Spock vs TimeBot: what you get once the basics aren't enough
TimeBot is a simple, low-cost way to request and approve time off in Slack, and its free plan covers 20 requests a month. Spock is the pick once you need more inside Slack: balances, carryover, accruals, colleague cover and a team calendar, with a free plan that has no request cap.
New to Slack time off tools? Start with our PTO tracker for Slack overview.
Who each one is built for
TimeBot is a lightweight time off bot for Slack. Employees click "Add New time off" and answer a few questions, managers approve or reject with one click in a direct message, and paid plans add calendar sync with Google or Outlook, holidays per country, custom time off types and yearly limits. It's priced per active user, so you pay for the people who use it.
Spock is built for teams that want more of their time off policy to live in Slack. Employees request time off, check balances and see the team calendar from Spock's Home tab, and managers approve from a Slack message. Admins set the rules once in a web dashboard; employees never need to open it.
What TimeBot does well
- Very simple setup. Install it, add people to a team, pick each person's country for holidays, and requests start flowing. There isn't much to configure, and that's the appeal.
- Cheap per-user pricing. Starter is $1 per active user a month and Premium is $2.50. People who aren't active don't count.
- A free plan for light use. Up to 20 time off requests a month cost nothing, which is plenty for a small team with simple needs.
Where Spock is different
- The whole employee experience is in Slack. The Home tab shows the team calendar for the weeks ahead, your balances and a request button. TimeBot shows today's absences in Slack and puts the wider calendar in Google or Outlook. Spock employees never need the web dashboard.
- A free plan with no request cap. Spock's free plan works for any team size with unlimited requests and up to three leave types, so a busy month doesn't push you onto a paid plan.
- Carryover, accruals and cover. Unused days can carry into the new year, allowances can build up monthly or weekly, and people can name a colleague who covers for them Professional. We couldn't find any of these on TimeBot's pricing page, Slack listing or help center.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Spock | TimeBot |
|---|---|---|
| Where employees request time off | In Slack: Home tab, shortcuts or a message to the bot | In Slack, through the TimeBot app |
| Where managers approve | In a Slack message (Professional; on Free, requests don't need approval) | In a Slack direct message, one click |
| Team calendar in Slack | Yes, in the Home tab | No, today's absences in Slack; calendar view through Google or Outlook sync |
| Balances in Slack | Yes (allowances on Professional) | Days remaining against a yearly limit (paid plans) |
| Employees need a web login | Never. Everyone can sign in, nobody has to | Not stated (TimeBot has a web dashboard) |
| Approval levels | One approver decides: reporting line, named approvers or auto-approve | Sent to the team's managers by direct message; auto-approval available |
| Colleague cover | Yes, shown on the calendar (Professional) | Not stated |
| Carryover | Yes, an admin runs it between January and March (Professional) | Not stated |
| Accruals | Yes, monthly or weekly (Professional) | Not stated |
| Public holidays | 140+ countries, one calendar per location | 100+ countries, set per person by country |
| Calendar feed or sync | iCal feed for Google, Apple and Outlook (holidays in the feed on Professional), plus add-to-calendar links | Sync with Google or Outlook (paid plans) |
| Platforms | Slack only (works in Slack's mobile app) | Slack |
| Reports and CSV | Weekly, monthly and yearly reports with CSV export, every plan | Summary reports for managers; CSV export not stated |
| API and webhooks | REST API and webhooks (Professional) | Not stated |
| Free plan | Yes, any team size, unlimited requests, up to 3 leave types | Yes, 20 time off requests a month |
| Trial | 14 days of Professional, no card | 14 days on monthly Starter and Premium |
Pricing side by side
| Feature | Spock Professional | TimeBot Starter | TimeBot Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 people | $19.90 | $20 | $50 |
| 50 people | $49.90 | $50 | $125 |
| 100 people | $99.90 | $100 | $250 |
US dollars per month, with everyone active. TimeBot also sells Premium yearly at $12 per active user a year, the same as Starter per month. Spock bills active users only.
TimeBot Starter costs about the same as Spock from 20 people up and less below that, so the choice comes down to what you need inside Slack, not price.
Want yearly billing for Spock? Ask support@spockoffice.com about a yearly plan.
When TimeBot is enough, and when it isn't
If you're a small team with few rules and fewer than 20 requests a month, TimeBot's free plan is fine. You get requests and approvals in Slack, and for a lot of teams that's the whole job.
It starts to pinch when you need more than a yes or a no. Balances people can check themselves, carryover into January, accruals, a colleague named to cover, a calendar of the weeks ahead inside Slack, reports for payroll. That's where Spock fits. Reports work on every plan; the rest is on Professional.
Which should you pick?
Pick TimeBot if you want the simplest request-and-approve flow and stay under 20 requests a month, or you're a small team chasing the lowest per-person price. It does the basics and gets out of the way.
Pick Spock if you need balances, carryover, colleague cover or a team calendar people can check without leaving Slack. Start free with no request cap, or try Professional for 14 days.
Switching from TimeBot to Spock
Moving over takes an afternoon of admin work. Here's what's automatic and what isn't.
- Add Spock to Slack. Everyone in your workspace comes over automatically, and people who join Slack later are added on their own. No CSV, no invites.
- Set up your leave types, allowances and approvers in the admin dashboard. This part is manual, but most teams have a handful of each and it takes one sitting.
- Bring over current balances by hand. Set the yearly allowance per leave type, then add a manual adjustment with a note for anyone whose balance differs. It's one person at a time, so do it once, around the start of a month.
- Re-enter upcoming time off, not history. Spock doesn't import past leave records. Admins and managers can log already-approved time off on someone's behalf Professional, so start with what's booked ahead.
- Import public holidays for each country or office, then run both tools side by side for a week before you switch everyone over.
Time off, handled
in Slack
Free plan for any team size, or 14 days of Professional with no card. Your people come straight from Slack.
Frequently asked questions
Is Spock a good TimeBot alternative?
Yes, if you've outgrown the basics. Spock covers requests and approvals in Slack the way TimeBot does, and adds balances, carryover, accruals, colleague cover, a team calendar in the Home tab and reports. If requests and approvals are all you need, TimeBot is a fine choice.
Does TimeBot track carryover or accruals?
Not that we could find. TimeBot's pricing page, Slack listing and help center mention yearly time off limits but not carryover or accruals. Spock handles both on Professional: an admin runs carryover early in the year, and allowances can accrue monthly or weekly.
Is there a free plan?
Both have one, with different limits. TimeBot's free plan covers 20 time off requests a month. Spock's free plan has no request cap and works for any team size, with up to three leave types; balances, approvals and most other features are on Professional.
How much does Spock cost for 50 people?
$49.90 a month on Professional: $19.90 covers the first 20 people and each extra person adds $1. For 50 active users, TimeBot is $50 a month on Starter and $125 on Premium. Ask support@spockoffice.com about a yearly plan.
Can I move from TimeBot to Spock?
Yes. Your people come over from Slack automatically. Leave types, allowances and approvers are set up by hand, current balances go in as a manual adjustment per person, and Spock doesn't import past leave records, so start with the time off that's already booked ahead.
Competitor details come from their public pricing and feature pages, checked in .