The Best Time and Attendance Services of 2024

Employees want to be able to clock in and out of work quickly no matter their location and employers need to be able to track attendance and approve time sheets just as easily. The best time and attendance systems serve both types of users, offering a host of mobile self-service tools for staffers while offering business owners, managers and supervisors features to monitor hours worked, manage time off and even ensure team members are at the right job site. Add in scheduling functions, automated workflows and payroll integrations, and you have a robust solution for time and attendance.

The best services, like Connecteam and When I Work, even provide free trials so you can see if their programs are right for you before signing up for a monthly or annual contract. In addition to these two vendors, we researched and identified a number of other time and attendance system providers that stand out in a crowded market with appealing features and reasonable pricing.

The type of time clock you choose, such as this one from TimeClock Plus, will affect your costs. (Source: TimeClock Plus)

Time and attendance systems can be purchased as either an on-premise or cloud-based solution; however, small and midsize businesses often find cloud-based options best for time tracking.

These factors may affect your overall pricing for a timekeeping system:

• The number of employees (users) you have
• The number of administrators who use the system
• The number of locations where you collect time
• The range of features included, such as scheduling in addition to timekeeping
• Implementation and setup fees
• Whether you want customized reports and interfaces
• Whether you need single sign-on or other add-ons
• Annual support fees (included in most online systems)
• Hardware, such as a computer, tablet or other device to serve as your time clock

Cost of Cloud-Based Systems

Most cloud-based time and attendance system providers and apps charge per user — that is, you must pay for each person, employee, manager or administrator who uses the software. The average cost typically ranges between $2 and $20 per person per month. On top of this per-user cost, some cloud-based time and attendance systems like Buddy Punch also incur a monthly base fee between $15 and $45.

Some time and attendance system providers offer volume discounts, which means the per-employee costs go down with the more employees you have. Other providers offer discounts for annual subscription plans.

Cost of On-Premise Systems

If you choose to purchase a time and attendance system you host on-site, you may pay an upfront fee of $99 or more, but you won’t have monthly fees. Instead, you’ll pay a license fee for each computer and a setup fee to install and configure your timekeeping system. Setup fees range from $100 to $1,000 or more, depending on the vendor.

Cost of Hardware

A critical cost factor to keep in mind is associated with the type of equipment you need to track employee attendance. For example, you may be able to use the time and attendance software with a web-based device, or you may want to integrate the service with a physical punch-style time clock. Physical time clock devices range from several hundred to several thousand dollars, depending on whether they have features such as facial recognition, thermal sensors and fingerprint scanners.

During our test of When I Work, seen here, we tried features like building timesheets and creating employee schedules. (Source: When I Work/business.com)

Time and attendance systems include features that help businesses keep track of when employees work. Most also monitor employee time off, and some include employee scheduling and shift scheduling tools to make workforce planning easier.

When comparing timekeeping solutions, we suggest paying close attention to these features.

• Clock-in and clock-out: Time and attendance systems should offer employees multiple ways to clock in and out. Some include a built-in time clock, while others allow employees to input time via a web browser, mobile app, phone, text message or even social media platform.
• Time clocks: Many timekeeping apps are compatible with swipe cards, PINs, barcodes and biometrics technology, such as fingerprint scanners, photo clock-in and facial scans. Other platforms use a virtual time clock app.
• Mobile access: Cloud-based systems like QuickBooks Time offer either a mobile app or a mobile-friendly website that you can set up on a computer or tablet. This method gives employees who work outside the office an easy way to clock in and out, and it lets you manage other aspects of their time, such as meal breaks and drive time.
• GPS tracking: Most mobile apps use geolocation features, such as geofencing, to record the exact locations of employees’ time punches or to restrict the areas from which employees can clock in and out. GPS tracking can be especially valuable for monitoring mobile workforces.
• Manager dashboard: Most time-tracking applications provide a dashboard that shows whether your employees are in the office, on PTO, on break or clocked out for the day.
• Job trackers: Some time-tracking systems let employees log how long they work on specific client projects or job tasks. This is valuable to businesses that charge clients based on the time spent on a project or task, such as consulting businesses or law firms.
• Time-off requests: The best time and attendance systems track employees’ days off, time-off requests and time-off approvals. Some systems streamline the process with online PTO accruals and request forms that managers can view and approve. [Read related article: What is a Reasonable PTO Policy?]
• Scheduling: Most time and attendance software providers have employee scheduling tools included in their packages or available for an extra charge. These features allow you to create schedules, monitor whether employees clock in late or leave early and see who is working overtime.
• Notifications and alerts: Some time clock apps send email or text alerts to managers when an employee arrives late, leaves early or is nearing overtime. In the last instance, supervisors can determine whether the team member should continue working or be sent home.
• Reports: Most time and attendance software provides businesses with detailed reports about the hours employees are working, which helps managers determine staffing levels and scheduling needs. HR reports that can be printed or exported from time-tracking systems include performance management reports, financial reports, activity reports, attendance reports, time-off summaries and leave reports.
• Software compatibility: Most time and attendance software applications have a built-in payroll software integration so you can easily sync attendance data with one of the best online payroll services or export the data in a payroll-friendly format, which saves time and reduces errors.
• Customer support: The level of customer support varies across time and attendance vendors. Most provide email, phone or chat support, but not all offer assistance 24/7. For an extra cost, some providers set up your system for you and help you troubleshoot; others require a support contract.

