Buddy Punch vs. When I Work

Buddy Punch vs. When I Work: Side-By-Side Comparison

Buddy Punch vs. When I Work: Detailed Comparison

While Buddy Punch and When I Work both help with employee time tracking and scheduling, the two tools have completely different use cases and features. Read on to determine which option is right for your company.

Buddy Punch is the better time tracking tool

Buddy Punch is a time tracking tool that offers scheduling features. When I Work is an employee scheduling tool that offers time tracking features. Each tool is the better option for the type of task it’s primarily focused on.

Buddy Punch is primarily a time tracking tool, and as a result, it offers a lot of time tracking features you won’t find in When I Work. For example, employees can only clock in and out of When I Work using two options: a username and password and single sign-on.

With Buddy Punch, employees can clock in and out in several ways. In addition to usernames and passwords and single sign-on, employees can clock in and out using a 4-digit PIN, facial recognition, scanning a QR code, or sending a text message. Supervisors can also use group punch to clock everyone on their teams in and out at the same time.

These options make Buddy Punch usable in a variety of different scenarios. If employees don’t have their own mobile phones, a supervisor can clock them in and out. If everyone works on-site and you set Buddy Punch up as a kiosk, PINs, QR codes, and facial recognition prevent long lines forming by employees waiting to clock in/out.

When I Work is the more affordable option

When I Work’s plans that include time tracking and employee scheduling start at $4/user per month. Buddy Punch’s start at $5.99/user per month plus a $19 base fee that covers all admin users. 

If you’ll only have one or two admin users, When I Work is the more affordable option. However, if you’ll have several admin users, Buddy Punch’s base fee that covers all admins can make it a more affordable option.

However, if you only need employee scheduling and not time tracking, When I Work is much more affordable, offering all of the same scheduling features you’ll find in Buddy Punch for less than half the cost ($2.50/user/month for When I Work vs. $5.99/user/month for Buddy Punch).

Buddy Punch excels in ease of use and customer support

Buddy Punch does not present any sort of barriers between users and customer support. The moment you visit the website — before you’ve even registered or spent a dime — you’re given access to a real human support team to answer any questions you have via live chat.

In contrast, When I Work funnels questions through email support, which has much longer response times. Only existing users with admin, manager, or supervisor roles have access to When I Work’s live chat support.

Buddy Punch lets absolutely anyone contact its customer service agents via live chat, so your employees can resolve any issues they run into on their own. As one customer says:

Buddy Punch’s advantages in ease of use and customer support are reflected in ratings from customers on Capterra:

• Buddy Punch has an overall rating of 4.8/5 stars vs. When I Work’s 4.5/5 stars.
• Buddy Punch has a rating of 4.8/5 stars for ease of use vs. When I Work’s 4.5/5.
• Buddy Punch has a rating of 4.8/5 starts for customer service vs. When I Work’s 4.4/5.

When I Work is the better choice for team communication

If your team has a need for in-depth conversation between workers, When I Work has a built-in communication tool, known as WorkChat, that allows you and your staff to send messages and images to each other in real time. Managers can also use WorkChat to send one-way messaging to all staff. Buddy Punch does not have an equivalent feature for this option.

Who When I Work is right for vs. who Buddy Punch is right for

If you only need employee scheduling and not time tracking, When I Work is going to be the better option for you. It offers all of the scheduling features you need at less than half the cost of Buddy Punch ($2.50/user/month for When I Work vs. $5.99/user/month for Buddy Punch).

However, if you want both employee scheduling and time tracking (or just need time tracking and not scheduling), Buddy Punch is the better choice. It offers a lot more time tracking features, it’s one of the most affordable time tracking apps on the market, and it has better customer ratings than When I Work both overall and for ease of use and customer support.