Attendance issues aren’t always obvious at first. Your employee is 20 minutes late here or takes an unexpected day off there. Suddenly you realize work isn’t getting done, productivity is waning, and revenue starts to suffer.

And even if you think you have the right tools in place, spreadsheets and paper timecards often don’t catch issues early enough. Instead, you wind up scrambling to address the problem once you discover understaffing or missed deadlines. 

Attendance tracking software can help, but you’ve got to know what to look for. Instead of retroactive reporting that only tells you a problem has occurred, what you really need is real-time alerts that give you visibility into attendance issues as they’re occurring so you can nip them in the bud right away. 

Below, I review the six best attendance tracking software, highlighting key features, pros, and cons to help you decide which one is right for your needs.

Platform	Best For	G2 Rating	Free Trial	Starting Price
Buddy Punch	Attendance alerts and detailed reports	4.8/5	14 days	$5.99/user/month
OnTheClock	Real-time attendance dashboards	4.5/5	30 days	$4/employee/month
Connecteam	Communicating with late employees	4.6/5	14 days	$99/month
Jibble	Built-in facial recognition	4.8/5	14 days	$7.99/user/month
Deputy	AI-powered scheduling	4.6/5	30 days	$5/user/month
ShiftFlow	Predictable pricing	Not rated	14 days	$5.99/seat/month

The 6 best employee attendance tracking software

The six best employee attendance tracking software are Buddy Punch, OnTheClock, Connecteam, Jibble, Deputy, and ShiftFlow. Below, you’ll find our detailed reviews of each option, including what types of teams they’re best for, what unique features they offer, and the pros and cons for each platform.

To assess the top employee attendance tracking software, I determined a few critical features and then compared the tools side by side to see how each stacks up. Here are the criteria I used: 

• Attendance visibility and alerts
• Clock-in verification methods
• PTO and absence tracking
• Attendance reporting quality
• Pricing, including availability of a free trial

I wanted to ensure each tool could track attendance and provide managers with real-time visibility. But beyond that, I sought tools that did more than just track time; I made sure they could also track data such as PTO and that they provided alerts as early as possible. 

Additionally, I considered affordability, ease of use, and user feedback to ensure I compiled a high-quality list.

1. Buddy Punch: Best for real-time attendance alerts and detailed reports

Buddy Punch is an easy to use and affordance platform that combines time tracking, employee scheduling, attendance tracking, and PTO management in one system. As far as attendance tracking, you can get real-time alerts when employees clock in late, clock out early, or miss a shift entirely, and you can also access detailed reports showing late arrivals and call-outs over any period of time you select.

When you log into the Buddy Punch dashboard, you’ll be able to see at a glance which employees are running late. Features like GPS tracking, geofencing, and photos on punch also help keep your attendance records accurate by letting you verify that employees were on site when clocking in and out and that no one was buddy punching (asking another employee to clock in or out for them).

In addition to tracking time and attendance, you can track and manage paid time off with Buddy Punch. Add lump sums of PTO at increments that match your policies, or set up PTO accruals to have PTO balances increase automatically. Employees can see their total PTO hours at any time in the Buddy Punch app, and used PTO is automatically removed from balances and added to time cards.

Use Buddy Punch’s Early/Late report to identify employees who clocked in early or late over a specific timeframe to document attendance issues and identify employees who are increasing your labor costs. Then, the Absence Report lets you identify employees who were no-shows over a specific timeframe, which is great for documenting attendance issues like excessive absenteeism.

Key features

• Attendance issues highlighted on the dashboard 
• Real-time alerts for late arrivals, missed shifts, and early exits
• Detailed reports showing recurring attendance infractions
• Privacy-first location tracking and geofencing

Pros

•  Feature-rich and affordable platform 
•  Strong identity and location verification 

Cons

• No free plan offered

Pricing

Buddy Punch’s plans that include time tracking, employee scheduling, attendance tracking, PTO tracking, and location tracking start at $5.99/user per month plus a $19/month base fee that covers the cost of all admin users you add to the platform.

2. OnTheClock: Best for real-time attendance dashboards

OnTheClock’s time and attendance software lets managers easily see who is at work and when. It also offers PTO tracking, attendance notifications, and location verification. Leaders can view the real-time attendance page to see who has and hasn’t clocked in, and if you decide to enable GPS, managers can also check that each employee is in the right location. 

