11 of the Best GPS Tracking Apps for Employees

When your team works in the field, tracking employee location just makes sense. After all, you can’t fix the problems you can’t see. Employee GPS tracking apps give you visibility into how your team moves from client site to client site. This means you can track their time and attendance based on their locations without needing to travel to each site yourself.

It’s almost impossible to keep track of your entire field team manually. Yet, a lot of companies still try. In Hubstaff’s 2020 State of Construction Report, we found that 56% of construction business owners and managers spend an average of 11 hours each week traveling between Job sites to check on crews.

An employee GPS tracking app makes it easier to dispatch your teams and to trust they are working as required. This gives you more time to focus on other tasks while building trust with your team members.

GPS data can show you it takes longer than you expected to get from job to job. You know if certain jobs always run over or certain employees always arrive late. Most good GPS tracking apps can tell you if someone misses a shift or shows up somewhere they’re not supposed to be.

It’s 2022, so there is a vast array of apps with employee location tracking systems to choose between. But you must find the one that is right for your business and staff.

In the next section, we’ll take a look at the best GPS tracking apps and which features will help you simplify time tracking. You can skip ahead to the apps by clicking here.

Summary of the best apps of 2022

App	Description	Mobile Devices Supported	Price	Free trial
Hubstaff	Powerful but intuitive, all-in-one team organizer with employee time tracking and real-time GPS location monitoring.	iOS, Android	Hubstaff Field: $10/user/month; starts at $20 (2 users) Hubstaff Field + Desk: $10/user/month; starts at $20 (2 users) Enterprise: Contact sales for quote	14-day trial
Timesheet Mobile	Track employee work time, mileage, or location from anywhere.	iOS, Android	Basic: $3.49/employee for unlimited punches + $14.99 company subscription Per Punch: $0.15/punch + $29.99 company subscription Small Business: $9.95/user/month for unlimited punches + $29.99 company subscription Medium Business: $2.49/employee for unlimited punches + $149 company subscription Large Business: Contact Timesheet Mobile	30-day trial
QuickBooks Time	Time, attendance, and GPS tracking that pairs nicely with QuickBooks and other payment platforms.	iOS, Android	Premium: $20/mo + $8 per user per month; base fee includes 1 admin Elite: $40/mo + $10 per user per month; base fee includes 1 admin	30-day trial
Hellotracks	Empower dispatchers to assist mobile workers in the field by tracking their location in real-time.	iOS, Android	Hellotrack Business: $10/user/month Hellotrack Enterprise: Contact for quote	30-day trial
eBillity	GPS features that help you know who is on the clock at all times.	iOS, Android	Time Tracker: $6 per user/month + $10 per month base fee Time Tracker + Billing: $10 per user/month + $18 per month base fee	14-day trial
Jibble	A free employee time tracking app for any device.	iOS, Android	Free	Always free
OnTheClock	Basic time tracking with GPS, payroll integration, and more.	iOS, Android	See website for pricing calculator.	30-day trial
Timeclock 365	Manage your team on desktop or mobile with time tracking, tasks and projects, and biometric clocks and access control.	iOS, Android (Standard and above)	Basic: $2.77/user/month Standard: $3.88/user/month	No free trial
Timeero	Streamline timesheets, mileage reporting, and HR requests with this time and location tracking app.	iOS, Android	Standard: $5/user/month + $10 base fee Premium: $10/user/month + $30 base fee	14-day trial
Connecteam	Intuitive team organizer with time and location tracking and built-in messaging functionality.	iOS, Android	Basic: $47/month Advanced: $95/month Expert: $191/month Contact Connecteam for the Enterprise plans. Free plan available without GPS tracking features.	14-day trial
Timely	Application time tracker with GPS-location capabilities. High suitability for remote teams working on a computer or mobile device.	iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Sat Phones, Personal Trackers	Starter: $10/user/month Premium: $18/user/month Unlimited: $26/user/month Enterprise: Custom pricing	14-day trial

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What to expect from employee GPS tracking apps

Your employee tracker app can and should do even more than simply tell you where your employees are at any given time.

