A hotel never closes, so the schedule never rests. Housekeeping flexes with occupancy, the front desk runs three shifts, and maintenance floats between both. When each department keeps its own spreadsheet, nobody sees the whole labor picture until payroll adds it up. ClockOut puts every department on one time clock and one published schedule, from a single property to a small group of them.
Where hotel labor costs slip
- Overtime discovered at payroll. A busy weekend of call-ins and doubles looks fine day to day, then lands as an overtime line nobody approved.
- Departments on separate systems. Housekeeping on paper, front desk in a spreadsheet, maintenance on memory: three versions of the truth, reconciled by hand every two weeks.
- Swaps that never got written down. Two employees trade shifts in the hallway, one forgets, and the desk is empty at 6 am with a clean-looking schedule.
- Buddy punching on paper timesheets.A timesheet filled in at week’s end reflects the schedule, not the clock.
- Two properties, two systems. Staff who float between a hotel and its sister property end up with split timesheets and double-entered payroll.
What ClockOut does for hotels
One time clock for every department
Assign each employee a department, and everyone clocks in the same way: front desk from the browser on any device, housekeeping from a shared kiosk tablet with a 4-digit PIN, maintenance from a phone. Punches are timestamped and GPS-stamped on every plan, and an optional clock-in photo on the kiosk keeps timesheets honest without face recognition.
Scheduling that flexes with occupancy
Build the week per department, reuse recurring schedules for the patterns that repeat, and post open shifts when a full house needs extra housekeepers. Availability and approved time off from the PTO tracker stay visible while you build, so the schedule respects reality before it publishes.
Shift swaps with an approval, not a hallway promise
Employees request swaps in the app and a manager approves or declines. The schedule updates for everyone, and shift confirmation shows who has actually acknowledged their upcoming shifts, which is how a 6 am desk shift stops being a leap of faith.
Overtime caught while the week can still change
Overtime-approaching alerts fire from real worked hours, not the planned schedule, so the housekeeper heading for hour 41 shows up on Thursday instead of on the payroll report. Late arrivals, missed clock-outs, and no-shows collect in the exception inbox for one review pass.
Multiple properties, one account
Add each property as a work location and schedule per site. Staff who float between properties keep one profile and one timesheet, and hours report by location, so payroll stops stitching systems together. Geofencing on Starter can keep punches inside the property they belong to.
Payroll-ready exports, tips included
Approved timesheets export to CSV on every plan. Starter adds tips tracking, so housekeeping and bell staff tips are recorded alongside hours, and Pro adds export files formatted for ADP, Gusto, and QuickBooks.
ClockOut vs the usual setup
| ClockOut | Paper + spreadsheets | Punch clock | |
|---|---|---|---|
| All departments in one system | ✓ | Per-department files | ✗ |
| Kiosk PIN clock-in for housekeeping | Starter | ✗ | Hardware |
| Swaps with manager approval | ✓ | Hallway promises | ✗ |
| Overtime alert before payroll | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Multi-property scheduling | ✓ | Separate files | Per-site hardware |
| Payroll export (ADP / Gusto / QB) | Pro | Manual | Manual |
| Cost for a 15-person property | $45 / mo | $0 + admin hours | Hardware + cards |
Put the property on one system in an afternoon
- 01
Create the property
Sign up at useclockout.com, free for up to 2 employees, no card needed.
- 02
Add staff by department
Invite housekeeping, front desk, and maintenance, assign departments, and set up a kiosk tablet by the back office for staff without work phones.
- 03
Publish the week
Build recurring schedules for desk rotations, flex housekeeping with open shifts, and publish so every employee sees their week on their phone.
- 04
Review and export
Clear the exception inbox, approve timesheets, and export hours by department for payroll.
FAQ
Can housekeepers clock in without a smartphone?
Yes. Put a tablet in kiosk mode by the back office or time-clock wall, and each employee clocks in and out with a 4-digit PIN. An optional clock-in photo is available for human review. Kiosk mode is on Starter and Pro.
Can I schedule housekeeping, front desk, and maintenance separately?
Yes. Each employee has a department, schedules are built per team, and hours report by department. Everyone still lives in one system, so you see the property’s whole labor picture, not three partial ones.
How do shift swaps work?
An employee requests a swap in the app, a manager approves or declines, and the published schedule updates for both people. Shift confirmation separately shows which staff have acknowledged their upcoming shifts.
Will it stop overtime before it happens?
ClockOut alerts you when an employee’s real worked hours approach the overtime threshold, so a manager can adjust the rest of the week. It flags and reports; the staffing decision stays yours.
We run two properties. One account or two?
One. Add each property as a work location, schedule per site, and let shared staff float between them on a single profile. Hours report by location for payroll and cost tracking.
Does ClockOut manage room assignments or housekeeping boards?
No. Room status and task boards stay in your PMS or housekeeping tool. ClockOut covers time, attendance, scheduling, PTO, and payroll exports for the people doing that work.