Connecteam Review

Why We Chose Connecteam for Frontline Workers

Connecteam stands out as the best time and attendance software for businesses with frontline workers because of its robust mobile-first design, comprehensive features and exceptional ease of use. The platform’s geofencing and GPS geolocation tracking features ensure that employees clock in and out via the app at their designated locations, which is essential for managing a mobile workforce. Beyond time tracking, wherever your employees are in the field, they can remain connected with you and co-workers via Connecteam’s communication tools.

During our testing, we found that the system’s user-friendly interface allows managers to easily and efficiently monitor employee absences and locations. We especially love that the free Small Business Plan provides full access to Connecteam’s operations, communications and HR hubs, making it an excellent value for small businesses.

Connecteam offers a broad range of workforce management features for frontline workers. Source: Connecteam

Ease of Use

When testing the Connecteam software, we were especially pleased with how easy it was to navigate the platform. This is a mobile-first product with iOS and Android apps, so employees can access schedules, tasks and communication tools on the go. 

We like how user-friendly the program is, even for those who aren’t the most tech-savvy. Because of the intuitive design, many users report that minimal training is needed for employees to get up and running with Connecteam, and this was our experience as well.

Features

Connecteam has several basic and advanced features for employers and employees to communicate and carry out standard workforce operations, including time tracking. Here are some of the features that make this software especially valuable to companies with frontline workers.

Time Tracking

When we tested the Connecteam platform, we liked that it had several employee self-service features for time and attendance, as well as admin tools to help managers monitor how many hours their frontline employees work. For example, team members can clock in and out from their mobile devices, track custom jobs and subjobs, and view and edit their time sheets. 

As an administrator, you can access mobile admin capabilities, export time sheets, modify approvals, lock employee time sheets, view clock-in and clock-out locations on a map, and automatically clock out users when they reach daily limits. The ability to do all of this from a phone or tablet is ideal for companies centered around distributed field workers.

Connecteam’s mobile-focused time-tracking tools make it easy to manage employees’ time. Source: Connecteam

If your employees frequently forget to track their hours, Connecteam can help with that. We especially like the notification feature, which automatically sends push notifications to workers to remind them to clock in and out. The app can also notify team members when they’re reaching their daily work limits. These features are competitive with those in other timekeeping software we reviewed. 

Employee Scheduling

Connecteam’s employee scheduling features are highly competitive with those offered by rival time and attendance platforms we analyzed. Each free and paid package includes several features that enable you to plan and manage employee schedules. For instance, managers can create schedules with an unlimited number of jobs and subjobs, allow employees to claim open shifts and track employees’ in-shift statuses. 

We were pleased to see other useful tools, like schedule searching and exporting, scheduling filters, shift replacements, reverse actions, permission settings, shift grouping and shift templates. We were also impressed by the program’s limitation settings, which allow managers to limit the number of hours or shifts each person can work. This is beneficial for employers whose frontline workers need to stay within overtime guidelines. [Learn how to calculate night-shift differential pay.]

Employees and admins can access a variety of useful scheduling features within the Connecteam app. Source: Connecteam

Geolocation Services

Connecteam uses geolocation specifically for its time clock functionality. When an employee clocks in or out, the app can capture their location through the device’s GPS. This can help verify that team members are clocking in and out from an authorized area, such as their assigned worksite. 

The geolocation tools can also track employees’ work locations throughout the day, especially for field workers. Some of Connecteam’s plans even include a “breadcrumbs” feature for this purpose, capturing live location data at different intervals while the employee is clocked in. We found this especially valuable for keeping an eye on frontline workers who are working solo.

Connecteam’s GPS tracking features are valuable for ensuring that your mobile workers are at the right locations when they’re clocked in. Source: Connecteam

Internal Communication

Unlike many time and attendance solutions we investigated, Connecteam has an entire hub dedicated to employee communication, and we love that there are many tools to keep frontline workers connected while they’re in the field. For example, they can access a team chat to share images, videos, files, PDFs, GIFs and locations. You can pin important conversations to the top for easy on-the-go access, schedule messages to send during work hours, and create shortcuts to link employees to another feature within the app.