Live and historical location data

Some location apps use the GPS feature on your employee’s phone or mobile device to tell you where they are right now. Other apps record your team member’s travel over the course of the day. You can then use this data to assess how well the employee is planning their travel.

The most powerful GPS tracking apps offer both live and historical location tracking options.

Manage your field staff across multiple locations

The best apps allow you to see and manage your crew across multiple locations from a single dashboard. From here, you can access data about their travel history, their current travel route and time, and what job they are working on.

This feature is great for all managers and dispatchers, although it is especially useful for large teams covering multiple locations.

Automated clock in and out

Geofencing allows you to set up specific locations as Job sites so that the software can tell when employees arrive or leave. Good apps can use this information to trigger an action, like starting or stopping time tracking.

Not all apps offer automatic clocking in and out, even if they have geofencing technology. Some send a notification to the employee to remind them to start and stop their time recording instead.

Look for automated time tracking when you see geofencing on the features list.

Timesheet synchronization

According to Wagepoint, many businesses lose up to 10 hours each month from processing timesheets and invoices.

The best employee GPS location tracking systems use time and attendance data to automatically complete timesheets. Your employees’ timesheets are accurate this way, so you spend less time double-checking.

Here’s one last pro tip:

Take advantage of the free trial period to make sure the app does everything you want. This is a good opportunity to test customer support, too. Call for help onboarding, so you know how available and helpful the support team is.

Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s take a closer look at our favorite GPS tracking apps in more detail.

The 11 Best Employee GPS Tracking Systems

Now, let’s take a closer look at the top employee location tracking apps.

As you review these options, keep in mind that any tool you choose for your team should be easy for everyone to use. Tools don’t get used when they’re too complicated.

1. Hubstaff (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: All kinds of mobile workforces, including sales teams, construction companies, and other field services

Give your crew an easy way to track their work hours with Hubstaff’s GPS time tracking app. You’ll get detailed time cards that show how much time was spent at each client site.

See your crew’s current locations on a live map and better estimate arrivals for customers. Instead of driving from site to site to make sure your team showed up, you have access to real-time location data for everyone who’s on the clock.

Save even more time with the ability to automate how your crews clock in and out using their GPS locations. You can create geofences around Job sites, so that time tracking starts and stops when crew members arrive at or leave a location.

With geofencing, your employee timesheets are automatic — no more paper timesheets or texts with weekly hours. Crews simply show up, and the app takes care of the rest.

That means you have total confidence that timesheets are accurate. Plus, you save a ton of time processing payroll with Hubstaff’s smart automations.

With fleet tracking, you can see routes taken, stops made, and time spent at each location from the Hubstaff dashboard.

You can work on the go, too. Access your dashboard easily from your iPhone or Android.

Hubstaff is built for efficiency. It includes a suite of features for field teams, so you can:

• Track expenses and stay within a set budget
• Automate payroll and spend less time chasing down timesheets
• Set up work orders and schedule one-time or recurring jobs
• Set and communicate crew schedules

What users have to say about it

Hubstaff Field pricing

Hubstaff Field starts at $10 per user per month (minimum two users) and offers a 14-day trial period.

Among other features, the Enterprise plan includes VIP support and unlimited Job sites. You’ll need to contact sales for a custom quote, though.

You can choose to be billed monthly or annually. Discounts are available for annual billing.

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2. Timesheet Mobile (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: Sales teams

Real-time syncing with Timesheet Mobile’s employer portal means you can track your employees’ locations from anywhere.

The punch prompt allows you to clock in and out of a worksite at the tap of a button. You can also automate the process with geofencing. Whichever option you choose, it will make time recording easier for everyone.

This app reminds your employees to take breaks on schedule and helps you handle time off and holidays. This ensures your workforce is rested and motivated.

On more premium plans, Timesheet Mobile’s punch clock app can track mileage and time traveled. This is useful if you want to optimize travel routes to save money on fuel.

