240 (above the $100 minimum)
• Calamari Time Off, billed yearly: 60 x $2 = $120/month ($1,440/year). Paid monthly: 60 x $2.50 = $150
• BambooHR Core (estimate): 60 x about $10 = about $600 before volume discounts (60 x $10.25 = $615 using the FAQ figure). Get a quote.
• Gusto Simple: $49 + (60 x $6 = $360) = $409 (includes payroll)
• Gusto Plus: $80 + (60 x $12 = $720) = $800 (includes payroll)

For pure leave tracking, the dedicated tools cost $37.50 to $240 a month across both team sizes. BambooHR and Gusto cost more because you are buying an HRIS or payroll; if you need those anyway, PTO comes included.

The minimums matter for smaller teams: a 10-person team on Vacation Tracker Core still pays $50 a month. Vacation Tracker's yearly billing saves about 10%, but yearly prices are not published, so they are not included.

Trials and free plans

None of the six has a free plan. Timetastic has a 30-day trial, Vacation Tracker and Calamari have 14-day trials, BambooHR has a trial of unconfirmed length, Humaans states none, and Gusto offers free setup but no payroll trial.

How to Choose: Decision Framework

Questions to answer first

1. Do you already pay for an HRIS or payroll tool? If it is BambooHR, Humaans or Gusto, test its time-off features before buying anything else.
2. Do you need accruals? If yes, rule out plans that don't include them (Vacation Tracker Core, for example) and price the plan that does.
3. Where should approvals happen? Match the tool to where your managers already work.
4. How many countries or regions do you cover? Check holiday coverage for every location you have.
5. How many people, now and in a year? Small teams should watch minimums.
6. Monthly or annual? Timetastic is monthly only. Calamari is cheaper billed yearly. BambooHR offers both.

Red flags

• A headline price that excludes the feature you need (accruals, multi-level approvals, custom policies).
• Monthly or seat minimums that make a small team pay for empty seats.
• "Coming soon" on a feature you need today, such as hard booking limits.
• Chat "integration" that turns out to be notifications only, when you wanted approvals in chat.

What to test in a trial or demo

• Set up your real leave policy, including carryover and any tenure rules, and check the balances it produces.
• Book overlapping leave for two people on one team and see what the approver sees.
• Approve a request from where your managers work: email, phone, Slack or Teams.
• Add holiday calendars for every location and check a known bank holiday.
• Export a leave report and check it has what payroll needs.

The Verdict: Final Recommendations

1. Timetastic: best overall for small and mid-size teams

The lowest per-user price, month-to-month billing and the widest holiday coverage. A 25-person team pays $37.50 a month on Business.

2. Vacation Tracker: best for Slack and Teams teams

Leave requested and approved inside Slack, Teams or Google Workspace. Budget for Complete ($4/user/month, $100 minimum) for accruals or TOIL.

3. Calamari: best modular pick

The most flexible approvals of the dedicated trackers, with modules to add later. Pay yearly for $2/user/month.

4. BambooHR: best HRIS for US SMBs with accrual-based PTO

Detailed accrual, tenure and carryover rules alongside records and onboarding. Worth it if you need an HRIS. Too expensive if you only need PTO.

5. Humaans: best HRIS for multi-location growing teams

Location-based policies and 190+ holiday calendars, with onboarding workflows included. Expect a sales process before you see a price.

6. Gusto: best if PTO must flow into US payroll

Approved time off syncs with payroll. A good default for small US teams that need payroll anyway.

Conclusion

For most small and mid-size teams, a dedicated leave tracker is the right first step: Timetastic for low cost, Vacation Tracker for Slack and Teams, Calamari for complex approvals. If you already need an HRIS or payroll tool, BambooHR, Humaans and Gusto handle PTO too. Either way, trial it with your real leave policy first.