5 Best Work Hour Tracker Apps (In-Depth Look)

ByEric Czerwonka Last UpdatedJanuary 18, 2024

5 Best Work Hour Tracker Apps

When choosing a work hour tracker app, you should ensure that it has features to:

Increase employee accountability. For example, you should be able to restrict employee punches to a specific location, device, Wi-Fi network, and so on. This ensures employees are punching in and out from the correct location and that no one is doing so in their stead. This is a more accurate method to ensure accountability than the traditional honor system, and it leads to greater peace of mind and profitability.

Save time on payroll. For example, the app should automatically calculate each employee’s hours. Gone are the days of manually adding up hours via Excel, which is laborious, inaccurate, and time consuming. The app should also support payroll provider integrations so you avoid manual entry work. In addition, there should be plenty of time off tracking features (such as in-app time off requests and time off balance reports).

In this article, we’ll discuss how Buddy Punch (our work hour tracker app) excels in these two areas. We’ll also list four other work hour tracker apps so you have the tools to make a more informed choice.

Best Work Hour Tracker Apps

Buddy Punch
Connecteam
OnTheClock
Hubstaff
When I Work

1. Buddy Punch

In this section, we’ll share:

A brief, high-level overview of how our work hour tracker app works.

A detailed overview of Buddy Punch’s accountability features (such as Geofencing, IP Address Locking, Photos on Punch, and more).

A detailed overview of Buddy Punch’s payroll features (such as On-Demand Payroll Reports, Payroll Provider Integrations, Time Off Tracking, Accruals, and more).

Additional Buddy Punch features.

Customer reviews on Capterra (a widely-used software review platform).

Let’s discuss each in turn.

A Brief, High-Level Overview of How Our Work Hour Tracker App Works

Zooming out, at a high level, with Buddy Punch:

1. Employees can punch in and out via our mobile app (which works with iPhone and Android), tablet, or MacOS / Windows computers.

Buddy Punch on any device.

2. The information you need for payroll is automatically calculated each pay period. That includes regular employee hours, time off, overtime, and more.

Per the image below, you can download an Excel spreadsheet with this information. If an employee ever asks, “where can I see my hours?” – you’ll know exactly where to direct them.

Export payroll info to an Excel spreadsheet.

A Detailed Overview of Buddy Punch’s Accountability Features

Buddy Punch offers a plethora of timekeeping features to increase employee accountability. We’ll list some of the key ones below.

Geofencing

Geofencing

Geofencing lets you restrict employee time entries to a specific location.

Here’s a simplified view of how it works:

Enter an address that you want employees to log hours from (e.g., 123 Ocean Avenue).

Enter a customizable radius, such as 500 feet.

Using the above example, employees will now only be able to submit a punch within 500 feet of 123 Ocean Avenue.

What if employees attempt to log work time just outside of your designated radius, e.g., while they’re 20 minutes away from work? In that case, they’ll be met with an error message (pictured below) and asked to try again within the correct location.

Geofencing Error Message with Buddy Punch

This automatic time management feature (and many of the other team management options listed below) help you avoid paying employees for hours not actually worked. One major pro of this is significantly boosting your bottom line. Just as an example, if you take 20 minutes a day and extrapolate it over 365 days, that’s 121 billable hours of time theft you’re no longer paying for.

IP Address Locking

Edit IP address lock.

IP Address Locking lets you restrict employee punches to a specific Wi-Fi network or device.

Do you have in-office employees? In that case, this feature may be best suited for your business.

For example, if employees all use a Wi-Fi network named “Spectrum-C8” at work, they would only be able to punch in or out when connected to that network.

Or, if employees all punch in from the same Apple or Windows tablet or desktop computer via the web app, you could limit punches to these devices.

Photos on Punch

Photo on punch.

Are you worried about buddy punching at work? In that case, we recommend activating the Photos on Punch feature.

As the name implies, employees take a selfie photo of themselves (via a phone or computer webcam) each time they punch in and out.

The photos are then compiled for easy viewing via your administrator dashboard:

View photos next to payroll hours.

Additional Accountability Features

Beyond the aforementioned accountability features, we offer GPS Tracking, Facial Recognition Punching, Punch Limiting Rules, and more. Each business has different needs, and no matter what you’re looking for, Buddy Punch can likely fit your workflow.

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out via live chat, try our app for free, or book a 1-on-1 demo.

A Detailed Overview of Buddy Punch’s Payroll Features

Buddy Punch offers a plethora of features to save time on payroll. We’ll list some of the key ones below.

