Time clock app

Time clock app: employees clock in and out with their phone, or with a PIN on a tablet

Employees clock in and out with the InShift app: they tap “Check in” and point the camera at the code on a tablet by the door. Anyone without a phone enters a staff number and PIN on the same tablet. No hardware to buy: any tablet or old phone with a browser becomes the time clock. Managers see who’s on site, and every clock-in goes straight to the timesheet next to the scheduled hours.

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How the time clock app works: a phone, a tablet and a code

The InShift time clock has two parts. Employees get the InShift app for iPhone or Android, with a “Check in” button on the home screen. The workplace gets the terminal: terminal.inshift.app, open on a tablet or an old phone by the entrance. You don’t need to buy a device for time tracking; any tablet with a browser will do, including the one already sitting in the office. The screen shows the location name, the time, a large code and one button for people without a phone.

There are two ways to clock in, clock out or start a break. With a phone, employees open the InShift app, tap “Check in” and point the camera at the code on the screen. The code changes every 30 seconds, so nobody can snap a photo of it in advance or text it to a coworker, and the clock-in time comes from the code itself. Without a phone, they tap “Without a phone” on the tablet and enter a staff number and a PIN.

Time tracking is a module. The owner turns it on in “Settings” → “Modules”: the “Time tracking” section, with the board, terminals and PINs, appears in the admin panel, and the team app gets the “Check in” button. When it’s off, it doesn’t show up anywhere or track anything.

The terminal comes in English, Ukrainian and Russian. It picks up the language from the pairing link the panel sends or from the device, and a globe button next to the clock switches it, so a team that speaks different languages can share one tablet. Clocking in with the app takes no reading at all, since the camera does the work; the no-phone option is four large buttons and a keypad.

Set up the time clock in five steps

After that, every clock-in and clock-out is on record, with no paper sign-in sheet or punch clock.

  1. 1

    Turn the module on

    The owner opens “Settings” → “Modules” and turns on “Time tracking”. The section shows up in the panel, and the “Check in” button in the team app.

  2. 2

    Add a terminal

    In “Time tracking” → “Terminals”, click “Add terminal” and give it a name and a location. The panel generates an eight-digit “Pairing code” that’s valid for 15 minutes.

  3. 3

    Pair the tablet

    On the tablet, open terminal.inshift.app and enter the code, or open the link you get with “Copy link”. The screen then shows the location name, the time and the code.

  4. 4

    The team clocks in

    With a phone: tap “Check in” and scan the code. Without one: tap “Without a phone” and enter a staff number and PIN. Clocking out and breaks work the same way.

  5. 5

    Check the board

    The “Board” shows scheduled and actual times side by side: who’s on site, on a break, gone for the day or hasn’t checked in. Clocked hours go to the payroll sheet next to the scheduled hours.

The time clock kiosk

The tablet by the door: one big code on the screen

The terminal deliberately shows no list of people, no names and no photos: customers can see the screen by the entrance, and a lost tablet shouldn’t give away who works there. Just the location name, the time, the code and one button.

  • The code refreshes on its own, and the bar below it shows when, so a photo taken in advance is useless
  • The time in the code comes from the server, so each clock-in is stamped with the moment the employee stood at the screen
  • The screen stays on while the page is open, even on a phone
  • Dark mode for night shifts in one tap; the code stays white so the camera can always read it
  • English, Ukrainian or Russian on the screen, switched with the globe button next to the clock
  • The code keeps working offline; only PIN clock-ins need a connection
How to set up the terminal

Without a phone

A staff number and PIN for anyone without a smartphone

Not everyone on a team has a smartphone, and not everyone wants a work app on theirs. On the terminal, “Without a phone” opens “What would you like to do?”, then asks for the staff number and PIN, and answers with a green screen showing the name and the time.

  • Staff numbers for the whole team in one click, starting at 1001
  • The manager issues a temporary PIN, and employees set their own at the first clock-in. Nobody else ever sees it
  • Four large, easy-to-tap buttons: “Clock in”, “Clock out”, “Start break”, “End break”
  • After a few wrong tries the terminal makes you wait, so guessing someone else’s PIN won’t work
Staff numbers and PINs in the panel

Step by step

The time clock screens

From the code to the confirmation, every screen uses large type that’s easy to read from a distance and hard to mis-tap. Click any screenshot to enlarge it.

  • “What would you like to do?”: four actions
  • “Staff number”: 1001 in this example
  • “Your PIN”: the digits are hidden
  • “Clocked in, have a good day”: the name and the time
  • Dark mode for evening shifts

From the phone

Clock in and out from your phone in two seconds

The “Check in” button sits right on the app’s home screen. Tap it, point the camera at the code on the tablet, and the screen says “Checked in”. No photo is saved anywhere: the camera only reads the code.

  • The button changes as the shift goes on: “Check in”, then “Start break”, “Back from break” and “Check out”
  • “My check-ins”: every shift with clock-in, clock-out and break times, plus the month’s total
  • Offline, the check-in waits for a connection and sends itself, with the time taken from the code
  • Scanning twice doesn’t create a second check-in
How to check in for a shift

The board

Who’s on site right now

In the panel, “Time tracking” → “Board” shows scheduled and actual times side by side: scheduled from 08:00, checked in at 08:05, a 28-minute break. Tiles count people by status, and tapping a tile filters the list. Past days open the same way.

  • Statuses: “On site”, “On break”, “Left”, “Expected”, “No check-in”, “Off schedule”
  • Add a missed check-in by hand with a reason, or fix a wrong one with the pencil icon
  • If nobody clocks out, the system closes the shift four hours after its scheduled end
  • Location managers see only their own locations; the owner sees all of them
How to read the board

In the panel

Terminals, PINs and the module

Everything about time tracking is managed in the admin panel: terminals by location with their connection status, the team’s staff numbers and PINs, and the module’s on/off switch.

