5 Best Digital Time Clock Apps (In-Depth Look)
In this post, we’ll start by explaining how Buddy Punch, our digital time clock app, can help your business:
- Increase employee accountability. For example, Buddy Punch lets you limit employee punches to specific locations or devices. You can also capture photos during punch in and punch out to prevent time theft. Other accountability features include GPS Tracking, Facial Recognition Punching, PIN Punching, and more.
- Save time on payroll. For example, Buddy Punch offers time off tracking and integrates with most payroll providers, allowing you to transfer hours in just a couple clicks (rather than inputting them manually). Every time an employee clocks in or out, our software tracks and calculates their hours, and this information is available for easy export via Excel or PDF.
After detailing Buddy Punch’s accountability and payroll features, we’ll share customer reviews that highlight our software’s ease of use and excellent customer service.
Then, to aid you in your search process, we’ll share four other digital time clock apps, including their key features and online reviews.
Best Digital Time Clock Apps
1. Buddy Punch
High-Level Overview of How Our Digital Time Clock App Works
In this section, we’ll briefly explain how Buddy Punch works:
1. Employees punch in and out via their phone (iOS or Android), tablet, or desktop.
2. Our software automatically calculates all the details needed for payroll (regular hours, overtime, time off, and more). You can select the relevant pay period and download this information via Excel or PDF.
In-Depth Look: Buddy Punch’s Accountability Features
Up next, we’ll list a number of different accountability features that restrict employee punches to a specific device, location, Wi-Fi network, and so on. They are optional and can be activated depending on the needs of your business.
If you’re unsure which of these features you need, we’ll clarify all your doubts via live chat, and we invite you to book a one-on-one demo or start a trial.
Geofencing
Geofencing limits employee punches to a specific location. You can input an address (e,g 123 Pine Avenue) and then set a radius around it (e.g., 200 feet).
Now, your employees can only punch in and out within 200 feet of 123 Pine Avenue.
If an employee tries to submit a punch outside your Geofence, they will receive an error message:
Note that if your business has multiple branches or job sites, then you can set up multiple geofences.
IP Address Locking
IP Address Locking limits employee punches to a specific device (such as an in-office desktop computer) or a Wi-Fi network.
So, if you have a central Wi-Fi network for your entire office, you can set up an IP Address Lock so that employees can only submit a punch when using that network.
Photos on Punch
Are you worried about employees manipulating their work hours by asking others to punch in and out for them?
By enabling Photos on Punch, each time an employee uses our app to punch in or out, they’ll need to take a selfie photo.
Administrators (business owners, managers, etc.) can then review all the photos in one central place, and ensure the right person punched in from the right location.
Additional Features to Increase Employee Accountability
We offer many other features to increase employee accountability, including GPS Tracking, Facial Recognition Punching, PIN Punching, Punch Limiting Rules, and more.
In-Depth Look: Buddy Punch’s Payroll Features
Payroll Reports on Demand
As we’ve mentioned, our online time clock automatically calculates all the details needed for payroll (regular hours, overtime, time off, and more). You can select the relevant pay period and download this information via Excel or PDF.
Manually tracking and calculating all this information typically takes hours, but now you can get it done in minutes (with greater accuracy and less hassle).
Payroll Provider Integrations
As we’ve mentioned, Buddy Punch integrates with most payroll providers, allowing you to transfer employee hours in just a couple clicks (rather than inputting them manually, which is a tediously long process that’s prone to human error).
To learn more, see our complete list of payroll provider integrations.
Time Off Tracking
Buddy Punch offers a wide range of time off tracking features and functionality. For example:
- Employees can easily request time off (subject to an administrator’s approval). We designed our app to make this process simple and intuitive for both employees and employers.
- Our software automatically calculates paid and unpaid time off balance, and you can easily pull up this information in a couple clicks.
- And more.
Accruals
Buddy Punch makes it easy to add and edit time off accrual rules. Learn more about this feature via this video or help doc article.
Explore Additional Features
Buddy Punch offers many features that aren’t mentioned above. For example:
- Employee Scheduling
- Overtime Calculations
- Time Card Approvals
- Multiple Punch and Login Options
- Adding, Editing, or Deleting Punches
- And many more.
Click here for the complete list of features.
Buddy Punch’s Online Reviews
Buddy Punch currently has 4.8 out of 5 stars on Capterra (based on 685 reviews).
Many customers have commended Buddy Punch for:
- Being intuitive and easy to use for both employers and employees.
- Providing responsive and informative customer support.
Here are a few reviews that touch on these areas:
“We signed up for the trial period, and our employees were impressed immediately. They were able to start… immediately with zero training or assistance, which was a priority for us. The system is also very easy to use from an administrator end.”
Click here to read the full review.