The app can also save you money by auto-alerting employees if they try to track unapproved overtime.

It will also warn them when they’re not where they’re supposed to be during work hours.

What users have to say about it

Timesheet Mobile pricing

Timesheet Mobile offers a 30-day free trial. From there, the pricing is a little more complex.

The basic plan costs $3.49 per employee plus a $14.99 per month company subscription. There’s also a per-punch plan at $0.15 per punch, plus a $29.99 company subscription. Mileage, expense reports, and location warnings become available in the small business plan ($9.95 per employee plus a $29.00 company subscription).

Timesheet Mobile offers big discounts on the first year of subscription. Prices go up to the standard fees after this period.

3. QuickBooks Time (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: Teams working in low-signal areas and leaders managing complex projects

QuickBooks Time uses optimized GPS functionality, so it won’t drain your employees’ batteries. Background synchronization backs up your data. You never have to worry about losing information — even if your teams work in locations with poor signal.

You can use the app to generate a convenient map of activities for the day to provide a visualization of where a user has been. This improves accountability and creates opportunities to optimize work travel.

QuickBooks Time uses geofencing technology, although it doesn’t auto-clock in and out. Instead, workers receive notifications to clock in and out when they arrive at and leave designated workspaces.

Managers can communicate with their teams via the app in real-time via feeds. And they can generate and export progress reports to stay up-to-date.

You can choose whether to track activity against projects or tasks. This makes QuickBooks Time a great tool for project managers.

What users have to say about it

QuickBooks Time pricing

After a 30-day trial, QuickBooks Time’s Premium plan is $8 per user per month, plus a $20 base fee per month.

The Elite plan is $10 per user per month, plus a $40 base fee per month, and offers real-time alerts for better project planning, collaboration, and time tracking.

QuickBooks Time offers custom discounts for 50 users or more.

4. Hellotracks (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: Workforces attending multiple job sites, including plumbers and electricians

Hellotracks is an all-in-one job tool that does more than track location and hours. It can also collect data on each job.

Using real-time GPS tracking, Hellotracks allows workers to view the optimal route to their next job site. This empowers employees to plan ahead and stay on schedule more easily.

You can set up geofencing to automatically clock employees in and out upon arriving at and leaving a job.

Once at the job, your workers need not worry about using another tool to record their progress. Employees can include photos, client signatures, and other data in the app for increased transparency.

All this data is visible to you and any dispatchers. While you can enable employees to use Hellotracks to choose their own routes to a job, you also have the option to suggest routes to them in real-time.

Hellotracks includes analysis and reporting functions, as well. This makes it easier to view timesheets, mileage, and job statuses all in one place.

What users have to say about it

Hellotracks pricing

After a free 30-day trial, the Hellotracks Business plan is $10 per user per month. For larger teams, Hellotracks offers an enterprise plan with custom quotes.

5. Time Tracker by eBillity (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: Teams with time theft and buddy punching issues

eBillity’s Time Tracker helps teams track time better to simplify payroll. GPS and facial recognition features make it a great tool for mobile teams. Biometric face scanning helps to prevent buddy punching, so you’ll never have to worry about time theft or employees clocking in or out for one another.

On the client-side of things, Time Tracker comes up a bit short. You’ll have to upgrade just to access basic invoicing features. Other tools on this list allow you to create your own custom invoices with a base plan.

What users have to say about it

eBillity pricing

eBillity’s Time Tracker is priced similarly to QuickBooks Time and other products on this list. For the basic time tracker, you’ll pay $6 per user per month along with an additional base fee of $10 per month.

The Time Tracker + Billing plan also includes expense tracking, job costing, and other premium features for $10 per user per month and an $18 per month base fee.

6. Jibble (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: Teams with a limited budget

At first glance, Jibble seems pretty similar to other GPS time tracking apps. It has basic time tracking, GPS and geofencing features, and even facial recognition tools. So what makes it stand out from the pack? It’s free.

