The Best Geofence Time Tracking App
Prevent employees from clocking in or out when they’re not on the job site with the geofencing feature in Buddy Punch’s time-tracking app.
Geofence time tracking is a method of monitoring and recording an employee’s time at a specific location, typically a worksite or designated area. It lets employers create virtual boundaries around these locations using GPS, Bluetooth, or RFID technology.
Geofences can be used to prevent employees from clocking in before they arrive at a job site or clocking out after they leave, or they can be set up to automatically clock employees in and out when arriving at or leaving a worksite for a hands-off way to track time.
This helps employers ensure everyone is where they’re supposed to be during designated work hours, preventing time theft and buddy punching. It also provides more accurate time records for payroll processing, invoicing, and compliance purposes.
With the right time-tracking app, it’s easy to set up geofencing radiuses for all of the locations where your employees should be working.
We’ve compiled this list of the nine best geofence time-tracking apps, plus what each app is best for, to help you find the perfect solution.
The 9 Best Geofence Time Tracking Apps
1. Buddy Punch
3. Hubstaff
4. Timeero
5. Connecteam
6. ExakTime
7. OnTheClock
8. Homebase
9. Hellotracks
1. Buddy Punch
Best for affordability and ease of use.
Buddy Punch’s geofencing feature lets you create a geofence around one or more locations where your employees work. You have complete control over the size of the boundary. Limit it for small office locations by making the radius 50 meters in diameter, or expand it for large job sites to as much as 1,500 meters.
With geofence boundaries set up, employees can only clock time within those boundaries. Buddy Punch uses GPS tracking on your employees’ mobile phones to identify where they’re located, and if they’re outside of the geofence, they’re prevented from punching in or out.
Buddy Punch gives admins a lot of flexibility when it comes to setting up geofencing rules. You can:
- Create a single geofence and assign all employees to it.
- Create multiple geofences and assign different employees to different geofences.
- Make clocking in and out within the geofence required for all employees.
- Make clocking in and out within the geofence required for only specific employees.
And in addition to geofencing, Buddy Punch has a lot more workforce management features to help you reduce labor costs, prevent time theft, and streamline all of your administrative work:
Job tracking
Create job codes for your different projects. Employees select a job code when clocking in, then you can see how many hours were spent on projects.
GPS tracking
Capture GPS location data when your employees clock in and out. Review their locations on their time cards to make sure they were on site when billing time.
Photos on punch
Require your employees to take a photo of themselves when clocking in or out. This helps prevent the time-theft practice of buddy punching.
Automatic time tracking
Employees can easily clock in/out using Buddy Punch’s web and mobile apps. You can then run reports for things like employee attendance and work hours.
Payroll integrations
Pay your employees directly through Buddy Punch, download your timesheet data, or send your payroll information directly to QuickBooks, Paychex, & more.
Employee scheduling
Use Buddy Punch’s drag-and-drop schedule maker to easily create shift patterns and get full control over your employees’ work schedules.
Buddy Punch’s web app makes it accessible on any internet-connected device, including Windows and Apple computers and iPad and Android tablets. Additionally, Buddy Punch has mobile apps for both Android and iOS phones, and a Google Chrome Web Store app for Chromebooks.
And with Buddy Punch, you don’t have to worry about your employees complaining about the app draining their data or the battery life of their phones. For geofencing, less than 10 KB of data is used on average for clocking in and out. And since the app only needs to be active at clock in and out, there isn’t any battery drain associated with it.
Pricing
Buddy Punch offers a free 14-day trial. Its base plan starts at $3.99 per user per month plus a $19 base fee — making it one of the most affordable geofencing apps on this list — and includes geofencing, GPS tracking, attendance tracking, employee scheduling, PTO tracking, payroll integrations, and more.
Try Buddy Punch for free
Simplify employee scheduling, time tracking, and payroll. Easily track employee time, no matter where they’re working.
2. QuickBooks Time
Best for companies using QuickBooks Payroll Premium or Elite.
