The best free time clock apps in 2026 are TrackBadges (free for 3 people with every feature, including supervisor badge scanning), Connecteam (free for up to 10 users), Homebase (free for one location and up to 10 employees), Jibble (free for unlimited users with one kiosk), and busybusy (free for unlimited users on its GPS app). Each free plan has a different catch.
Key takeaways
Every free plan has a limit: people, locations, kiosks, history or features. Pick the one whose limit you won't hit.
Connecteam and Homebase are free up to about 10 people; Jibble and busybusy are free for unlimited users with feature limits.
TrackBadges is free for 3 people with no feature limits — and cheap per person after that.
Check what happens to your data and features when you outgrow the free plan.
Free for 3 people with every feature — badges, unlimited scanners and locations, overtime, auto clock-out and exports — and $1.50 per person after that.
A QR badge time clock for crews: a supervisor scans each employee's printed badge with any phone or tablet, and the owner gets live timesheets with overtime, ready for payroll. Best for: Crews that start the day together — construction, landscaping, cleaning, warehouses, farms and events — especially when not everyone has, or should use, a smartphone.
How employees clock in
A supervisor (or a shared tablet) scans each employee's printed QR badge. Scan once to clock in, again to clock out.
Employee needs a smartphone
No. Employees carry a printed badge.
Free plan
Free for up to 3 people, with every feature.
Pricing
Free for up to 3 people. Pro is $9 a month for your first 3 people, plus $1.50 a month for each person after that.
Free for up to 10 users with a time clock, scheduling and chat, if everyone has a smartphone or uses the PIN kiosk.
Connecteam is an all-in-one app for deskless teams — time clock, scheduling, chat, forms and training — where employees clock in on their own phone or at a shared kiosk with a PIN. Best for: Teams where everyone has a smartphone and you want scheduling, chat and forms in the same app as the time clock.
How employees clock in
In the Connecteam app on the employee's phone (with GPS), at a shared kiosk with a 4-digit PIN and optional selfie, or by tapping NFC tags placed at a site.
Employee needs a smartphone
Not with the kiosk, which takes a PIN. Otherwise each employee uses the Connecteam app on their own phone.
Free plan
Free for up to 10 users (Small Business plan), with one time clock.
Pricing
Free for up to 10 users. Operations Hub Basic is $35 a month billed monthly ($29 annually) for the first 30 users, then $1 per user; Advanced ($59) adds auto clock-out and geofences.
Free for one location and up to 10 employees, with a PIN time clock on a shared tablet; timesheet history is limited to 90 days.
Homebase is a scheduling, time clock and payroll app for hourly teams, priced per location; employees clock in with a PIN on a shared time clock tablet, a computer, a POS, or their own phone. Best for: Single-location shops — restaurants, retail, salons — that want scheduling, hiring and payroll with the time clock.
How employees clock in
With a PIN on the Homebase time clock app on a shared tablet, computer or POS device, or on the employee's own phone (location-based clock-in starts on Essentials).
Employee needs a smartphone
No — the shared tablet takes PINs. Phone clock-in is optional.
Free plan
Free (Basic) for 1 location and up to 10 employees; timesheets are kept for 90 days.
Pricing
Priced per location: Basic is free for 1 location and up to 10 employees. Essentials is $30 a month per location billed monthly ($24 annually); Plus $70; All-in-One $120, the tier with automatic clock-out and overtime alerts.
Unlimited users with one kiosk and two locations on the free plan — enough for a single site whose crew will use the kiosk app.
Jibble is a time and attendance app with a large free plan: employees clock in on the Jibble mobile app, or at a shared device running Jibble's kiosk app with face recognition, NFC, PIN or QR codes. Best for: Teams where everyone has a smartphone, or a single site that can dedicate a phone or tablet to Jibble's kiosk app.
How employees clock in
In the Jibble app on the employee's phone (with GPS and selfies), or at a shared iOS/Android device running the Jibble kiosk app in one mode: face, NFC, PIN, name list or QR scanner.
Employee needs a smartphone
Not if you use the kiosk: employees can clock in at a shared device. Each employee's personal QR code lives in the Jibble app, though; admins download codes one person at a time as PDFs.
Free plan
Free for unlimited users, with 1 kiosk, 2 locations and 1 admin.
Pricing
Jibble no longer publishes prices on its site. Third-party reviews in 2026 list paid tiers from $3.49 to $10.99 per user a month billed monthly ($1.99–$7.99 billed annually). Unlimited kiosks need the Growth tier.
