Employee time tracking should simplify payroll processes. When it works well, managers can assign tasks smoothly, avoid staff burnout, and ensure prompt payments.
However, poorly implemented time tracking achieves the opposite. Employees feel snooped on and harassed. Companies lose money as payments slip and teams struggle. Slowly, everything falls apart.
Sourcing the right time tracking apps will streamline your payroll cycles and ensure compliance. Get started by exploring the top seven employee time tracking software for payroll, all featured in this guide.
Overview of the best employee time tracking software
- Toggl Track: Best for stress-free, flexible time tracking
- Clockify: Best for over-the-shoulder activity tracking
- Harvest: Best for keeping things clean and simple
- EverHour: Best for integrating time tracking with HR software
- Timely: Best for saving time with automation
- Hubstaff: Best for tracking employees in the field
- QuickBooks Time: Saving time on payroll tasks
What features should any good time tracking software have?
Time tracking tools monitor employee time, providing accurate data about hours worked and actions performed. Beyond that core function, good time tracking systems should include several other features to simplify payroll processes, including:
- Real-time tracking: Productivity tracking allows you to monitor urgent projects or actions. If employees work to tight timescales, you can check their progress and ensure payouts reward good work.
- The ability to edit tracked time: Good tracking tools let you edit hours to correct inaccurate time entries or add unrecorded work time. Flexible editing tools ensure every minute is logged, from ad hoc consulting calls to evening sales visits.
- Invoicing and payments: A good payroll hours tracker generates reliable figures to calculate employees’ total pay. The time clock integrates smoothly with accounting systems and facilitates payments like clockwork.
- Timesheet reports: These provide detailed reports of billable hours and employee output, filtered by client and project as required.
- Integration with project management tools: Outstanding trackers integrate with project management systems and billing software. Browser extensions also analyze work on web apps or websites, providing granular awareness of project progress.
- Ease of use: Good payroll time trackers cut time spent wrestling with interfaces and reporting functions, laying out everything in an intuitive, user-friendly format.
- Customer support: Even the best-designed time tracking tools may experience problems during setup or later. The best vendors support users with in-person assistance and online resources.
Top tip:
Your company might not need all of these features, or you could need features that aren’t on this quick list. That’s why, before comparing any employee time tracking software, we suggest you write out a list of your ‘must-haves’ and ‘nice-to-haves’ so you understand what’s actually important and non-negotiable. With that list, you can automatically start to filter out software that doesn’t offer the basic functionalities you need.
An in-depth look at the best employee time tracking apps for payroll
Our rankings take all of the above features into account. We’ve road-tested each time tracking solution with real-world timesheets, keeping a scorecard based on must-haves and how easy they are to use.
We’ve also factored in pricing. You should never pay more than necessary for time management tools. With so many impressive employee timekeeping options, bargains are always available for small business users and corporate giants. A free trial is always a useful starting point, so you can try before you buy (or upgrade!)
Finally, we’ve assessed reporting functions. Great time trackers generate useful data for employees and managers, helping us work smarter and keep payments on track. Sadly, that’s not universal, and we’ve tried to tease out poor performers during our reviews.
With that out of the way, let’s jump in and discover 2024’s standout time tracking apps.
1. Toggl Track
Toggl Track offers time tracking software your users will love. Say goodbye to repetitive admin and hello to an intuitive tool that boosts productivity and slides straight into your payroll processes from the get-go.
Toggl Track natively integrates with 100+ other tools in your tech stack, including key accounting and payroll software like Xero, Quickbooks, Freshbooks, and Zoho Books. Even better, our platform excels in reporting and analytics. Users can generate reports based on workspace and client, exporting data via CSV and Excel formats. You can also toggle access rights to keep all reports confidential or bring team members into the discussion.
Toggl Track’s free version includes a wealth of core functionality, so small teams can manage timesheets and delve into basic reporting features without spending a cent. Larger teams may benefit from additional functionality such as timesheet approvals, forecasting, and Single Sign-On, which are available with the Premium plan.
| Pros | Cons |
| • The intuitive interface makes Toggl Track easy to learn • 100+ integrations with HR platforms, collaboration tools, and accounting packages • Cross-platform apps give users total flexibility • In-depth reporting • Try before you buy with the powerful free-forever trial or a 30-day trial of the Premium plan. | • The free plan is limited to five users |
🌟 What makes Toggl Track unique?
Toggl Track is super-flexible. Users can choose between automatic time tracking and manual tracking using a Start/Stop timer.
