Comparison

Punch In vs Local Hours

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

Head to head
About

Punch In

This efficient work timer helps you track your work time seamlessly. It runs quietly in the background, allowing you to focus on tasks while managing projects, clients, and time entries with ease. Easily archive, lock, or delete projects as needed.

Highlights
  • Background time tracking
  • Project and client management
  • Easy time entry adjustments
  • Project archiving and locking
  • Customizable notifications
Read full description

Use Punch In to make time tracking less time consuming. A simple and efficient worktimer made to help you keep track of your work. Punch In runs smoothly in the background, notifies you if you wish, while you focus on what you do best. Combine projects with clients, easily add or remove time, ability to change start date, archive, lock or delete your projects in a breeze. Less really is more.

About

Local Hours

Features
Read full description

Local Hours is a local-first time tracking app for iPhone and iPad. Track your work with widgets and quick actions, generate clean timesheets, and email approvers—without accounts, servers, or data lock-in. - Track from anywhere Start and stop a simple timer using home screen widgets, lock screen widgets, or the app itself. Add a short description when you stop so you remember what you worked on. - Folder-based storage All of your data lives as plain JSON files in a folder you choose. Back it up, sync it with iCloud, Dropbox, or another provider, or move it to a new device—it's just files. - Automatic timesheets Generate weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly timesheets from your entries. See total hours, per-day breakdowns, and a clear summary before you send anything. - Email-ready exports Create an email draft with an embedded timesheet summary and optional CSV attachment. Quickly send your hours to managers, clients, or payroll without copying and pasting. - Smart reminders Configure when you want to be reminded (for example, Friday at 5pm) and Local Hours prompts you to send your latest timesheet so you don't forget. - Cross-device friendly format The storage format is shared with the Mac version and future platforms. Point both apps at the same cloud folder and your data stays in sync across all your devices. - Privacy by design No analytics, no tracking, and no online account. Everything stays on your device unless you choose to sync the folder via your own tools. Local Hours is open source, MIT licensed, and built for people who prefer simple tools that respect their data.

Screenshots

Punch In4 screens
Local Hours4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Punch In at every 3 weeks against Local Hours's every 5 months. Punch In also leads on iOS requirement (10.3 vs 17.0). 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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Punch In ships an update every 3 weeks, Local Hours every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Punch In versus Local Hours: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPunch InLocal Hours
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (3 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings3 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 5 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS10.3 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB7 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperKidpilotNimish Gogri

In-app purchases

None

Punch In

No in-app purchases

None

Local Hours

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Punch In free?
Punch In is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Local Hours free?
Local Hours is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Punch In or Local Hours have ads?
Neither Punch In nor Local Hours shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Punch In or Local Hours?
Punch In ships an update every 3 weeks, and Local Hours every 5 months. Most recently, Punch In was updated on November 2, 2026 and Local Hours on October 31, 2026.

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