Four tools for finding a time a group can meet, compared on the things that actually decide it: whether you need an account, whether your invitees see ads, and what happens when the free tier runs out.
When2Meet is the most frictionless: no account for anyone, no paid tier, and a paint-your-availability grid. It has barely changed since launch, and the grid is awkward on a phone.
Rallly is the cleanest free poll. Open source, self-hostable, no ads, automatic time zone handling, and unlimited polls. Deliberately narrow — it does group date polls and nothing else.
Doodle is the most complete suite, with calendar sync, booking pages, 1:1 scheduling, and reminders. Its free tier is now the most restricted of the four: one active poll, 10 slots, yes/no voting, and ads shown to your invitees.
VoteGenerator is the only one that does anything beyond scheduling — ranked choice, RSVP, rating scales, and surveys in the same tool. Its weak point here is time zones, which it does not handle automatically.
| Feature | VoteGenerator | Doodle | When2Meet | Rallly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model | Vote on slots | Vote on slots | Paint availability | Vote on slots |
| Account to create | No | Yes | No | No |
| Account to respond | No | No | No | No |
| Ads on free plan | None | Yes, to invitees | Reports vary | None |
| Free active polls | 3 | 1 at a time | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Slots per poll (free) | No fixed cap | 10 | Full grid | No fixed cap |
| Maybe / if-need-be | Yes | Paid plan | N/A (grid) | Yes |
| Voting deadline | Yes, free | Paid plan | No | Yes |
| Automatic reminders | No | Paid plan | No | No |
| Calendar sync | No | Paid plan | No | No |
| Time zone handling | Manual | Automatic | Per participant | Automatic |
| Mobile experience | Responsive | Responsive | Desktop-oriented grid | Responsive |
| Open source | No | No | No | Yes |
| Self-hostable | No | No | No | Yes |
| Booking pages / 1:1 | No | Yes | No | No |
| Other poll types | 8 incl. ranked choice | Scheduling only | Scheduling only | Scheduling only |
| Templates | 120+ | Scheduling modes | None | None |
| Paid tier | $19/month | Around $15/month | No paid tier | Around $5-7/month* |
* Published figures for Rallly's paid tier vary between sources — check their site for current pricing. Reports differ on whether When2Meet displays advertising. All details from vendor documentation and independent 2026 reviews.
These four are not ranked best to worst. They optimise for different constraints, and the right answer depends on which one binds you.
First: do you have candidate times already? If yes, use a poll — Doodle, Rallly, or VoteGenerator. Propose three to six slots and people vote in ten seconds. If no, use a grid — When2Meet asks everyone to paint their availability and the overlap emerges, surfacing windows nobody would have proposed. Using the wrong model wastes everyone's time in both directions.
Second: who is receiving the link? For colleagues, ads and account requirements barely matter. For clients, parents, volunteers, or customers, they matter a great deal. Doodle's free tier showing advertising to everyone you invite is the single most common reason people look for an alternative, and it is why Rallly exists at all.
All four stop at finding the time. None creates the calendar event, sends the invitation, or sets up the video link — Doodle's paid plan comes closest with calendar integration, but the poll itself does not book anything in any of the four.
If that manual final step is the part you actually want removed, you are looking for a booking tool rather than a poll tool, and the answer is a different category of product entirely.