Buddy Punch review
Bottom line
Buddy Punch is web-based time tracking with GPS, geofencing, and photo verification that ties clock-ins to payroll, scheduling, and PTO. Its clearest strength is how much field accountability it adds at a low starting price. The main limits are the lack of a free plan and a built-in payroll service that is separate from time tracking. It suits hourly businesses with crews in the field or across several sites that need payroll-ready hours.
What is Buddy Punch?
Buddy Punch is time clock and workforce management software for businesses whose hourly employees work in more than one place. It replaces paper time cards and manual timesheet entry by turning clock-ins into accurate, payroll-ready timesheets. The product is aimed at the problems that come with paper systems, including illegible punches, lost cards, and buddy punching, where one employee clocks in for an absent coworker.
Day to day, employees clock in and out on a computer, a mobile phone, or a shared time clock kiosk that uses a PIN or QR code. Administrators can see where employees are during a shift through GPS tracking, and geofencing blocks punches made away from job sites. Selfie photos on punch and IP address locks add further checks. Managers build schedules with a drag-and-drop builder, set recurring shifts, and send published schedules to staff automatically. PTO accrual rules add hours to balances, employees submit requests in the app, and approved time off appears on timesheets and schedules.
Buddy Punch serves freelancers, small businesses, mid-size companies, and enterprises. Common users include construction, landscaping, healthcare, restaurants, retail, and professional services firms. The product starts at $4.99 and offers a free trial, with a demo available on request. There is no free plan. Plan details sit on the pricing page, and the built-in payroll service is billed separately from time tracking.
What sets Buddy Punch apart from many time clock tools is the combination of field tracking and payroll. Job costing lets crews clock against job codes that connect to locations and reports. Integrations with QuickBooks, ADP Workforce Now, Paychex, Paylocity, and several other payroll providers move time data without re-entry, and an API supports bulk changes. The company also offers U.S.-based support through email, chat, a knowledge base, and live online training.
Who it's for
- Hourly crews in construction, landscaping, or field services
- Multi-site businesses that need GPS and geofence verification
- Small businesses moving off paper timesheets or spreadsheets
Who should look elsewhere
- Teams that need a permanent free plan
- Businesses that require on-premises deployment
- Companies seeking a single payroll tool with no separate payroll service
Typical uses
- Tracking hours for crews working at multiple job sites
- Recording project hours for job costing and billing
- Managing PTO accruals and time-off requests
- Building schedules and sending shift changes to staff
- Sending approved time data to QuickBooks or ADP
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Buddy Punch alternatives and comparisons
Buddy Punch is the only time clock product we list so far. Browse the category as more are added.