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Enterprise and productivity software · United States

Homebase

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Homebase makes scheduling, time tracking, and payroll software for hourly small businesses.

Protection under test
Assessed 23 July 2026 · Evidence as of 23 July 2026
Something worth protecting exists and is being tested right now.
On the recordSince 23 July 2026 · Checkable from 2026 · Every call on the record Checkpoint: Next funding round or disclosure after 27-month gap since Series D
The call

Homebase holds its ground through payroll compliance plumbing while Square and Toast circle the same restaurant customers with bundled labor tools.

Homebase helps restaurants manage shifts, pay employees, and handle taxes in one place. It's hard for others to copy because payroll and tax rules are complicated and changing it wrong means legal trouble, plus Homebase has built up a lot of data about how restaurant scheduling works. But Square and Toast, which restaurants already use to take payments, are now building their own scheduling tools and can sell them to the same customers Homebase already has. The big question is whether those payment companies can pull customers away or if Homebase's focus on restaurants keeps it safe.

Why
01
AI pressure: None apparent. AI scheduling agents could automate shift-fill and forecasting, but payroll tax filing liability blocks a pure AI wrapper from taking over. Could AI do the core job? Unlikely.
02
Bigger players: Square and Toast. Both already sit inside restaurant POS terminals and are adding labor tools, threatening to bundle scheduling and payroll for free. Could a giant copy it? Probably.
03
What protects it. Payroll tax filing infrastructure and integration lock-in across POS systems make ripping Homebase out costly and risky for owners.
What would change this call
Square or Toast announces free or bundled payroll/labor management inside their POS suite. Would show POS incumbents converting their restaurant install base against Homebase directly.
Homebase announces a Series E or discloses a down round or valuation cut. Would clarify whether the 27-month funding gap reflects strength or fundraising trouble.
Homebase reports layoffs or restaurant-segment customer losses to Deputy, 7shifts, Square, or Toast. Would confirm active customer attrition rather than stable retention.
Key numbers
  • $60M Series D raised (Apr 2024)
  • 150,000+ small businesses use platform (Jun 2026)
  • 3.5M+ hourly workers, 1.2B+ hours logged (2025)
Named risks
  • No disclosed funding round since April 2024 raises valuation and runway ambiguity. Severity: medium
  • Square and Toast could bundle free payroll/labor tools into POS, pulling restaurant customers. Severity: high
  • Peer parity from Deputy and 7shifts erodes differentiation in scheduling and payroll. Severity: medium
  • AI hiring and scheduling tools face potential predictive-scheduling law or bias liability exposure. Severity: medium
  • Search and brand confusion with unrelated, collapsed UK Homebase retail chain (administration Nov 2024). Severity: low
Rivals, as read in July 2026
RivalDirectionEvidence
Deputygaining onDeputy launched its own payroll product for shift-based businesses in 2025, matching Homebase's payroll move.
7shiftscontestingRestaurant-focused peer competing for same POS-integrated (Toast, Square, Clover) customer base as of 2026.
ToastcontestingToast launched its own payroll and team management platform bundled with POS on 2023-07-20.
SquarecontestingSquare completed its labor management suite by launching shift scheduling on 2020-12-09.
Questions people ask
Is Homebase profitable in 2026?
Homebase does not disclose revenue or profit figures. It has raised no new funding since its $60M Series D in April 2024, a 2+ year gap that could signal approaching profitability or stalled fundraising, but no public confirmation exists either way as of July 2026.
Who owns Homebase, the scheduling app?
Homebase is privately held, founded in 2014 by John Waldmann and Rushi Patel. It is venture-backed by L Catterton Growth, Emerson Collective, GGV Capital, Bain Capital Ventures, and Khosla Ventures, with its $60M Series D closing April 3, 2024.
Could AI replace Homebase's scheduling software?
Homebase has already deployed its own AI Scheduling, Hiring, and Payroll Assistants (rolled out June 2025 through October 2025). Its payroll tax-filing compliance rails and POS integrations with Square and Toast form a regulatory moat that a bare LLM cannot easily replicate.
Who is Homebase's biggest competitor?
Deputy and 7shifts compete directly on scheduling and payroll; Deputy launched its own payroll product for shift-based businesses in 2025. Toast and Square pose a bigger structural threat as POS bundlers that already ship payroll and team management tools to the same restaurant customers.
Has Homebase had layoffs in 2026?
No Homebase-specific layoffs were found as of May 2026, even amid a broader tech layoff wave exceeding 120,000 workers year-to-date at companies like Coinbase, Meta, and Amazon reported May 5, 2026.
How much funding has Homebase raised total?
Homebase raised a $2M Seed in 2015, $6M Series A in 2016, $20M Series B in 2018, $71M Series C in July 2021, and a $60M Series D in April 2024 led by L Catterton Growth and Emerson Collective, its most recent disclosed round.
Timeline
  • 2025-12-02Homebase announces broader 'AI to Main Street' push for admin automation
  • 2025-10-23Homebase expands AI Innovation with launch of AI Payroll Assistant
  • 2025-07-01AI Hiring Assistant reaches general availability after select-group test
  • 2025-06AI Hiring Assistant launched to select group of customers
  • 2025Peer Deputy launches its own payroll product for shift-based businesses
  • 2024-04-03Homebase raises $60M Series D led by L Catterton Growth and Emerson Collective
  • 2021-07Homebase raises $71M Series C led by GGV Capital, with McConaughey participation
  • 2018Homebase raises $20M Series B led by Bain Capital Ventures
  • 2016Homebase raises $6M Series A led by Khosla Ventures
  • 2014Homebase founded in San Francisco by John Waldmann and Rushi Patel
Revision history
23 July 2026
First assessed. Protection under test. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.
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