QuickBooks Time allows employers to create different types of geofences. You can create them for specific office locations, job sites your employees are working at, or customers you’re doing work for.
To create a geofence in QuickBooks time, you can enter an address that’s recognized by Google Maps, or for job sites where an address isn’t available, you can use latitude and longitude values. The minimum radius for geofencing in QuickBooks is 100 meters, and the maximum is 1,000 meters.
One unique feature of geofencing in QuickBooks Time is that you can also automate the process of creating job locations using the QuickBooks Time API. If your company needs to create geofences in bulk, the API is a great way to save time, improve productivity, and avoid manual work.
Once a geofence is set up, employees will receive alerts when entering and leaving the radius. This helps them remember to start or stop tracking time when arriving at or leaving a worksite.
Additionally, you can set up workflows to automatically clock employees in and out when entering and exiting the geofence. On the employee’s side, notifications prompt them to specify why they’re leaving work locations, letting them select between options like taking a break, clocking out, or switching jobs.
Key features
- GPS tracking
- Geofencing
- Mileage tracking
Key integrations
- All Intuit products
- ADP
- Square Payroll
Pros
- Integrates seamlessly with other Intuit products
- The audit log feature allows you to see all changes made to timecards and schedules
Cons
- Many people have reported issues with their customer support
- Expensive when compared to other products
Pricing
QuickBooks Time is a great option for companies that are already paying for QuickBooks Payroll’s Premium or Elite plans. If you subscribe to one of those plans, you get access to all of QuickBooks Time’s geofencing and timekeeping functionality at no additional cost.
If you’re not already subscribed to one of QuickBooks Payroll’s premium plans, individual QuickBooks Time plans that include geofencing start at $10 per user per month plus a $40 base fee.
3. Hubstaff
Best for creating geofences in bulk.
Hubstaff’s time-tracking software is another great option for creating geofences in bulk.
While QuickBooks Time requires you to connect to its API to create bulk geofences — which might not be an option if you don’t have anyone particularly tech savvy on your team — Hubstaff allows you to create bulk geofences using a CSV, XLS, or XLSX file.
To do so, you can download a template from Hubstaff. Using the template, you add your geofencing data: the name and address of your job sites, the email addresses of the employees who should be assigned to those job sites, and the size of each geofence radius in meters.
After that, you can import it to Hubstaff to create all of your geofences at once.
Once you have geofences set up in Hubstaff, you can select what happens when employees enter or leave the geofence:
- Have the timer start and stop automatically when entering the job site.
- Have the app send a reminder for employees to check in or out.
- Take no automatic action.
If the third option is selected, the geofence is used only to ensure employees are on-site when clocking in and out. This can be controlled at the individual or organization level, allowing you to customize which employees should be restricted to clocking in and out based on their locations.
Key features
- GPS tracking
- Geofencing
- Real-time route tracking
- Productivity monitoring
Key integrations
- Paymo
- Trello
- Github
- Slack
Pros
- Intuitive design
- Includes productivity tracking features for team members who do most of their work online
- Has built-in reward systems for employees
Cons
- Customers report some issues with project tracking and productivity tracking
- Location tracking features are only available as an add-on product
Pricing
Hubstaff’s plans start at $4.99 per seat per month with a two-seat minimum. However, its geofencing features are only available in a separate add-on package that costs an additional $4 per seat per month, so the base cost for geofencing is $8.99 per seat per month.
4. Timeero
Best for employee flexibility.
To enable geofencing in Timeero, you simply select the “require geofencing” checkbox when creating a location in the software. After that, you can set the geofence’s radius, which can be as small as 100 meters in diameter or as large as 1,000 meters.
After that, you can choose how your geofence behaves. You can:
- Require employees to be within the geofence to clock in/out.
- Automatically clock employees in and out when entering/exiting the geofence.
- Send employees notifications when entering/leaving the geofence’s boundaries to remind them to clock in or out.
However, the most unique feature of Timeero is that you can make geofencing required for employees but set the system up so that they can still clock in or out even if they’re not within the geofence. When this happens, the action is flagged so an administrator can look into it.
