To let staff share a fixed set of workplace chargers, you don't need a charge-point management system (CPMS) — you need a booking tool. Employees reserve time slots, simple rules spread the scarce points fairly, and notifications keep the queue moving. Booking-first apps are simpler and cheaper than OCPP-based software, as long as you're not billing electricity per kWh.
What kinds of apps are there?
Searching for "EV charger booking app" quickly lands you in the wrong part of the market. There are broadly four categories — only one is built for simply reserving a handful of company chargers:
1. Booking-first tools for shared chargers
These solve exactly one problem: a fixed set of chargers, more drivers than points, and everyone should get a fair turn. Staff book a time slot, rules (max duration, advance window) share the slots, and notifications remind people when their session starts and ends. No OCPP, no per-kWh billing, low setup effort. ChargeSlot sits here; smartBRICKS offers charger booking as part of a wider workplace/desk-sharing suite.
2. CPMS / charge-point management
Platforms like ChargePoint, Monta, reev or vaylens control charging hardware over OCPP, bill kWh and manage load peaks. Powerful — and heavily over-specified for "share three wallboxes in the staff car park fairly." Reservation is a side feature at best. They make sense once you charge the public, bill per kWh, or need load management across many points.
3. Generic booking & calendar tools
Microsoft Bookings, a shared Outlook calendar, desk-booking software, or a spreadsheet on the wall. Cheap, but with no charging logic: no EV-specific rules, no automatic hand-off notifications, no multi-site view. Fine for one charger and a lot of discipline; it scales badly.
4. Parking apps with a charging slot
Apps such as Parkalot or Toogethr come from parking-space sharing and let you book a charging bay along the way. Good when parking is the main event and charging is just a checkbox — less so when the chargers themselves are the bottleneck and fair rotation is the point.
At a glance
| Approach | Fair slot booking | EV rules & notifications | OCPP needed? | Typical pricing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Booking-first tool | Yes, core feature | Yes | No | Per site or per charger / month |
| CPMS / charge-point management | Side feature | Partial | Yes | Per charger + transaction fees |
| Calendar / spreadsheet | Manual | No | No | Cheap to free |
| Parking app with charging slot | Yes (parking-led) | Partial | No | Per user or per bay |
When do I actually need a CPMS?
The honest boundary: a CPMS is worth it when you bill electricity per kWh to third parties, run publicly accessible chargers, or need active load management across many points. If you only need your employees to share a fixed set of chargers fairly, a booking app is the shorter, cheaper route — no OCPP project required.
What to look for in a booking app
- Fair-sharing rules: maximum booking duration and advance window per station, so nobody blocks a charger all day.
- Automatic notifications: reminders before a session starts and when it ends.
- Multiple locations under one account if you look after more than one building.
- Languages & GDPR: English and German UI, data handled in the EU.
- No forced OCPP: the app should work with your existing wallboxes without wiring up a backend.
That is exactly what ChargeSlot's workplace charging software is built for: time slots, rules, notifications and a manager dashboard — deliberately without per-kWh billing or OCPP complexity.
What does it cost?
Booking tools usually charge a flat fee per site or per charger. ChargeSlot starts at €29/month (Starter, billed monthly) with a 14-day free trial; from three chargers it's priced per charger. CPMS platforms add transaction or backend fees that only pay off once you genuinely bill per kWh.
FAQ
Do I need OCPP to make chargers bookable?
No. Reservation and fair sharing work at the organisation level with a booking app. You only need OCPP once the software has to control the hardware directly or bill per kWh.
How do we share three chargers fairly among twelve employees?
Set a maximum slot length per charger (say three hours), limit how far ahead people can book, and let staff book themselves. The points then rotate automatically instead of one car sitting there all day.