Small and medium businesses (aka SMBs) have few employees and can only sometimes afford an HR team to monitor their attendance and time off. More often than not, a team leader is in charge of time tracking and providing accurate records for payroll. However, this repetitive task takes a lot of time and energy, so the person in charge only has a little time left for other tasks. Furthermore, the lack of procedure and structure may lead to mistakes, angry employees, and legal issues.
The solution is simpler than you think: use free time clock apps and empower your employees to provide attendance data from wherever they are, using a device as notorious as a smartphone or tablet.
That's why we picked the top 10 free time clock apps for SMBs from all the tools we reviewed.
Although OnTheClock addresses small businesses (it is free for just 2 employees), the app provides everything expensive apps have. OnTheClock features mobile access for employees working on location, GPS tracking and geofencing, clock-in and clock-out functionality, reminders, and overtime calculations.
If your team works in an office or remotely, your coworkers can use the version that requires only a browser. Furthermore, you can grant employees access only from authorized devices like a work smartphone or laptop.
OnTheClock provides:
Homebase is free for one location and up to 20 employees. If your team works in an office or work hub, this is the time clock app for your SMB. Homebase excels at shift management and provides tools for scheduling, optimizing, and sharing schedules. It also allows you to set up notifications and reminders, add personal notes or instructions, and use templates to improve future shift schedules.
However, Homebase also includes time off management tools, a mobile app for clocking in and clocking out with GPS monitoring, automatic payroll calculations, and timesheets for an overall view.
Homebase provides:
Connecteam targets SMBs by offering a free time clock app for teams smaller than 10 people. It is a complete solution for employee time tracking because, alongside a time clock app, Connecteam provides team scheduling tools, geofencing, task management, and payroll. It also includes team communication tools, such as a work chat, company updates, and surveys.
Furthermore, your SMB can use Connecteam from the start because it provides tools for onboarding new employees, making people feel like they are part of the team from the first day.
Connecteam provides:
Jibble provides a free time clock app that allows you to clock your time, regardless of your employee number. The app runs on iPhone and Android systems and offers face recognition for fast access, GPS-based geofences, notifications, reports and analytics, group permissions, and many more. You can choose the web version if your team works from an office or at home. And if one of your employees has no internet connection, don't worry. Jibble will sync the data when the internet connection is back on.
Moreover, detailed reports and analytics are very useful for your small or medium business. They help you avoid payroll mistakes, stay compliant with labor legislation, understand labor costs, and optimize employee productivity.
Jibble provides:
busybusy is designed for construction and remote industries. The free version features GPS time tracking, equipment tracking, and job costing estimates. And you get it for free regardless of how many employees you have.
The clock-in and clock-out procedure is simple and efficient. Employees can clock in during breaks, switch between projects, and enter the equipment they use. Furthermore, they can use the app offline without internet connection. busybusy syncs the data when the connection is back on.
busybusy provides:
Up to 30 people working in the same location can use the 7shifts time clock app for free. It is simple and efficient, aiming to help you sync punches, schedules, and payroll in minutes. Furthermore, 7shifts provides punch audit reports, optional photo clock-in and geofencing, and tip management.
Designed for the restaurant industry, 7shifts adapts to any small and medium business that deals with shifts.
7shifts provides:
The free version of TimeCamp doesn't restrict the number of users, only the features offered. However, a free forever plan grants access to a time clock kiosk, geofencing, timesheets, and mobile and web-based apps.
The time clock app is easy to use, requiring just a 4-pin code to log in. Employees can clock into the project they are working on and switch between projects anytime. Breaks are allowed, too. The manager can see the data in real-time and approve, reject, or send notifications. TimeCamp gathers data and generates reports for payroll and people management.
TimeCamp provides:
Like TimeCamp, Clockify doesn't restrict the number of users, but its features are free—good news for small or medium businesses looking for a time-tracking app. Clockify provides a kiosk app for manual time tracking but also an auto time tracker, idle detection and reminders, a Pomodoro timer, a team calendar, timesheets, and integrations with other management tools.
The system works as a native app and web-based version, decides on tracking time overall or per project/task, and generates customized reports.
Clockify provides:
actiTIME aims to reduce labor-related costs and make your team more efficient. By recording your employees' work correctly, you eliminate payroll mistakes and bill your clients accordingly. For example, employees can clock in when they switch between tasks and projects, when they do overtime, or when they take a break. As a result, you can monitor costs in real-time and share task details with your team to improve productivity and optimize resource management.
actiTIME is a good choice for small teams because it is free for up to 3 users.
actiTIME provides:
Toggl track focuses on time tracking and productivity, which your SMB can use. It's free for up to 5 users and features automated time tracking, reporting, and even inactive data storage for six months. You can sync the Toggl track with many other management tools and calendars and use it as an app or in a browser on a mobile device.
Toggl track records any program or website used for more than 10 seconds. So, if your employees use a computer, they don't need to clock in or out. You'll get all the data from the app. You can divide work into projects and tasks, generate reports, send reminders, and generate invoices.
Toggl track provides:
FAQ Free Time Clock Apps for SMBs
What is a time clock app?
A time clock app is a mobile or web-based app that records when an employee starts and ends work. It is the modern version of a punch card. However, it may have other features, such as recording a GPS location, tracking time spent working on a particular task or project, scheduling shifts, and managing time off. The data is used for payroll, invoicing clients, and ensuring compliance with labor legislation.
What are the key benefits of using a free time clock app?
Using a free time clock app releases the team leader or manager to monitor employee attendance. It also eliminates mistakes, increases transparency, and boosts employee morale. Without adding any cost, the small business can benefit from accurate data for payroll and accountancy, project cost monitoring, and employee productivity monitoring. You can see who's on time and late, on leave, and who's at work even when employees work on location or remotely.
How do you choose a free time clock app?
Verify that the time clock app provides free access for your current number of employees. Also, ensure that the app respects your staff's requirements, such as working in shifts, doing overtime, working remotely or in multiple locations, and switching between tasks or projects. You will also need to check that your staff has access to devices supported by the app. A survey on your employees' expectations from a time clock app may help you understand their preferences.