Buddy Punch vs Punch Time Clock
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- GPS time clock
- Geofencing
- Photo punch-ins
- Automatic time calculations
- Employee scheduling
- PTO tracking
- Payroll integrations
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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.
Punch Time Clock
Easily track work hours, manage shifts, and generate detailed timesheets. This app offers simple clock-in/out functionality, retroactive adjustments, and professional PDF/CSV exports for record-keeping or invoicing.
- Effortless time tracking
- Comprehensive timesheets
- Professional PDF/CSV exports
- Flexible shift management
- Organize with tags
- Overtime calculations
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Introducing Punch Time Clock, the essential time-tracking app for shift workers, freelancers, remote workers, small-business owners, students and salaried employees. With Punch, managing your hours has never been easier. # KEY FEATURES • Effortless Time Tracking Clock in, take breaks, and clock out with a simple tap. Forgot to clock out? No problem—easily make retroactive adjustments. • Comprehensive Timesheets View detailed timesheets showing your hours worked and estimated earnings. Perfect for tracking your work history. • Professional PDF Exports Export timesheets as professionally formatted PDF or CSV files. Share them with employers, invoice clients, or keep them for personal records. • Flexible Shift Management Create new shifts from scratch or edit existing ones. Add personal notes to each shift for better task or project tracking. • Organize with Tags Categorize your shifts using Tags to filter timesheets by job, client, project, and more. Stay organized and efficient. • Overtime Calculations Automatically calculate daily and weekly overtime for Weekly and Biweekly pay schedules to ensure accurate tracking of your work hours. # WHY CHOOSE PUNCH TIME CLOCK? • User-Friendly Interface – Designed for simplicity and ease of use, so you can focus on your work, not your timesheets. • Reliable & Secure – Built with the latest technology to keep your data safe. • Customizable Experience – Tailor Punch to fit your unique needs with flexible settings and features. Take control of your work hours with Punch Time Clock. Download now and transform the way you track time—effortlessly and accurately. # UPGRADE TO PUNCH PRO Punch is completely free, with no limits. Upgrade to Punch PRO with a one-time purchase for advanced features like pay estimates, timesheet exporting, notes and tagging. Privacy Policy - https://trentmorris.com/punch/privacy Terms of Use - https://trentmorris.com/punch/terms
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Buddy Punch at none against Punch Time Clock's 4. Buddy Punch also leads on device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). Punch Time Clock's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs monthly) and ratings volume (35K vs 719). On price, rating, ads and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Punch Time Clock sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Buddy Punch asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Buddy Punch against 4.8 for Punch Time Clock. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Punch Time Clock has 35K ratings behind it against 719, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 60% of Buddy Punch's written reviews are positive against 69% of Punch Time Clock's.
Buddy Punch ships an update monthly, Punch Time Clock every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Buddy Punch | Punch Time Clock |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (719 ratings) — better | 4.8 (35K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 60.0% of reviews | 69.3% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 719 | 35K — better |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 106 MB | 29 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Buddy Punch LLC | Trent Morris |
Customer experience
Buddy Punch
Punch Time Clock
User reviews
Buddy Punch
From 719 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 User-friendly and easy to use
- 🚀 Quick and convenient punch in/out process
- 📍 QR code punch system works well
- 🔔 Reliable notifications and updates
- 💼 Good for field-based businesses
Room to improve
- 🐛 App frequently fails to punch in/out despite confirmation
- ⏱️ Slow app loading times causing tardiness
- 🔐 Facial recognition issues with darker skin tones
- 📱 Portrait-only orientation (no landscape mode)
- 🔄 Inconsistency between app and website
Punch Time Clock
From 35K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Simple and easy to use
- 🕰️ Helpful for tracking work hours
- 💰 Useful for estimating pay
- 📤 Ability to export data
Room to improve
- 🚫 Limited currency options
- 🤔 Clunky manual entry process
- 🔢 Inaccurate pay calculations
- 🚫 Lack of Apple Watch support
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 moreShow fewer
- 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 moreShow fewer
- Billing based on active punches rather than inactive employees
- Better app-to-website synchronization
- Account creation option in app
Punch Time Clock
Reported bugs
2 issues- Export feature not working
- Crashes when using certain functions
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to add notes to entries
- Option to customize pay periods
- Support for multiple pay rates
- Sync data to cloud storage
In-app purchases
Buddy Punch
No in-app purchases
Punch Time Clock
- Nice Tip$1.99
- Amazing Tip$4.99
- Pro Upgrade$7.99
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Ridiculous Tip$19.99
Questions
Is Buddy Punch free?
Is Punch Time Clock free?
Which has better reviews, Buddy Punch or Punch Time Clock?
Do Buddy Punch or Punch Time Clock have ads?
Which is updated more often, Buddy Punch or Punch Time Clock?
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