Start with five volunteers or five thousand
Zelos is free for unlimited members and admins, with no minimum programme size, no sales call and no annual contract. Sign up and post your first shift this afternoon.
Recruitment, rotas, records, communications, and compliance
Fits large charities with a volunteering team.
Open shifts, task dispatch, notice board, and team chat
Fits any team, from five people up.
No credit card · Unlimited members on every plan · Set up in under 5 minutes
How signup works in each app
A rota built by the volunteering team
Volunteers apply through customisable forms, are placed into roles across teams and locations, and see their rota through a self-serve portal and mobile app. Coordinators publish tasks and manage capacity centrally.
A private team space with shift signup and chats
Members join your workspace once, fill in their own profile, then browse and claim what fits their skills and schedule, with a chat channel attached to every task.
What Access Assemble is better at
If your workflow depends on the things below, Assemble is the right pick.
Volunteering at national scale
RSPCA, Barnardo's, Mencap, Save the Children, Diabetes UK and multiple NHS trusts run on it, across teams, regions and activity types. If you're coordinating thousands of volunteers through a structured volunteering department, that's what it's built for and Zelos isn't.
Expense submission
Volunteers claim expenses inside the platform and coordinators process them there. It's a real part of UK charity volunteering that Zelos doesn't handle at all.
Integration with the rest of your systems
API access plus integrations with CRM, LMS and Zendesk, and native connection to the wider Access Charity Suite for fundraising, supporter data and Gift Aid. Zelos exports CSV on every plan and offers an API on Enterprise only.
Implementation done for you
Data migration from CSV mapped to the right fields, structured onboarding, training and a UK-based support team, with a dedicated customer success manager and technical support engineer on Enterprise. Zelos is self-serve, which is faster if you want to start alone and no help at all if you'd rather be guided.
If these bullet points are non-negotiable, you're an Assemble customer.
What Zelos is sharper at
If your programme is smaller than their recommended minimum, Zelos is a better fit.
No minimum programme size
Zelos works the same for a committee of six as for a roster of six thousand, free either way. Access recommends Assemble for charities with at least 200 volunteers to see a return, and its entry package is sized at 250+.
Sign up instead of booking a call
You create a Zelos workspace and post your first shift the same afternoon, no card required. Buying Assemble starts with a 30-minute qualification chat, then a tailored demo if you're a good fit, then a quote.
Nothing committed up front
The Zelos free plan runs indefinitely, and Pro is a flat monthly fee you can leave. Assemble's packages are billed annually, so the first decision is a year-long one.
Conversation attached to the work
Every Zelos task has its own chat channel, alongside group chats and direct messages between members, all admin-supervised, so the question about Saturday's shift and its answer stay with Saturday's shift. Assemble sends targeted communications to volunteers, which is broadcast rather than crew conversation.
If you're drawn to this kind of simplicity, you should spin up a free project in Zelos right away.
a year, to get started
Assemble's entry package is £225 a month billed annually, sized for 250+ volunteers. Zelos is free at any size.
What it takes to get started
Both are proper volunteer platforms. The difference is who they're sold to.
| Zelos | Access Assemble* | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum programme size | None | 250+ volunteers on the entry package |
| How you buy | Sign up online | Qualification call, demo, then quote |
| Entry price | Free | From £225/month |
| Billing | Monthly, cancel any time | Annual |
| Messaging | Chat channel per task | Targeted communications |
| Expense submission | No | Yes |
* Access Assemble pricing from theaccessgroup.com, August 2026.
Seen enough?
Get started in our self-service.
Start your free project No credit card · Five-minute setup
Teams that pick Zelos over Access Assemble
Volunteer programmes under 200 people
Access recommends at least 200 volunteers before Assemble pays back. Most volunteer programmes never reach that, and don't need to in order to want their rota out of a spreadsheet. Zelos is free at any size and stays useful as you grow.
Learn more →Grassroots and mutual aid groups
No budget line, no procurement, and no appetite for a year-long contract signed after a sales call. Zelos is free for unlimited people and unlimited organisers, with nothing to approve.
Learn more →Churches running weekly rotas
Sunday service, coffee, kids' ministry and the food bank, each with its own lead posting their own shifts. Unlimited admins on the free plan means every ministry lead gets access without a conversation about seats.
Learn more →Sports clubs and leagues
A parent committee is a lot of coordinators and no budget. Every team manager can post match-day shifts, and parents claim from their phones with a push reminder the night before.
Learn more →Event staffing and festival crews
Event crews assemble in weeks, mix volunteers with paid staff and contractors, and need dispatch and a chat channel per shift rather than an annual platform contract.
Learn more →Contractor pools and gig dispatch
Contractors are paid for the work and aren't volunteers at all. Post the job, let the right people claim it, coordinate in the task chat.
Learn more →From teams who picked Zelos
What teams who picked Zelos say
"It helped us a lot reducing the planning overhead. It is way more motivating for staff to pick their task than just getting assigned!"
Manuel W.
Coordinator, Events Services
Full review → "We were looking for a system to handle our concert staff. Zelos is really easy to access both for the administrator and the users!"
Niels Peter H.
Board member, Music
Full review → "The overall experience has been great, the customer service is amazing and I can't wait for all the new changes coming up in the app!"
Celia D.
Coordinator, Motion Pictures and Film
Full review →Free for teams of any size
No credit card, no trial expiration.
Pro starts at $99/month, never per person.
Nonprofit and education discounts on Pro and Enterprise.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Access Assemble cost?
Is Assemble suitable for a small charity?
Can I try either one without talking to sales?
Am I locked into a contract?
Can my volunteers chat in Zelos?
Can volunteers claim expenses?
Does Zelos integrate with our CRM?
Will you migrate our data?
Does Zelos work for UK charities?
What's the catch with the Zelos free plan?
Can I use both?
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