6 Best Timesheet Apps & Software [In-Depth Breakdown]

6 Best Timesheet Apps & Software [In-Depth Breakdown]

In a recent article, we wrote about the disadvantages of traditional time tracking using paper or Excel timesheets. They come with many challenges, including:

  • Your employees may not always be honest on their reporting of when and where they punched in/out of work. This can, if left unchecked for long enough, result in a significant loss of money for your business.
  • Running payroll manually is time-consuming and error-prone. Honest human error can either result in overpaying or underpaying employees, both of which significantly hurt your business (and lose the trust of your employees).
  • Crafting schedules using pen and paper or Excel sheets is a notoriously complex and tedious process. Moreover, manually-crafted schedules are prone to becoming outdated faster than you can keep up as employee shifts change.

To solve these challenges, we set out to build Buddy Punch — a timesheet app that helps you:

  • Track when and where your employees punch in/out of work.
  • Keep your team accountable.
  • Save hours on payroll.
  • Craft schedules that work — with just a few clicks.

In this post, we’ll detail what makes Buddy Punch a great timesheet software for employees, including a breakdown of our key features and user reviews. Then, we’ll list other timesheet apps available on the market, for you to pick and choose the solution that best fits your specific business needs.

Table of Contents

  1. Buddy Punch
  2. Connecteam
  3. Hubstaff
  4. QuickBooks Time
  5. DeskTime
  6. Timely

Note: To learn more about Buddy Punch, sign up for a free trial here or request a demo.

1. Buddy Punch

The Buddy Punch interface

As mentioned above, Buddy Punch offers several features that help with (1) employee accountability, (2) payroll processing, and (3) scheduling.

Before we get into the ins and outs of our features, we’ll detail how Buddy Punch helps your employees punch in/out of work, and what happens with all that punch-in data once it’s been recorded by our system. That said, feel free to use the list below to navigate to each specific feature section:

Increase Accountability for Your Employees with:

Streamline Payroll with:

Simplify Scheduling with:

Short Overview of How Buddy Punch Works

When your employees use Buddy Punch, clocking in and out of work is as easy as tapping a screen (if using our mobile app or tablet), or clicking a button (if using our web-based app), as pictured below:

Buddy Punch's simple interface makes it easy to punch in and punch out.

Whenever your employees record a punch, that information can then be sent to the Buddy Punch administrator platform in real-time for you to review (be it all at once or on a per-employee basis).

All information needed for payroll (i. e. overtime, time off, billablework hours, etc.) is also automatically calculated and centralized in our platform, which you can export as an Excel or CSV report to save countless hours and headaches when running payroll:

Buddy Punch's Payroll Reports on Demand

Accountability Features (Geofencing, IP Address Locking, and More)

To help you keep your team accountable, no matter when and where they punch in/out of work, Buddy Punch comes with the following features:

Geofencing

Buddy Punch's Geofencing feature

With Geofencing, you can set up a radius in which your team will be unable to clock in and clock out of work if they are outside of the chosen radius.

Buddy Punch tracks your employees’ locations leveraging their mobile devices’ GPS technology, and only allows them to punch in/out when they are located within a predetermined Geofence. If an employee tries to punch in elsewhere, our app (iPhone, Android)will show them an error message.

To set this up, log in to the Buddy Punch dashboard and navigate to the “Geofences” section. Once there, input an address to use as the Geofence’s center, and select your desired radius (250 ft, 500 ft, for example).

GPS Tracking

Buddy Punch's Punch Map feature

Buddy Punch’s ability to leverage a device’s GPS technology isn’t just limited to Geofences. Our app also tracks where your employees punch in/out of work and then records that location data in their timecard, for you to review by logging in to the Buddy Punch administrator dashboard.

Keep in mind that you can review location data on a per-employee basis, or all at once.

This feature is especially useful for businesses with employees who don’t work in the same location everyday (i.e. sales people who drive to different homes throughout the day).

IP Address Locking

Buddy Punch's IP Address Lock feature

IP Address Locking ties your employees’ ability to clock in/out of work to the network from which they’re attempting to do so. If an employee tries to punch in/out when not connected to, say, your office’s Wi-Fi network, Buddy Punch will show them an error message and ask them to try again.

