The Best Time and Attendance Services of 2024

Connecteam is a valuable software solution for small business owners with a wide range of frontline workers. One of its standout features is its user-friendly interface, which makes it simple for employees at all levels to navigate and utilize effectively. This accessibility fosters a sense of inclusivity and empowerment among team members, leading to increased motivation and productivity. It also offers a range of tools that promote communication and collaboration within the organization. For example, its messaging and chat features enable seamless interaction among team members, regardless of their location or time zone. This real-time communication capability helps to bridge gaps and ensure that everyone stays informed and connected.

Connecteam’s customizable features allow businesses to tailor the platform to their specific needs and preferences. From creating personalized training modules to tracking employee progress and feedback, Connecteam offers a comprehensive solution for optimizing workflows and fostering a positive work environment. We also like how you can manage absensces and customize overtime rules. Additionally, the software can track employees’ loacation, which is great for getting insight into those who aren’t in the office every day. Overall, Connecteam stands out as an excellent choice for small businesses looking to boost employee engagement, streamline communication, and maximize productivity across their teams.

Buddy Punch is a simple and effective way to manage schedules and track attendance. Although the Standard plan offers somewhat limited scheduling features, the Pro and Enterprise plans both have extensive employee scheduling tools. These include scheduling templates, a drag-and-drop schedule builder, and recurring shift features to streamline the schedule-building process. Employees can set their availability and preferred work times in the software, and they can access shift trades and covers if they want to alter their schedules. Mobile scheduling is available as well. When employees are early, absent or late, the software can report on that for you.

We like that Buddy Punch offers multiple punch options, including a four-digit PIN, QR code, facial recognition and a username-and-password combination. Companies can use the optional webcam and device-lock features to ensure the correct person punches in and out for their shift. GPS tracking adds another layer of assurance by allowing employees to punch in only from a preapproved location or device. The software helps manage your team’s paid and unpaid time off by automatically calculating overtime, accrued vacation, sick days and time owed with customizable reports that ensure accuracy and transparency. We like that your employee hours can automatically transfer into payroll if you use Buddy Punch’s payroll system. It seamlessly integrates employee timesheets and payroll. Buddy Punch also offers you the flexibility to integrate with third-party payroll software if that suits your time and attendance needs better.

Of the time and attendance systems we reviewed, TimeClock Plus offers the most flexibility in its plans and add-ons. The system works especially well for growing businesses with evolving needs. TimeClock Plus distinguishes itself with advanced hardware, which includes time clocks that scan your fingerprint or take your temperature. The platform offers a solid assortment of features and tools for basic time and attendance, scheduling and payroll prep.

TimeClock Plus’ dynamic scheduling tools are useful for building shift-based schedules in a number of ways. Managers can rely on demand-driven scheduling for peak periods, flex scheduling for real-time changes, and automatic scheduling to optimize team shifts. The software can even automate the shift bidding process for you to ensure fair and compliant shift bid scheduling. TimeClock Plus partners with Clair for seamless on-demand payments. This partnership is ideal for growing businesses that want to offer expanded employee benefits without affecting their payroll processes. 

TimeClock Plus offers three subscription levels, although you need to contact the company for specific pricing based on your needs. If you want to view workforce trends organized into digestible reporting, you can sign up for TCP’s new add-on feature, TCP Analytics. With access to this workforce data, employers can make better business decisions. Customers can also choose from several other add-ons, including a mobile app, time clock devices and, for some plans, 24/7 support. With its assortment of customizable plans and features, TimeClock Plus is a great option for businesses as they scale.

Tracking hours and building schedules for retail and restaurant shift workers who rarely keep the same weekly schedule can be a time-consuming challenge for management. When I Work was designed to support shift-based workplaces with easy and effective tools for employee scheduling, time tracking and communication. When I Work may not have as many features and tools as some of the other time and attendance systems we reviewed, but that’s only because the company is focused on two key areas that are crucial to restaurants and retailers — scheduling and time tracking.