This feature is helpful if your employees are working in a location where mobile phone service isn’t available or is unreliable. Instead of being prevented from clocking in or out and having to contact someone in the office for help, they can clock in and out anyway.
Key features
- GPS tracking
- Geofencing
- Mileage, speed, and distance tracking
- Real-time employee location mapping
Key integrations
- Quickbooks
- Xero
- Rippling
- Paychex
Pros
- Has features that automatically clock employees in and out based on their locations
- Great customer service
Cons
- Customers report issues with the mobile apps being buggy and say that sometimes results in employees being double-clocked
Pricing
Geofencing features are available on Timeero’s Pro and Premium plans, which start at $8 per user per month.
5. Connecteam
Best low-cost geofencing app.
Connecteam is another option that provides some flexibility when you want to enable geofencing technology but not block employees from clocking in and out outside of the geofence.
In Connecteam, when an employee clocks in or out outside of the geofence, they have to provide a reason, and then the reason and punch are added to their time cards and sent to their manager to approve or deny the request.
This is helpful if an employee leaves work but forgets to clock out. They can still clock out even though they’re outside of the geofence, and their manager can use Connecteam’s breadcrumbs feature to review the employee’s GPS location data and determine at what time they left the job site and should have clocked out.
These features can be really helpful for reducing time theft because managers can see exactly when employees entered and left job sites, and employees can clock out when they remember it rather than driving back to the job site to clock out and then billing for those extra hours.
Key features
- GPS tracking
- Geofencing
- Location breadcrumbs
Key integrations
- QuickBooks
- Gusto
- Paychex
Pros
- Features a newsfeed that gives you live updates on where employees are and when they clock in
- Allows you to message employees, clients, and customers through the app
Cons
- Customers report that the app is not as customizable as it needs to be
- Difficult to set up
Pricing
Geofencing is available on Connecteam’s Advanced plan, which is $49 per month for the first 30 users and $1.50 per user per month for each additional user above 30.
To get geofencing and GPS breadcrumbing, you’ll need to be on the Expert plan, which is $99 per month for up to 30 users and $3 per user per month for each additional user above 30.
6. ExakTime
Best for large construction companies.
For geofencing and a number of other features focused specifically on construction workforce management, ExakTime is a good choice.
Its geofencing feature works much like that of all of the software in this list. After you create the geofence boundary, employees are either presented with a warning when clocking in or out outside of the geofence, or they’re required to leave a comment stating why they’re punching outside of the job site.
Geofencing in ExakTime also pairs well with its real-time GPS tracking feature that pings your employees’ locations throughout the day while they’re clocked in, creating both a breadcrumb trail of their location data and a real-time location map that shows you where all employees are throughout the day.
In addition to tracking employees, ExakTime can also be used to track equipment and monitor usage and inventory levels of materials on job sites. Its app also supports translations into French and Spanish, which can be helpful if you have employees who don’t speak English.
Key features
- Geofencing
- Maps to job sites
- Real-time GPS tracking
- Live feed of clock-ins and outs
Key integrations
- Sage
- QuickBooks
- ConstructionPayroll.com
- Procore
Pros
- Employees can send updates like photos and voice memos when clocking in/out
- Keeps track of equipment, which can be useful for reducing theft or unauthorized use
Cons
- One of the more expensive options on this list
- Some customers report having issues with ExakTime’s scheduling feature
Pricing
While much of ExakTime’s pricing is only available if you request a demo of the platform, the company does have a basic plan that starts at $9 per employee per month and includes geofencing and GPS time tracking.
7. OnTheClock
Best for for small businesses looking for a free option.
If you only have a couple of employees, OnTheClock has a free plan that includes geofencing that could be right for you. And even if you have more than two employees, it’s the lowest-cost software on this list from a per-user cost perspective.
Geofencing in OnTheClock is called “Punch Locations.” You set them up by entering the address or latitude and longitude of the geofence you want to create, then expand or collapse the geofence diameter to as small as 100 meters or as large as 10,000 meters — the largest diameter available of any app on this list.