To set up an IP Address Lock, simply login to the administrator dashboard and input your chosen IP Address. Keep in mind that you can create multiple IP Address Locks, each tied to a network of your choosing.

Photos on Punch

Buddy Punch's Photo on Punch feature

When our Photos on Punch feature is active, the Buddy Punch app will prompt your team members to take a photo of themselves in order to validate their time entry.

The Buddy Punch software then centralizes all these images in your administrator panel for easy review. You can review these images all at once, or on a per-employee basis, and determine whether your employees punched in/out themselves.

Payroll Features (Integrations, Time Off Tracking, and More)

To help you streamline the payroll process, and save several hours and headaches each pay period, Buddy Punch comes with the following features:

Integrations with Payroll Providers

Payroll Integrations with Buddy Punch

Buddy Punch integrates with most top payroll providers and HR software so you can streamline your payroll process. We offer integrations with:

  • QuickBooks
  • Paychex
  • Workday
  • SurePayroll
  • And more! To learn more about how you can save time on payroll by setting up these integrations, click here.

Payroll Reports on Demand

Buddy Punch's Payroll Reports on Demand

Again, as we mentioned earlier, all information needed for payroll (i. e. overtime, time off, billablework hours, etc.) is automatically calculated and centralized in our platform, which you can export as an Excel or CSV report to save countless hours running payroll.

Time Off Tracking

Buddy Punch Time Off Timecards

Use our Time Off Tracking functionality to manage all your team’s time off needs without stress.

With Buddy Punch, your employees can input a time off request, then have that request forwarded automatically to their employer or administrator (for them to reject or approve according to their needs, as shown below).

Buddy Punch's Time Card Pending Time Off Approval

Buddy Punch also offers an in-app time-off summary, which you can see illustrated below:

Buddy Punch's PTO Summary

Track Employee Hours by Job, Project, or Location

Hours Report by Location, Department, Position, Time Off

The Buddy Punch platform allows you to easily generate “Hours Reports”, which can be segmented by “Position”, “Location”, or “Department.”

To learn the ins and outs of these reports, see this video.

Accruals

Buddy Punch's Time Off Accrual Rules

With Buddy Punch, you can handle all your accrual needs without breaking a sweat.

Simply log in to the administrator dashboard and set up accrual rules for your team. These rules can be based on a given pay period (annual accruals included), or on the number of hours worked (for all employees, or on a per-employee basis).

Scheduling Features (Drag & Drop, Employee Availability, and More)

To simplify the schedule-crafting process, and make sure you are always up-to-date with your employees’ ever-changing shift preferences and availability, we’ve built the following features:

Drag & Drop Scheduling

Buddy Punch's Drag and Drop feature for scheduling

When you use Buddy Punch to craft schedules for your team, you’ll do so following a Drag & Drop principle.

This means, put simply, that you can decide first what shift will best fit each specific member of your team, and then reorganize shifts by clicking, dragging and dropping them around until you’re happy with the result.

Repeating/Recurring Shifts

Buddy Punch's Repeating/Recurring Scheduling feature

To avoid wasting time and energy creating schedules from scratch every time a new work period comes around, use our Repeating/Recurring Shifts feature.

This allows you to have schedules repeat over specified regular periods — weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly — with just a few clicks!

Employee Availability

Buddy Punch's Employee Availability Feature

To streamline the schedule-crafting process, use our Employee Availability feature, which allows you to know your employees’ shifts preferences before you set out to build their schedules.

Simply ask your employees to login to the Buddy Punch app and navigate to the “Employee Availability” section. There, they’ll be able to input their shift preferences, subject to your approval.

Punch Limiting

Buddy Punch's Add a New Punch Limiting rule

A major struggle many employers face when tracking time for their team is employees clocking in a few minutes early, or a few minutes late. With Buddy Punch, you can bypass this challenge by setting up Punch Limiting Rules.

These rules include tying your employees’ ability to punch to their schedule, or limiting punching in/out to a predetermined number of minutes before or after their shift’s start or end time. The image above, for example, illustrates a punch limiting rule that’ll prevent your employees from clocking in/out 15 minutes before or after a shift.

Notify Employees When You Publish Their Shift

Buddy Punch Scheduling: Notify Employees When You Publish Their New Schedule

You can notify your employees of their schedules as soon as you’re done crafting them, and all without ever leaving the Buddy Punch app. To do so, hit the “Publish Schedule” button, and select which kind of notification you prefer: email, push notification, or both.

