Forecast your roster cost before you publish shifts
Estimate the total cost of your staff roster before publishing. This calculator forecasts labour costs based on staff numbers, hours, employment mix and pay rates.
This calculator provides general estimates only. Actual labour costs vary by award, penalties and individual rostering patterns, and it does not constitute legal or payroll advice — always verify with the Fair Work pay calculator and consult professionals. It does not constitute legal, HR, or professional advice and should not be relied on as a substitute for advice specific to your business, workforce, or circumstances.
Roster cost forecast calculator
Enter your team size, hours and pay rate. Fine-tune the mix, penalties and super in the advanced options.
Forecast roster cost
Estimates only — verify before making decisions.
Why forecasting roster costs matters
Labour is typically the largest expense for Australian businesses, often accounting for 20–40% of total costs. Forecasting the cost of a roster before you publish it lets you catch overspend before it happens, rather than discovering a blowout at payroll.
A good forecast turns rostering into a budgeting decision: you can see the cost of an extra shift, a heavier casual mix or a public-holiday week and adjust before locking it in. To turn a forecast into a compliant, published roster, see our rostering software.
What's included in this forecast
Base wages
Hours worked across the period × your average hourly rate.
Casual loading
Applied to the casual share of hours (default 25%).
Superannuation
Added on top of gross wages at your chosen rate (default 12%).
What's not included
This is a planning estimate, not a compliance calculation. It doesn’t include allowances (travel, uniform, meal), individual award exceptions, exact time-of-day penalty rates, leave loading, workers’ compensation or payroll tax. For exact award figures, use the official Fair Work pay calculator.
Want to compare forecast vs actual costs?
Upgrade to RosterElf for real-time roster costing, live budget tracking and payroll export.
Free calculator
Perfect for quick labour cost estimates
- Forecast total roster costs
- Employment mix calculations
- Casual loading & super
- No signup required
- Forecast vs actual tracking
- Real-time roster costing
- Payroll export (Xero & MYOB)
- Automatic award interpretation
Full Suite
Rostering, payroll & HR in one
per employee per month
+ GST, billed annually
Payroll & HR tools in one system
- Smart rostering & availability
- Time & attendance (GPS & photo)
- Award interpretation & penalties
- Payroll export (Xero & MYOB)
- HR Hub with employee profiles
- Digital onboarding & contracts
- Policies, certificates & compliance tracking
- Payroll sync with employee records
- Workwise AI compliance assistant
- Central document storage & management
- Leave management with approvals
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Frequently asked questions
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No. It provides an estimate based on the averages and assumptions you enter. Actual costs will vary based on individual pay rates, actual hours worked, specific penalty rates and award conditions.
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Yes. Choose next week, fortnight, month, quarter or year and the calculator scales your forecast accordingly.
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The calculator applies casual loading (default 25%) to the casual share of your workforce. You set the employment mix using the casual workforce percentage.