Comparison

Buddy Punch vs FieldStar

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Buddy Punch

This employee time tracking app allows staff to clock in and out from any internet-connected device. It offers features like GPS tracking, geofencing, and photo punch-ins to ensure accountability. The app automatically calculates hours, overtime, and PTO, and integrates with popular payroll services.

Highlights
  • GPS time clock
  • Geofencing
  • Photo punch-ins
  • Automatic time calculations
  • Employee scheduling
  • PTO tracking
  • Payroll integrations
Features
Read full description

This app is for use with a paid Buddy Punch account. Buddy Punch is an employee time tracking app that's so easy to use that your grandma could do it. With our web and mobile apps, employees can clock in and out from anywhere. Combine that with the power of geofencing, GPS tracking, and photo clock-ins, and you'll always know your employees are where they're supposed to be when they're on the clock. MAIN FEATURES Time Tracking: Employees can clock in and out using any internet-connected device (computer, tablet, or phone). Flexible Punching: Employees don't need unique email addresses to use Buddy Punch. They can clock in/out using usernames and passwords, PINs, QR codes, or even facial recognition. Automatic Calculations: All punch data is compiled into timesheets with regular hours, overtime, and pay automatically calculated for you, making running payroll faster and easier than ever. Employee Scheduling: Create your work schedules in Buddy Punch to take advantage of even more features like attendance tracking, punch limiting, and automatic clock outs. PTO Tracking: Automatically calculate PTO accruals, deduct used PTO from balances, and add taken PTO to timesheets so employees get paid for their paid time off. Job Costing: Set up department codes in Buddy Punch to track the total time spent on specific jobs and projects, then run reports to help with budgeting and invoicing. Payroll Integrations: Send your timesheet data to QuickBooks, Gusto, Paychex, SurePayroll, and more in just a few clicks to make running payroll faster than ever before. ACCOUNTABILITY FEATURES GPS on Punch: Capture employees' locations when they clock in and out, then review those locations on their timesheets to ensure they were on-site when they punched. Geofencing: Create virtual borders around each of your job sites. With geofencing enabled, employees can only clock in and out when they're within the boundaries of a geofence. Real-Time GPS Tracking: Track employees' locations across the entire workday. See where they're located on a map at any given moment, and view breadcrumb trails of everywhere they traveled over the course of a day. Photos on Punch: Require employees to take a picture of themselves when they clock in and out to prevent buddy punching. All photos can be reviewed on employees' time cards. Notifications: Get an alert when an employee clocks in late, misses a shift, is nearing overtime, forgets to clock out — anything that's important for you to stay on top of. CUSTOMER SUPPORT Buddy Punch has one of the highest ratings on the market for the outstanding support we provide to our customers. All of our agents know the product inside and out and are available through live chat or email to get you set up quickly or answer any questions you have.

About

FieldStar

This app assists field crews with data collection, photo capture, and monument management. It also helps with route planning, time tracking, and expense reporting for immediate availability to production teams.

Highlights
  • Data collection
  • Photo capture
  • Monument management
  • Route management
  • Time clock
  • Expense reporting
Features
Read full description

FieldStar is the field crews data collection companion to SurveyStars. Capture photos, data, monuments, manage your routes, time clock, expense and weekly submissions. All job file information captured is immediately available to the survey production team.

Screenshots

Buddy Punch4 screens
FieldStar4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Buddy Punch at 4.9 against FieldStar's 2.9. Buddy Punch also leads on ratings volume (719 vs 10) and review sentiment (60% vs 50%). FieldStar's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and update cadence (weekly vs monthly). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Buddy Punch holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 2.9. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Buddy Punch has 719 ratings behind it against 10, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 60% of Buddy Punch's written reviews are positive against 50% of FieldStar's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Buddy Punch ships an update monthly, FieldStar weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and July 4, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Buddy Punch versus FieldStar: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBuddy PunchFieldStar
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.9 (719 ratings) — better2.9 (10 ratings)
Positive reviews60.0% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings719 — better10
Update frequencyMonthlyWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size106 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBuddy Punch LLCSpencer Hedeen

Customer experience

Buddy Punch

All ratings719 ratings
Positive96.9%
Neutral0.8%
Negative2.2%
Written reviews35 reviews
Positive60.0%
Neutral2.9%
Negative37.1%

FieldStar

All ratings6 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Bugs and requests

Buddy Punch

Reported bugs

7 issues
  • App crashes and shows blank white screen requiring reinstall
  • Keyboard overlay cuts off top half of screen during manual time entry
  • Punch confirmation shows success but punch never registers
  • App fails to punch in/out for lunch breaks
  • Network error messages after successful submission
Show 2 more
  • Difficult signup process
  • No account creation option available

Requested features

8 requests
  • Landscape/horizontal orientation support for iPad
  • Live real-time GPS tracking
  • View PTO balance in app
  • Geofencing for punch in/out
  • Status change without punching in/out
Show 3 more
  • Billing based on active punches rather than inactive employees
  • Better app-to-website synchronization
  • Account creation option in app

FieldStar

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Buddy Punch

No in-app purchases

None

FieldStar

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Buddy Punch free?
Buddy Punch is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is FieldStar free?
FieldStar is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Buddy Punch or FieldStar?
Buddy Punch is rated higher. Buddy Punch averages 4.9 out of 5 from 719 ratings, while FieldStar averages 2.9 from 10 ratings.
Do Buddy Punch or FieldStar have ads?
Neither Buddy Punch nor FieldStar shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Buddy Punch or FieldStar?
Buddy Punch ships an update monthly, and FieldStar weekly. Most recently, Buddy Punch was updated on September 22, 2026 and FieldStar on July 4, 2026.

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