OnTheClock also provides flexibility in how the geofence behaves. You can simply record an employee’s location when they clock in and out. You can warn them that they’re outside of the geofence but allow them to clock in any way. Or you can prevent them from clocking in if they’re not within the geofence.
Key features
- GPS punch recording
- Geofencing
- GPS breadcrumb trails
Key integrations
- QuickBooks
- Gusto
- Paychex
Pros
- Allows employees to communicate why they couldn’t clock properly, giving admins more oversight and the ability to quickly make edits
Cons
- Some customers report that the product was difficult to set up
Pricing
OnTheClock has one of the more unique pricing models on this list. It has only one pricing package that includes all of the features the app offers, and the pricing model scales based on the number of employees using it.
For only two employees, OnTheClock is free. For 3-10 employees, it’s $3.50 per employee per month. The per-employee-per-month cost then scales as you add more employees, costing $3.45/employee/month for 11-25 employees, $3.40/employee/month for 26-50 employees, and so on.
8. Homebase
Best for companies with very few locations.
If you only have one or two locations you want to create geofences for, Homebase is a great low-cost option to consider. Unlike all of the other apps on this list that charge by number of employees, Homebase charges by number of job sites, which could significantly reduce your costs if you have few locations.
As far as geofencing goes, you set Homebase geofences up much like all of the other apps on this list. Simply enter an address or latitude and longitude coordinates. If the geofence is enabled, employees can only clock in and out when they’re inside of it.
However, Homebase does have some unique radius-creation options. You can set the radius at 150ft, one block, or five blocks. Those are the only three options. This makes it great for tracking employees working in an office, but it might not work as well for construction sites or other large work areas.
Key features
- Capture GPS location at clock-in
- Geofencing
- Team communication features
Key integrations
- Sure Payroll
- QuickBooks Online
- Toast POS
Pros
- Offers a free plan for those with simple needs
- Priced by location instead of per employee, allowing smaller businesses to have a much more cost effective option
Cons
- Customers report a number of issues with bugs and lag, especially with employee notifications
Pricing
While Homebase has a free plan for one location, geofencing is not available on that plan. Plans that include geofencing start at $20 per location per month for unlimited employees.
9. Hellotracks
Best for creating customized geofenced areas.
Hellotracks is largely built around GPS tracking. It’s designed to improve productivity for field service management and logistics companies, with features like route tracking, route optimization, and real-time location visibility. So if all you’re looking for is geofencing, it might not be the right option.
However, Hellotracks does have the most customizability of all of the geofencing apps on this list when it comes to defining your geofence radius.
Unlike the other apps that define the geofence radius using a circle, HelloTracks allows you to create any shape you’d like — circles, squares, triangles, and even polygons — so you can be specific about which exact areas employees can be working in while billing time.
This could be really helpful if you have a defined delivery area. You can set up the geofence around your exact delivery area so employees can only clock in and out within it. Then, you can watch their exact movements throughout the day while they’re clocked in.
Key features
- Same-second GPS tracking
- Dispatching
- Route optimization
Key integrations
- Slack
- Excel
- Google Calendar
Pros
- Very useful for transportation businesses
- Reported to be very easy to use and makes tracking and assigning work a breeze
Cons
- Has fewer features than many of the other logistics software options
- Not as customizable as some customers need
Pricing
Hellotracks’ base plan starts at $10 per user per month and includes real-time GPS location tracking, geofencing, on-site time recording, and unlimited location history.
Laws and compliance related to employee location tracking
Some states have specific regulations around GPS tracking. Before you begin using a geofencing app to track your employees’ locations, review the laws in the locations where your business operates.
Generally speaking, businesses can only track employees using GPS during their working hours and when using company-owned vehicles. So make sure that the app you choose will only track employee locations in specific snapshots (like when they clock in/out) or while they’re on the clock.
Finally, before you begin GPS tracking, you should establish a written policy for employees describing how they will be monitored and how this data will be used. It’s always best to get employees’ consent whether your state requires you to do so or not.