It’s convenient, too—users can access our platform from mobile, desktop, and web apps. We have a range of browser extensions for Chrome, Firebox, and Edge, all of which make tracking time on the web easy, ensuring your employees are paid accurately for their work.
Toggl Track logs the billable hours needed for payroll processing and tracks non-billable hours to deliver important operational insights.
💰 Pricing and plans
- Free: The free plan covers up to 5 users and offers unlimited tracking across all platforms. Google and Outlook integrations are included, along with six months of data storage.
- Starter: $9 per user/mo. Includes sub-projects for greater control, extra project templates, and unlimited data storage.
- Premium: $18 per user/mo. Adds automated timesheet approvals, Jira and Salesforce integrations, Single Sign-On, and more.
- Enterprise: This plan allows clients to manage multiple workspaces. Users have a dedicated Customer Success Manager for onboarding and enjoy priority support. Accurate pricing is available on request.
💬 What users say
Users score Toggl Track highly for ease of use and reporting features—both fundamental must-haves for accurate payroll processing.
Small business founder Yugo says, “Switching to Toggl Track has been one of the best decisions for our team. From the moment we started using it the platform’s intuitive and user-friendly interface stood out, making it incredibly easy to track time and manage projects.”
Another small business user adds, “I use Toggl every single day, all day long to track my time. I love the reports feature so that I can run a report when it’s time for payroll and print a report for backup.”
⚖️ Our verdict
We may be slightly biased, but we’re not blind to our faults. Having compared the competition, we honestly believe Toggl Track is the best solution if you want to track time accurately for your payroll.
2. Clockify
Clockify is another free time tracker with customizable tracking. Managers create timesheets on a “build-as-you-go” mode, enabling them to monitor hourly freelance rates and spending.
There are no user limits with Clockify, and you can export tracking data via PDF, Excel, and CSV formats. Unfortunately, Clockify doesn’t offer the strongest collaboration features, so larger teams may struggle to share management tasks. Reporting and analytics are streamlined but slightly shallow at the free and Basic tiers.
| Pros | Cons |
| • Easy to use and administer timesheet software • Cost-effective • Unlimited users • Easy to customize for remote workers and on-site solutions • In-depth over-the-shoulder monitoring | • Team management may be tough in larger teams • No invoicing tools in the free and Basic packages • Weak analytics and reporting |
🌟 What makes Clockify unique?
The free Clockify package offers customization features. Users can design time tracking solutions for any project and monitor employee time down to a few meters or clicks.
💰 Pricing and plans
- Free: Clockify’s free plan allows unlimited users, access to the iOS and Android app, and no limits on kiosk creation.
- Basic: $3.99 per user/mo. Adds security features like Kiosk PINs, project templates, and customized exporting.
- Standard: $5.49 per user/mo. Adds invoicing, overtime, and time off management.
- Pro: $7.99 per user/mo. Includes scheduling and forecasting functions, employee expenses, and GPS tracking.
- Enterprise: $11.99 per user/mo. Adds SSO, audit logs, and more customization options.
💬 What users say
Clockify users enjoy the platform’s ease of use and powerful free trial.
Senior Software Developer Lucia Z. says “We like to use the time tracking feature by project and task to record the time spent on each, which allows us to keep an accurate record of our work and accurately allocate billable hours.”
But administrator Jena L., notes, “I dislike that it cannot be used with all payroll systems. I could use Clockify with my old company’s system but not with my current one.”
⚖️ Our verdict
Clockify is a simple and affordable option for organizations with limited expertise in time tracking.
3. Harvest
Harvest is a popular platform thanks to its lightweight and simple design. Invoicing is one of Harvest’s strengths.
Automated invoice creation converts an employee timesheet into a payment request with minimal effort, while Stripe and PayPal integrations also streamline client relations. However, it doesn’t offer any direct payroll services.
Harvest’s reporting capabilities can also be simplistic. For example, it’s difficult to separate approved and unapproved time.
Pricing is also a potential pain point. The free trial is full of functionality but limited in scale. The only other option is an unlimited plan with no tiers in between. It’s all or nothing with Harvest.
| Pros | Cons |
| • Great invoicing system • Flexible client-based interface • History searches to understand patterns and trends • Easy time tracking via the mobile app | • Simple reporting can leave managers in the dark • Relatively few integrations • No dedicated payroll integrations |
🌟 What makes Harvest unique?
Users can easily segment employee scheduling by client and project, logging hours worked to turn into a CSV file if you want to import it into your payroll tool.