Time and attendance services like Buddy Punch make it easy to approve and track employee time off. (Source: Buddy Punch)

A time and attendance system can be a beneficial solution for ensuring compliance and accuracy, reducing errors and legal disputes, and increasing HR efficiency.

Ensures Compliance

A time and attendance system provides employees with a means to consistently record their time worked. These systems track paid breaks and unpaid lunch hours, reduce timekeeping errors, and monitor where and when an employee is on the clock. They can help businesses stay compliant with employee overtime laws by automatically tracking overtime hours, and they also help you comply with labor laws and regulations affecting time off, such as the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

Improves Accuracy

Automated timekeeping systems like UKG pay employees more accurately, removing guesswork about when someone started or ended their shift and minimizing errors. That reduces time theft, which affects three-quarters of businesses, according to research from the American Payroll Association.

Saves Time

Another benefit of a digital time and attendance system is that it reduces the time employees, managers, HR and payroll team members spend manually tracking time.

It can take about six minutes to complete each worker’s timecard, according to research from Sierra Workforce Solutions. For larger organizations, those minutes add up to time that could be better spent elsewhere. A time and attendance system eliminates that burden from managers and staff, freeing them to work on more important tasks.

Reduces Disputes

Time and attendance software’s functionality reduces errors that may occur as a result of handwritten or manually keyed-in time sheets. An automated time-tracking program prevents timecard disputes and reassures employees that they’re being paid accurately. Should a staffer question their pay, you’ll have accurate time and attendance records to show the hours for which they’re being paid.

Simplifies Clocking In and Out

Time and attendance systems make clocking in and out simple. Employees can typically do so using a computer time clock or phone app. Most systems also offer a mobile app, which gives remote and field workers an easy way to record their time.

Collects Valuable Data

As you and your employees use your chosen time and attendance system, you’ll build up a repository of helpful data. While the exact reports available vary by platform, many monitor total hours worked each week, the number of vacation or sick days taken across your staff, job costs and more. These solutions usually allow the data to be exported as a report or CSV file if you want to share it with your fellow business leaders or upload it to other business software.

While we highly recommend the time and attendance solutions highlighted above, the following alternatives also boast valuable feature sets that, based on our investigation, meet a variety of timekeeping needs.

Rippling

Rippling provides a workforce management system that’s highly customizable. We love the vendor’s a la carte model, which allows you to build upon the base system with only the modules you want. The unified time and payroll offering includes many of the standard features you’d expect, such as multiple clock-in methods and time-off management. But we especially like the job tracking and costing tools, which let you monitor hours worked based on task and location and group labor costs for better informed workforce planning. Learn more in our detailed Rippling HR software review.

QuickBooks Time

QuickBooks Time is ideal for mobile workforces because of its suite of features that cater to businesses with employees at multiple locations. Robust mobile apps make it easy for staffers to clock in and out while geofencing and GPS tracking tools ensure they are only doing so at the proper job site. The system also lets managers know who is working where and even what tasks they’re working on. Plus, we love how seamlessly the service integrates with QuickBooks Payroll and QuickBooks Online. Find out more in our comprehensive review of QuickBooks Time.

Justworks

Justworks provides PEO services through an incredibly user-friendly platform. Once you partner with this professional employer organization, you can integrate its time and attendance system, Justworks Hours. The tools allow you to customize overtime rules, track hours for both employees and contractors, and send payment notifications to workers. We also like that the software has an offline mode, allowing you to use the program without an internet connection. Our review of the Justworks PEO has more information.

Paychex

Paychex stands out for the self-service features it offers to remote employees. Workers can access a range of clock-in methods no matter where they’re working from, submit PTO requests from their phone and communicate with managers and co-workers through the app. There are two plans available, which you can add onto a remote-friendly Paychex Flex HR software package or purchase as a standalone offering. See a breakdown of pricing and plans in our full Paychex Flex review.

