Best free time clock app for small business: the short list
Is there a free time clock app a small team can run on? Yes, several. The catch is in the free plan limits: how many people, how many locations, and whether the shared tablet time clock is included.
We looked at each app’s own pricing and feature pages. Prices and features checked on 3 October 2026. Plans change, so check the vendor’s page before you decide.
| App | Free plan | Kiosk on a shared tablet | Paid from | Fits best |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ClockBadge (early access) | Up to 3 employees | Yes: QR badge, RFID card or PIN; offline | €3 per employee per month | One tablet at the door |
| Jibble | Unlimited users, free forever | Yes: face recognition, NFC tags or PIN; offline mode | Not shown publicly | Any team size |
| Connecteam | Small Business plan, up to 10 users | Yes: Kiosk Station is listed in the free plan | $29 per month for the first 30 users, billed yearly | Deskless teams wanting chat too |
| Homebase | Basic plan, up to 10 employees, 1 location | Yes: any phone, tablet or POS with employee PINs | $30 per location per month | One shop or restaurant |
| Clockify | Up to 5 users | No: kiosk starts on the paid Basic plan | $3.99 per seat per month, billed yearly | Phone and computer tracking |
Apps that only offer a free trial are not on this list. Buddy Punch and When I Work, for example, both offer a 14-day free trial and are paid after that.
What to look for in a free time clock app
A free employee time clock app only helps if it fits how your people start their shift. Check these points.
- User limit. Count everyone who clocks in, plus admins if the app counts them.
- Kiosk mode. A time clock app with kiosk mode lets the whole team punch in on one shared tablet.
- Punch method. PIN, photo, face, QR badge or RFID card each make buddy punching harder.
- Offline use. A time clock app that works offline stores the punch and syncs it later.
- Exports. Payroll needs hours as Excel, CSV or PDF.
- History limits. Some free plans only show recent data.
Read why shared punch clocks need a guard against buddy punching
ClockBadge: a free punch clock app for one tablet
ClockBadge Time Clock is in early access and the waitlist is open now. It turns any tablet into a punch clock that runs in the browser, with no app store install.
Employees punch in with a printed QR badge in front of the camera, an RFID card or key fob through a low-cost USB reader, or by picking their name and typing a 4-digit PIN. Offline punches are stored on the tablet and synced later with their original time.
Admins see who is in right now, totals with overtime and breaks, hours per job or site, edits with an audit trail, and exports to Excel, CSV and PDF. An optional photo at punch helps against buddy punching.
Price: free for up to 3 employees, then €3 per employee per month. It fits a small shop or workshop that wants one clock at the door; it is not a scheduling or chat suite.
Jibble: free for unlimited users
Jibble’s free plan is for unlimited users, free forever. It lists mobile and web clock-ins, basic timesheets, and integrations with Slack, Microsoft Teams and QuickBooks in the free plan.
Jibble calls its online kiosk 100% free. A shared tablet or phone becomes a clock-in station, and staff check in with facial recognition, NFC tags or PIN codes. The kiosk also supports offline attendance and syncs when it is back online.
Who it fits: teams that want a free time clock app for tablet use with no user cap. Paid plan prices were not shown on the public pages we could load.
Connecteam: a free employee time clock app for up to 10 users
Connecteam’s Small Business plan is free for up to 10 users and, in Connecteam’s words, includes all hubs and all features, with a full feature list on the pricing page.
Kiosk Station, which lets several users clock in on the same device, is marked as included in the Small Business plan. Connecteam’s time clock page mentions PIN codes or selfie verification on the shared tablet.
Above 10 users, the Operations Hub Basic plan is $29 per month for the first 30 users billed yearly, or $35 per month billed monthly. Connecteam also describes a free Limited plan with the essentials for teams between 10 and 30 people.
Who it fits: deskless teams that want the clock, schedules and team chat in one app.
Homebase: free time clock app for small business with one location
Homebase’s Basic plan costs $0 and covers up to 10 employees at 1 location, with basic scheduling, basic time tracking and a POS integration. Timesheets can be managed for up to 90 days on the free plan.
The time clock runs on any phone, tablet or POS device. Employees clock in with their own PIN, and Homebase says the app keeps tracking if your internet goes down.
The paid Essentials plan is $30 per location per month with unlimited employees. Who it fits: a single cafe, store or restaurant.
Clockify: free for 5 users, kiosk on paid plans
Clockify’s free plan is for up to 5 users with unlimited tracking, a timer, timesheets, mobile and desktop apps, and reports. The apps can track time even when you are offline.
The kiosk is not in the free plan. Kiosk with PIN login starts on Basic at $3.99 per seat per month billed yearly ($4.99 billed monthly). Kiosk login with a QR code starts on Standard at $5.49 per seat billed yearly ($6.99 monthly). Workers who only use the kiosk can be added as limited seats, from $0.79 per month billed yearly on Basic.
- Owner: 1 Basic seat × $3.99 = $3.99
- Workers: 8 limited seats × $0.79 = $6.32
- Total per month, billed yearly = $10.31
- Total per year = $123.72
Who it fits: teams that track project time on phones and computers.
Which free clock in and out app fits your team?
Start with headcount, then how people clock in.
- Up to 3 people and one door: ClockBadge, free and built around badges, cards or PINs.
- Up to 5 people on their own phones: Clockify free, without kiosk.
- Up to 10 people: Homebase Basic (one location) or Connecteam Small Business.
- More than 10 people on a tight budget: Jibble, with no user cap.
- Weak Wi-Fi: pick a time clock app that works offline.
Test two apps for a week each with the same small group, and time how long a punch and a payroll export take.
Not ready for an app? Keep paper time cards for a few weeks and total them with a calculator.
Total a week of paper time cards with the free time card calculator
Questions
Is there a free time clock app for small business?
Yes. Jibble is free for unlimited users, Connecteam’s Small Business plan is free for up to 10 users, Homebase Basic is free for up to 10 employees at one location, Clockify is free for up to 5 users, and ClockBadge, in early access, is free for up to 3 employees.
What is the best free time clock app?
There is no single best one; it depends on team size and how people clock in. For a shared tablet with no user cap, Jibble is strong. For up to 10 people, Connecteam and Homebase include a kiosk. For tiny teams using badges or cards, ClockBadge fits.
Which free time clock app has kiosk mode?
Jibble, Connecteam’s Small Business plan and Homebase Basic all include a shared tablet time clock on their free plans. Clockify’s kiosk starts on the paid Basic plan. ClockBadge is built as a kiosk and is in early access.
Can employees clock in on a tablet without their own phone?
Yes. With a free time clock kiosk app, the tablet stays at work and each employee identifies with a PIN, badge, card or face, depending on the app. No personal phone is needed.
Is there a time clock app that works offline?
Yes. Jibble’s kiosk supports offline attendance, Homebase says its app keeps tracking when the internet goes down, and ClockBadge stores punches on the tablet and syncs them later with the original time. Clockify’s apps can also track time offline.
Do free time clock apps stay free?
Yes, as long as you stay within the free plan limits, such as user count, locations or data history. Grow past a limit and you move to a paid plan, so check those limits before you roll the app out to everyone.