.png)
TL;DR
ShiftCare charges per staff member, from $9 to $25 a month depending on tier, with a five-person minimum. Supportly charges by participant numbers, starting at $35 a month (plus GST) for 1 to 5 participants, with free accounts for your support workers. If you run a lean team with few admin staff, ShiftCare can still work out cheaper. If you're building a coordination team, hiring managers, or dealing with staff turnover, Supportly's model usually costs less and scales more predictably. Run your own numbers below.
Two Different Ways to Charge for NDIS Software
Comparing ShiftCare and Supportly isn't just about which number is smaller. It's about two different ideas of what should drive your software bill.
ShiftCare charges per person who logs in. Every user account, support worker, coordinator, or admin, adds to your monthly total.
Supportly charges by how many participants you support. Your team can grow, shrink, or change roles without your software bill moving, as long as you stay within your participant tier.
Neither approach is wrong. The right one depends on how your business is structured today, and how you plan to grow.
ShiftCare's Per-User Pricing, Explained
ShiftCare runs three tiers, all billed per active staff member per month, with a five-user minimum on every plan:
- Basic — around $9 per user/month (no invoicing included)
- Professional — around $15 per user/month (adds NDIS-ready invoicing and claiming)
- Premium — around $25 per user/month (adds job board, smart carer matching, deeper reporting)
If invoicing matters to you, and for most NDIS providers it does, Professional is the realistic comparison point. Every person you add to your roster, support worker or otherwise, adds that per-user rate to your bill each month.
Supportly's Participant-Based Pricing, Explained
Supportly prices by participant tier instead of headcount. Two core plans:
Total Suite — $35/month plus GST for 1 to 5 participants (billed annually, this drops to $26.25/month plus GST). Support workers get free accounts. No lock-in contract, cancel any time.
Platinum — $60/month plus GST (or $45/month plus GST billed annually). Includes everything in Total Suite plus NDIS legal advice, an employment contract template (valued at $800), an anti-poaching policy (valued at $500), and an internal audit report (valued at $1,200). Platinum requires a minimum 12-month term.
Both plans scale in participant bands from 1–5 right up to 400+, so pricing grows with your business, not your org chart. Onboarding is $199, and data migration for staff and participant records runs $3 per file on both plans. Need something bigger? Supportly's Rollout plan covers onsite implementation, white labelling, and full customisation, priced on enquiry.
The Core Question Each Model Answers
ShiftCare asks: how many people need a login?Supportly asks: how many people do you support?
Your answer depends on your team.
How Your Team Structure Changes the Maths
NDIS providers generally split staff into two groups: direct support workers, who deliver billable hours, and administrative roles, coordinators, practice managers, compliance staff, who make service delivery possible but don't bill participants directly.
Under ShiftCare's model, every one of those roles costs the same per-user fee, whether they're generating revenue or not. Under Supportly, support worker accounts are free, and your admin team sits inside your participant tier.
Example: A growing provider
- Team: 1 practice manager, 2 coordinators, 8 support workers (11 total)
- Participants: 12
- ShiftCare (Professional, $15/user): 11 × $15 = $165/month
- Supportly (Platinum, $60/month flat): $60/month
- Difference: $105/month, or roughly $1,260 a year
The gap widens further as you add coordinators, managers, or compliance staff, since none of those hires touch your Supportly bill.
Example: A lean team
- Team: 1 coordinator, 4 support workers (5 total)
- Participants: 3
- ShiftCare (Professional, $15/user): 5 × $15 = $75/month
- Supportly (Total Suite, $35/month flat): $35/month
- Difference: $40/month, or roughly $480 a year
Even a small team sees Supportly come out ahead here, and the advantage compounds as headcount grows.
Where Supportly's Model Pays Off Most
Staff turnover. NDIS providers deal with more turnover than most industries. Under ShiftCare, every departure and every new hire means adjusting active licenses to avoid overpaying. Under Supportly, support worker accounts are free, so onboarding and offboarding staff doesn't touch your bill.
Building admin infrastructure. As you scale, you'll likely need coordinators, a practice manager, or a compliance officer. Under a per-user model, each hire is a permanent addition to your software cost. Under Supportly, that decision is separated from your software spend entirely; your bill tracks participant growth, not team size.
Budget predictability. Because Supportly's cost is tied to participant numbers rather than staffing decisions, it's easier to forecast. A hiring decision this quarter doesn't quietly inflate a software line item you'd forgotten to check.
Where ShiftCare Can Still Win
If you run a small, lean team of mostly direct support workers with very little admin overhead, and you don't expect that to change, ShiftCare's per-user pricing can be competitive, particularly on its Basic tier if you're managing invoicing separately.
It also gives you more granular control if your headcount fluctuates significantly month to month, since you're only paying for active users.
Feature Comparison: What You Actually Get
Both platforms cover the core ground NDIS providers need: rostering and scheduling, NDIS-compliant claiming and invoicing (Professional tier and above for ShiftCare), participant and support plan management, mobile apps for support workers, incident and compliance reporting, and support coordination tools.
Supportly's platform connects these functions directly, rostering, HR, incident management, invoicing, and care management all draw from the same participant and staff records, rather than syncing separately. That's a structural difference worth factoring in alongside price, since disconnected systems create their own admin cost over time.
Which Model Fits Your Business?
Choose ShiftCare if:
- Your team is small (under 5-6 people) and mostly direct support workers
- You deliberately keep operations lean and outsource admin functions
- Your headcount changes often and you want per-user billing flexibility
Choose Supportly if:
- You're building or growing an admin and coordination team
- You experience regular staff turnover
- You want your software cost tied to participant growth, not headcount
- You want compliance, rostering, HR, and invoicing working from one connected system
Work Out Your Own Numbers
- Count everyone who currently needs system access, support workers, coordinators, managers, and admin staff.
- Count your active participants.
- Calculate ShiftCare: staff count × your relevant tier rate ($9, $15, or $25).
- Check your Supportly tier on the pricing page based on your participant count.
- Project both numbers 12 to 24 months forward against your growth plans.
The provider with the better deal is the one that matches your actual team structure, not a generic average.
Ready to See the Real Difference for Your Team?
Run your own numbers against Supportly's participant-based pricing and see what your team structure actually costs.
Book Your Free Supportly Demo →
Or explore full pricing details and start your 7-day free trial with no credit card required.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Supportly charge per participant or per user?
Supportly pricing is based on participant count, not user logins. Support workers get free accounts on every plan.
Is there a lock-in contract with Supportly?
Total Suite is month-to-month with no lock-in. Platinum requires a minimum 12-month term.
What's included in Supportly onboarding?
Every plan includes a guided onboarding session for $199. Data migration for staff and participant records is $3 per file.
Can I switch Supportly plans as I grow?
Yes. You can move between participant tiers or upgrade from Total Suite to Platinum at any time by contacting your account manager.
Does Supportly meet NDIS Practice Standards?
Yes. Supportly is built specifically for NDIS providers, supporting compliance across incident management, documentation, rostering, and invoicing.
How much does ShiftCare cost per month?
ShiftCare charges per active staff member, with three tiers ranging from roughly $9 to $25 per user, and a five-user minimum on every plan.
