Step 1
Add your employees
Enter names, roles, contracted hours and hourly rates in the Employees tab.
Free Excel & Google Sheets template
Free Staff Rota Template
Plan staff using exact start and finish times, calculate paid hours and labour cost automatically, compare scheduled hours with contracts, and spot daily staffing gaps.
Free XLSX download
Excel & Google Sheets
Instructions included
staff-rota-template.xlsx
FlowRota
Instructions
Setup
Employees
Shift Log
Coverage
Dashboard
Employee
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Hours
Alex
09–17
09–17
OFF
12–20
22.5
Sam
12–20
OFF
09–17
09–17
22.5
Jordan
08–14
08–14
08–14
OFF
18.0
Taylor
10–18
10–18
10–18
10–18
30.0
Useful calculations
The workbook does real planning work rather than giving you a blank table.
Editable inputs
Yellow cells are designed for your staff, dates, shifts and planning settings.
Ready to reuse
Save a fresh copy for each rota period or import the workbook into Google Sheets.
Inside the workbook
Everything included in the download.
The workbook is split into clear tabs so setup, planning and checking do not all live in one oversized sheet.
1
Instructions
A simple walkthrough showing which cells to edit and how the workbook calculations fit together.
2
Setup
Choose the rota week and set the default minimum number of employees you need each day.
3
Employees
Maintain employee names, roles, contracted weekly hours and default hourly rates.
4
Shift Log
Add one row per shift with date, employee, start, finish and break. Hours and estimated cost calculate automatically.
5
Daily Coverage
Compare employees scheduled each day with your minimum staffing requirement and highlight shortfalls.
6
Dashboard
Review total hours, estimated labour cost, understaffed days and each employee's contract variance.
How to use it
Go from blank workbook to usable plan in three steps.
Step 2
Enter the week's shifts
Add exact start and finish times to the Shift Log. Paid hours and estimated cost calculate automatically.
Step 3
Check before sharing
Use the Coverage and Dashboard tabs to spot staffing gaps and employees materially above or below contracted hours.
Free download
Download free staff rota template.
No account, email gate or card required. Open the XLSX file in Excel or import it into Google Sheets.
What makes it useful
Built to reduce the spreadsheet work you would otherwise do manually.
Each calculation and summary is there to answer a practical planning question before the rota or leave plan is shared.
Exact shift times
Use this version when your staff do not always fit reusable Early/Day/Late shift codes. Each shift has its own start, finish and break.
Automatic paid hours
The workbook calculates paid hours from the shift times, including overnight shifts.
Estimated labour cost
Hourly rates from the employee list feed into each shift, giving you an estimated cost for the rota.
Contract comparison
Scheduled hours are totalled by employee and compared with contracted weekly hours so under- or over-scheduling is easier to spot.
Daily staffing checks
Set the minimum staff you need each day and the workbook calculates the gap automatically.
Instructions included
A dedicated Instructions sheet explains the intended workflow and which cells should be edited.
Google Sheets
Prefer Google Sheets? Use the same download.
The workbook is supplied as XLSX so you only need one version. Import it into Google Sheets and continue editing there.
Download the XLSX file
Save the template to your computer or device using the download button above.
Upload to Google Sheets
In Google Sheets choose File → Import → Upload and select the workbook.
Edit your planning inputs
Replace the sample data with your own staff, dates and planning settings. Core formulas are designed to remain usable after import.
Questions
Before you download.
Is the staff rota template free?
Yes. You can download the XLSX workbook without creating an account or entering payment details.
Can I use it in Google Sheets?
Yes. Download the XLSX file and import it into Google Sheets. The workbook's core formulas and editable planning fields are designed to remain usable after import.
Does it calculate employee hours?
Yes. Enter the shift start, finish and break and the workbook calculates paid hours automatically.
Does it calculate labour cost?
Yes. Add an hourly rate to each employee and the workbook estimates the cost of each planned shift and the total rota.
Can it warn me when staffing is low?
Yes. Enter your minimum daily staffing requirement and the Daily Coverage sheet shows the scheduled headcount and any shortfall.
When should I use the Weekly Rota Template instead?
Use the Weekly Rota Template if your team mostly works repeatable shift types such as Early, Day, Late or Night and you prefer choosing codes from dropdowns.
Start planning
Use the spreadsheet today — or build the rota online.
The template is free and useful on its own. If you later want one live rota with staff updates, availability, leave and attendance connected, FlowRota is there when you need it.