Time Doctor

Time Doctor sets itself apart by going beyond simple attendance tracking to also monitor employee activity and influence productivity. The system records what staffers are working on, sends distraction notifications if their computer has seemingly gone idle and gathers data so supervisors can see how their team members are wasting time or where they are being most productive. We also like the work-life balance dashboard, which analyzes employee behavior to identify who is at risk of burnout. Check out an overview of all the features in our Time Doctor review.

OnTheClock

OnTheClock is a great choice for new businesses, particularly since the service is free if you only have two employees. As your startup grows, you will have to pay a subscription fee, but the per-employee price decreases as you add more people to your team. Even with OnTheClock’s low cost, you can access some advanced tools, like biometric fingerprint time-clocking, that other vendors tend to restrict to more expensive packages. We also appreciate the lengthy 30-day free trial. Learn more about OnTheClock.

PurelyHR

Similar to Ripping, PurelyHR prioritizes customization, allowing businesses to choose the modules they want their platform to contain. While the main Staff module, an employee portal, is required, you can add on components for time clocks, timesheets and time-off management as you wish. Within each of these functions are additional options for customization, whether you are setting timesheet periods, overtime rules, vacation policies or report metrics. You can also customize how staff members accrue time off. Just beware PurelyHR is the rare vendor in this sector without a mobile app.

To determine the best time and attendance services on the market, our team of HR experts and software analysts evaluated an initial list of 20 platforms. After narrowing our list down to 12, we chose six time and attendance services as our top recommendations. Our experts and analysts studied each solution’s functionality and evaluated the programs on more than 30 factors.

These factors were broken down into categories and weighted differently in our overall conclusion. The weights were determined based on how much business owners prioritize these criteria when shopping for business software and services and making purchasing decisions.

• Pricing (30%): Our experts and analysts compared and contrasted each vendor’s plans, judging which packages offered the best bang for your buck. They took into account monthly subscription fees, whether time and attendance features were automatically included or considered an HR software add-on service, time clock hardware costs and whether vendors charged by location or user.
• Features (25%): We looked for standard time and attendance functions like timekeeping, time-off management, scheduling tools and labor reports. We also assessed the available integrations and awarded extra points for advanced services, like GPS tracking, geofencing, biometric time clocks and AI-powered tools.
  
• Ease of Use (20%): We tested the hardware and software ourselves, gauging each solution’s learning curve, user-friendliness and customization options. We also considered whether there was a fully featured mobile app for clock-ins and other tasks at non-office job sites.
  
• Customer Service (15%): We evaluated the range of customer service options, including whether phone assistance was provided with all package tiers. We also examined each vendor’s online resources for businesses interested in self-guided help.
  
• Expert Analysis (10%): Given that our HR experts know and understand time and attendance services better than anyone, their personal insights from years of experience and hands-on testing were also considered when deciding our best picks.

Based on these criteria, we not only determined which time and attendance services our readers could trust but also the ways in which each solution could best serve different business needs. Some solutions were better at certain tasks than others or more suited to a particular type of company. These takeaways informed the “Best for” use cases you see on this page.

To learn more about our methodology, see our full editorial process.

As the physical and digital worlds continue to merge in 2024, we anticipate the time and attendance industry to accommodate the workforce changes that are here to stay. Gone are the days of clunky punch cards and rigid schedules. In their place are systems that embrace artificial intelligence (AI), flexibility, data insights and employee self-service.

AI is a growing trend that will impact this industry over the next year and beyond. As AI becomes an integral part of time and attendance systems, the data it aggregates can be used to make informed decisions on staffing, scheduling and other labor needs. AI chatbots, a relatively new functionality, can also play a key role in streamlining employee assistance.

Since hybrid and remote work will continue to be the norm in 2024, timekeeping solutions will continue to adapt. Look for cloud-based platforms that seamlessly track hours across multiple locations and time zones, making it easier to deal with the challenges of geodiversity. Employers that need to track employee locations for compliance or safety reasons will be happy to know that geofencing and geolocation capabilities are also becoming standard throughout the industry.

Going forward, we expect time and attendance technology to offer personalized and enhanced self-service features that allow employees to manage their own work schedules and time. Putting employee time management functionality in the hands of employees has become increasingly important as younger generations, like millennials and Gen Z, demand more flexibility and autonomy over how and when they work. Gamification will also take center stage, transforming attendance tracking into engaging challenges and rewarding consistent performance.

In addition to these advancements, privacy concerns will remain paramount. Expect to see timekeeping solutions that anonymize data and empower employees to control what information they share with their employers and others.