Trying to make a decision in the Hubstaff vs. Clockify debate? Both are popular time tracking tools with solid reputations, but that doesn't mean there isn't a correct fit for your team.
On the surface, they offer many of the same basics: employee time tracking, team management features, and reporting. But when you dig in, the differences start to matter — especially when it comes to how each tool handles productivity insights, automation, and scaling your business.
This guide breaks down the key features, pricing, and strengths of Hubstaff and Clockify so you can make a clear, informed decision based on how your team works.
112,000+ businesses trust Hubstaff for time tracking
Hubstaff vs. Clockify: At a glance
| Feature | Hubstaff | Clockify |
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Time Tracking |
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Device compatibility |
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Integrations |
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Productivity insights |
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Attendance tracking |
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Employee monitoring |
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Reporting |
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Payroll |
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Invoicing |
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Task Management |
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Customer support |
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Free trial |
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Best for (summary) | Remote teams needing monitoring, payroll, and reporting | Freelancers and small teams needing free tracking |
Accurate time tracking and task switching
Both Hubstaff and Clockify make it easy to track time. Both tools handle the basics of time tracking well — start the timer, log your hours, and switch between tasks.
You can create your own tasks, switch between projects seamlessly, and improve time tracking accuracy with idle time detection settings. If your team needs reliable time tracking, either option will get the job done.
Winner: Tie
Automated timesheets
Both Hubstaff and Clockify simplify timesheet management. Time entries are automatically logged as team members track time for projects and tasks. Employees can easily review their hours and create manual time entries before submitting them.
What happens after approval is where the two tools start to differ. Hubstaff goes a step further by tying timesheets directly into its built-in payroll system. Once employee hours are approved, Hubstaff can simultaneously send automatic payments through various apps like PayPal, Wise, and Deel right from the app.
Clockify, on the other hand, doesn't offer integrated payroll. So, while it covers the basics well, you'll need to handle payouts separately in another tool if that's part of your workflow.
Winner: Hubstaff
Employee activity tracking
You'll gain visibility into team activities during work hours with both Hubstaff and Clockify. Their activity monitoring features help you understand work progress by showing time spent on tasks, keyboard and mouse activity levels, website and app usage, and optional screenshots.
Screenshots can offer additional context for what’s being worked on, and both tools give employees control over this feature — including the option to disable or delete captures.
Overall, both Hubstaff and Clockify cover the bases well here, making it a fairly even match for activity tracking.
Winner: Tie
Productivity analysis
While Clockify offers basic employee activity monitoring, it lacks advanced productivity features. Hubstaff, on the other hand, delivers more in-depth analysis through its Insights add-on. It provides detailed metrics like productivity trends, industry-specific benchmarks, unusual activity detection, and data to help you increase focus time while cutting down on unnecessary meetings.
With this real-time data, you’ll gain valuable insights into employee productivity to help you make informed decisions about task management and project tracking. Hubstaff also provides 20+ detailed reports to better understand how time tracking data translates to overall efficiency.
Winner: Hubstaff
Shift scheduling
Both Hubstaff and Clockify offer reliable features for building and managing team schedules. In one place, you can plan shifts, set recurring assignments, adjust calendar views, and track paid time off.
Hubstaff and Clockify offer standard employee scheduling features like recurring shifts and the ability to compare scheduled vs. actual time worked. However, each offers some unique, useful scheduling features.
Hubstaff includes late or missed shift notifications to manage day-to-day changes on the fly. Clockify, on the other hand, adds features like drag-and-drop scheduling. Despite their differences, they’re both powerful tools for managing any employee schedule.
Winner: Tie
Automated payroll
While Clockify allows you to use timesheets as a reference for payroll, it lacks a fully integrated payroll system. Hubstaff, on the other hand, streamlines payroll management by sending payments directly with platforms like PayPal, Wise, and Payoneer without leaving the Hubstaff app.
Once you’ve set pay rates and approved timesheets, Hubstaff automatically processes payments based on the tracked time and sends funds straight to your employees’ accounts.
Winner: Hubstaff
Automatic invoicing
Clockify allows users to generate invoices based on time entries. Hubstaff lets you not only create invoices but also email them directly to clients and receive payments right from the app.
This added benefit helps create a seamless workflow, from tracking time to getting paid, without switching between apps, and elevates Hubstaff over Clockify when it comes to invoicing.