💰 Pricing and plans
- Harvest: Free access to all Harvest features but limited to one seat and just two projects.
- Harvest Pro: $10.80 per seat/mo. Includes unlimited seats and projects.
💬 What users say
Harvest has a strong reputation thanks to its smooth time tracking, flexibility, and lightweight design.
Brand consultant Daniel C. says, “Harvest is simple and easy to use. It integrates where I need it to. It doesn’t try to be more than a time tracker. It just stays in its lane, does so with excellence, and doesn’t cause problems.”
As small business manager Rebecca B. puts it, “I like how you can access from anywhere, mobile app, desktop app, website, many easy options for quickly tracking time spent on projects.”
⚖️ Our verdict
Simplicity combined with powerful features always finds an audience. Harvest is great if you want a clean and simple tool to track time, process client invoices, and manage expenses. However, it lacks the direct integrations you need for streamlined payroll processing.
4. EverHour
EveryHour is an efficient and highly functional time tracking solution designed to fit into most existing HR setups. It also has some handy features for managing payroll, such as managing invoices, vacations, and expenses from a single dashboard.
Everhour’s free package delivers over 40 integrations, fitting natively into many HR suites.
A potential pain point is ease of use. Integrations are great, but EverHour has a steep learning curve, so you should expect an acclimatization period before seeing significant benefits.
Finally, the pricing system is basic. Users enjoy limited EverHour functions with the free plan, but this lacks integrations. You’ll need the Team plan to understand how EverHour complements other HR tools.
| Pros | Cons |
| • Comprehensive time tracking features with project and task breakdowns • Over 40 integrations with HR systems • Includes expense and invoice management • Impressively functional free package | • Reporting lacks depth and advanced visualizations • Steep learning curve |
🌟 What makes EverHour unique?
Some of the integrations, such as Slack and Xero, are super useful.
💰 Pricing and plans
- Free: This works with mobile devices, allows exporting, and includes project-based tracking.
- Team: $8.50 per seat/mo. Users must purchase at least five seats to manage expenses and invoices, add SSO, and handle time off.
💬 What users say
EverHour is a popular solution, although the user base is limited. Reviewers praise the integrations and time tracking tools while mentioning the learning curve as a potential negative.
Web Developer Timothy P. calls EverHour “a simple extension to your browser you can click and start tracking time” and suggests “the great thing is that you can integrate it with project management software like Asana or Click up.”
Unfortunately, Tom. T, a small business user notes his frustration that EverHour doesn’t integrate with some of the top payroll platforms in the field. “I wish there were a way to integrate Everhour with payroll providers like ADP to help automate admin tasks like paying employees.
⚖️ Our verdict
EverHour is a strong contender if integrating time tracking and HR software is a priority. But always check that the platform integrates with your preferred tech stack before you invest.
5. Timely
Norwegian contender Timely offers automated time tracking functions with AI eliminating the need for timers and timesheets.
The People Dashboard makes it easy to manage many employees simultaneously. Automated trackers log activity on apps and web services, and AI algorithms collect employee attendance and work data, creating sheets for specific clients or projects.
Onboarding features are useful, but Timely struggles to track work done on smartphone apps. Everything is digital, so users must manually add offline work to top up their pay.
The timeline can also become confusing, while tracking becomes less accurate as activities become more complex.
| Pros | Cons |
| • Advanced automation cuts admin work • Tracks all online activity without disrupting workflows • Analytics to improve employee performance • Plenty of integrations • GPS for mobile tracking | • AI tools don’t track offline work and phone calls • Timeline becomes hard to use as workflows become complex • Problems with tracking work on smartphones • No free plan |
🌟 What makes Timely unique?
Automation. Timely is known for mainstreaming AI and automatic time tracking.
💰 Pricing and plans
- Starter: $9 per user/mo. 20 projects and five users only. Includes automated tracking and project monitoring.
- Premium: $16 per user/mo. Unlimited projects and up to 50 users. Adds project management tools, budget management, and advanced planning options.
- Unlimited: $22 per user/mo. Unlimited projects and users. Includes overtime and undertime metrics, premium customer support, and compatibility with 50 global currencies.
- Enterprise: Fees vary by the scale of the implementation. Users benefit from premium onboarding and training.
💬 What users say
Timely attracts positive feedback for its time-saving features and simplicity.
Small business founder Aly R. says, “By seamlessly integrating into the user’s workflow, Timely captures every minute of the day without the need for manual input, a feature that’s nothing short of revolutionary.”
