5 Best Time Entry Apps & Software (In-Depth Look)

In this post, we’ll begin by sharing how Buddy Punch (our time entry app) works. Specifically, we’ll show how easy it is for employees to punch in and out, and the various accountability and payroll-related features we offer. Then, to aid in your research process, we’ll list four other time entry software options.
Best Time Entry Apps & Software
1. Buddy Punch
High-Level Overview: How Our Time Entry App Works
In this section, we’ll briefly share how Buddy Punch works:
1. Employees can easily punch in and out via our app (available for phones and tablets) or a computer.
2. Our software tracks and adds up regular employee hours, time off, overtime, and more.
You can export this information in the form of Excel (pictured below) or PDF.
Features to Help You Increase Employee Accountability (Geofencing, Photos on Punch, and More)
Buddy Punch offers a wide variety of features to help keep employees honest and prevent buddy punching. You can optionally activate one or several of the below features, depending on the needs of your business.
Geofencing
Let’s say your business was located at 123 Denrock Street, and you wanted to restrict employee punches to within 500 feet of this address. The Geofencing feature makes this possible!
Also, if you have multiple business locations or worksites from which employees could punch in and out from, then you can set up multiple geofences.
IP Address Locking
IP Address Locking lets you restrict employee punches to a specific device or Wi-Fi network.
For example, you could restrict employee punches to one central tablet or computer. Or, if employees punch in and out from their phone, you can set it so they’re only able to do so when connected to your business’s Wi-Fi network (e.g., “Verizon-C8”).
Photos on Punch
Photos on Punch is a great feature to prevent buddy punching. Employees capture a selfie image whenever they punch in and out, and those images show up on the administrator’s dashboard:
Additional Accountability Features
Buddy Punch offers many other features to help increase employee accountability. For example: Facial Recognition Punching, GPS Tracking, Punch Limiting Rules, and more.
No matter what your business’s needs are, we likely have you covered. If you have any questions, we’ll get back to you quickly via live chat. (Our median response time is 54 seconds during business hours.)
Note: If you’d like to learn more about Buddy Punch, start a trial today and/or request a live demo with our team.
Features to Help You Save Time on Payroll (Payroll Provider Integrations, Time Off Tracking, and More)
Buddy Punch offers a wide variety of features to increase the efficiency of your payroll process. You can optionally use one or several of the below features, depending on the needs of your business.
Payroll Reports on Demand
As we’ve mentioned, our timesheet app tracks and adds up regular employee hours, time off, overtime, and more. You can export this information in the form of Excel (pictured above) or PDF.
Payroll Provider Integrations
Traditionally, you’d have to manually input employee hours (and other information) into your payroll provider. But with Buddy Punch, you can save time and set up an integration with:
- QuickBooks Online (See setup instructions.)
- QuickBooks Desktop (See setup instructions.)
- Paychex (See setup instructions.)
- SurePayroll (See setup instructions.)
- ADP Workforce Now (See setup instructions.)
- Paylocity (See setup instructions.)
- Workday (See setup instructions.)
- Gusto (See setup instructions.)
- iSolved (See setup instructions.)
- Wagepoint (See setup instructions.)
- Justworks (See setup instructions.)
- Payment Evolution (See setup instructions.)
- And more
Time Off Tracking
With Buddy Punch, employees can easily send in-app time off requests, view time off balance reports, and more.
If you’d like to see an extensive list of our time off tracking features, click here.
Accruals
Buddy Punch makes it easy to add and edit time off accrual rules. To learn more about this feature, see this video and/or help doc article.
Learn about Buddy Punch’s Other Features (Scheduling, Overtime Calculations, and More)
Click here to explore our complete list of features, some of which include:
- Employee Scheduling
- Overtime Calculations
- Job Codes / Project Tracking
- Time Card Approvals
- Multiple Punch and Login Options
- Adding, Editing, or Deleting Punches
- And more
Online Reviews on Capterra
As of this writing date, Buddy Punch has 699 reviews and 4.8 out of 5 stars on Capterra, a widely-used software review platform.
Many reviewers touch on Buddy Punch’s ease of use for employers and employees:
“Most folks pick up on it right away. The system is intuitive and those who do have difficulty only need a quick tutorial and they are good to go.”
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.
“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 software is straightforward and well-run, and was easily understood by our team of 55+ non-technical staff of all ages.”
Click here to read the full review.
In addition, we’ve placed a major emphasis on customer support, and are thankful that many reviewers have noticed:
“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 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.
“Their team is knowledgeable about my organization and the way that we use the platform — I have received many helpful suggestions to how we can best leverage the Buddy Punch platform in our sometimes complicated organizational structure. We have had very few issues, but have always received immediate resolutions when anything has come up.”
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.
Explore Buddy Punch and Sign Up for a Trial
If you’d like to learn more about Buddy Punch:
2. Connecteam
Connecteam offers a vast range of features, some of which include:
- Employee Time Clock
- Employee Scheduling
- Employee Task Management
- Employee Training
- Employee Communication
- Checklists and Forms
- And more
It’s one of the best time entry apps. As of this writing date, Connecteam has 190 reviews and 4.8 out of 5 stars on Capterra.
“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.
3. Clockify
Clockify offers a vast range of features, some of which include:
It’s a great time entry tracker app. As of this writing date, Clockify has 4242 reviews and 4.7 out of 5 stars on Capterra.
“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.
4. When I Work
When I Work offers a vast range of features, some of which include:
It’s a great time entry software. As of this writing date, When I Work has 952 reviews and 4.5 out of 5 stars.
“I love being able to instantly share schedules and schedule changes with employees on the corresponding app. I also really like the time clock tool that allows employees to clock in and out on a workstation or their phone app. Very convenient. Text help was quick to reply during regular business hours. Reasonably priced for my business type.”
Click here to read the full review.
5. OnTheClock
OnTheClock offers a vast range of features, some of which include:
It’s a great employee time entry app. As of this writing date, OnTheClock has 514 reviews and 4.7 out of 5 stars on Capterra.
“Overall it was exactly what I needed. The tools are very simple and easy to manage. The reporting is direct and to the point. It doesn’t offer many thrills, but for the cost it’s well worth the price.”
Click here to read the full review.
Explore Buddy Punch and Sign Up for a Free Trial
If you’d like to learn more about Buddy Punch:
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