Winner: Hubstaff
Integration options
When it comes to integrations, Clockify offers a wider range with over 80 connections with popular communication, project management, accounting, and CRM tools.
While it offers fewer integrations than Clockify, Hubstaff connects with essential platforms like Slack, Asana, Salesforce, and PayPal to streamline workflows for specific business needs.
Both tools integrate with key systems, making either great for enhancing productivity and simplifying processes. However, Clockify comes out on top because with significantly more integrations.
Winner: Clockify
Ease of use
Clockify and Hubstaff deliver a smooth experience when it comes to time management and productivity tracking, but they approach it differently.
Clockify offers a feature-rich interface, presenting key features and data in a tabular format. It makes navigating through tasks and time entries straightforward and efficient for teams that need to assign tasks and manage productivity in one place.
Hubstaff, on the other hand, keeps things streamlined. Its minimalist timer app runs quietly in the background, while the web dashboard presents real-time insights in a clean format with drag-and-drop widgets. Everything feels lightweight and intentional, with less clutter and fewer distractions.
Both platforms are easy to get started on, and neither will leave you fighting the interface. Whether you prefer a more detailed dashboard or a stripped-down workflow, you'll be set either way.
Winner: Tie
Each month, Hubstaff tracks:
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.”
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.”
Co-founder at Tallyfy
Pricing: Hubstaff vs Clockify
Hubstaff
Hubstaff offers robust time tracking features with various plans to meet business needs. Even the basic plans provide enough functionality for small teams, with the ability to track time, manage payments, and monitor activity levels.
Free plan. Includes time tracking, timesheets, activity levels, basic reports, and payments.
Starter ($7.00/user/month). Includes limited app and URL tracking, limited screenshots, and payment functionality.
Grow ($9.00/user/month). This includes tasks, project budgets, work breaks, idle timeouts, one integration, and more detailed reports.
Team ($12.00/user/month). Includes unlimited screenshots, app & URL tracking, payments and payroll, unlimited integrations, scheduling, timesheet approvals, and overtime tracking.
Enterprise ($25.00/user/month, billed annually). Provides enterprise-level features like higher API limits, single sign-on, and enterprise deployment. Hubstaff is also up to date with GDPR, HIPAA, and SOC-2 Type II compliance.
Despite the slightly higher pricing, Hubstaff is ideal for businesses that want to automate admin tasks like payroll and invoicing while gaining detailed productivity insights.
Clockify
Clockify offers some of the most competitive pricing among time tracking apps, with one of the most generous free versions available. It covers a wide range of features even in its entry-level plans, making it a great tool for businesses that need time tracking without a steep cost.
Free plan. Includes basic time tracking, timesheets, project tracking, unlimited users, and reporting features.
Basic ($4.99/user/month). Adds administrative controls like bulk editing, time audits, and project templates.
Standard ($6.99/user/month). Includes invoicing, time off tracking, approvals, and attendance tracking.
Pro ($9.99/user/month). Adds scheduling, forecasting, labor cost tracking, multiple currencies, GPS tracking feature, and screenshots.
Enterprise ($14.99/user/month). Includes advanced security features like single sign-on, audit logs, and custom subdomains.
Productivity Suite ($15.99/user/month). Adds team communication and project management features on top of the Enterprise plan’s features.
Clockify is excellent for those starting out or small teams looking for flexible, cost-effective plans.
Hubstaff vs. Clockify: Deciding factors
Choosing between Hubstaff and Clockify comes down to what your team needs most in a time tracking platform — a simple way to track time or a more built-out time tracking tool to handle enterprise-grade workforce management operations like payroll and invoicing.
If you’re a small team or just getting started with time tracking software, Clockify makes a strong case. Its free plan is generous, and the interface is straightforward once you get the hang of it. For basic tracking, managing projects, and keeping an eye on team hours, it covers a lot of ground without costing a cent.
Hubstaff, on the other hand, is built for teams that want to take things a step further. Features like built-in payroll, automated invoicing, and detailed productivity reporting can help reduce manual work and make things more efficient. These features stand out if your team is growing or you're managing remote workers across different roles and schedules.
In the end, both tools are solid, and they’re easy to try. Each offers a free trial, and getting set up doesn’t take long. The best move is to test them both in your workflow to see which one clicks with your team and best meets your day-to-day needs.
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