The ten greatest time clocks for small companies in 2023
Small companies usually have razor-thin revenue margins. They will’t afford to lose cash to inaccurate timekeeping and inefficient processes or they’ll by no means be capable to broaden.
That’s most likely why you’re contemplating a time clock to file hours, generate timesheets for payroll, and clock in your workforce seamlessly.
However to guard your backside line, you want software program that does every part you want and fits your funds. In any other case, you could as properly spare your self the trouble and follow punch clocks.
We’ve in contrast among the greatest time clocks for small companies to place you on the quick observe to discovering the suitable one. Plus, we’ve included a guidelines for important options, a step-by-step information on find out how to purchase the software program, and an inventory of widespread errors to keep away from.
Key options to search for in time clock software program
Earlier than you evaluate time clocks, it’s vital to have an inventory of must-have options. That means you recognize what you ought to be in search of and also you gained’t get sidetracked by pointless add-ons that drive the associated fee up.
- Time monitoring and attendance: Save time and cut back the chance of errors by routinely recording hours and changing them into time sheets.
- GPS clock-in verification: Ditch punch clocks and let workers clock out and in effortlessly with a cell app. Affirm their location and arrival time with out inconveniencing them otherwise you.
- A cell app: Give workers free entry to a time clock app to clock in and obtain alerts about their shifts.
- Payroll integrations: Don’t waste time inputting timesheet information right into a separate accounting program. Combine software program to routinely convert your workforce’s hours into wages rapidly and precisely.
- Reminders and alerts: Keep away from additional prices by setting notifications when employees are approaching extra time or you may have a possible compliance problem.
- Reporting and analytics: Get an summary of your labor prices and employees hours so you recognize whether or not you’re sticking to your funds.
High 10 time clocks for small companies in 2023
| Identify | Pricing (month-to-month) | Help | Payroll | Notable options |
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Plans vary from free to $99.95 per location
Homebase payroll prices $39/month base price + $6/month per lively worker |
✓ — telephone, chat, and e-mail | ✓ — and selection of 11 integrations | Chat instruments
Compliance alerts Strong free plan Notifications and reminders Labor price controls |
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Plans vary from free to $4 per person | ✓ — chat and e-mail | ✗ — however integrates with Gusto and ADP | Monitoring instruments in native time
Labor price controls |
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Plans vary from free to $357 | ✓ — telephone and e-mail | ✗ — however integrates with Gusto and Quickbooks | GPS location tracker
Process monitoring |
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Plans vary from $2.50 per person to $8 per person | ✓ — chat and e-mail | ✗ — however alternative of 8 integrations | Built-in communication instruments
Notifications and reminders |
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Plans vary from $3.50 to $4.90 per person | ✓ — telephone, chat, and e-mail | ✗ — however alternative of 25 integrations | Process administration
Versatile weekly plan |
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Pricing not available | ✓ — telephone, chat, and e-mail | ✓ — however no integrations | Compliance alerts
Labor price controls Notifications and reminders |
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Plans vary from $20 plus $8 per worker to $40 plus $10 per worker | ✓ — telephone, chat, and e-mail | ✓ — through integration with Quickbooks Payroll or a alternative of | GPS location tracker
Process administration Mileage monitoring |
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Plans vary from $7 to $20 per person | ✓ — telephone, chat, and e-mail | ✓ — and integrations with ADP and Payroll | Display screen recording
Distraction alerts |
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Plans vary from free to $15.98 per person | ✓ — telephone, chat, and e-mail | ✗ — however integrations attainable through Zapier | Billable and nonbillable hours
Process administration |
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Plans vary from $16 plus $7 per person to $30 plus $9 per person | ✓ — telephone, chat, and e-mail | ✗ — however a alternative of seven integrations | Customized clock out questions
Notifications and reminders |
1. Homebase
Supply: https://joinhomebase.com/
Caption: Homebase has a flexible vary of instruments to make time monitoring simple, fast, and extra correct than ever
High options
Not like a lot of its opponents, Homebase has a particularly sturdy free plan. It consists of important scheduling, time monitoring, and communication instruments. Which means you may create a schedule, ship it to your employees, and observe their hours with out paying a cent.
The communication software additionally integrates with the scheduling and time monitoring software program. So, you may ship reminders about shifts, contact your workforce rapidly about no-shows, and prepare covers straight from the platform.
However the primary draw of Homebase’s time clock is the array of options that aid you handle your employees. The GPS time clock verifies every worker’s location so there’s no danger of buddy punching. You can too set labor price controls to forestall early clock-in and routinely clock employees out. Then you may keep away from pricey compliance points with extra time and missed break alerts for the entire workforce.
