---
title: "Availability planning: assign volunteers by availability"
description: "Your volunteers tell you when they can help. You assign them on the planning board, spot conflicts straight away and release the rota. Included in every plan."
url: "https://helferplanung.app/en/features/availability-planning"
language: "en"
---

1. [Features](https://helferplanung.app/en/features)
2. Availability planning

# Assign volunteers by availability.

Your volunteers tell you when they can help. You assign them on the planning board and release the rota once it is ready.

[Start for free](https://app.helferplanung.app) [Request a demo](mailto:info@helferplanung.app?subject=Demo%20request%20Helferplanung)

## Volunteers tell you when they can help.

Using their own link or QR code, your volunteers mark on a grid when they are free. They do not need an account.

- Tap or drag

  Tap a slot or drag across several. A date marks the whole day, a time marks the same hour on every day.

- Comment or decline

  Volunteers can leave you a comment or decline explicitly. You see declines in a separate list.

- Set a deadline

  You open and close the form yourself. With a deadline, it closes automatically.

## Assign with everything in view.

Click an open shift and you see all volunteers sorted by availability. On a tie, those with the fewest hours come first.

## Check first, then release.

Your assignments stay drafts until you release the rota. Before that, you see understaffed shifts, conflicts and overlaps.

- Volunteers get no message before you release.
- If you wish, each volunteer gets their assignments by email or WhatsApp, whichever they chose.

## Everything assigning needs.

- ### Own link and QR code

  The form has its own link. Send it by email or put the QR code up in the clubhouse.

- ### Add people yourself

  Not everyone replies online. You add people yourself and enter their times. The email address is optional.

- ### Adjust details

  You can edit any volunteer’s availability, even after the deadline. Volunteers change their own details while the form is open.

- ### Share hours fairly

  You see hours and number of assignments for each volunteer. The board flags anyone well above the average.

- ### Open shifts in view

  A side panel shows every shift that is not yet full. One click shows only those below the minimum.

- ### Undo

  Assigned the wrong person? Undo the last assignment with one click.

## Part of one continuous workflow.

Helferplanung takes you through four phases, from the rota to check-in at the event.

1. 01

   ### Plan

   Areas, shifts, assignments

   You are here

   - [Areas](https://helferplanung.app/en/features/areas)
   - [Shift planning](https://helferplanung.app/en/features/shift-planning)

2. 02

   ### Sign up

   Link or QR, no account

   [More on volunteer sign-up](https://helferplanung.app/en/features/volunteer-sign-up)

3. 03

   ### Inform

   Email, WhatsApp, calendar

   [More on reminders](https://helferplanung.app/en/features/automatic-reminders)

4. 04

   ### Run

   Check-in and reporting

   [More on volunteer check-in](https://helferplanung.app/en/features/volunteer-check-in)

## Questions about availability planning

Your question is not listed? Write to us and we will get back to you in person.

[Ask a question](mailto:info@helferplanung.app?subject=Question%20about%20Helferplanung)

**When is planning by availability worth it?**

When you staff your event with people from your own organisation, such as club members. You ask when they can help and assign the shifts yourself. Self sign-up, where volunteers pick their own shifts, stays the default.

**Does availability planning cost extra?**

No. It is included in every plan, including the free one. You switch it on for each event in the event settings.

**Do volunteers find out as soon as I assign them?**

No. Assignments start as drafts. They become binding when you release the rota. You then decide whether each volunteer gets a message with their assignments, by email or WhatsApp, whichever they chose.

**Do volunteers need an account?**

No. They open the link, enter their name and contact details and mark their times. To make changes, they get a link by email.

## Your next event, without spreadsheet chaos.

Set up in minutes. Your volunteers sign up via a link or QR code. For larger events, we are happy to walk you through everything in person.

[Start for free](https://app.helferplanung.app) [Request a demo](mailto:info@helferplanung.app?subject=Demo%20request%20Helferplanung)