Teams with limited budgets will love the free GPS time tracker’s versatility. That said, larger teams will have to rely on paid upgrades to onboard users, add geofences, and create more groups.

What users have to say about it

Jibble pricing

Jibble prides itself on being a free employee time tracker that works on any device. However, you’ll need to pay for GPS and other premium upgrades.

The $2 per user per month Premium update includes GPS, overtime calculations, and work groups. The $4 per user per month Ultimate upgrade includes unlimited locations, managers, and groups.

For groups of over 500 members, you can contact Jibble for enterprise rates.

7. OnTheClock (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: Growing businesses

OnTheClock’s goal is to help you worry less about time tracking, payroll, and workforce management and more about growth.

Like other tools on this list, you can set up geofenced locations for automated time tracking. Helpful integrations with payroll tools like Gusto, Paychex, and Paylocity make it easy to turn tracked time into timesheets.

What users have to say about it

OnTheClock pricing

OnTheClock is free for up to two users, but it gets a little confusing as you add more. Fortunately, there is a helpful calculator on the pricing page that calculates those rates for you.

For example, a plan with 15 employees will cost you $44.25 total per month. A team of five employees will cost $15 per month.

If you’re a larger team, the calculator maxes out at 400 employees, so you’ll have to contact OnTheClock for a custom quote.

8. Timeclock 365 (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: Field teams with multiple properties and job sites to secure

Like other tools on our list, Timeclock 365 aims to prevent buddy punching and time theft. But instead of facial recognition, the app uses fingerprint scanning to verify each employee’s identity.

Another feature that sets it apart is Door Access Control. TimeClock 365 not only tracks your employees’ time and whereabouts, but also secures your office space, job sites, and other company property.

What users have to say about it

Timeclock 365 pricing

Unlike other tools on our list, Timeclock 365 boasts four different pricing models.

The $2.77 per user per month Basic version lets you track time on a web portal or biometric clock. The Standard and Popular plans offer mobile app access and project and task management features for $3.88 and $8.90 respectively.

Unfortunately, if you want GPS tracking, you’ll have to splurge for the $13 per user per month Premium plan. That’s a bit pricey — especially since there’s no free trial.

Track mobile teams with GPS time tracking

Streamline time tracking, payments, and more across multiple devices with Hubstaff Field.

9. Timeero (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: Mobile workforces who want to reduce travel time and costs

Timeero utilizes an intuitive planner that makes it easy for you to create and assign jobs to your mobile workforce 24 hours a day. You don’t have to worry about anyone missing an assignment. Push notifications inform employees when their schedule has been updated.

It is also a GPS tracking app. You can set up geofenced sites to automate timesheets so your crew can get to work right away.

Timeero allows you to track employee travel without you having to watch an application. Set up waypoint checkpoints and Timeero will send you notifications of where your teams are and when.

Another feature allows you to generate mileage reports at any time. You can use these to find ways to save time and money well before the end of the financial year.

Last, Timeero can also function as a useful HR tool. Workers can request time off from anywhere, and managers can approve or deny it at the touch of a button.

What users have to say about it

Timeero pricing

Timeero’s free trial lasts for 14 days. The single-option pricing plan is $5 per user per month plus a $10 base fee. Timeero also offers a Premium plan for $10 per user per month plus a $30 base fee.

You can choose to be billed monthly or annually. Discounts are available for annual billing.

For teams with over 250 users, Timeero offers an enterprise pricing plan upon request.

10. Connecteam (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: Mobile workforces within large organizations, including sales teams

Connecteam is an all-in-one team organizer that is designed for mobile phones. Workers can clock in and out of jobs with the press of a button.

Set up a “kiosk station” if you prefer to track work hours from a centralized location. If someone doesn’t show up for a shift, you can assign another worker. Just see who is closest to the job and click to allocate the work to them.

The hours your workers clock are then uploaded to timesheets. You can review and approve them quickly.

The app gives you the option to make changes, such as registering absences. You can plan for the future by adding shifts or reminders, etc.