Professionals and cons
One professional that differentiates Homebase from the competitors is its payroll administration choices. Homebase is without doubt one of the few time monitoring apps with built-in accounting instruments so you may transfer seamlessly from producing timesheets to paying your employees. However we additionally provide a variety of payroll integrations so you may choose from widespread instruments like Gusto or ADP as properly.
One other means Homebase stands out is pricing. Homebase affords important time monitoring instruments on the free account and most upgrades on the starter plans. As we additionally solely cost by location, it’s simpler to maintain your prices low in case your employees ranges fluctuate.
One disadvantage is Homebase doesn’t have a location monitoring system. Though you may confirm the place your workers are once they verify in, you may’t observe them as they transfer. This implies you may’t monitor touring groups as simply as you may with another time clocks.
Pricing
In addition to its free account, Homebase has three month-to-month paid plans:
- Necessities for $24.95 for GPS verification and efficiency administration.
- Plus for $59.95 so as to add go away administration.
- All-in-one for $99.95 which incorporates HR instruments like assist creating break day insurance policies. You may have the choice of a 14-day free trial for this plan.
Homebase payroll is on a separate account that’s $39 per 30 days plus $6 per worker.
2. Sling
Supply: https://getsling.com/employee-time-clock/
Caption: Sling is a user-friendly time monitoring system that allows you to monitor companies in several timezones
High options
Monitoring hours throughout areas in several time zones will be difficult as a result of there’s the next probability of getting confused. If this occurs, you may file the incorrect hours and pay your employees incorrectly. Sling sidesteps this problem by letting you monitor every web site in its native time which makes it a great choice for worldwide companies.
Professionals and cons
The principle benefit of Sling is its ease of use. Prospects have praised the software program for its intuitiveness and ease.
Nonetheless, Sling is much less versatile than another apps on this record because it solely has scheduling and time monitoring options. If you happen to later want payroll, hiring, or HR instruments, you’ll need to obtain extra apps and juggle the totally different software program.
Pricing
Though Sling has a free plan, this solely consists of scheduling and communication options — not time monitoring. In addition they have a 14-day free trial.
Sling has two paid plans:
- Premium at $2 per person per 30 days which incorporates time monitoring, clock-in controls, and geofencing.
- Enterprise at $4 per person per 30 days so as to add on go away administration and reporting options.
3. Connecteam
Supply: https://connecteam.com/employee-time-clock-app/
Caption: Connecteam features a GPS tracker software that can assist you precisely file touring staff
High options
When you may have touring staff like supply crews or transferring groups, it may be exhausting to forestall time theft. Staff may very well be taking unnecessarily lengthy routes or making too many pit stops with out you realizing. Connecteam’s GPS location tracker eliminates this problem by verifying the placement of distant staff on the go.
Professionals and cons
Like Homebase, Connecteam has a sturdy free plan for as much as ten customers. This makes it a great choice for very small groups with modest wants.
However when you exceed ten workers, Connecteam requires customers to make numerous upgrades to entry all its time monitoring instruments. For instance, the GPS location monitoring software is just accessible on the highest-cost plan. Different apps on this record embrace extra options of their lowest-cost plans and may very well be extra budget-friendly for small companies like yours.
Pricing
As talked about above, Connecteam has a free plan for as much as ten customers with primary time monitoring instruments and a 14-day free trial for limitless options. The paid plans are as follows:
- Fundamental for $29 which has timesheets, notifications, and GPS clock-in verification.
- Superior for $49 to get entry to computerized clock outs and geofencing.
- Professional for $99 so as to add the GPS location tracker and reporting instruments.
- Enterprise with a customized value for all these options and limitless time clocks and experiences.
4. When I Work
Supply: https://wheniwork.com/
Caption: Once I Work combines its time monitoring instruments with a helpful workforce messenger
High options
Once I Work shares Homebase’s built-in messenger software. Which means you may oversee hours and chat with workers about late arrivals or no arrivals in the identical place. If you happen to’re busy arranging cowl or confused over hours, this may simplify issues and cut back some stress.
Professionals and cons
One professional of Once I Work is their beneficiant admin restrict. If you should delegate time monitoring duties to different managers, you may add as much as three to every account.
However one con is the dearth of telephone assist. Most small companies need assistance with set-up and technical points and these could also be more difficult if it’s important to depend on chat and e-mail. That’s very true for small groups that may’t dedicate a lot time to fixing IT issues.
Pricing
Once I Work has two paid plans at $4 and $8 per person per 30 days. However the one distinction for the time clock characteristic is that the upper price plan has customized attendance experiences.