Another user says, “My whole billing process depends on the billable hours I work for my clients, so it would be great to get to know more about the data security.”
⚖️ Our verdict
If you want to save time via automated tracking, Timely is a good option. Customers needing more customization and in-depth control may prefer other trackers.
6. Hubstaff
Hubstaff excels where many time trackers fail: recording work time outside traditional office environments. Geofencing and automated reminders can support accurate payroll with seamless clock-ins for workers on the move. Set GPS coordinates for work sites, and the tracker kicks in as employees arrive.
Hubstaff includes standard time tracking features, including components for payroll tracking. You can manage payments, distribute timesheets, monitor project costs, and generate detailed reports to aid productivity.
The result is a time tracking tool fit for remote work, field teams, and on-premises settings.
On the downside, managing time off is a little clunky, as managers manually review employee requests. The dashboard also becomes cluttered with every feature engaged.
| Pros | Cons |
| • Great for geofencing and field-based time tracking • Easy to use and suited to remote work • Automated features save time and enhance reliability • Integrations with popular HR suites | • Tracking can be inaccurate with hybrid workloads • Managing time-off is tricky • Geographic tracking is only available with the premium plan |
🌟 What makes Hubstaff unique?
Hubstaff’s USP is the ability to track work in the field. It works well if you rely on mobile teams, external events, or remote work.
💰 Pricing and plans
- Free: Hubstaff offers a 14-day free trial.
- Starter: $4.99 per seat/mo. Minimum of two seats. Includes basic time tracking and timesheets. Limited integrations and reporting.
- Grow: $7.50 per seat/mo. Also has a two-seat minimum. Adds some integrations, expense management, work breaks, and an idle timeout. Includes the Hubstaff Task management tool.
- Team: $10 per seat/mo. Adds access to the Insights data reporting system. Tracking is unlimited. Users benefit from payroll, overtime, and employee attendance tools.
- Enterprise: $25 per seat/mo. The only tier that includes Locations, enabling geofencing and GPS tracking. Also includes the Corporate App for mobile tracking and privacy compliance tools.
💬 What users say
Flexibility and ease of use feature regularly in Hubstaff reviews, and the platform generally attracts positive feedback.
Accounting manager Rhea Janine, says “the most helpful thing about HubStaff is that I don’t need to do a lot. All I need is mostly in there, including time in/time out, activities, and attendance. It is easy and useful for me to keep track of everything employees do.”
As Account Manager Cristina D. puts it, “Hubstaff streamlines payroll processing, cutting down on admin work and ensuring smooth, seamless transactions.” The one thing she’s not sure about? “The user’s privacy. It makes some users uncomfortable with the level of monitoring it does (screenshots and activity tracking) which feels a bit invasive.”
⚖️ Our verdict
Hubstaff suits teams based outside the office. It could be ideal if you manage multiple locations and need streamlined ways to capture employee hours.
7. QuickBooks Time
Accountancy specialist Intuit QuickBooks made its name by saving time on mundane tasks, so it’s no surprise that QuickBooks Time compares well with its rivals. QuickBooks Time also fits naturally with the company’s invoicing and accounts tools. Expect smooth billing for clients and freelancers alike.
Users can create and complete timesheets via iOS and Android apps. There are intuitive scheduling tools, geofencing, and real-time reporting. The QuickBooks Time Clock Kiosk allows team members to clock in wherever they are, adding even more flexibility.
There are potential downsides. Users need a QuickBooks subscription to add time tracking. Editing is another sticking point. QuickBooks Time makes it hard to amend working hours after the event. Other than those criticisms, this is a reliable tracking solution.
| Pros | Cons |
| • Integrates seamlessly with QuickBooks tools • Makes invoicing and billing easier • Real-time tracking and reporting • Strong location-based tracking | • May feel intrusive to some employees • Limited editing and scheduling functions • Requires a QuickBooks subscription |
🌟 What makes QuickBooks Time unique?
Simple. The ability to integrate with QuickBooks accounting setups. If you want to connect time tracking and accounts, QuickBooks is the perfect solution.
💰 Pricing and plans
- Standard: $14 per user/mo. Includes GPS, the mobile app, reporting, scheduling, the Time kiosk, and more.
- Elite: $28 per user/mo. Adds mileage tracking, project management tools, geofencing, and budgeting tools.
Both Standard and Elite plans come with 30-day free trial periods. So you can try before you commit.
