homecareOS vs CarePlanner (now Nourish)
CarePlanner earned its reputation on rostering and is used by over 2,000 agencies. Since Nourish acquired it in October 2023, its future sits inside a larger suite. homecareOS puts scheduling, care records, compliance and finance in one platform built for domiciliary care.
Purpose-built for UK domiciliary care. Four-nation compliant.
Rostering specialist, 2,000+ agencies. Part of Nourish since 2023.
CarePlanner is a capable rostering system with over a decade in UK home care and more than 2,000 domiciliary agencies on its books, but choosing it today means choosing the Nourish roadmap. Nourish acquired CarePlanner in October 2023, and the combined home care product is now developed under the wider Nourish suite, so care planning depth comes from pairing two platforms rather than one. homecareOS takes the opposite approach: drag and drop scheduling, digital care records with eMAR, four-nation compliance for CQC, CIW, Care Inspectorate and RQIA, finance, and an offline carer app are all built into a single system. Pricing differs too. CarePlanner charges per user, on enquiry, while the alternative here is a per-carer licence at free for your first 5 carers, then £10 per carer per month with office staff unmetered and a free starter tier under 5 carers.
Already on CarePlanner? We offer a free import service, most agencies are fully migrated within a week. See full pricing →
6 Reasons Agencies Choose homecareOS Over CarePlanner
CarePlanner's rostering is genuinely strong, it built a large install base on it. Here is where homecareOS pulls ahead for agencies choosing software in 2026.
One Platform, One Roadmap
CarePlanner was scheduling-first, with care planning depth arriving later through the Nourish acquisition. homecareOS was designed as a single system from day one: rota, care records, compliance and finance share one data model, not a suite stitched together.
One Plan, Per Carer
CarePlanner prices per user, on enquiry. homecareOS is one simple per-carer licence: Start free for your first 5 carers, then £10 per carer per month, with your whole office team unmetered. Scheduling, care records, compliance and finance are all included, and there's a free starter tier for agencies under 5 carers.
Bradford Factor Scoring
Automatic absence pattern analysis (S² × D) with RAG thresholds. homecareOS calculates Bradford Factor automatically for every staff member.
Cover Finder
When a carer calls in sick, homecareOS scores available carers on distance, continuity, hours headroom, preferences, and schedule fit to find cover in seconds. CarePlanner's rostering is manual-first, coordinators do the searching.
Four-Nation Compliance
homecareOS supports all four UK nations (CQC, CIW, Care Inspectorate, and RQIA), built into the core data model. Compliance frameworks, background check types, and care plan schemas all follow your nation automatically.
Family Portal with Missed-Visit Alerts
homecareOS provides a full family portal with real-time visit confirmations, carer profiles, care summaries, and instant alerts to family when a visit is missed.
Detailed Comparison
A transparent, side-by-side look at what each platform offers UK home care agencies. Where CarePlanner functionality now depends on the wider Nourish suite, we've said so.
| Feature | homecareOS | CarePlanner |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduling & Rostering | ||
| Drag & Drop Rota | Yes | Yes |
| Run Templates | Yes | Yes |
| Route Optimisation | Yes | Yes |
| Carer Matching | Yes | Yes |
| Cover Finder | Yes | No |
| AI Rota Builder | Yes (Pro) | No |
| Care Delivery | ||
| Care Plans | Yes | Via Nourish suite |
| Care Notes | Yes | Yes |
| Task Management | Yes | Yes |
| Risk Assessments | Yes | Via Nourish suite |
| Outcomes Tracking | Yes | Via Nourish suite |
| Incident Reporting | Yes | Partial |
| eMAR | Yes | Via Nourish suite |
| Visit Verification | ||
| GPS Check-in/out | Yes | Yes |
| Call Monitoring | Yes | Yes |
| Late/Missed Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Family Missed Visit Alerts | Yes | No |
| Mobile App | ||
| Carer App | Yes | Yes |
| Full Offline Mode | Yes | Partial |
| Holiday Requests from App | Yes | Partial |
| Compliance & Governance | ||
| CQC Compliance Tools | Yes | Basic |
| Four-Nation (CQC/CIW/CI/RQIA) | Yes | No |
| Audit Trail | Yes | Yes |
| Training Tracker | Yes | Yes |
| Bradford Factor | Yes | No |
| Finance | ||
| Invoicing | Yes | Yes |
| Payroll Export | Yes | Yes |
| Mileage Claims | Yes | Yes |
| Council Billing | Yes | Yes |
| Earned Wage Access (EWA) | Yes | No |
| Communications | ||
| Family Portal | Yes | Via Nourish suite |
| In-App Messaging | Yes | Yes |
| VoIP Telephony | Yes | No |
| Pricing | ||
| Pricing Model | Per carer (office unmetered) | Per user, on enquiry |
| Free Tier | Yes (under 5 carers) | No |
Because CarePlanner is now part of Nourish, agencies evaluating it are often really evaluating the combined suite. If that's you, our homecareOS vs Nourish comparison covers the other half of the picture. For the wider UK market, our buyer's guide shows how to compare home care software on regulator fit, pricing model and the carer app, whichever vendors you shortlist.
Ready to See the Difference?
Book a personalised demo and we'll show you exactly how homecareOS compares to CarePlanner, on your terms, with your data. Migrating? Our import service is free and most agencies are done within a week.
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