Payroll Reports on Demand

Export payroll info to a spreadsheet.

As we’ve mentioned, our work hour tracker app calculates all the info you need for payroll. That includes regular employee hours, time off, overtime, and more. Per the above image, you can download an Excel spreadsheet with this information.

As part of their review, one of our customers mentioned:

“After using paper time cards for over a year, spending many frustrating hours a week reviewing, verifying, inputting, and analyzing employee punches, and then finding a place to keep the paper cards for our records, we were fed up. We used the Buddy Punch trial, and within a week, we knew this was the solution we were looking for … Now the process is as simple as logging on, setting the date range, exporting a CSV, and migrating the data into an analysis template. What used to take over an hour, takes roughly 20 minutes.”
Click here to read the full review.

Payroll Provider Integrations

Payroll integrations.

To avoid tedious and inaccurate manual entry work, we recommend integrating Buddy Punch with your payroll provider. The process is extremely simple, and we integrate with the majority of popular solutions on the market, including:

QuickBooks Online
QuickBooks Desktop
Paychex
SurePayroll
PayPlus
ADP Workforce Now
Paylocity
Workday
Gusto

Setting up an integration typically takes 5 to 10 minutes, and we offer detailed step-by-step setup guides for each payroll provider. We highly recommend taking advantage of this feature, as it will result in significant time savings and greater accuracy of hours. Naturally, inputting this information manually into your payroll provider introduces room for human error. (Meaning you could accidentally underpay or overpay hourly rates and create a disruptive situation.)

Time Off Tracking

Integrations mitigate human error.

Within the Buddy Punch app, employees can easily submit time off requests. In addition, time off hours (paid and unpaid) are automatically calculated and available for easy reference via summary reports. You can easily filter by date (e.g., a specific payroll period) and export this information via Excel or PDF.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. Learn about Buddy Punch’s full time off tracking capabilities here.

Accruals

Customize time off accrual rules.

If you’d like to set up time off accrual rules, then we recommend reading this help doc article or watching this video.

There are many useful resources on our site to help you get the most out of each feature, and you can always reach out to us via live chat with any questions or book a one-on-one demo (either before, during, or after your trial run).

Additional Buddy Punch Features (e.g., Employee Scheduling, Overtime Calculations, and More)

Click here to explore Buddy Punch’s full list of features, some of which include:

Customer Reviews on Capterra

As of the writing date, Buddy Punch has 685 reviews and 4.8 out of 5 stars on Capterra. (If you’re unfamiliar, Capterra is one of the most popular English software review websites.)

4.8 out of 5 stars based on 685 reviews.

When we built Buddy Punch, two significant priorities were ease of use and excellent customer service. We’re grateful that these are common themes amongst the reviews:

“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 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.

“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 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.

“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.

Sign Up for a Free Trial of Buddy Punch and/or Book a 1-on-1 Demo Call

If you feel that Buddy Punch fits your business needs, we invite you to visit our site and:

2. Connecteam

Connecteam offers a plethora of widgets and functionalities. Just to name a few:

It’s one of the best work hour tracker apps on the market. As of the writing date, Connecteam has 151 reviews and 4.7 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. OnTheClock

OnTheClock is a team & project management tool with powerful features to manage the number of hours your team works. Consider options such as:

It’s a great simple work hour tracker app. As of the writing date, OnTheClock has 511 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.

4. Hubstaff

Hubstaff offers a plethora of features and functionality. Just to name a few:

It’s a solid hour time tracker app for work. As of the writing date, Hubstaff has 1257 reviews and 4.6 out of 5 stars on Capterra.

“Hours and productivity are tracked easily day to day and the platform provides useful feedback. I have recommended it to other business leaders also.”
Click here to read the full review.

5. When I Work

When I Work offers a plethora of features and functionality. Just to name a few:

It’s a solid work hours tracker app. As of the writing date, When I Work has 929 reviews and 4.5 out of 5 stars on Capterra.

“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.

Sign Up for a Free Trial of Buddy Punch and/or Book a 1-on-1 Demo Call

If you feel that Buddy Punch fits your business needs, we invite you to visit our site and:

You may also feel free to contact our responsive customer support team with any questions you may have about using our software. We respond to all inquiries.

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Eric Czerwonka

About the author

As a prior multiple-location business owner, Eric knows all about time collection, scheduling, and everything in-between. From best practices, stories, and business experience, he’ll keep you up to date on the latest trends.