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Once you’re past three locations, scheduling stops being a scheduling problem and starts being a workforce problem. You need forecasting, native payroll, compliance, and reporting that speaks to your GL. The tools that survive this jump aren’t the ones optimized for a single mom-and-pop. Push Operations, Deputy, and Restaurant365 Workforce all sit in this category, and they solve it very differently.
We’ve evaluated each of these at different growth stages. The right answer depends on what else is in your stack, whether you want payroll in the same tool, and how honest you’re willing to be about implementation cost.
Pricing at a glance (Aug 2026)
| Platform | Model | Starting price | Payroll included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Push Operations | Per employee, module-based | Quote-based, starts around $5-$7/employee/mo | Yes, native |
| Deputy | Per user / month | $4.50 scheduling, $6 sched + time, $9 Enterprise | No, integrates with Gusto/ADP |
| Restaurant365 Workforce | Per location + modules | Quote-based; total suite typically $469+/location/mo | Yes (R365 Payroll), separate module |
All three quote enterprise pricing. Bands verified against vendor pages and independent reviews, August 2026.
Feature grid
| Feature | Push Operations | Deputy | R365 Workforce |
|---|---|---|---|
| Native payroll (US + Canada) | Yes | No | Yes (US) |
| Demand forecasting | Basic | Strong | Strong (POS + sales) |
| Compliance (breaks, minor laws) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Accounting integration | Yes | Exports | Native (same platform) |
| Multi-location reporting | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Best fit | Canadian / cross-border operators | Scheduling-first operators | Operators already on R365 |
Push Operations: the Canadian-strong workforce platform
Push Operations is the option we’ve seen most often at operators with any Canadian exposure, since it handles CRA remittances natively alongside US payroll. It bundles scheduling, time, HR, and payroll into a single per-employee price, which is attractive when you want one contract and one vendor invoice.
The scheduling module is competent, not the strongest in the market. If your primary problem is forecasting-driven schedule optimization, Deputy will still win the demo. Push wins on the combined workforce-plus-payroll pitch, especially north of the border.
Our take: right choice for US and Canadian operators who want one workforce vendor and are willing to trade a bit of scheduling depth for payroll consolidation.
Deputy: the scheduling specialist that scales up
Deputy shows up here because at multi-unit scale, its Enterprise tier ($9/user/month with negotiable discounts above 500 users) becomes a real contender. The forecasting engine is the best of the three, POS integrations are deep, and the labor-optimization reporting is what most CFOs want to see on a weekly basis.
The gap is payroll. Deputy doesn’t run it. You export to Gusto, ADP, Paychex, or whoever handles your checks. If your stack is already Deputy plus Gusto and it works, don’t fix it. If you’re consolidating vendors, this becomes a mark against Deputy.
Our take: keep Deputy if scheduling optimization is the highest-value use case. Replace it only if the vendor consolidation math actually pencils out (usually it doesn’t).
Restaurant365 Workforce: the “everything in one system” bet
R365’s pitch is unification: accounting, inventory, scheduling, and (via R365 Payroll) checks all in one platform. For operators already running R365 for accounting and inventory, adding Workforce is the obvious move because the schedule, time punches, and payroll flow into the same GL without exports or middleware.
The cost is real. R365’s total suite pricing typically clears $469 per location per month before add-ons, plus $2,000 to $10,000 in implementation. That’s a defensible check at 10+ locations. At 3 locations it can be hard to justify unless you’re specifically buying the vendor consolidation.
Our take: the right pick if you already have R365 accounting. Wrong entry point if you don’t.
Who this is for
- US and Canadian multi-unit operators: Push Operations. The cross-border payroll is a genuine differentiator.
- Multi-unit US operators wanting best-in-market forecasting: Deputy Enterprise plus separate payroll.
- Existing R365 accounting customers: R365 Workforce. Consolidation math works.
- Fewer than 3 locations: none of these yet. Stay on the tool from our Deputy vs When I Work vs Homebase writeup.
The number to actually watch
Compare fully loaded workforce spend (software + implementation amortized over 3 years) as a percentage of total labor cost. Anything above 1.5% deserves a second look. R365 Workforce can push past that at smaller operator counts. Push and Deputy usually stay below.
Next step
The RBL Toolkit has the labor and G&A worksheets we use to model the tradeoff between vendor consolidation and category-leading. Run those before you commit to a suite.
Related comparisons
Signed, The Pragmatic CFO
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