Unlimited users on the free plan with GPS time tracking — but each worker needs the app, and the kiosk and supervisor tools cost extra.
busybusy is a construction time tracking and job costing app with a free GPS plan, plus a kiosk and supervisor tools on its paid tiers. Best for: Construction companies that want job costing, equipment tracking and offline GPS time tracking.
How employees clock in
In the busybusy app on the employee's phone (works offline), at a kiosk with a PIN and photo, or by a foreman using Supervisor Tools to clock in crews.
Employee needs a smartphone
Not on Pro and above, where the kiosk and Supervisor Tools cover workers without phones. On the free plan, yes.
Free plan
Free for unlimited users with GPS time tracking — but no kiosk or supervisor tools.
Pricing
Free plan for unlimited users. Pro is $11.99 per user a month billed monthly ($9.99 annually) plus a $40 admin license that includes the first user; Premium is $17.99 ($14.99).
Not with the kiosk, which takes a PIN. Otherwise each employee uses the Connecteam app on their own phone.
No — the shared tablet takes PINs. Phone clock-in is optional.
Not if you use the kiosk: employees can clock in at a shared device. Each employee's personal QR code lives in the Jibble app, though; admins download codes one person at a time as PDFs.
Not on Pro and above, where the kiosk and Supervisor Tools cover workers without phones. On the free plan, yes.
One supervisor clocks in a crew
Yes — it's how it works. One phone clocks in the whole crew.
No. Per Connecteam's help center, admins can't clock someone in directly; they add the time to the timesheet instead.
Not found in Homebase's plans or help pages.
Not as a supervisor workflow. Employees scan their own code or face at the kiosk.
Yes — Supervisor Tools on Pro and above.
Free plan
Free for up to 3 people, with every feature.
Free for up to 10 users (Small Business plan), with one time clock.
Free (Basic) for 1 location and up to 10 employees; timesheets are kept for 90 days.
Free for unlimited users, with 1 kiosk, 2 locations and 1 admin.
Free for unlimited users with GPS time tracking — but no kiosk or supervisor tools.
10 people / month
$19.50/mo
Free
Free
$59.90/mo
$147.91/mo
25 people / month
$42/mo
$35/mo
$30/mo
$149.75/mo
$327.76/mo
50 people / month
$79.50/mo
$55/mo
$30/mo
$299.50/mo
$627.51/mo
Monthly prices for a crew using each vendor's shared kiosk or supervisor clock-in, at list prices checked in October 2026. Each comparison page shows the exact plan used. Annual billing is cheaper with most vendors.
The catch in every free plan
"Free" always has a limit. Before you choose, decide which limit you can live with:
Limit
What it looks like
Who it hurts
People
Free up to 3 or 10 users
Growing teams
Locations
One location or job site
Crews that move between sites
Kiosks
One shared device
Multiple entrances or crews
Features
No kiosk, auto clock-out or exports
Anyone who needs those features
History
Timesheets kept 90 days
Anyone who must keep records 2–3 years
That last one matters: federal rules require you to keep time cards for at least two years and payroll records for three (FLSA recordkeeping).
Which free plan fits
A crew of 3 or fewer, anywhere: TrackBadges' free plan has no feature limits.
Up to 10 people, all with smartphones: Connecteam's free plan.
One shop, up to 10 people: Homebase's free plan.
One site, lots of people, a kiosk is fine: Jibble's free plan.
Construction crews willing to use an app: busybusy's free plan.
When to stop using a free plan
When the limit starts costing you more than the paid plan would: a second site, a 4th or 11th person, a missing feature you're working around by hand. At $19.50 a month for 10 people, TrackBadges Pro costs less than an hour of payroll mistakes.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best free time clock app?
It depends on the limit you can live with. TrackBadges is free for 3 people with every feature. Connecteam is free for up to 10 users, Homebase for one location and up to 10 employees, and Jibble for unlimited users with one kiosk.
Is there a completely free time clock app with no limits?
Not really. Free plans limit people, locations, kiosks, features or history. Pick the free plan whose limit you won't hit, and check what you'd pay when you outgrow it.
Can I use a free time clock for payroll?
Yes, as long as it records accurate daily and weekly hours and you can export or keep the records. Check the free plan keeps history long enough — federal rules require time cards to be kept for at least two years.
Print a QR badge for everyone and scan them in and out with any phone or tablet. Free for up to 3 people — try it with your real crew before you sign up.