Other types of notifications at your disposal include:

  • Shift Start Reminder & Shift End Reminder
  • Late In Alert & Late Out Alert
  • Early In Alert & Early Out Alert
  • And more!

See What Customers Have to Say About Buddy Punch

At the time of writing, Buddy Punch has a rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars, with 641 reviews on the popular software review site Capterra.

Here’s one review that highlights Buddy Punch’s ease of use and intuitiveness for employees:

And here are two reviews that highlight Buddy Punch’s emphasis on customer support:

Click here to read more of our reviews on Capterra.

Interested in Learning More?

What we’ve described so far is only the tip of the iceberg of what makes Buddy Punch a great online timesheet app. If you’d like to learn more about Buddy Punch’s key features, see the full Buddy Punch demo below:

For more information about Buddy Punch, visit our site and sign up for a free trial.

2. Connecteam

Connecteam has, at the time of writing, a total of 124 reviews on Capterra, with an average of 4.8 out of 5 stars.

Connecteam’s employee timesheet software has features such as Employee Time Clock, Checklists & Forms, Employee Task Management, Employee Training, Employee Communication and Employee Scheduling.

Here’s one review that highlights why it’s a great employee timesheet app:

Connecteam review: "User-friendly, GPS Tracking is very useful"

Interested in Learning More?

For a more detailed look at all of Connecteam’s features, click here, and to learn more about what users have to say about Connecteam, click here.

If you’d like a more in-depth comparison between Connecteam and Buddy Punch, visit this post.

3. Hubstaff

Hubstaff has, at the time of writing, a total of 1164 reviews, with an average of 4.6 out of 5 stars on Capterra.

Their key features include Employee Timesheet Tracking, Online Time Reporting, Employee Productivity Monitoring, GPS Location Tracking and Automated Payroll & Invoicing.

Here’s one review that highlights why it’s a great timesheet app for small businesses:

Hubstaff review: "Hubstaff is a great way to keep track of your team off your location."

Interested in Learning More?

You can take a more detailed look at all of Hubstaff’s features by clicking here, and learn more about what users have to say about them by clicking here.

Alternatively, visit Hubstaff’s site and request a full demo, or sign up for a free 14-day trial.

4. QuickBooks Time

QuickBooks Time (previously known as TSheets) boasts, at the time of writing, over 6000 reviews on Capterra, with an average of 4.7 out of 5 stars.

Their key features include Time Tracking, Scheduling, Payroll Integrations and Time Card Reports.

Here’s one review that highlights the key benefits of QuickBooks Time’s time tracking app:

TSheets review: "GPS feature keeps everyone above board on clock in/out times"

Interested in Learning More?

You can learn more about all of QuickBooks Time’s features by clicking here, and about what users have to say about QuickBooks Time by clicking here.

If you’d like to know more about how QuickBooks Time compares to Buddy Punch, visit this post.

5. DeskTime

DeskTime has, at the time of writing, a total of 238 reviews on Capterra, with an average of 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Some of their best features include Automatic Time Tracking, URL and App Tracking, Document Title Tracking, Idle Time Tracker, Automatic Screenshots, and Absence Calendar.

Here’s one review that highlights why it’s a great employee time tracking software:

Desktime review: "Track productivity, boost attention, tracking"

Interested in Learning More?

For a more detailed look at all of DeskTime’s features, click here.

To learn more about what users have to say about DeskTime, you can see all of their Capterra reviews here.

You can also give DeskTime a try via their demo, or sign up for a 14-day free trial.

6. Timely

Timely has, at the time of writing, a total of 207 reviews on Capterra, averaging 4.7 out of 5 stars.

Their key features include Automatic Time Tracking, Project and Team Planning, Team Time Management, and App Integrations.

Here’s one review that highlights why it’s a great desktop and mobile timesheet app:

Timely review: "I couldn't run my creative business without this"

Interested in Learning More?

To learn more about what users have to say about Timely, you can see all of their Capterra reviews here.

Alternatively, visit Timely’s site here or sign up for a free 14-day trial.

Note: To learn more about Buddy Punch, sign up for a free trial here or request a demo.

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