Employee time clock software costs about $30 to $270 a month for a team of 25 in the United States, and most small teams land between $60 and $170. The spread is that wide because vendors price three different ways: a flat fee per location, a base fee plus a charge per person, or a straight per-user rate. This guide works out the real monthly bill at 10, 25 and 50 people for eight products, using list prices read off each vendor’s own pricing page on September 9, 2026.
Time clock software cost at 10, 25 and 50 employees
Every figure below is the monthly-billing price for a single location, computed from the published rule on the vendor’s pricing page. Where a vendor charges a base fee, the base fee is included. Where a vendor charges per location, the number does not move as the team grows. Sales tax, payroll add-ons and implementation fees are not included.
| ClockOut Starter | ClockOut Pro | Homebase Essentials | Connecteam Basic | QuickBooks Time Premium | Buddy Punch Starter | When I Work Essentials | Deputy Lite | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 people | $34 | $69 | $30 | $35 | $120 | $78.90 | $25 | $50 |
| 25 people | $79 | $159 | $30 | $35 | $270 | $168.75 | $62.50 | $125 |
| 50 people | $154 | $309 | $30 | $55 | $520 | $318.50 | $125 | $250 |
| How it is priced | $19 base for 5 people, then $3 each | $39 base for 5 people, then $6 each | $30 per location, unlimited staff | $35 flat to 30 users, then $1 each | $20 base, then $10 per user | $19 base, then $5.99 per user | $2.50 per user | $5 per user, $30 minimum invoice |
| Annual discount | 20% | 20% | 20% ($24 per location) | About 18% ($29 flat) | See vendor site | About 18% ($4.99 per user) | See vendor site | 10%, charged upfront |
| Free plan | Up to 2 people | Up to 2 people | 1 location, up to 10 staff | Up to 10 users | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Price source, checked Sep 9, 2026 | useclockout.com/pricing | useclockout.com/pricing | joinhomebase.com/pricing | connecteam.com/pricing | quickbooks.intuit.com time tracking pricing | buddypunch.com/pricing | wheniwork.com/pricing | deputy.com/pricing |
Prices were read from each vendor’s public pricing page on September 9, 2026, and the per-headcount figures were computed from the rule each page states. QuickBooks Time was showing a “50% off for 3 months” promotion on the day we checked; the table uses the standard rate that applies after it. When I Work’s page lists $2.50, $5 and $8 per user per month for Essentials, Pro and Premium without separating monthly from annual billing, so confirm your billing term before you sign. Deputy’s $30 minimum monthly invoice does not bind at any headcount in this table. 7shifts, which prices per location for restaurants, is not in the table because its pricing page would not load for us on September 9, 2026: see vendor site.
What actually drives the price
Two teams of the same size can pay very different amounts for the same job. Four things explain almost all of the gap.
1. The pricing unit: per location, per seat, or base plus seat
- Per location. Homebase charges $30 per location per month on Essentials with unlimited employees, so a 50-person restaurant pays the same as a 10-person one. Add a second site and the bill doubles. 7shifts uses the same model for restaurants.
- Per seat. When I Work ($2.50 per user on Essentials) and Deputy ($5 per user on Lite) charge a straight per-user rate. Cheap for a crew of 8, linear forever after that. Deputy adds a $30 minimum monthly invoice so very small teams do not pay less than that.
- Base fee plus per seat. ClockOut ($19 base covering 5 people, then $3 each on Starter), Buddy Punch ($19 base, then $5.99 per user) and QuickBooks Time ($20 base, then $10 per user) all mix the two. The base fee makes tiny teams cost more than a pure per-seat tool; the per-person rate is what decides the bill once you pass about 15 people.
- Flat fee for a block of users. Connecteam charges $35 a month (monthly billing) for the Operations hub covering the first 30 users, then about $1 each. That is the cheapest headline number in this set, but it buys one hub. Chat lives in a second hub with its own fee, and the geofence is not in the Basic tier.
The rule of thumb: count your sites and your heads. One site and many heads favors per-location. Few heads, or heads spread over several sites, favors per-seat. Our multi-location comparison works through the crossover in more detail.
2. The tier the feature you need actually sits on
The advertised entry price is rarely the price you pay, because the one feature you bought the software for often sits a tier up. Geofencing is the usual culprit. On Connecteam it starts at the Advanced tier, which is $59 a month on monthly billing instead of $35, so a 25-person team that wants a geofence pays $59, not $35. On Deputy, scheduling automation and advanced reporting sit on Core ($6.50 per user) and Pro ($9 per user) rather than Lite. Before comparing prices, write down the three features you will not go without and price the tier that has all three.
3. Annual billing
Almost every vendor discounts an annual commitment. Checked September 9, 2026: ClockOut takes 20% off, Homebase takes 20% ($24 per location instead of $30), Connecteam about 18% ($29 instead of $35 for Operations Basic), Buddy Punch about 18% ($4.99 per user instead of $5.99), and Deputy 10% charged upfront. On a 25-person team that is typically $10 to $35 a month back in your pocket, in exchange for locking in for a year.
