TimeTracker vs Buddy Punch: Full Comparison
Buddy Punch is built for punching in and out with GPS and scheduling. TimeTracker turns billable hours into invoices, with project budgets and approvals.
Free to start. No credit card needed.
Our quick verdict on both tools
Pick Buddy Punch if you manage hourly or field staff and need GPS clock-ins, photo punches, and shift scheduling. Pick TimeTracker if you bill clients for time and need project budgets, timesheet approvals, and invoicing in one place.
Start tracking freeWhat this comparison covers
TimeTracker and Buddy Punch are both time tracking tools, compared here side by side so you can see how they differ.
Anyone deciding between TimeTracker and Buddy Punch for time tracking should start with the quick verdict above.
Compare the two products at a glance
Both tools solve time tracking. Here is what each one includes, side by side.
TimeTracker
Every task carries operational and financial context together. Tracked time, budget impact, and invoicing live in one connected system, so you know if a project is still profitable before it becomes a problem.
- Best for
- Agencies and consultancies of 2 to 50 people who bill clients for time and need to see project profit, not just hours.
- Pricing
- Free for up to 3 people, no credit card needed. Pro is $15 per user a month, or $12 per user a month billed yearly, with a 14-day trial.
- One-click task timers
- Timesheet submission and approvals
- Effective-dated billing and cost rates
- Live project budgets and profitability
- Client invoicing and payments
- Client portal with a cost firewall
- Reports and dashboards
- Expense tracking with billable markup
Buddy Punch
An easy time clock with a lot of ways to prove who punched: GPS on every punch, plus geofencing, PIN and kiosk punching and a webcam photo from the Pro tier up.
- Best for
- Small and mid-size hourly or field workforces that want an easy time clock with GPS and scheduling.
- Pricing
- No free plan, 14-day trial only. Billed annually: Starter $4.99, Pro $6.99, Advanced $12.99 per user a month, each plus a $19 monthly base fee. Extras are sold per user on top.
- Punch in/out from web, mobile, or kiosk
- GPS coordinates on every punch
- Geofencing, PIN and kiosk punching (Pro)
- Webcam photo on punch (Pro)
- Scheduling, included from Pro
- PTO accrual and approvals
See how they stack up
Pricing, best fit, and top strengths for both tools, side by side.
Pricing checked 2026-07-30. Confirm current pricing on each vendor's site.
Which one fits your team
Choose TimeTracker when…
You bill clients by the hour and want invoices to match tracked time exactly.
Approved hours flow straight into an invoice, so what you bill always matches what was tracked.See how
You need to know if a project is still profitable while it is still running.
Live budgets compare cost to price as the team logs hours, so a losing project shows up early, not at month end.See how
You track time by client, project, and task, not just by shift.
Every entry ties to a client, project, and task, so reports break down exactly where the hours went.See how
You want a manager to approve hours before they turn into a bill.
Timesheets lock after approval, so nobody bills a client for hours no one signed off on.See how
Your rates change by client or by person and old invoices need to stay correct.
Rate changes are effective dated, so past invoices keep the rate that was active at the time.See how
Choose Buddy Punch when…
You manage hourly or field staff who need to punch in and out on a shared device.
Kiosk mode and photo capture on clock-in cut down buddy punching without any extra hardware.
You need to see where staff are clocking in from.
GPS tracking with a live map and configurable geofencing confirm a punch happened at the right job site.
You build shift schedules and want staff to see them in the same app they punch in with.
Drag-and-drop scheduling is native to Buddy Punch, so shifts and punches live in one place.
You need PTO accrual rules tied to hourly attendance.
Buddy Punch accrues PTO automatically and routes it through the same approval flow as punches.See how
Popular features
Employee time tracking your team will actually use
One click starts a timer, or people type hours in by hand. Every entry ties to a client, project, and task, so the record stays clean.
Explore Time Tracking→Bill for every hour you earn
Mark each entry billable or non-billable while you work. Approved hours roll straight into reports you can bill from.
Explore Billing→See where the time really goes
Break hours down by client, project, and team member. Find the work that pays off and the projects that run over.
Explore Reports & Dashboards→Use cases this solves
Compare other tools
Frequently asked questions
- Is TimeTracker more expensive than Buddy Punch?
- Buddy Punch starts around $4.49 a user a month plus a flat base fee. TimeTracker starts at $15 a user a month, or $12 if you pay yearly, and includes project budgets, approvals, and invoicing that Buddy Punch does not offer. See the full list on the billing page.
- Does Buddy Punch track project profitability?
- No. Buddy Punch focuses on punch clocks, GPS, and scheduling. It does not compare cost to price on a project. TimeTracker does this live, so you can see project profit while the project is still running.
- Can Buddy Punch send invoices to clients?
- No. Buddy Punch has no invoicing feature at all. TimeTracker turns approved hours straight into an invoice, see how invoicing from tracked time works.
- Is Buddy Punch better for GPS and location tracking?
- Yes, and it is fair to say so. Buddy Punch offers GPS breadcrumbs, a live map view, and geofencing on lower tiers, which is stronger location tracking than TimeTracker's time tracking covers. If verified field location is the main need, Buddy Punch has the edge there. We break down every punch check it offers in our Buddy Punch explainer.
- Do I have to approve timesheets in TimeTracker?
- Approvals are built in but not required. A manager can lock a week's hours before they are billed, see how timesheet approvals work.
- Can I set different rates for different clients in TimeTracker?
- Yes. Rates can be set per client and per person, and old rates stay attached to invoices you already sent. See effective dated rates for the full picture.
- Does Buddy Punch handle project or task management?
- Not really. Buddy Punch tracks shifts and punches, not clients, projects, or tasks. TimeTracker ties every hour to a client, project, and task from the start, which is what powers reports and dashboards broken down by any of the three.
- Which tool is easier to set up for a small hourly team?
- Buddy Punch is genuinely quick to set up for straight punch-clock use, and it is rated well for ease of use on G2 and Capterra. TimeTracker takes a bit more setup upfront because it also handles project budgeting and billing, not just attendance.
- Does TimeTracker track PTO and leave like Buddy Punch does?
- TimeTracker covers leave and PTO tracking, but Buddy Punch's accrual rules tied directly to shift schedules go deeper for hourly workforce management. See how leave and PTO tracking works in TimeTracker.
- Which one should an agency billing clients by the hour pick?
- An agency billing by the hour usually gets more from TimeTracker, since tracked time, budgets, and invoices live in one place instead of a punch clock with no billing layer. Compare more options on our see all Buddy Punch alternatives page.
Ready to bill clients accurately?
Set up your first client and project in minutes. Track hours, approve timesheets, and turn tracked time into an invoice without leaving TimeTracker.
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