Adding a new flatmate to a chore rota
A new flatmate arrives in the middle of a rota. The schedule is held inside each personal link, so an existing link cannot be edited. The fix is short: make a new rota with every name and a start date on the day the new person joins, then send out the new links.
Before: 3 people, 3 chores, 3 weeks
Rae, Sol and Tia rotate three chores from Monday 12 October 2026.
| Week | Starts | Bins | Kitchen | Bathroom |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mon 12 Oct | Rae | Sol | Tia |
| 2 | Mon 19 Oct | Sol | Tia | Rae |
| 3 | Mon 26 Oct | Tia | Rae | Sol |
After: Uma joins on Monday 2 November
Enter the four names and the same three chores, set the first week to 2 November and make the rota. With four people and three chores, one person is off each week and the week off rotates.
| Week | Starts | Bins | Kitchen | Bathroom | Week off |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mon 2 Nov | Rae | Sol | Tia | Uma |
| 2 | Mon 9 Nov | Sol | Tia | Uma | Rae |
| 3 | Mon 16 Nov | Tia | Uma | Rae | Sol |
| 4 | Mon 23 Nov | Uma | Rae | Sol | Tia |
Uma has the first week off, takes the bathroom in week 2 and the kitchen in week 3. By week 4 all four people have had one week off.
What happens to the old links and calendars
- Old links keep showing the old rota. Nothing is stored on a server, so there is nothing to update. Ask everyone to use the new link from the start date.
- Calendar events are copies. If someone already imported the old .ics file, they should delete those events and import the new file.
- Leaving works the same way. Remove the name, set a new start date and make a fresh rota.
Free and Pro sizes
The new four-person, four-week rota fits the free version, which makes rotas for up to 4 people and up to 4 weeks. If the house grows to five or more people, or you want a longer run, you need the paid Chore Rota Pro licence, which covers up to 12 people and up to 26 weeks and nothing above that.
Privacy: the schedule lives only in the link. Anyone with the link can read the names and chores in it, and nothing is stored on a server. Details are on the privacy page.