With automated notifications, managers can receive alerts if anyone clocks in late or stay on top of when the team takes breaks or changes shifts. It can also track absences over time, as well as PTO accruals and use of paid time off, making manual tracking unnecessary. Finally, OnTheClock uses geofencing to ensure employees can only clock in or out when they’re at their assigned workplace. 

Key features   

• Clock-in/clock-out tracking and time card logs
• Real-time view of who is clocked in at any given time
• Automated notifications to flag attendance issues 
• Location verification and geofence restrictions

Pros   

•  Simple display of attendance records
•  Scaled pricing based on business size 

Cons

• Interface can feel clunky
• Limited analytics and advanced reporting options

Pricing

OnTheClock’s plans that include attendance tracking start at $4/employee per month plus a $5/month base fee.

3. Connecteam: Best for communicating with late employees

Connecteam’s absence management software offers attendance monitoring via reporting, alerts, and location tracking. Employees have several options to clock in — including a mobile app, a kiosk, or their browser — and optional geofencing and GPS tracking help verify their clock-in location. All data is captured in real time and recorded automatically. 

Managers can track attendance with a dedicated dashboard that reflects who’s clocked in, late, or absent. Filtering lets you see who’s running late by specific role or location. Alternatively, you can also see who’s clocked in and who’s running late by looking at notifications on your employee scheduling view.

One of Connecteam’s standout features is that when you see that an employee is running late, you can click on their name and send them a message instantly. This is great if you need to get an ETA from an employee to let a customer know when that employee will arrive.

You can set up attendance reports to be emailed to you automatically so you can see a list of who was late for work each day.  Finally, Connecteam also lets you track PTO and offers location-tracking and geofencing for ensuring everyone is at the correct site and verifying attendance. 

Key features   

• Real-time attendance monitoring widget
• Automated attendance reports 
• GPS tracking and geofencing

Pros 

• Real-time attendance insights via dedicated dashboard
• Automated reporting can be sent to admins 

Cons

• PTO tracking requires subscription to a separate hub
• Reporting features are only available on higher-cost plans

Pricing

Connecteam’s plans that let you receive automated email attendance reports start at $99/month and include three total reports. To get unlimited reports, you’ll need to subscribe to the Enterprise plan. Additionally, to add PTO tracking, you’ll have to subscribe separately to the HR & Skills hub, which starts at $29/month.

4. Jibble: Best for built-in facial recognition

Jibble’s attendance tracking software comes with features like GPS tracking, geofencing, a real-time attendance dashboard, and biometrics. Jibble’s facial recognition feature uses biometric verification to ensure the correct person is clocking in — rather than a colleague buddy punching for them. This data then feeds into timesheets just like regular clock-ins. 

Jibble automatically tracks clock-ins and clock-outs, then syncs this data to the cloud for real-time reporting. Managers can see a live view of who is present, who’s missing, and who was late. It combines attendance tracking with other time tracking functions, so for detailed trend detection or reports, you’ll have to sift through more data than with some simpler tools. 

While Jibble is well-known for its free plan, it’s worth noting that attendance reports are not available on that plan. You can use its time tracking and facial recognition features for free for unlimited users, but to get access to attendance reports, you’ll need to be on the paid Ultimate plan.

Key features   

• Real-time attendance data and dashboard 
• GPS tracking and geofencing
• Facial recognition and biometrics
• Export timesheets for payroll processing

Pros   

• Free plan available with limited attendance-tracking features 
• GPS and facial recognition reduce buddy punching

Cons

• Reports require manual review and interpretation
• Some advanced features require upgrading to a paid plan

Pricing 

Jibble’s plans that include attendance reporting start at $7.99/user per month.

5. Deputy: Best for AI-powered scheduling

Deputy offers real-time visibility into attendance, with verification tools like GPS tracking and facial recognition. Its attendance features are combined with employee scheduling as part of the broader Deputy suite, and it stands out for its AI-powered scheduling feature that allows you to use AI to create your schedules automatically based on historical schedules and predicted sales.

Employees can clock in and out on Deputy via mobile, tablet, or desktop, like many other attendance tracking tools on this list, but it also offers integrations with POS systems so employees can clock in and out using your existing hardware. It offers multiple verification tools, including facial recognition and GPS location stamps. 

Leaders can view a centralized dashboard that shows who’s on site, who’s on a break, and who hasn’t yet shown up for their shift. Timesheets are automatically generated at the end of each shift and can be exported to payroll systems.  

