Short answer: Connecteam is an app for running shift teams: scheduling, time clock and chat, with courses and a knowledge base in separate paid "hubs". It's free for up to 10 users. Trainual turns SOPs and policies into role-based training, with no public price and a required $1,000 setup fee. For SOPs and training at a small-team price, without scheduling, Helpable is a third option, from $29 a month.
The two names come up together because both promise to help you onboard and train people. In practice, Connecteam answers "who's working today, and did they clock in?" and Trainual answers "how do we do things here, and did the new hire learn it?". Prices below were checked on each vendor's own pricing page on October 17, 2026.
Trainual vs Connecteam at a glance
| Trainual | Connecteam | |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Documenting SOPs and policies and training people by role | Running deskless teams: scheduling, time clock, chat, plus training |
| Scheduling and time clock | Not on its pricing page | Yes (Operations hub) |
| SOPs and knowledge base | Yes, the core of the product | Knowledge base in the Communications hub |
| Courses and quizzes | Yes, tests on every plan | Yes (HR & Skills hub); passing score from Advanced |
| E-signatures on policies | 300 a year on Pro, more on higher plans | Not listed |
| SCORM | From Pro | Not listed |
| Mobile app | Yes | Yes |
| Free plan | No | Free for up to 10 users |
| Free trial | No, demo only | 14 days, no credit card |
| Price | Not public | From $29/mo per hub billed yearly for 30 users |
| Setup fee | $1,000 one-time, required | None listed |
| Best for | Companies of 25–1,000 employees (Trainual's own words) | Frontline teams; Enterprise is "mostly recommended" for 201–10,000 employees |
What Connecteam is built for
Connecteam is an all-in-one employee app for deskless teams. It's split into three hubs, each priced on its own (checked Oct 17, 2026, connecteam.com/pricing):
- Operations: time clock, scheduling, forms and quick tasks
- Communications: chat, updates, directory, surveys, events, knowledge base and help desk
- HR & Skills: time off, courses, quizzes, documents, recognition, onboarding and org chart
Prices: each hub costs $29 (Basic), $49 (Advanced) or $99 (Expert) a month billed yearly, or $35, $59 or $119 billed monthly, for the first 30 users. From user 31 you pay per extra user, for example $1.50 a month on HR & Skills Advanced billed yearly. The Small Business plan is free for up to 10 users with all hubs. Teams of 11–30 can use a free Limited plan after the trial, with up to 3 courses. There's a 14-day free trial with no credit card, during which you get the Expert plan.
Where it stops for training: a required passing score, attempt limits and showing correct answers start on Advanced. Courses and the knowledge base sit in two different hubs, so once you pass 10 users, training plus a knowledge base means paying for two. Connecteam is built around the shift; written SOPs are one feature among many.
What Trainual is built for
Trainual organizes company knowledge by role: you write SOPs and policies, group them into training for each role, assign it, and track completion with tests and e-signatures (checked Oct 17, 2026, trainual.com/pricing).
- Core: AI documentation, AI knowledge search, 500+ templates, tests and reporting, a mobile app, 2 GB of video and 30 days of version history.
- Pro: adds individual training paths, video hosting (15 GB), 300 e-signatures a year, an org chart and 5 GB of SCORM storage.
- Premium: adds custom branding, a custom domain, SSO and unlimited video.
- Enterprise: adds API access and SOC 2 documents.
Price: not public. Every plan says "Get a demo". The page says "A one-time implementation fee of $1,000 applies", with setup taking 4–6 weeks, and that Trainual "is best suited for companies with 25 - 1000 employees". There's no free trial. More detail: Trainual pricing.
Where it stops: there's no scheduling or time clock, and for a small team, getting started means a demo, a quote and the setup fee before anyone reads a page.
Which one do you need?
Pick Connecteam if:
- Your biggest daily problem is shifts: who works when, clocking in, swapping shifts.
- You have 10 people or fewer and want everything free.
- Training is one part of what you need, and short courses are enough.
Pick Trainual if:
- You have 25 people or more and your main need is documented SOPs and role-based training.
- You want e-signatures on policies and SCORM storage.
- A demo, a quote and a $1,000 setup fee fit your budget and timeline.
You need both if you run shifts and want structured SOP training. Some teams use Connecteam for scheduling and a separate tool for SOPs and training.
A third option: Helpable
A procedure on a phone: steps with photos, for people who work on site or in shifts.
Helpable covers the Trainual side of the job (SOPs, a knowledge base and training with quizzes) at a public, small-team price. It doesn't do scheduling or time tracking, so shift teams keep their scheduling app for that.