When I Work helps simplify time tracking measures. For example, it offers timesheet rounding features, so you can round employee hours to the nearest 5-, 6- or 15-minute interval. Although overtime management is especially difficult when you have hourly workers who frequently trade shifts throughout the pay period, When I Work’s overtime management software can help identify overtime before it happens and correct the issue as needed. Tracking your team’s attendance, breaks, overtime and time off is inherently connected to payroll. When I Work’s payroll integrations make it easy to export employee timesheets and process your payroll accurately. Smaller businesses with less than 50 employees also have the option to use When I Work’s new payroll software. This new functionality can be accessed on the same platform as its time-tracking features. The platform also partners with Clair to give employees access to part of their wages as soon as they clock out, which can be valuable for restaurant and retail workers who want their money on demand.

Rippling is a robust and easy-to-use HR platform that helps managers make the most of their week. The custom workflows and automated tools streamline tasks such as employee onboarding, benefits administration, and time and attendance tracking. If you take advantage of Rippling’s internal ATS, you can seamlessly track your new hires, from recruitment all the way through their first day on the job. The platform allows workers to clock in and out for a shift in seconds through a mobile app, tablet kiosk or computer. This eliminates manual data entry, syncing issues and late approvals from supervisors. Rippling’s attendance software is secure thanks to reliable control features such as geolocation restrictions, camera-enabled clock-in, and unique QR codes to eliminate buddy punching and ensure that your employees are where they’re supposed to be during their shifts.

Rippling is an especially valuable tool for larger companies that benefit from automating repetitive tasks. Though setup can take up to four weeks, most businesses can expect to get their all-in-one system running efficiently in as little as two-and-a-half weeks. That may seem like a long process compared with similar providers, but taking the time to establish custom rules for automatic workflows pays dividends down the line, with enormous amounts of time saved in ensuring compliance, controlling costs and automatically adhering to a wide variety of federal, state and local labor laws.

Time Doctor does more than track time; it provides key details that your business can use to increase efficiency and encourage work-life balance within your organization. The platform is especially useful for independent contractors and companies with hybrid or remote employees, thanks to features such as daily and weekly summary email reports that make it easy to track the time spent on each project, client and task. Employees can access their time-use statistics to easily identify areas of improvement, moments of distraction, or justifications for a salary increase. Additionally, business leaders can use the Executive Dashboard to quickly compare team workflows and data, allowing them to make informed business decisions. The software is compatible with any internet-connected device and supports Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS and Chrome operating systems.

Employers can hold themselves and their teams accountable with automatic alerts when they spend too much time on unproductive websites and applications or don’t return to work on time after a scheduled break. Time Doctor provides multiple ways to track productivity: screenshots taken at preset intervals, monitoring program or website usage, and logging keyboard/mouse activity. If the tracked computer or device loses its internet connection, the system continues to record and syncs its information once the connection has been restored. While some employees may show resistance to this level of tracking, as much as 80 percent of the benefits of Time Doctor come from empowering individuals to work more effectively by showing them exactly how they’re using their time. What’s more, aspects like Time Doctor’s break tracking feature allow employers to control what type of break options each employee has, which is ideal for staying compliant with employee time off regulations.

QuickBooks Time looks and feels like it was designed to support hybrid and remote teams that perform their jobs across numerous work sites or client locations. Mobile-friendly features such as geofencing and GPS tracking help workers remember to clock in and out when they arrive or leave the job site for any reason. Managers can easily track the location of all clocked-in employees and receive regular updates on their locations during their shifts. The platform’s substantial list of timesaving features and tools can save managers significant time in monitoring their mobile employees’ hours each week.

QuickBooks Time’s GPS time tracker makes it easy for companies to track remote workers who have clocked in for their shifts. This helpful tool can be used to coordinate in real time, track fleet mileage, and remind workers to clock in and out when they arrive at or depart the job site for any reason. We also really like the Time Kiosk feature, which works as a secure digital punch clock for iPads and Android tablets. Managers can enable four-digit PIN login capabilities and a photo capture option to prevent buddy punching and time theft. QuickBooks Time also offers job tracking, which is ideal for mobile and contract workers.

We like that QuickBooks also offers the QuickBooks Workforce mobile app. Some of its automated features are geared toward helping mobile employees manage their own information on the go. For example, employees can view pay stubs and tax documents, track their time, and manage their PTO from one centralized hub. It is secured with single sign-on capabilities, and available on iOS and Android devices.

