Buddy Punch vs Replicon
We learned the hard way how hard it can be to find your “perfect” time tracking software. Back when we were transitioning away from relying on manual methods of tracking employee time, we tried just about every time & attendance software option on the market. It was a long and irritating process that ended up leaving us dissatisfied, so we committed to building our own comprehensive workforce management solution instead, and Buddy Punch was born.
We haven’t forgotten how rough it was trying to sort through all those choices, which is why we’ve started a new series of posts comparing our software against our competitors. Through this we hope to empower would-be buyers with enough data to make an informed decision about their ideal time tracking software.
Let’s get started with a comparison of our software against a very popular competitor: Replicon.
The Basics
Buddy Punch is our very own attendance tracking & employee scheduling tool, built to be a user-friendly option that mixes strong and varied features with an intuitive design so that employees and employers alike have an easy time using it.
Replicon is a project time tracking and timesheet software that’s helped thousands of customers increase productivity, improve project visibility, and eliminate revenue leakage across operations.
Time Tracking Functions
Buddy Punch and Replicon overlap in a lot of the major time management features that small business owners tend to desire. Both management tools allow real-time tracking from the moment team members clock in for the workday, both tools have comprehensive Paid Time Off management features including accruals and approvals, both tools allow you to export customizable reports as Excel CSV or Adobe PDF files, and both tools have hassle-free remote worker tracking options like GPS Tracking and Geofencing.
For most time & task management software, the similarities between them and Buddy Punch ends there. However, Replicon actually matches our tool in some of the most specific offerings as well.
- Both tools have a webcam photos on punch in option (taking screenshots to verify an employee is who they claim to be to prevent time theft and buddy punching)
- Both tools have Facial Recognition capabilities (called Face Recognition in Buddy Punch, and Touchless Face Identification in Replicon)
- Both tools have a QR codes function for time entries
- Both tools have a configurable managers option to elevate employees and delegate tasks.
These tools are match in almost every regard when it comes to time tracking, except for one key feature that Replicon has. However, whether that feature’s inclusion is a plus or a minus will depend on you. Replicon has built-in AI-powered time tracking. This feature, which they call ZeroTime, is said to collect employee data, assemble pre-filled timesheets, and create accurate timesheets. However, relying on AI to this extent raises questions for accuracy, not to mention concerns you may rightly have about whether this tool is being trained on your and your employees data (as well as your business).
In the time tracking category we’d say Buddy Punch is tied with Replicon, but Replicon’s use of AI may break the tie for you (though it might break it in a negative way or a positive way depending on your preferences).
Employee Scheduling Functions
This is another category where there is plenty of overlap between these tools. Both options have drag and drop scheduling, both tools allow you and your employees to check the schedule on any device and send message notifications when someone is scheduled, both tools allow you to set specific locations and even enable punch time rounding when employees clock in. After that, you start to see a few differences in what you can do with these tools.
Only Buddy Punch has an intuitive shift trades and swaps feature, giving you the choice of whether to grant employees permission to swap shifts with each other. Buddy Punch is also the only tool that has a feature for Punch Limiting, which is great for cutting down on team members accidentally triggering overtime. If some of your staff have a habit of clocking in too early or too late in their workflow, you can use punch limiting to determine a range where they’re allowed to clock in or out. Buddy Punch also has a bonus option that allows employees to clock in without being scheduled (which is useful for dealing with no shows and erratic employee availability.)
On the flip side, one feature Replicon has for scheduling that Buddy Punch doesn’t is their AI-powered SmartSchedule, essentially an employee recommendation engine, said to be able to identify the best employee or resource for each job. While this feature may seem useful, we also wonder if it encourages a level of disconnect between you and your team members. In the long run, a business owner would be better served getting to know their individual staff members’ strengths well enough to know who’s best for which job (which can also supplement your ability to determine profitability, who to promote, task allocation, and understanding of which team members contribute the most to your overall workforce.)
Due to the overall quantity and value of the scheduling features our tool has that Replicon lacks, we’re giving the edge here to Buddy Punch.
Payroll Functions
This is a category where there is a huge difference between both tools. While Buddy Punch and Replicon both have API integrations with many of the most popular payroll providers such as QuickBooks or ADP, there are a few divulgences, such as Buddy Punch also integrating into the popular Paychex, which Replicon doesn’t.
