Buddy Punch vs When I Work
We know from personal experience what a pain it can be to find time clock software that fits your business. The whole reason we created Buddy Punch was because we had no other way to get our hands on software that met our specifications. However, that experience trying out different software options taught us how to differentiate between them, especially when it comes to pricing, features, and service. Now that we’ve grown our software, we appreciate what our competitors do, and firmly believe that customers should be placed with their best fits, even if that’s not us.
With that said, in this post we’re going to provide a quick summary of how our time tracking software stacks up against another employee monitoring tool: When I Work.
The Basics
Buddy Punch is a user-friendly time clock software with time tracking, employee scheduling, and payroll functions to streamline business management. Our focus has always been on accuracy of data as well as simplicity and providing a complete overview of business operations for administrators and managers.
When I Work is an employee management app that puts a special emphasis on its work schedule building features. However, in addition to offering this function, it also highlights its time tracking, team messaging, and payroll processing functions to empower business owners.
Time Tracking Functions
When it comes to employee time tracking features, there is quite a bit of overlap between Buddy Punch and When I Work. Both tools offer a time clock, labor costs, timesheet editing, overtime alerts, job codes, webcam photos for clock ins, GPS tracking and Geofencing for remote job site management (along with IP address locking), and notifications for punches. Both tools work for any size of business, from small businesses to enterprises. Both tools also fully function on Desktops, as well as mobile devices such as Android and iOS smartphones or tablets – via the web or through mobile apps.
But when you take a closer look at some of these key features for timekeeping, we think Buddy Punch has a slight edge.
For example, When I Work and Buddy Punch both have Break Management, but Buddy Punch takes it a step further with Automatic Breaks that require no input from team members. Both tools also use webcam photos on punch ins but, as of this post’s writing, only Buddy Punch has access to Facial Recognition, which provides an extra level of security against time cards manipulation (aka time theft). Also, through Buddy Punch you can grant employees permission to track time quickly through the use of QR Codes, a feature which When I Work currently lacks.
Employee Scheduling Functions
Both Buddy Punch and When I Work offer business owners the most desired scheduling features: The ability for employees to trade shifts, Paid Time Off (PTO) Accrual & Management, easy attendance tracking & availability monitoring, and an overview of team tasks/jobs.
However, both scheduling software come with an automatic feature that the other doesn’t have:
Buddy Punch has an automatic punch out feature that helps ensure employees are clocked out properly at the end of the workday, no last-minute reminders required.
When I Work has automatic schedule building that will let you know eligible and available employees with the right qualifications for each shift.
Which tool is better for you will depend on which of these automatic features you prefer, because many of the other options are the same.
Payroll Functions
Both tools allow you to purchase a built-in payroll option to make the software your all-in-one tool for employee management. They also share several of the same key functions:
- Real-time Updates on Employee Work Hours and Job Data
- W2 Reporting
- Exportable Reports (Excel CSV or Adobe PDF)
- Direct Deposit
- Overtime Calculations
- Simplified Payroll Runs
However, there are some specific additions Buddy Punch includes that When I Work doesn’t. Buddy Punch tracks changes in local, state, and federal taxes to ensure your payroll runs are always on code, which is a great boon for workforce management. Both tools allow W2 reporting, but only Buddy Punch allows self-setup for your employees (in addition to allowing you to access 1099 forms as well). Because of this, we’re giving Buddy Punch the advantage in the payroll category.
Side note: if you’re attached to your own payroll provider, it’s worth nothing that both of these online time tracking tools offer API integrations with providers such as Paychex, ADP, QuickBooks, or Gusto (both tools integrate with 9 payroll software, so it’s an even tie there). In other words, both options can easily handle the processing of employee hours for payment regardless of how you want it done.
Pricing
Here’s a big category. After all, what’s the point of more features in a time and attendance software if it drastically exceeds your budget?
When I Work is at its cheapest when you’re purely using the scheduling features. When you add time and attendance to the plans, the price jumps at all tiers. Meanwhile, Buddy Punch always includes time tracking in its tiers, and always includes scheduling starting from its pro tier onwards. The only slight downside is the base price of $19. If you’re working with a tight budget, you may have to decide if you prefer time & attendance features via Buddy Punch, or scheduling features via When I Work.
Minus the base price, when looking at the per/user rate per month, Buddy Punch is always cheaper. Plus, it always saves you even more money if you use an annual pay schedule!
One more factor to consider in the pricing is how each tool’s built-in payroll pricing option changes things. Coincidentally, both tools charge the exact same price for their payroll ($39/month + $6 per user). You may consider them equivalent in this regard but, as we noted above, we believe that Buddy Punch’s Payroll has a few features that edges it ahead of When I Work’s.
Customer Reviews
Let’s look over on popular software review site Capterra to see how these cloud-based tools are received by customers.
Buddy Punch has a rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars, based on 960 reviews. A further breakdown on Capterra shows it’s also rated 4.8 for ease of use and customer support. Here’s what the Capterra summary says about pros and cons:
When I Work has a slightly lower rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars, based on 1079 reviews. A further breakdown on Capterra shows it’s rated 4.5 when it comes to ease of use and customer support. Here’s what the Capterra summary says about pros and cons:
Because Buddy Punch has a higher rating and nearly as many reviews as When I Work (despite When I Work having been created 3 years earlier) we’ll give the edge to Buddy Punch when it comes to customer reception.
Bottom Line: Buddy Punch vs When I Work, Which Tool is Better?
Ultimately, choosing between Buddy Punch or When I Work is going to depend on your business needs and the unique challenges of managing your workforce.
When it comes to time tracking, payroll, and overall diversity of functions, we’d say Buddy Punch has a clear edge, which is reflected in its reception and reviews. However, if your primary concern is employee scheduling, there’s a very good argument for When I Work being your ideal tool.
Buddy Punch is an All-in-One Tool for Employee Management
If you’re convinced by this showcase and want to give Buddy Punch a try, 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.
Finding the right time tracking solution to meet your business needs can be challenging. Each solution offers different features and functionalities and comes with a varying price tag. To help you better determine which solution would be best for your business, we’ve put together some comparison charts for leading time clock solutions!
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