Paychex Flex Time is a robust HR platform that helps businesses streamline their people operations and related functions. The cloud-based time and attendance solutions fully integrate with the rest of its HR tools, such as Paychex HR Analytics Premium reporting capabilities – a new feature that helps you track workforce data (like attendance and retention) through more than 160 easy-to-use reports and guided analyses. Paychex has mobile apps for on-the-go time, and attendance needs as well. With its recently enhanced employee mileage calculator, you can also track time and distance spent on employee trips. This cohesive system makes for a seamless experience to reduce errors while submitting data across devices, locations and services.

Paychex’s time and attendance software stands out for its extensive variety of time collection methods. Employees can track their time via web punch, mobile app, kiosk app with biometric face or iris verification, fingerprint verification, and an interactive voice response system. These options allow employees to clock in and out in a way that is convenient for them.

Other advanced features include complete scheduling with easy-to-use templates and tools to help managers build schedules around each employee’s availability. Employees who need some time off can easily swap their shifts with a co-worker or submit a time-off request. Since Paychex’s new time off management service can be directly integrated with Paychex Flex Time, your records and employee paychecks are updated accordingly when time off requests are approved. Employees can also set up alerts for schedule updates, shift swaps, and time-off request approvals. The software’s employee messaging feature is ideal for dispersed teams that need to communicate.

OnTheClock’s combination of affordability, features and flexibility makes it a standout time and attendance solution for startups with evolving needs. Employees can easily track their time on a tablet, smartphone, computer or any other internet-connected device, which eliminates the need to purchase time clocks for your staff. Despite the platform’s relatively low cost, OnTheClock offers a selection of advanced features, including fingerprint clock-in and telephone support, that are not available with many higher-priced alternatives.

OnTheClock’s web-based time clock software doesn’t require the user to download any software, making it accessible from any device with an internet connection. For mobile users who prefer the convenience of an easy-access time clock, a mobile app is also available. Beyond basic time tracking, OnTheClock includes GPS tracking, messaging, advanced payroll calculations, scheduling, alerts and project costing for invoicing purposes. This combination of features for the price makes OnTheClock’s value difficult to beat. OnTheClock also offers a 30-day free trial, which is longer than average among the time and attendance systems we reviewed. Customer service is available by phone, email and web chat.

PurelyHR is a highly customizable time and performance management system designed for small to midsize businesses. The flexible platform is built around six individually priced modules for time off, performance, certification tracking and more. Implementation takes just a few hours, with phone support for the time-off module and unlimited technical support for other modules.

The simple time clock dashboard makes it easy to track arrival and departure times, and you can implement IP restrictions to control the locations where employees can clock in. This module also includes helpful notifications for missed shifts, late punch-ins, early punch-outs and missing timecards. Businesses can easily set custom schedules, overtime rules, timecard approval processes and more with detailed reporting for specific locations, departments and individual workers.

The required Staff module functions as a unified people portal that stores your employee data. It has a customizable interface to support HR teams with onboarding tasks, document uploading, workforce reports and much more. Another unique feature is the Talent module, which helps you manage your team’s certifications, training requirements and professional licenses to ensure compliance across a variety of industries, including healthcare, education and professional services.

Justworks Hours is a cloud-based time and attendance system that can easily be integrated into the Justworks professional employer organization (PEO) platform. Setting up a Justworks account only takes a few minutes. Once your employees are in the system, they’ll receive an invite code to join your account.We found the software to be intuitive and user-friendly, allowing employees to start tracking their hours right away through a web browser or mobile app. The software also works in offline mode. While the platform is easy to navigate, customer support is available by phone, email and web chat if you run into any issues.

Justworks Hours has all the standard features and tools needed to track employee time and attendance. For example, you can create and manage employee schedules, customize overtime and break rules, and track and manage employee time-off requests. We like that Justworks offers other useful features like geofencing and project tracking, so you know where and what employees are spending their time on. With features like expense management and payroll integrations, Justworks makes converting employee hours to paychecks an easy and streamlined process.