Hubstaff vs. DeskTime

A detailed comparison of powerful time tracking tools

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DeskTime and Hubstaff are excellent time tracking solutions with varying features for streamlining remote team management. Which one is right for your business? Keep reading to compare the two side by side and find the one that best meets your business needs.

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Hubstaff vs DeskTime: Feature by Feature

How do these two tools stack up against each other? Before we get into an in-depth breakdown, here are some key features of these time tracking software worth comparing:

FeatureHubstaffDeskTime

Screenshots

Activity levels

GPS tracking

Weekly limits

Integrations

Automatic Payroll

Idle timeout

hybrid time tracking

Time tracking and timesheets

DeskTime and Hubstaff are effective time tracking solutions but function slightly differently. Desktime relies solely on automated clock-ins and clock-outs as soon as users start and stop working.

Hubstaff provides more flexibility by allowing you to set reminders, track time spent on specific tasks and projects, and take breaks. You can also seamlessly convert this time tracking data to detailed timesheets to reduce admin time and streamline payments.

Winner: Hubstaff

screenshots for activity level monitoring

Screenshot capabilities

Hubstaff's time tracking with screenshots functionality captures automatic screenshots while your team works. You can disable, enable, or blur the feature and set the frequency of screenshots to suit your management style.

While DeskTime also has screenshot functionality for remote team monitoring, this feature is only offered on Premium and above plans.

Winner: Hubstaff

automated payroll management feature

Automated Payroll

With one click approvals, you can approve timesheets and trigger automatic payments. Utilize integrations with premier payroll platforms like PayPal, Wise, and Deel to pay teams on their preferred platform right from Hubstaff. Set pay rates and payment frequency to automate payments, or make one-time payments, invoices, or expense reimbursements.

While DeskTime is an excellent time tracking and productivity-monitoring tool, it has limited payroll capabilities. Hubstaff can help you streamline your payroll process without ever needing to leave the app.

Winner: Hubstaff

gps tracking and geofencing feature

Geofencing and location tracking

Hubstaff’s built-in GPS location tracking capabilities allow field teams to track time on the move, helping managers plan routes and provide ETAs to customers. Geofenced time tracking enables you to create designated Job sites and automate clock-ins and clock-outs when team members enter or leave.

DeskTime, on the other hand, specializes in time tracking and internet monitoring for home office setups but lacks field-based location tracking capabilities.

Winner: Hubstaff

project management features

Project and task management

Project managers can leverage time and team productivity metrics to plan and manage better task allocation using Hubstaff's task management add-on Hubstaff Tasks. Sort work into Kanban boards, Sprints, and other views and create task dependencies and rules to streamline project management.

Like Hubstaff, DeskTime also offers time tracking and project management features. However, it primarily focuses on productivity and task monitoring for smaller teams. Hubstaff has more options for workforce management and real-time project tracking with features like GPS tracking and team activity monitoring.

Winner: Hubstaff

employee shift scheduling feature

Shift scheduling

Both Hubstaff and DeskTime offer powerful scheduling features. The Hubstaff dashboard offers a glimpse into your team's most productive hours, which you can use to plan schedules for peak efficiency.

However, DeskTime's shift scheduling and absence calendar feature streamline employee management. By marking absences in the calendar, you can better plan your team's shifts and quickly review and schedule them.

Winner: DeskTime

reporting and analytics feature

Reporting and analytics

Hubstaff has a fully customizable dashboard with real-time widgets for hours worked, PTO, employee activity tracking, and other workforce analytics insights. You can also take a hands-off approach to management with 20+ reports on time and activity, attendance, and more.

DeskTime combines automatic time tracking with simple reporting features for stack rankings, performance comparisons, and visual indicators like red vs. green status markers. Based on tracked data, it also offers workforce analytics, graphs, and charts to simplify team productivity.

Winner: It's a tie

integration capabilities

Integration options

Hubstaff integrates with over 35 project management, communication, help desk, payroll, and CRM solutions. Choose from your favorite tools like Salesforce, Slack, PayPal, Asana, or QuickBooks to streamline workflows and maximize productivity. Hubstaff also integrates with Zapier to help you facilitate your own integrations with tools like Google Calendar, Todoist, and GitLab.

DeskTime offers the ability to build and run workflows with its DeskTime API. Select from thousands of different triggers or create your personalized workflows using custom codes. If you’re looking for simple, unique integrations with your favorite tools, go for Hubstaff. If you’re feeling adventurous and are tech-savvy enough, Desktime has seemingly infinite integration options.

Winner: It's a tie

Each month, Hubstaff tracks:

588K+
Active users
21M+
Total hours tracked
4M+
Tasks completed
348K+
Payments

What our customers say

“We work in a lot of different industries, so I can’t always know what’s a 45-minute task and what’s a four-hour task. With tools like Hubstaff, you can tell. You then decide if a whole project should’ve taken 16 hours or if someone is just not the right fit.”

Solomon Thimothy

OneIMS President and Founder

“We believe — just like Hubstaff — that talent is everywhere and people should be able to work any time, anywhere, even in their pajamas,” says Kothari. “As a company, we believe in the same future of work as Hubstaff, which is great because our values align.”

Amit Kothari

Co-founder at Tallyfy

“Hubstaff solved our pain point the moment we started using it. Compared to other tools we'd tested, Hubstaff is simple, easy, and synchronizes with the other applications we use.”

Andriy Sambir

CEO at LinkUp

An award winning platform

Hubstaff vs. DeskTime: The final verdict

When it comes to time tracking, you can't go wrong with Hubstaff or a Hubstaff alternative like Desktime. User-friendly interfaces, flexibility across various devices, and innovative tracking methods make both tools premier options for businesses. However, if you're looking for more than a time tracking tool, there are some key differences worth considering:

Hubstaff is the perfect tool for: 

  • Flexible time tracking and employee monitoring

  • Payroll and timesheets

  • Employee productivity insights

  • Workforce analytics

  • GPS/Geofenced time tracking

Insightful is best for:

  • Automatic time tracking that starts during scheduled shifts and stops during offline time

  • Simple reporting on business requirements for small teams, featuring stack rankings, comparisons, and intuitive visual dashboards

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