But the real difference here is in Buddy Punch offering Built-in Payroll as an optional paid addon, which is something Replicon lacks entirely.
Buddy Punch’s Built-In Payroll completely eliminates the need to rely on third-party payroll tools, instead allowing business owners to centralize their employee timecard data (billable hours, PTO, schedules, etc.). With our payroll management comes strong features such as:
- Unlimited Payroll Runs
- Integrated Timesheets
- W-s and 1099s
- Automated Payroll Payments
- Employee Self-onboarding
This offering makes it entirely possible for Buddy Punch to be the only time clock app you ever need. In the Payroll category Buddy Punch clearly has more to offer than Replicon. Click here to learn more about our Payroll feature.
Pricing
Here’s the most important comparison for any time clock software option. What’s the cost?
Replicon has a ton of different pricing options, which can make it a little confusing to get into. For example, here are their time & attendance pricing variables. The amount you’ll pay varies greatly depending on which features you want, but it’s $6 per user per month at its cheapest, and 30 per month per user for up to 5 users – and 5 per each additional user. If you’re more interested in their project time tracking features, you’re looking at pricing that starts at $12 per month, which gets to its most expensive at $60 per month for 5 users, charging $10 per additional user.
Meanwhile, Buddy Punch’s pricing is flexible, but also much less complicated. We have three basic pricing plans that range from $4.49 per month per user up to $10.99 per month per user, plus a $19 per month base fee. Buddy Punch’s most expensive pricing is about half as much as Replicon’s most expensive. If you choose to add on Payroll, that’s an additional $39/month + $6 per user to pay for Buddy Punch, but you’d have to compare that price and those features to your third-party payroll provider, not Replicon.
Trying to compare these two tools in this category is a logistical nightmare and varies a lot depending on which features you’re looking for. We’ll say this is a tie.
Customer Reviews
Since the comparison between Buddy Punch and Replicon has been relatively close until now, we’re going to go to testimonies on the popular software review site Capterra to see what paying customers had to say about their experience.
Buddy Punch has an overall rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars based on 972 reviews. Replicon has a lower score, coming in with an overall rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars, based on 523 reviews.
Capterra breaks down reviews into 4 categories: Ease of Use, Customer Service, Features, and Value for Money. Buddy Punch scored 4.8/5 in three of these (Ease of Use, Customer Service, Value for money) and 4.7/5 in Features. In comparison, Replicon scored its highest in customer support with 4.7/5, right below Buddy Punch. Other than that, it scored 4.5/5 in Value for Money, and got two 4.4/5 scores in Ease of Use and Features.
When it comes to customer reviews, Buddy Punch outscores Replicon in every single category, from individual breakdowns to overall score. Buddy Punch is a clear winner in customer satisfaction.
Bottom Line: Buddy Punch vs Replicon, Which Tool is Better?
Ultimately, choosing between these two tools is going to come down to your personal preferences and needs when it comes to workforce and project management.
If you’re looking at pricing, customer satisfaction, and employee scheduling options, we’d say that Buddy Punch is superior. However, if you’re particularly attached to project time tracking and like the idea of automation, you might prefer Replicon.
Buddy Punch is an All-in-One Tool for Employee Management
If you’ve been convinced by this comparison and want to try out Buddy Punch, you can sign up for a 14-day free trial here. You can also view a demo video here or click here to request your own one-on-one walkthrough. Buddy Punch functions both through web on Desktops as well as a mobile app for smartphones (Android or iOS) and tablets.
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Buddy Punch vs. Others
At Buddy Punch we offer more advanced features than other time clock solutions such facial recognition and geofences. We are also one of the more affordable solutions available in the market. We pride ourselves on creating a time tracking solution that is easy for both you and your employees – and our customers are happy to find that’s exactly what they get! But you and your employees will be happy you did! You can compare us with other online time clocks to see the benefits of using Buddy Punch over the rest of the competition.
If you are still not 100% convinced that Buddy Punch is the right solution for you, be sure to check out our demo video below. We go over all of our main features and show you how easy it is for your employees to track their time and even easier for you to manage your employees.
