Opelo vs ShiftCare
Both run an NDIS roster properly. The decision usually comes down to how many support workers you pay for, and whether you want the bill to grow with your headcount.
Which one should you pick?
Choose ShiftCare if you have a small team, you deliver aged care or home care alongside NDIS supports, or you want a platform with a long track record and a large user base behind it. ShiftCare reports serving more than 8,000 care providers worldwide.
Choose Opelo if you have more than about ten support workers with logins, you want the monthly cost to stay flat as you hire, or you want payroll, learning management and an NDIS-aware assistant included rather than bolted on.
That is the honest version. Below is the detail behind it, with every price taken from each vendor's own published pricing page and dated, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.
How much does each one cost as you grow?
This is the single biggest difference between the two platforms.
| ShiftCare | Opelo | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per user, per month | Flat rate per plan |
| Entry tier | $8 per user per month, billed annually ($9 monthly) | Flat plan covering a set number of staff and participants |
| Mid tier | $13 per user per month, billed annually ($15 monthly) | Flat plan, larger limits |
| Upper tier | $20 per user per month, billed annually ($25 monthly) | Flat plan, larger limits again |
| Cost at 5 workers, mid tier | About $65 per month | Flat plan price |
| Cost at 20 workers, mid tier | About $260 per month | Same flat plan price |
| Cost at 50 workers, mid tier | About $650 per month | Same flat plan price |
| Free trial | 7 days, no card required | Walkthrough on your own roster data |
ShiftCare figures are its published list prices as at 23 September 2026, taken from shiftcare.com/pricing, billed annually. Per-user costs above are calculated from that rate and assume every support worker needs a login. Vendors change pricing, so confirm current figures directly before deciding. Opelo plan prices are being finalised and will be published on the pricing page.
The maths is the argument. A per-user platform is usually the lower number for a provider with three or four workers. Somewhere around ten logins the lines cross, and after that the gap widens every time you hire. A provider who wins one SIL house and takes on eight casuals adds roughly a hundred dollars a month to a per-user bill, permanently, for software that has not changed.
Whether that matters depends on your margins. For a provider running twelve workers on thin SIL margins it matters a great deal. For a five-person support coordination practice it barely registers, and ShiftCare may well be the lower-cost and better-supported option.
What is included, and at which tier?
Both platforms cover the NDIS basics well. The differences are at the edges.
| Capability | ShiftCare | Opelo |
|---|---|---|
| Rostering and scheduling | Yes, all plans | Yes, all plans |
| GPS-verified clock in and out | Yes, all plans | Yes, all plans |
| Mobile app for support workers | Yes, works offline | Yes, mobile portal |
| AI-assisted progress notes | Yes, including voice transcription | Yes, human review before filing |
| Travel and kilometre logs | Yes | Yes, captured automatically |
| Vacant shift broadcast | Professional tier and above | Yes |
| Bulk invoicing and NDIS claim files | Professional tier and above | Yes |
| Full payroll with SCHADS pay runs | Not published as an inclusion | Yes, on upper plans |
| Built-in learning management and certifications | Academy is separate training content | Yes, with expiry tracking |
| Medication schedules and risk assessments | Not published as a named module | Yes |
| Xero and MYOB integration | Yes | Yes, on upper plans |
| REST API and webhooks | Yes | Yes, on upper plans |
| Connect Claude or ChatGPT to your own data | No | Yes, under existing role permissions |
| Serves aged care and home care as well | Yes | NDIS focused |
| Customer base | 8,000+ care providers worldwide, per ShiftCare | Newer platform, smaller base |
ShiftCare inclusions are taken from its published plan descriptions at shiftcare.com/pricing as at 23 September 2026. Where a capability is marked as not published, it means we could not confirm it from public material, not that the product cannot do it. If you are evaluating seriously, ask both vendors directly and get it in writing.
Where ShiftCare is the better call.
We sell Opelo, so treat this page accordingly. Here is where we would genuinely point you elsewhere.
You run a very small team. Under about five logins, per-user pricing costs less and the difference is not worth switching for.
You deliver more than NDIS. If aged care or home care is a meaningful part of your revenue, a platform built across all three is a better fit than one focused on the NDIS.
You want a long track record. ShiftCare has been in this market for years with a large customer base and a deep support library. A newer platform cannot match that, and for some boards that is the deciding factor.
Your team works where there is no signal. ShiftCare publishes offline capability in its worker app. If your supports run in areas with patchy coverage, test that specifically with both vendors before you commit.
Opelo and ShiftCare, common questions.
Does Opelo or ShiftCare cost less for an NDIS provider?
It depends entirely on how many support workers you have logins for. ShiftCare charges per user per month, so the bill scales with headcount. Opelo charges a flat rate per plan, with each plan covering a set number of staff and participants. At published list prices as at September 2026, ShiftCare Professional is $13 per user per month billed annually, so twenty workers is about $260 a month. A flat plan covering twenty staff does not move as the roster fills. Below roughly five users, per-user pricing is usually the lower number.
Does ShiftCare do NDIS claims?
Yes. ShiftCare includes bulk invoicing and NDIS claim file uploads on its Professional plan and above, per its published plan inclusions. Both platforms generate claim files for the myplace provider portal. The practical difference is which plan tier you need to reach to get it.
When is ShiftCare the better choice?
ShiftCare is a mature product with a large customer base, reported by the company as more than 8,000 care providers worldwide, and it operates across aged care and home care as well as the NDIS. If you are a very small team, if you run services outside the NDIS, or if you want a platform with a long track record and a large user community, it is a reasonable choice and we will tell you so.
Can I move from ShiftCare to Opelo?
Yes. Participant records, staff records and historical notes can be imported. The two things worth planning are the pay rules in your payroll setup and any custom forms, because those usually need rebuilding rather than importing. Allow a fortnight of overlap where both systems run before you switch the roster across.
Run the numbers on your own roster.
Tell us your worker count and participant count and we will show you both costs side by side, including the case where ShiftCare wins.