💬 What users say
QuickBooks Time users focus on remote working and integrations, praising the tracker’s ease of use (although tracking performance sometimes receives criticism).
As accounting team leader Mitesh P. reports, “Using QuickBooks Time, I can easily manage remote staff, get to know where staff are occupied, and the tasks they are working on.”
Construction controller Bert H. loves “the flexibility to create specific jobs/projects and can assign groups of employees to that project. Using job codes, you can break up the work into tasks and subtasks.”
⚖️ Our verdict
QuickBooks Time is an excellent choice for QuickBooks users and general payroll management. It’s also useful when managing on-site and remote projects—especially in haulage, construction, or other industrial settings.
How to choose the right employee time tracker
Our time tracking rankings summarize the best options in a crowded field, but they only narrow down your search. Now, you need to pick a vendor that suits your needs, so how should you go about it?
First and foremost, a time tracking system must meet your goals.
Are you desperate to combine recording work hours with payroll and billing? Or are you more concerned with analytics and improving productivity? Are you managing remote teams in varied locations or just a single on-site workforce?
Questions like this define core aims and direct your search. Complement them by considering essential features, nice-to-haves, and irrelevant components.
Bringing existing IT systems and HR processes into the picture is also important here. Most importantly, time tracking solutions must integrate with critical apps. Smooth integrations save time and avoid user experience issues further down the line.
Scalability also matters. Some time tracking solutions are agile and affordable for small teams, while the cost rises steeply for “enterprise” plans. Check “per user” prices to get the best deal now and as your company expands.
Top tip:
We also suggesting using free trials strategically. Even trials lacking every feature let you test interfaces and test usability. Focus on testing things like that to ensure your team can use (and likes) the software. It’s also helpful to use the free trial period to use the software like you actually would day-to-day.
Common mistakes to avoid when selecting time tracking software
Before we go, we’d like to share our experiences to help you decide.
Our Customer Success Team has worked with countless companies switching from unsuitable time tracking software. We’ve learned a lot about how to avoid bad selections, and a few common mistakes crop up time and again.
1. Going too deep with employee monitoring
Tracking technology gives managers unprecedented access to how employees work and behave. But that doesn’t mean you should assume the role of Big Brother, spying on everything workers do.
When it comes to payroll, you don’t need total awareness of worker activity. You need speed, accuracy, and reliability.
At Toggl Track, we’re strictly anti-surveillance and passionate about productivity and privacy. A good tracker delivers on both scores. Managers can extract data and keep projects on course without excessive surveillance.
2. Forgetting about compliance and security
It’s essential to understand how tracking and storing employee time impacts your data protection and cybersecurity responsibilities.
Timesheet data also includes payment details for clients and employees. Exposing financial details to attackers is a severe GDPR or PCI-DSS violation, so only choose time trackers with a dependable security record.
Always check with your compliance officer to understand how the latest regulations affect you.
3. Neglecting the learning curve
Many clients come to us after trying (and failing) to learn alternative time trackers. What looks intuitive on a website may be fiendishly complex in reality.
As a result, HR teams wrestle with scheduling systems and geofenced kiosks. They confuse everyone by mangling invoicing, clock-out times, and time-off requirements. It happens all the time.
Avoid that situation by trying trackers before you buy. Focus on easy-to-master systems with reliable customer support. Otherwise, tools designed to save time could become a drag on operations.
So…what’s the best employee timekeeping software?
It’s almost time to clock out, but one question remains. And it’s a big one. Which employee time tracking software should you choose for payroll management?
As our rankings and reviews show, time management tools are diverse. One size doesn’t fit all, and every business has unique needs.
After weighing your options, Toggl Track should be at the top of your shortlist. There are two main reasons why:
- Flexibility elevates Toggl Track over the competition. The easy-to-use interface lets you set to work almost immediately. Intuitive data reporting helps employees and managers use time productively and monitor project costs. Mobile, web, and desktop apps cater to every need, while more than 100 integrations link up with existing systems.
- Toggl Track is built for human beings. Our tools balance advanced tracking with confidentiality. Employees can record work done, while managers know how projects are going. Surveillance and privacy violations don’t enter the picture.
But don’t just take our word. Try Toggl Track for yourself and explore what the software offers. Create a free account today and discover the best way to manage employee time.
Elizabeth is an experienced entrepreneur, writer, and content marketer. She has nine years of experience helping grow businesses, including two of her own, and shares Toggl's mission of challenging traditional beliefs about what building a successful business looks like.
