Running a pub means juggling staff rotas, tracking performance, and keeping everyone motivated – all while dealing with last-minute call-offs and busy weekend rushes. Sound familiar? You’re not alone. Every landlord I know struggles with staff management, and most of the tools out there cost a fortune or are built for massive chains, not independent pubs.
That’s exactly why I built SmartPubTools. After years of scribbling rotas on the back of beer mats and trying to remember who’d worked the most shifts, I knew there had to be a better way. Our free staff management app for pubs gives you everything you need to keep your team organised and motivated, without the hefty price tag.
Running this problem at your pub?
Here's the system I use at The Teal Farm to fix it — real-time labour %, cash position, and VAT liability in one dashboard. 30-minute setup. £97 once, no monthly fees.
Get Pub Command Centre — £97 →No monthly fees. 30-day money-back guarantee. Built by a working pub landlord.
Staff Scheduling Made Simple
Creating rotas shouldn’t take hours of your week. Our free FOH app lets you build staff schedules in minutes, not hours. You can:
- Drag and drop shifts to create rotas quickly
- See everyone’s availability at a glance
- Handle shift swaps without the back-and-forth texts
- Track hours to stay on top of wage costs
No more crossed-out names on paper rotas or confusion about who’s supposed to be working. Everything’s digital, clear, and accessible to your team on their phones. Your staff can check their shifts, request time off, and even pick up extra hours when others drop out.
Keep Your Team Motivated
Here’s where SmartPubTools gets interesting. We’ve built gamification right into the platform because let’s face it – a bit of friendly competition never hurt anyone. Staff can earn points for punctuality, upselling, or customer feedback. Our leaderboards show who’s performing well, and trust me, your team will love seeing their names at the top.
This isn’t just about making work fun (though it does that). When your staff are engaged and competing to do better, your pub wins. Better service, higher sales, fewer no-shows – it all adds up to a smoother operation and more profit in your pocket.
The best part? Unlike other hospitality management tools that charge per user or per location, SmartPubTools is completely free. No hidden costs, no premium features locked away, no contracts. Just proper tools built by someone who understands what it’s like to run a pub.
Ready to get your staff management sorted? Try SmartPubTools free today and see how much easier running your pub can be. Your future self will thank you for it.
Free Tool for UK Pub Landlords
Used daily at Teal Farm Pub, Washington NE38
The Pub Command Centre handles everything in this article — without a spreadsheet.
Wet GP%, dry GP%, labour costs, beer line cleaning logs (12 lines), HACCP temperature checks, stock ordering, weekly P&L. All in one system. Used every shift at Teal Farm where labour runs at 15.1% against a UK pub average of 25-30%.
On a pub taking £900k a year, running labour at 15% instead of 25% is worth roughly £90,000. That is what tracking it daily — every shift, every week — actually looks like.
£97 once. No subscription. No monthly fee. Works on any phone, tablet or laptop. Setup under 10 minutes. Built and used by a Marston’s CRP licensee with a 5-star EHO rating and 180 covers.
See the Pub Command Centre — £97 →
One-off payment. Works on any device. Used by a working licensee, not a software company that’s never pulled a pint.
SmartPubTools FOH App — Free, Forever
Built by a real pub landlord from the North East. Staff gamification, shift tracking, leaderboards and rota tools — free, no subscription, no credit card needed.
📊 Your EPOS tells you what sold. Pub Command Centre tells you whether you made money.
Real-time labour %, cash position and VAT liability in one dashboard. Built by a working pub landlord. £97 once, no monthly fees. 30-day money-back guarantee.
Takes 2 minutes · Free forever · Made for UK pubs
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Running your pub on gut feel?
The Pub Command Centre gives you wet GP%, cellar checks, staff cost and weekly P&L — from your phone, every shift. £97 once. No subscription.
See the Pub Command Centre →