4. Add-ons, mainly payroll
Time tracking and payroll processing are separate products almost everywhere, and payroll is priced the same way across the board: a monthly base fee plus a charge per employee paid.
- Homebase Payroll: $39 a month plus $6 per employee paid. For 25 employees that is $189 a month on top of the $30 Essentials fee.
- Deputy Payroll (powered by Paycor): $49 a month plus $8 per user, on US annual Core and Pro plans.
- Buddy Punch payroll: $49 a month plus $8 per user.
- QuickBooks: the Workforce plans bundle payroll with time tracking rather than adding it, which is why they are priced far above the Time plans.
- ClockOut: no payroll processing at all. Pro runs pay periods and exports payroll-formatted files for ADP, Gusto and QuickBooks, and you keep whatever payroll provider you already have.
Other line items worth asking about: SMS or push message limits, extra charges for a second kiosk device, hardware if you want a physical terminal, and implementation or onboarding fees on annual contracts.
What you get for nothing
Free plans are real, but each has a hard edge. Connecteam is free for life for up to 10 users with one time clock and one schedule. Homebase Basic is free for one location and up to 10 employees with capped scheduling and time-tracking features. ClockOut is free for up to 2 active employees with GPS-stamped punches, basic scheduling and CSV export. Buddy Punch, When I Work, Deputy and QuickBooks Time have no free tier, only trials. If you are testing the category rather than buying it, start on Connecteam or Homebase free and see whether the cap is the thing that stops you.
The wider list, including tools we do not sell against, is in the best free time clock apps.
What ClockOut costs, and what it does not do
ClockOut Starter is $19 a month covering up to 5 active accounts, then $3 per additional person. Pro is $39 covering 5, then $6 each. Annual billing takes 20% off either one, and both come with a 14-day free trial. Billing follows active accounts, so deactivating someone above the first five lowers the next invoice without a support ticket.
| Free | Starter | Pro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly price at 10 people | Not available | $34 | $69 |
| Monthly price at 25 people | Not available | $79 | $159 |
| Monthly price at 50 people | Not available | $154 | $309 |
| Annual price at 25 people | Not available | $63.20 | $127.20 |
| Headcount cap | 2 active employees | None | None |
| GPS stamp on each punch | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Geofence enforcement | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Kiosk with PIN or QR badge | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Timesheet approval | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Exception inbox | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multiple locations | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Payroll runs and payroll-formatted export | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| CSV export | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Being straight about the limits, because they matter to the price comparison: ClockOut has no built-in payroll processing, so if you want one vendor to both track hours and cut checks, Homebase or QuickBooks will suit you better. There are no point-of-sale integrations, so restaurant sales-versus-labor reporting is not something we do the way 7shifts or Toast do. Payroll data leaves as CSV files, including the ADP, Gusto and QuickBooks formats on Pro, rather than through a live API sync. And there is no forms or training module of the kind Connecteam bundles.
A quick way to compare quotes
Do this on one sheet of paper before you sign anything:
- Write your headcount and your number of physical sites.
- Write the three features you will not go without (usually: geofence or kiosk, schedules, payroll export format).
- For each vendor, find the cheapest tier that has all three, then apply its pricing rule to your headcount and site count.
- Add the payroll add-on only if you plan to move payroll to that vendor.
- Multiply by 12, and compare that annual number, not the headline monthly one.
FAQ
How much does time clock software cost per employee?
How much does employee time clock software cost for 10 employees?
How much does time and attendance software cost for 50 employees?
Is annual billing worth it for time clock software?
Does time clock software include payroll?
Related reading
- Homebase review and Connecteam review
- Connecteam pricing, plan by plan
- ClockOut vs Homebase and ClockOut vs Connecteam
- What a time and attendance system does
- ClockOut pricing
Sources and method
Written by the ClockOut product team. Every competitor price was read from the vendor’s own public pricing page on September 9, 2026, and per-headcount figures were computed from the rule stated on that page rather than quoted from a third party. We do not take payment for placement in these tables, and we sell one of the products listed.
- joinhomebase.com/pricing, checked September 9, 2026
- connecteam.com/pricing, checked September 9, 2026
- quickbooks.intuit.com time tracking pricing, checked September 9, 2026
- buddypunch.com/pricing, checked September 9, 2026
- wheniwork.com/pricing, checked September 9, 2026
- deputy.com/pricing, checked September 9, 2026
- useclockout.com/pricing and /product-facts, checked September 9, 2026
- 7shifts pricing page did not load on September 9, 2026: see vendor site
Software vendors change packaging often. If you are reading this more than a month after the date above, re-check the two or three prices that decide your choice before you commit.