5. Deputy
Supply: https://www.deputy.com/features/employee-time-clock
Caption: Deputy’s process administration instruments allow you to verify productiveness in addition to attendance
High options
In some industries, you could lose cash resulting from low productiveness in addition to time theft. For example, your cleansing or development crew might take longer than needed to complete a job. Deputy’s process administration characteristic helps you to observe attendance and output with its mixed process administration and time clock instruments. All it’s important to do is assign a guidelines to every worker and also you obtain a notification as soon as they’ve completed.
Professionals and cons
Though Deputy largely focuses on scheduling and time monitoring, it boasts a variety of integrations. So, customers usually tend to discover the payroll integration that fits their wants from the choice.
One downside is that Deputy isn’t user-friendly. Prospects say there’s a steep learning curve and complex features which isn’t very best for busy managers with no spare time to be taught new tech.
Pricing
Deputy prices $3.50 per person per 30 days for the plan with its time monitoring options however you may take a look at them at no cost in its 31-day trial. You need to pay additional for scheduling instruments.
6. Fourth (previously HotSchedules)
Supply: https://www.g2.com/products/hotschedules/reviews
Caption: Fourth helps you to preserve detailed observe of employees to forestall labor funds and compliance points
High options
Maintaining observe of hours and charges for tipped employees will be difficult. However should you don’t keep on prime of it, you could find yourself by accident paying employees beneath minimal wage and incurring fines. Fourth’s compliance instruments aid you monitor suggestions and keep compliant.
Professionals and cons
Fourth is without doubt one of the few platforms on our record with built-in payroll. Which means you may transfer seamlessly between time monitoring and paying your employees as a substitute of fixing apps.
The draw back is Fourth solely integrates with its personal payroll software. If you happen to’re completely satisfied together with your present accounting software program, this implies unnecessarily overhauling your system.
Pricing
Fourth’s costs should not available.
7. Quickbooks Time (previously TSheets)
Supply: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/time-tracking/kiosk/
Caption: Quickbooks Time’s monitoring and administration instruments make it simple to trace offsite progress
High options
Just like Connecteam, Quickbooks has a cell workforce monitoring system. Customers can obtain updates about their groups’ areas all through the day alongside photographs and process updates. That makes it very best for managers who desire a clear image of their distant staff’ progress.
Professionals and cons
The mix of Quickbooks’ monitoring and process administration instruments makes it a great choose for touring development and restore crews. Managers get a transparent image of how every job is progressing and what number of hours their groups are working even when they transfer between a number of websites in a day.
However the pricing might deter some customers. Quickbooks cost per location and worker which makes it much less cost-effective than different time monitoring apps.
Pricing
Quickbooks Time has two paid plans:
- Time premium at $20 per 30 days and $8 per worker for primary scheduling, time monitoring, and the ‘who’s working’ software.
- Time elite at $40 per 30 days and $10 per worker for geofencing and undertaking administration instruments.
There’s additionally the choice for a 30-day trial to check all of the options.
8. Time Doctor
Supply:https://www.timedoctor.com/employee-time-tracking
Caption: Time Physician helps you to display screen seize your workers’ work in addition to observe their hours
High options
When workers use a pc for work, it’s simple to develop a nasty behavior of checking social media or different time-wasting web sites. Time Physician helps your workforce keep productive and reduces time theft by monitoring web site utilization and taking sporadic screenshots. However the app doesn’t observe something throughout breaks or exterior of firm time to guard your workforce’s privateness.
Professionals and cons
The upside of Time Physician is the vary of integrations. There are over 70 apps for every part from process administration to accounting and communication.
However the draw back is Time Physician focuses on office-based work so it is probably not appropriate for companies with workers on their ft. For instance, should you run a store, restaurant, or salon, you could discover you’re paying for lots of pointless instruments or utilizing a system that’s too advanced in your wants.
Pricing
There are three month-to-month paid plans:
- Fundamental at $7 per person for easy time monitoring and process administration instruments.
- Normal at $10 per person so as to add payroll and integrations.
- Premium at $20 per person for shopper log-ins and video display screen captures.
Time Physician additionally affords a free trial for 14 days.
9. Clockify
Supply: https://clockify.me/feature-list#features-time-tracker
Caption: Clockify’s time monitoring helps you calculate how a lot to pay employees and the way a lot to invoice shoppers
High options
While you present a service, you don’t wish to invoice the shopper for admin duties and employees conferences. Clockify helps you to differentiate between billable and nonbillable hours simply so you recognize precisely how a lot to cost shoppers. That makes Clockify an incredible choice for graphic design and advertising groups.
Professionals and cons
Like Homebase, Clockify has a flexible free plan which incorporates time monitoring, timesheets, and a cell app for workers.
