A Hubstaff alternative where monitoring is a choice, not the starting point
Hubstaff is built around proof of work: screenshots, activity levels and app tracking are part of its first plan. Punchly is built around the timesheet, and keeps screenshots, app names and location as options that stay off until you switch them on. Punchly also has a free plan and a lower price for each person. Hubstaff goes further in monitoring and can pay your team.
Free for teams of up to 5. Paid plans from $2 a person a month. 7-day free trial of the Pro plan’s features, no credit card needed.
Paid plans for one person, paid monthly
Punchly Basic
$2
Punchly Standard
$4
Punchly Pro
$6
Hubstaff Starter
$7
Hubstaff Grow
$9
Hubstaff Team
$12
A month, at each company’s list price.
Prices side by side
Prices for one seat for one month, in US dollars, as listed on hubstaff.com/pricing on 8 October 2026. The plans are each company’s own, not matched pairs.
| Punchly plan | Paid monthly | Paid yearly | Hubstaff plan | Monthly / yearly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free (up to 5 people) | $0 | $0 | No free plan | 14-day trial |
| Basic | $2 | $1.67 | Starter | $7 / $4.99 |
| Standard | $4 | $3.33 | Grow | $9 / $7.50 |
| Pro | $6 | $5.00 | Team | $12 / $10 |
| Enterprise | Talk to us | Talk to us | Enterprise | $25, yearly only |
Hubstaff’s Starter, Grow and Team plans have a minimum of two seats. Hubstaff also sells add-ons for each seat each month, among them Locations (mobile location, job sites with geofences) from $3.33, and Insights, Tasks, More screenshots and Silent app from $2.50 each.
What each one includes
From each company’s own plan lists. “Not listed” means the feature does not appear on Hubstaff’s pricing page; check with Hubstaff if it matters to you.
| Feature | Punchly | Hubstaff |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes, up to 5 people | No |
| Free trial | 7 days | 14 days |
| Smallest team you can buy for | 1 person | 2 seats |
| Time tracking and timesheets | Free | Starter |
| Screenshots | Pro, optional, off by default | Starter (limited); Team (unlimited) |
| App names | Pro, optional | App and URL tracking: Starter (limited); Team (unlimited) |
| Activity levels from keyboard and mouse | Not offered | Starter |
| Idle time | Free: the desktop app asks what to do | Grow: idle timeout |
| Invoices | Standard | Starter |
| Expenses | Pro | Grow |
| Project budgets | Pro | Grow |
| Scheduling | Pro | Team |
| Paying your team (payroll and payments) | Not offered | Starter (limited); Team |
| Location on the phone | Pro, optional | Add-on, or Enterprise |
| Geofenced job sites | Not offered | Add-on, or Enterprise |
| Integrations | Jira, QuickBooks and Projqo on Standard | One on Grow; unlimited on Team |
| Kiosk: a shared time clock | Standard | Not listed |
| Leave: requests, balances, policies | Standard | Offered; the plan is not shown on its pricing page |
Choose Punchly if
You want time tracking without monitoring
Or with monitoring only for some work. Screenshots, app names and location are separate switches, all off by default, and everyone is told before anything is recorded.
You want to start free
Up to 5 people, for as long as you like.
You are one person
There is no two-seat minimum.
Some staff clock in at a shared device
A kiosk on any tablet, with kiosk-only people at $1.
The price for each person matters
Punchly’s Pro plan costs less than Hubstaff’s Starter paid monthly.
Choose Hubstaff if
Hubstaff is the better choice when monitoring and payment are the point.
You need detailed proof of work
Activity levels from keyboard and mouse, the websites visited, and its Insights add-on. Punchly records screenshots, app names and, if you choose, window titles when you switch them on, and nothing more. It never records keystrokes or web addresses.
You want to pay your team from the same tool
Hubstaff has payroll and payments. Punchly reports hours and amounts; it does not move money.
You need geofenced job sites
Hubstaff offers job sites with geofences in its Locations add-on. Punchly shows where time was tracked and has no geofencing.
You need HIPAA or SOC 2 paperwork
Which Hubstaff lists on its Enterprise plan.
What the two have in common
Both have desktop and phone apps. Both turn tracked time into invoices, record expenses and plan work ahead, and both charge for each person, monthly or yearly.
Questions people ask
Something else on your mind? Our team answers from inside the app and by email.
Start with the timesheet, add the rest if you need it
Create a free workspace and track a week. Screenshots and location are there if you ever need them, and off until you say so.