Because Connecteam focuses on keeping teams connected, it also has organizational charts and directories; features for facilitating surveys, events, updates and announcements; and a knowledge base. Not all competitors offer these functions, but they can be worthwhile for keeping frontline workers connected. 

With Connecteam’s organizational directory, workers can quickly contact each other from any location. Source: Connecteam

Pricing

Connecteam sells five tiered plans, each of which offers a different combination of features. Although some competitors charge per employee, Connecteam’s packages have one flat rate for the first 30 users. We found this to be advantageous for small, growing companies that want to control their monthly costs. 

After your first 30 employees, Connecteam charges a small additional fee per user. We were happy to see that the vendor also has a free plan for up to 10 users, as well as a 14-day free trial.

Here’s a general breakdown of Connecteam’s standard plans.

Implementation/Onboarding

Getting started with Connecteam is simple. Unlike some vendors that make you contact them for a custom quote before you can begin using their software, Connecteam lists pricing for each plan on its website (excluding its custom-priced Enterprise offering) and grants instant access. You can easily sign up for the free small business plan for up to 10 users or the 14-day free trial to get started. Both options give you the flexibility to test the software risk-free. 

When we went through the implementation process, we liked how easy it was to get the software up and running. All we had to do was sign up online, and then it took only minutes to begin using the various features. You’ll start with a view of the dashboard and then follow the on-screen tutorial to activate the different tools, including the time clock and job scheduler.

Customer Support

We were glad to see that Connecteam provides helpful customer support. For many users, the self-service Help Center is a great first stop for troubleshooting issues. We like that you can search for specific keywords or browse by category to find the information you need. You can also access comprehensive online resources, like blog posts, guides, e-books, an HR glossary, a template directory and a marketplace.

If you can’t find what you’re looking for in the Help Center, you can contact Connecteam’s support line directly through the chat feature within your Connecteam dashboard. This is a good option for getting live help with specific tasks or troubleshooting issues, especially as the company promises to respond in less than five minutes. You can also email the vendor for assistance.

Limitations

Although the Connecteam platform integrates with some of the best payroll services and accounting software, its native integrations are more limited than other options we reviewed. This can lead to data silos and manual workarounds. 

However, all packages except the Basic plan integrate with Zapier, a service that enables you to connect web apps. This means that through Zapier, Connecteam could potentially integrate with many other applications, though the specific number depends on what Zapier supports. If third-party integrations are particularly important to you, check out our review of TimeClock Plus, which supports hundreds of third-party integrations. 

Another potential drawback is Connecteam’s pricing-and-package structure. The company offers tiered plans, but some users find them confusing, particularly for smaller teams. If it’s unclear from the website what plan will be the best for your team, we recommend contacting Connecteam directly for guidance. If you want to compare pricing with another timekeeping solution that’s great for mobile workforces, check out our review of QuickBooks Time.

Methodology

When investigating the top time and attendance solutions on the market, we watched product videos, participated in demos and used free trials to test the platforms. We considered the hardware, usability, price, setup process, mobile access, integrations and features of each software option. We paid close attention to time-tracking tools, time-off-management abilities, GPS and geolocation functionality, payroll integrations, reports, job tracking, and notifications and alerts. 

To find the best system for frontline workers specifically, we looked for the solution with the most comprehensive, mobile-driven time-tracking capabilities; employee scheduling; geolocation services; and communication features to help companies manage workers in the field. 

Bottom Line

We recommend Connecteam for …

• Companies with frontline workers.
• Businesses that want a mobile-first way to track time and attendance.
• Organizations that need to track employees’ locations when they clock in and out. 

We don’t recommend Connecteam for …

• Companies that want to access their time and attendance software primarily on a desktop computer instead of a mobile device.
• Organizations that are looking for a free plan for more than 10 employees.
• Businesses that need highly advanced reporting features.