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Getting started

Set up in an afternoon

The steps from a fresh account to staff clocking in — and the built-in "Get set up" checklist on your dashboard that ticks each one off as you go.

Most owners are live the same afternoon. There is no hardware to buy and nothing to migrate from a server — WagePilot runs in the browser. When you first sign in, your dashboard shows a Get set up checklist that walks you through the whole path and ticks each step off automatically from your real data.

The Get set up card on your dashboard. Steps tick off on their own as your account fills in.

The Get set up checklist

The checklist appears at the top of your dashboard for owners until every required step is done. It reads your account's real state — locations, team, pay, clock-in method, rota, billing, branding — and ticks each step green the moment it is satisfied. There is nothing to mark done by hand.

  1. 1

    Open a step

    Tap any unfinished step to expand it. You get a one-line explanation and a button that deep-links straight to the page where you complete it (for example "Add location" jumps to Locations).

  2. 2

    Do the task

    Follow the button, complete the task, and come back. The step ticks off on its own — completed steps show a green check and a struck-through title.

  3. 3

    Watch the ring

    The progress ring in the header counts your required steps done out of the total. Optional steps carry an "Optional" pill and never block completion.

  4. 4

    Hide it when you are done

    Once every required step is ticked, the card collapses to a single "You're all set up" bar. Press Hide (or the ✕) to dismiss it — it stays hidden on that device.

The steps it tracks

Add your first location
A site with an address — sets the map pin and the clock-in radius. Required.
Set pay & overtime
Your default hourly rate, overtime thresholds and break rules. Required.
Add your team
At least one staff member, by invite code or emailed login. Required.
Set up clock-in
At least one live site with a real address and radius, or a site marked as having a kiosk tablet. Required. Which methods staff may use is a separate setting, in Clock-in rules.
Build your first rota
At least one shift on the week. Required — but hidden entirely in Open clock-in mode, where there is no rota.
Choose your plan
Reach billing. Optional: Free covers one site and up to 5 staff with no card.
Brand the employee app
Add your logo, colour and font. Optional — a nice touch once the essentials are done.

What you need before you start

  • The address of each site (for the map pin and geofence).
  • Each staff member's name, email, role and hourly rate.
  • A phone for each staff member — their own is fine; that is the point.

Common questions

How long does setup take, and do staff need to install anything?
Most owners are live the same afternoon. You drop a pin for each site, set the geofence radius, add your team and their rates, and publish a rota. There is no hardware to buy and no app-store download; WagePilot is a progressive web app, so staff just open it on their own phone and clock in.
The setup checklist disappeared — where did it go?
It hides itself once every required step is done, and you can dismiss the final "You're all set up" bar with Hide or the ✕. That dismissal is per device, so it may reappear on another browser. Everything it linked to is still in the sidebar — Locations, People, Pay & overtime and the rest.
Can I import my existing rota and staff?
Yes. You can add staff and their pay rates in a few minutes — or import your whole team from a spreadsheet in one go (see Import staff from a spreadsheet) — and build your first week by copying a typical week as a template. There is nothing to migrate from a server, so most owners are up and running the same day they sign up.