Use GPS-enabled mobile devices to track employees’ locations in real-time. Drag-and-drop employee scheduling and task creation enable you to update job information on the fly. If you need more detail about a specific job, the in-app chat function allows you to communicate with your teams.

Speaking of the in-app communication functions, you can use Connecteam to distribute more than project information. Send out company flyers to keep workers informed and messages to acknowledge top performers. Both are proven ways to boost overall worker productivity.

You can even create custom courses that users can access in-app. Upload teaching materials, create questionnaires to test knowledge, and track who completes each course.

Connecteam is another GPS tracking app that also makes the work itself easier. Employees can record job-relevant information in the app, such as voice recordings and photos.

If you need to assist your field workers by breaking down what they need to accomplish at each job, you can generate checklists for them to tick off as they go. Notifications remind employees if they forget an item.

You can set these checklists up to repeat, too. This is handy if your workers need to carry out similar jobs at multiple sites.

What users have to say about it

Connecteam pricing

The Basic plan is $47 per month, but it lacks basic features like geofencing that you’ll see in the $95 per month Advanced plan.

There is also an Expert plan at $191 per month. You can also call for a custom enterprise quote if your team is more than 200 users.

You can choose to be billed monthly or annually. Discounts are available for annual billing. Try before you buy with a 14-day free trial.

Get a personal walkthrough of Hubstaff Field now

Create Job sites that trigger time tracking to start and stop from your crew’s mobile devices.

11. Timely (iOS, Android)

Features

Best for: Remote (decentralized) companies and teams who want to improve productivity

While most of the other apps on this list are built for mobile workforces, Timely is suitable for remote workers with access to a desktop computer or laptop.

Timely is a project management and productivity tool which also has GPS tracking features.

The app breaks work down into time spent on specific tasks and applications. Workers can observe how they spend their time and identify applications they need to cut out to improve their productivity. For example, they might discover they spend too long on social media sites when they should be working. They can then take steps to change their habits.

Using Timely’s project schedule function, leaders can identify which tasks are taking longer than expected. Or which ones require more resources. They can then use this information to plan better project timelines in the future or generate payroll and performance review reports.

Timely integrates with a range of third-party applications, including your mobile device’s GPS. This gives users who need to record their travel time the ability to track how long they were in transit. Managers may even want to record how long meetings last.

This information can then be used to inform planning and policies, potentially saving your teams time and your business money.

What users have to say about it

Timely pricing

The Starter plan is $10 per user per month for limited users and projects. More features and unlimited users start from $18 per user per month with the Premium plan.

The Unlimited plan includes priority support and is available from $26 per user per month. The Enterprise plan is ideal for large and complex businesses, but you must contact Timely for a quote.

You can choose to be billed monthly or annually. Discounts are available for annual billing. You can try any plan with a 14-day free trial.

Next steps

Don’t commit to an app just yet. Start a free trial with the one with the features that best suit you and your team’s needs. This will allow you to know for sure if the app will serve your business as you hope.

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Streamline time tracking, payments, time off, and much more.

If you’re still not sure which app is right for you, ask yourself the following questions to help you narrow down your options:

• Why is it important for you to track your employees throughout the day?
• Do you prefer to automate as much as possible, or are you happy to let your employees clock in and out on their own?
• Which features are must-haves, nice-to-haves, and unnecessary?
• How much are you willing to spend?
• Do you want to trial the app before you commit?

Once you have answered these questions, look at this list again to find one or two apps that might serve your needs.

While trialing the app, ask yourself a few questions:

• If the app has a reporting dashboard, is it easy to navigate?
• Do your field workers find the app easy to use?
• Are there any features you or your teams didn’t end up using?
• Is any part of your job made harder by using the app?

Is the support team easy to contact and helpful?

Remember, an employee tracking app should make your job easier. If you aren’t convinced by a free trial, try one of the other options from our list. Finding the ideal employee location tracking app will save you time and energy.

This post was originally published in February 2020. It was updated in January 2022.