How it works: you write procedures as steps with photos, or upload the documents you already have (PDF, Word, text, Markdown or CSV) and let the AI draft them. The important ones become a short training with a quiz, assigned with a due date. When a procedure changes, people confirm they read the new version. Your team opens it in any phone browser, with no app to install.
What every plan includes:
- Procedures with steps and photos, and read acknowledgements per version
- Training with lessons and quizzes, assigned with due dates and reminders, and progress per person
- An internal knowledge base and a public help center, with AI search that answers from your own content with a link to the source
Price: Business is $29 a month for 3 people, plus $9 per extra person. Business Plus adds video lessons, final tests, certificates and automatic assignment for new hires. Business Max adds recurring training, locations with their own managers and skills sign-off by a manager on the floor. 14-day free trial, no credit card, no setup fee. See all plans.
When Helpable fits better, and why
Pick Helpable instead of Connecteam if:
- Training is the main reason you use Connecteam. Connecteam is built around the shift. Courses sit in the HR & Skills hub and the knowledge base in the Communications hub, so past 10 users you pay for two hubs. Helpable has training, a knowledge base and procedures on every plan.
- Your procedures need versions and sign-off. Each Helpable procedure has an owner, a review date and read acknowledgements per version, so you see who read the change and who still has to.
- You want a help center for customers too. Helpable includes a public help center next to the team handbook, on every plan.
Pick Helpable instead of Trainual if:
- You want to see the price and try it first. Trainual shows no price, has no free trial and charges a required $1,000 setup fee. Helpable lists every price, has a 14-day free trial without a credit card and no setup fee.
- You're under 25 people. Trainual says it's best suited for 25 to 1,000 employees. Helpable is built for teams of 5 to 50 and adds people one at a time: $92 a month for 10 people on Business.
- You want to start this week. Trainual's setup takes 4 to 6 weeks with a specialist. In Helpable you upload the documents you have, let the AI draft procedures and a first training, and assign it the same day.
Stay with Connecteam or Trainual if: you need scheduling and a time clock (Connecteam), or SCORM, e-signatures, HR and payroll integrations and a native mobile app (Trainual). Helpable has none of those.
Cost for a team of 10 or 25
Monthly prices, checked Oct 17, 2026:
| Setup | What you get | Team of 10 | Team of 25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connecteam Small Business | All hubs | Free | Not available (10-user limit) |
| Connecteam HR & Skills Advanced + Communications Basic | Courses with passing scores, plus a knowledge base | Free (up to 10 users) | $94/mo ($78 yearly) |
| Trainual | SOPs and role-based training | Not public + $1,000 setup | Not public + $1,000 setup |
| Helpable Business | Procedures, knowledge base, training with quizzes and tracking | $92/mo | $227/mo |
| Helpable Business Plus | Plus video, certificates, auto-assign | $129/mo | $249/mo |
Connecteam is cheaper on paper, especially at 10 users or fewer. Its training sits inside a bigger workforce app, while Helpable is built only for knowledge and training.
Who finished their training, who's overdue, and their quiz scores.
FAQ
Is Connecteam a Trainual alternative?
Partly. Connecteam has courses, quizzes and a knowledge base, but they're one part of a workforce app built around scheduling and time tracking. Trainual is built around documented SOPs and role-based training.
Is Connecteam free?
Yes, for up to 10 users with all hubs, through its Small Business plan. Teams of 11 to 30 can use a free Limited plan with up to 3 courses (checked Oct 17, 2026).
How much does Trainual cost compared to Connecteam?
Trainual doesn't publish prices and charges a required $1,000 implementation fee. Connecteam's hubs cost $29 to $99 a month billed yearly for the first 30 users each, and it's free up to 10 users.
Does Trainual have scheduling or a time clock?
Its pricing page doesn't list scheduling or a time clock (checked Oct 17, 2026). Trainual focuses on SOPs, policies and training.
Can I use Connecteam and Trainual together?
Yes. Some teams run shifts in Connecteam and keep SOPs and training in Trainual or another tool. Check that the combined cost, including Trainual's setup fee, fits your budget.
What do small teams use instead of both?
Teams of 5 to 50 that need SOPs, a knowledge base and training, but not scheduling, often look at Helpable, SweetProcess or Waybook. See Trainual alternatives and Connecteam alternatives for training, both with prices.
Try the training side first
If shifts are already handled and your real problem is training people the same way every time, try Helpable free for 14 days with three of your own procedures. No credit card needed.