However like Time Physician, Clockify targets office-based work and isn’t the most suitable choice for eating places, outlets, and comparable companies. That’s as a result of if you should develop as your small business wants change, you’ll most likely find yourself paying for pointless add-ons.
Pricing
Except for its free account, Clockify has 4 month-to-month paid plans:
- Fundamental at $4.99 per person to entry instruments like break administration and pins for kiosks.
- Normal at $6.99 per person for go away administration and reminders.
- Professional at $9.99 per person so as to add screenshots, analytics, and geofencing.
- Enterprise at $14.99 per person which is for bigger companies and features a customized subdomain.
10. ClockShark
Supply: https://www.clockshark.com/tour/employee-time-tracking-app
Caption: ClockShark helps you to write questions for employees to reply once they clock out from their shifts
High options
One fascinating characteristic of ClockShark is its customized clock-out questions. Admins can write questions for workers to reply on the finish of every shift and obtain a notification when there’s an surprising reply. For example, you could possibly ask what number of employees are on shift to verify for no-shows or verify important inventory ranges to ensure you’re not operating low.
Professionals and cons
ClockShark customers report the software program is intuitive and simple to navigate. That’s important for busy managers who don’t have time to be taught and handle new software program.
However in comparison with different software program, ClockShark has a excessive beginning value. It additionally prices per worker on prime of the bottom price which suggests the extra workers you rent, the higher your prices.
Pricing
Clock Shark has two paid month-to-month plans:
- Normal at $16 plus $7 per worker for time monitoring and GPS instruments.
- Professional at $30 plus $9 per worker so as to add departmental administration and clock-out questions.
You can too take a look at their options with a 14-day free trial.
Tips on how to purchase time clock software program
Now you may have extra details about the most effective time clocks available on the market, you should know find out how to choose the suitable one and find out how to implement it. Right here’s our step-by-step information:
- Determine your small business wants: Contemplate your business and the standard challenges you face. Do you may have store staff who neglect to clock in? Or distant crews who don’t precisely file their mileage? It will aid you determine which options are important, that are fascinating, and that are pointless.
- Analysis and take a look at: Watch movies, reap the benefits of free trials, and even take a look at run time clocks for per week. You then’ll have a greater thought of how every software program will match into your small business.
- Get suggestions and consider: Ask your employees for his or her opinions. For example, they might dislike the sound of a biometric time clock that information their physique measurements. Their view will aid you make a extra knowledgeable resolution about which app to get.
- Prepare your workforce: Conduct workshops and provides workers entry to tutorials. You then’ll have fewer teething pains within the preliminary weeks as everybody will get used to the app. For instance, workers might be extra more likely to bear in mind to depart earlier than the time clock routinely clocks them out.
- Constantly mirror and replace: As your small business is more likely to change, your time clock ought to too. Preserve accumulating suggestions, checking what new options the app has to supply, and re-evaluating your wants. If you happen to outgrow the present model of your app, contemplate an improve.
Widespread pitfalls to keep away from when shopping for time clock software program
Whilst you’re selecting your new time clock, quite a bit can go incorrect. Listed below are some widespread issues for you to pay attention to:
- No integrations together with your present system: Little question your small business already makes use of software program like payroll or POS. Except you wish to revamp your system, make certain your new time clock works seamlessly with these apps.
- Inadequate buyer assist: As a small enterprise supervisor, you could not have the tech know-how or the time to be taught new software program. That’s when your time clock’s buyer assist workforce ought to step in and aid you with set-up and any technical points.
- Unaffordable prices: Value plans ought to go well with your small business. If you happen to’ve obtained a really small workforce, contemplate a price per worker. And should you’re rising, pricing per location can stop your prices from spiraling as you rent extra folks.
- Lack of scalability: Time clocks must develop alongside your small business so they need to have upgrades to allow you to add options as you want them.
Why Homebase is the most effective time clock for small companies
Time clocks can shield your revenue margins by recording hours extra precisely. That’s why it’s vital to search out software program that allows you to pay for precisely what you want so that you don’t find yourself overspending.
If you happen to’re in sure industries, that may be Quickbooks Time or Clockify. Touring staff like repairmen and supply crews might profit from Quickbooks’ GPS location monitoring system. Whereas Clockify helps managers at workplace areas preserve verify of their workers’ productiveness ranges.
However whenever you’re in search of sturdy, all-around software program that covers all of your wants, the greatest time clock for small companies is Homebase. The free account with flexibly priced upgrades makes it an inexpensive choice for very small and rising groups.
There’s additionally a variety of versatile time monitoring instruments to help you with duties from creating digital fences for off-site work to reminding workers to clock in. With their assist, you may observe time simply and precisely with out including duties to your workload or paying out of pocket.
