Buddy Punch vs. QuickBooks Time
If you’re in the market for employee time tracking software and weighing Buddy Punch against QuickBooks Time, this side-by-side comparison will provide all of the information you need.
Side-By-Side Comparison
| Buddy Punch | QuickBooks Time | |
|---|---|---|
| G2 rating | 4.8 out of 5 stars | 4.5 out of 5 stars |
| Who it’s best for | Small and mid-sized companies looking for easy to use and affordable time tracking software with GPS tracking features. | Large businesses that need mileage tracking and are already subscribed to QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Payroll. |
| Key features |
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| Unique employee email addresses required? | No, admins can create accounts for employees without employees needing to have their own unique email addresses. | No, unique email addresses for each employee are recommended in QuickBooks Time but not required. |
| Employee sign-in options |
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| Apps available for | Web, iOS, Android, ChromeOS | Web, iOS, Android |
| Integrations | Payroll:ADP, Deltek, Deluxe Payroll, Gusto, iSolved, Justworks, Paychex, Paycor, Paylocity, Payment Evolution, PayPlus, Rippling, SurePayroll, TriNet Payroll, ViewPoint, Wagepoint, and Workday | Payroll:QuickBooks Payroll, ADP, Square Payroll, Paychex, OnPay, Justworks, and Payment Evolution |
| Accounting:QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop | Accounting:QuickBooks Online, Aero, Karbon | |
| Other:Zapier | Other:MakeShift, Breezeworks, Knowify, Qvinci, JazzHR, Automate.io, Dapt, LawnBuddy, Points North, PowerBI, OneDrive, Dropbox, Google Drive, Salesforce, Procore, and SyncEzy for simPRO | |
| Pricing | $4.49-$10.99/user per month plus a $19/month base fee | $10-15/user per month, with a $30-$55/month base fee |
| Features included in lowest-price plan |
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| Customer support | Live chat and email support for customers on all plans. | Phone support available for customers on all plans. |
Buddy Punch vs. QuickBooks Time: Detailed Comparison
Buddy Punch and QuickBooks Time are very similar in terms of the features they offer, but there are significant differences that make each of them better for different types of teams and needs. Read on to determine which option is right for your company.
Buddy Punch is significantly more affordable
With Buddy Punch, you get an almost identical feature set as QuickBooks Time at less than half the cost. The table below shows how much you’ll pay per user per month for the features the two platforms share:
| Feature | Buddy Punch | QuickBooks Time |
|---|---|---|
| Time tracking | $4.49/user | $10/user |
| Employee scheduling | $5.49/user | $10/user |
| Geofencing | $5.99/user | $15/user |
| Real-time GPS tracking | $6.49/user | $10/user |
| PTO tracking | $4.49/user | $10/user |
| Job costing | $4.49/user | $10/user |
Additionally, Buddy Punch’s base fee for all plans is $19/month, while QuickBooks Time’s is $30-$55/month depending on which plan you’re subscribed to. Buddy Punch’s base fee covers the cost of all admin users you add to your plan — there are no per-user costs for admins — while QuickBooks Time’s base fee only includes one admin.
Finally, to use QuickBooks Time, you must also subscribe to QuickBooks Online, so that can be an additional cost if you aren’t already paying for a QuickBooks Time subscription.
QuickBooks Time is better for mileage tracking
One of QuickBooks Time’s more unique features is mileage tracking, which allows you to record the number of miles that employees travel while working. This can be helpful if you reimburse your employees for mileage — you can automatically add miles to payroll with no odometer checking required.
While Buddy Punch does track your employees in real-time and show you the routes they traveled over the course of the day, it does not automatically calculate mileage for you.
Buddy Punch is the better option for preventing time theft
If employee time theft is a concern for your business, Buddy Punch offers a lot more features to prevent it than QuickBooks Time.
With Buddy Punch, you can require employees to take a photo of themselves when clocking in and out to prevent buddy punching. You can prevent employees from clocking in and out while offsite with geofences and IP address locks, and you can log employees’ locations when clocking in and out to see if people are clocking in offsite.
QuickBooks Time only offers photo clock-ins when using it on a tablet — not on its mobile apps. And its geofencing feature can only be used to remind employees to clock in/out when entering/exiting a geofence — not to prevent them from clocking in and out if they’re offsite.
QuickBooks Time has more diverse integrations
Buddy Punch’s integrations are limited to payroll software. However, it integrates with far more payroll providers than QuickBooks Time. QuickBooks Time has a broader range of integrations with other industry-specific apps, such as Lawn Buddy for landscaping companies, Procore for construction companies, and Karbon for accounting firms.
Who QuickBooks Time is right for vs. who Buddy Punch is right for
QuickBooks Time is the right choice for your team if you need mileage tracking or if integrations with third-party industry apps like Procore, Karbon, or Points North is a must-have feature.
If you don’t need these two things, Buddy Punch is going to be the more affordable and feature-rich option. Buddy Punch also integrates with QuickBooks Online and Desktop, so there won’t be any disadvantage to choosing a tool that’s outside of the Intuit ecosystem for time tracking.