“The chat staff has been super helpful to me every single time I have messaged them. They assisted me to get the software ready for a trial run which was very helpful! Every chat session was emailed to me for future reference.”
Click here to read the full review.
“Minimal training for end users (employees or managers). The back end (admin) features are just as simple and intuitive. We wanted a product that was simple to use, cost friendly and allowed us to customize — all of these areas were met. Very impressed!”
Click here to read the full review.
“The area I am most impressed with is with their support — they respond quickly, accurately and offer real solutions.”
Click here to read the full review.
“The team is responsive, and eager to assist. Any questions we’ve had, whether using the free trial, or after we signed up as a customer, have been answered quickly”.
Click here to read the full review.
Click here to see all of our Buddy Punch reviews on Capterra.
Learn More About Buddy Punch
If you’d like to learn more about Buddy Punch’s features and functionality and see them in action:
2. Hubstaff
Hubstaff’s features include, but are not limited to:
- Online Time Reporting
- Employee Scheduling
- Automated Payroll & Invoicing
- GPS Location Tracking
- Employee Productivity Monitoring
- And so on
At the time of writing, Hubstaff has 4.6 out of 5 stars on Capterra (based on 1257 reviews).
Below, we share a customer review indicating why it’s a solid digital time clock software:
“It allows us to easily calculate the hours worked by our remote team whilst ensuring the team is focused and easily shows us how much is owed at the end of the month. Vital tool for outsourcing.”
Click here to read the full review.
3. OnTheClock
OnTheClock’s features and functionality include, but are not limited to:
At the time of writing, OnTheClock has 4.7 out of 5 stars on Capterra (based on 511 reviews).
Below, we share a user review indicating why it’s a solid digital time clock app for employees:
“I love the ease of clocking in using my mobile device. As someone who has always had to punch in on a computer, I know firsthand that computers sometimes take their time opening and connecting to the internet for you to do anything. That’s never fun, especially when you need to clock in. This has been a great product to use instead.”
Click here to read the full review.
4. Clockify
Clockify’s features and functionality include, but are not limited to:
At the time of writing, Clockify has 4.7 out of 5 stars on Capterra (based on 4167 reviews).
Below, we share a user review indicating why it’s a solid digital time clock app for small businesses:
“We can easily log in, the software always tracks what kind of task we spend time on. We can also create task names and see where we are at in its realization and time we spent on it. It can also be used in groups, as users can be linked in teams. It’s such a powerful tool at the end of day, as it allows us to see how to be more efficient in terms of time/task.”
Click here to read the full review.
5.Connecteam
Connecteam’s features and functionality include, but are not limited to:
- Employee Time Clock
- Employee Task Management
- Employee Training
- Employee Scheduling
- Employee Communication
- Checklists and Forms
- And more
At the time of writing, Connecteam has 4.7 out of 5 stars on Capterra (based on 151 reviews).
Below, we share a user review showing why it’s one of the best digital time clock apps:
“I have several old-school folks on my team. I tend to get a lot of push back when I introduce a new form of technology. We don’t have a central meeting location therefore I can’t have one time clock for everyone to punch. This app works great and my team really seems to like it. It is very easy to install and user friendly.”
Click here to read the full review.
Learn More About Buddy Punch
If you’d like to learn more about Buddy Punch’s features and functionality and see them in action:
You May Also Like…
- 7 Best Employee Scheduling Software Apps: Features & Reviews
- 6 Best Timesheet Apps & Software
- 6 Best Employee Time Clock Apps & Software
- 5 Free Online Time Clock Software for Employees (And a Paid Option)
- 5 Best Timekeeping Software for Employees (Desktop and Mobile App)
- 10 Best Clock In Clock Out Apps for Small Businesses
- The Challenges with Managing Remote Team Members
- Buddy Punch’s PTO Tracking Feature
- 13 Best Employee Time Tracking Software (Streamline Your Operations)
- 4 Best Ways to Track Time for Employees (Paper Timecards, Employee Time Tracking Apps, and More)
- Lower Your Labor Costs by Eliminating Time Theft
- Buddy Punch’s Biometric Facial Recognition Feature
- 7 Best Time Clock Apps with GPS
- 7 Best Time Card Apps for Construction and Field Crews (With Real-Time Reports)
- 7 TSheets Alternatives (Pricing, Functionality, How Each Tool Fits Into Your Workflow, etc.)
- Buddy Punch’s Notifications Feature
- 8 Best Mobile Time Clock Apps (Smartphones Including Android and iPhone)
- Using Buddy Punch as a Terminal or Kiosk
- 9 Best Time and Attendance Software (Streamline Payroll Processing)
- 6 Best Accurate Time Tracking Systems (Desktop, iPad, and Mobile Devices)
- Employee Time Tracking Using Excel Spreadsheets: Templates, Downsides, and Alternatives