Deputy provides insight into absence and attendance through reports of no-shows, tardiness, or early departures. Managers can filter these reports by criteria such as employee, time period, and location, and then use these to analyze patterns over time.

Key features   

• Real-time attendance visibility 
• Clock in via mobile, tablet, and desktop
• Facial recognition at clock-in
• Alerts for missed breaks or late shifts 

Pros   

• Live views of who is on shift or arriving late
• Robust punch verification 

Cons

• Attendance tools are tied to scheduling suite
• Attendance reporting requires some manual effort 

Pricing

Deputy’s plans that include attendance tracking start at $5/user per month.

6. ShiftFlow: Best for predictable pricing

ShiftFlow is a workforce management tool designed for shift-based and field teams that need a reliable way to track time and manage schedules. With features like GPS-based clock-ins, automated timesheets, and built-in scheduling, it replaces manual tracking and disconnected tools. Managers can quickly see who’s working, where they are, and how hours are being spent.

Planning shifts in ShiftFlow is straightforward, even for teams spread across different sites. Managers can assign and adjust shifts quickly without constant back-and-forth, while employees always know when and where they’re expected to work. It cuts down on missed shifts and last-minute confusion.

Managers get a live view of who’s on the clock and who isn’t, and clock-ins are tied to location, so it’s easier to confirm employees are actually on-site. This adds a layer of accountability that’s especially useful for field teams where remote check-ins aren’t enough.

Work hours are automatically turned into clean, ready-to-use timesheets. Instead of piecing together data manually, managers can quickly review hours, overtime, and job-based work, making payroll faster and far less error-prone.

Key features   

•  GPS-based clock-in and geofencing for accurate attendance tracking
• Time tracking with automated timesheets and overtime calculation
• Shift scheduling with availability management and shift updates
• Real-time visibility of team status and on-site activity

Pros   

• GPS-based clock-ins help confirm staff are actually on-site
• Real-time view of who’s working and where

Cons

• Some features like AI scheduling or deeper reporting may be less mature
• Best suited for small to mid-sized field teams rather than large enterprise environments

Pricing

ShiftFlow has only one plan that includes all of its features which starts at $60/seat per year.

The benefits of employee attendance tracking software

The right employee attendance tracking software tells you much more than which employee worked which shift. In fact, the benefits of this type of software are far-reaching and can impact everything from reducing manual work to improving the employee experience. Here are a few top benefits. 

Spot attendance issues early, not during payroll

While attendance issues can lead to lost hours and unfinished work, they also often turn payroll processing into a scramble when issues don’t become apparent until payroll is already closing. 

A strong attendance tracking system helps you uncover patterns early, allowing you to address chronic lateness or absenteeism before it becomes a major payroll issue. The earlier you gain visibility into these issues, the sooner you can resolve them. 

Improve accountability and enforce fair policies

A common objection to attendance tracking is that it feels like micromanagement. But with a good system, you can actually reduce this feeling by setting clear, consistent, and transparent expectations. 

Automated tracking also reduces the need for managers to constantly check in or send repeated reminders, letting them focus their time on supporting and developing their teams. 

At the same time, attendance software provides objective records of each employee’s hours, making it easier to enforce policies consistently. This ensures everyone is held to the same standard, reducing bias and promoting a workplace culture where employees trust management to treat them fairly.

Create clear attendance records for disputes or reviews

Attendance disputes are a common challenge, and they’re often handled poorly to boot. After all, if no one is tracking time accurately and managers are relying on their memory or email records, it’s difficult to truly get to the bottom of an attendance situation.

Using attendance software creates a single source of truth for this data. This clarity doesn’t just reduce disputes; it also makes them easier to address when they do crop up. Plus, documented and timestamped attendance records can be crucial when you need to demonstrate your compliance with labor laws around breaks or PTO policies. 

Reduce administrative follow-ups

Lacking a system for attendance recordkeeping often leads to disorganized paperwork and manual effort. Not only is this frustrating, but it also introduces additional labor costs that can add up quickly. With an automated attendance platform, you can spend less time on spreadsheets and more time on strategy.

The bottom line on attendance tracking software

Attendance problems can throw a wrench into your business operations, so it’s critical to catch them early. But you can’t do that if you’re spending time chasing down spreadsheets or trying to remember what time someone showed up to work last week. 

That’s where attendance tracking software comes in. The right tool gives you visibility into exactly when your team is working, then flags patterns you need to address — long before they become a payroll issue. Plus, you’ll improve employee trust and ensure fair treatment of your whole team.