  • “Terminals”: one per location, with connection status
  • “Without a phone”: staff numbers and PINs
  • “Modules”: time tracking is a single switch

Payroll

Clocked hours go straight to the timesheet

In “Payroll”, the “Checked in” column sits next to “Scheduled”: planned and actual hours for the month, per person and for the whole team. Pay is calculated from the schedule; the manager sees any difference and decides what to do.

  • Clocked hours run from clock-in to clock-out, minus breaks
  • Clock-ins with no scheduled shift show up in the column too
  • Both columns are included when you print the sheet or use “Export to Excel”
  • Employees see their own hours in the app under “My check-ins”
Worked hours for a period

Why you can trust the clock-ins

Time tracking is built on a few rules, and each one closes a loophole every paper sign-in sheet has.

The code lasts 30 seconds

Taking a photo of the code in advance, sending it to a coworker or clocking in from home won’t work: an expired code is rejected.

The terminal is tied to a location

Each clock-in is recorded at the location where the tablet is. Every site has its own terminal in the list.

The time comes from the code

The clock-in time is built into the code itself, so changing the clock on a phone or clocking in offline makes no difference.

Only the employee knows the PIN

The manager sees the temporary PIN once, when issuing it. The PIN an employee sets on the tablet is never shown to anyone.

Forgotten clock-outs close themselves

Four hours after the shift’s scheduled end, the system closes it, and the manager can see that the clock-out was set automatically.

The manager makes the call

The board says “scheduled from 09:00, checked in at 09:07”. Whether that counts as late is up to the manager, who knows the circumstances.

Where to put the tablet

Anywhere your team works shifts and the manager isn’t always around.

Cafes and restaurants

A tablet behind the counter or at the staff entrance. Baristas and servers clock in with the app, and the kitchen crew with a PIN, no phone needed.

Retail stores

A terminal in the stockroom. Staff come in for different shifts, and the owner can see on the board whether the store opened on time.

Warehouses and factories

A tablet at the gate, with staff numbers and PINs for workers who don’t carry a phone on shift.

Security

Guard posts at different sites, each with its own terminal. The manager sees every site on one board.

Cleaning services

The manager’s old phone at the site replaces the sign-in sheet. Clocked hours go to the payroll sheet.

Multiple locations

One terminal per site and one board for all of them, with a location filter. Each site manager sees only their own team.

Time clock app on a tablet vs. a hardware time clock

Hardware time clocks have been around for decades. The difference comes down to cost and where your data ends up.

Hardware

InShift on a tablet
Any tablet or phone with a browser, including one you already have
A hardware time clock
A separate device for each site, plus installation

Setup

InShift on a tablet
A code from the panel, about a minute
A hardware time clock
Device setup, often done by the vendor

How you clock in

InShift on a tablet
Scan a code with the app, or enter a PIN on screen
A hardware time clock
A card, a fob or a fingerprint

Where the data goes

InShift on a tablet
Straight into the same schedule, board and payroll, no exporting
A hardware time clock
Into separate software you reconcile with the schedule

Updates

InShift on a tablet
Automatic, like any web page
A hardware time clock
Firmware updates on the device

Cost

InShift on a tablet
Included in the Basic plan, no charge per terminal
A hardware time clock
The device plus a software license

Frequently asked questions

Is there a time clock app for iPhone and Android?▾

Yes: the InShift app, on the App Store and Google Play. Its home screen has a “Check in” button that changes to “Start break”, “Back from break” and “Check out” as the shift goes on, and “My check-ins” lists every shift with its times and the month’s total. The app clocks in by scanning the code on the tablet at work, so every clock-in happens on site.

Do I need a separate device for the terminal?▾

No. Any tablet or phone with a browser will do: an iPad, an Android tablet, the manager’s old phone. All it needs is terminal.inshift.app left open; the page keeps the screen on by itself.

What language is the terminal screen in?▾

English, Ukrainian or Russian. The terminal uses the language of the pairing link from the panel or of the device, and the globe button next to the clock switches it; the tablet remembers the choice. The admin panel and the team app come in the same three languages, and each person picks their own.

How much does the time clock cost?▾

Time tracking is included in the Basic plan at no extra charge; you turn it on for your organization in “Settings” → “Modules”. Terminals are unlimited at no extra cost, and most teams set up one per site.

Can someone clock in from home?▾

No. The code only exists on the terminal screen and changes every 30 seconds; an expired code is rejected. Each terminal is tied to a location, and the clock-in is recorded there.

What about people without a smartphone?▾

They tap “Without a phone” on the terminal and enter the staff number from their manager and a PIN. The manager assigns numbers to the whole team in one click and gives each person a temporary PIN; employees set their own at their first clock-in. A forgotten PIN is reset in the panel with “New PIN”.

Does it work without internet?▾

The terminal keeps showing the code offline, and a check-in from the phone waits in a queue and goes through as soon as the connection is back, with the time taken from the code. PIN clock-ins need a connection, since the PIN is checked on the server.

What if someone forgets to clock out?▾

The shift stays open, and four hours after its scheduled end the system closes it. The board shows that the system set the clock-out, and the manager can correct the time by hand, with a reason, if needed.

Is pay calculated from the clock-ins?▾

Pay is calculated from the schedule. Clocked hours show up in the payroll sheet in a separate “Checked in” column for comparison. If someone actually worked different hours, the manager edits the shift in the planner and pay is recalculated.

Set up a time clock at your site in a minute

Sign up, turn on “Time tracking” and open terminal.inshift.app on a tablet. Every section is available from day one.

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