Top 8 Alternatives to Staffcounter for Employee Time Tracking and Productivity Monitoring

As the world is moving towards digitalization, managing employees remotely has become a norm in the corporate world. With the increasing trend of remote jobs, it has become increasingly difficult for employers to track their employees’ productivity. This is where the employee monitoring software comes into play. Among the employee monitoring software, Staffcounter is one of the best choices that offers employee time tracking and productivity monitoring. However, this is not the only software available in the market. Several other software offers similar functionalities, which is why we have brought you the top 8 alternatives to Staffcounter for employee time tracking and productivity monitoring.

Video Tutorial:

What is Staffcounter?

StaffCounter is an employee monitoring software that tracks employees’ desktop activities, including which application was used by the employees, which website was visited, and for how long the employee was active on their desktop, among others. The features of StaffCounter include time tracking, productivity monitoring, activity logging, and website filtering. Staffcounter is a simple but powerful tool that can help managers keep track of employees’ productivity and work hours.

Top Alternatives to Staffcounter

1. Teramind:

Teramind is a powerful employee monitoring and user activity tracking tool that offers advanced features like augmented productivity analytics and activity monitoring and theft prevention. Teramind offers comprehensive coverage of employee monitoring needs, which makes it a top alternative to Staffcounter. Teramind also provides various features such as reporting, real-time alerting, and productivity tracking, which allows you to monitor your employee activity effectively.

Pros:

• Offers real-time monitoring of remote employee activity
• Provides an additional layer of security

Cons:

• Teramind can be difficult to navigate for beginners.
• Some features are not included in the base price, making it expensive.

2. HiveDesk:

HiveDesk is another employee monitoring software that offers time tracking and productivity monitoring for remote teams. HiveDesk offers features such as automatic time tracking, project management, and task management, enabling managers to keep track of their team’s productivity. HiveDesk also provides detailed reports on your workforce’s performance, providing insights on areas of employee productivity and improvement.

Pros:

• Offers automatic time tracking that increases accuracy of billing and productivity monitoring.
• Simple and intuitive UI makes it easy for beginners to use.

Cons:

• Lack of in-depth analytics that is available in other software makes it difficult to analyze workforce insights.
• Limited features that may not cover all requirements of full-time remote management.

3. DeskTime:

DeskTime is an employee productivity, time tracking, and attendance management software designed for teams and freelancers. DeskTime provides an easy-to-use interface that allows productive workflow oversight. DeskTime approaches employee productivity in a non-invasive way, maintaining employee privacy while providing basic metric software that can help managers improve their team’s performance.

Pros:

• Streamlined UI allows users to focus on high-impact tasks without getting lost in the interface
• Color-coded visual tools allow immediate time tracking and productivity analysis

Cons:

• Lacks advanced features necessary for managing larger remote teams or managing without sufficient HR support
• Who have particular needs for remote work monitoring can feel less support from DeskTime’s out-of-the-box feature configurations

4. Time Doctor:

Time Doctor is a time tracking software that provides features such as web and app monitoring, time use alerts, scheduled and real-time reports. Time doctor offers a privacy-respecting approach to tracking employee work-time and productivity without being invasive. Time Doctor is a solution for those who are a little more experienced in remote working management.

Pros:

• Offers activity reporting and tracking
• Provides Timesheet control

Cons:

• Does not offer keystroke logging
• May not be suitable for small teams

5. RescueTime:

RescueTime tracks hours worked, sites visited, and tasks completed in various applications. It collects enough information to help employees analyze and optimize their time use. Its comprehensive time logging feature allows managers to see the applications and websites their employees are using during work hours.

Pros:

• Simple and clean interface
• Provides detailed reports with high and low-point analyses useful in remedying workflow inefficiencies

Cons:

• Can feel overly basic to those who need more customizable or rich dashboards and reporting functionalities
• May lack some of the advanced features and insights that other software offers

6. ActivTrak:

ActivTrak is an employee monitoring software that offers employee productivity tracking, web filtering, logging and remote desktop capture. ActivTrak offers features such as user behavior analytics and set alerts that help managers stay on top of their remote teams.

Pros:

• Offers advanced analytics features, which can support maintaining a flexible and inclusive remote workforce
• Provides detailed alerts related to user productivity

Cons:

• No free version and the cost may feel expensive to businesses
• Onboarding and configuration may feel more complicated than other tools

7. TimeCamp:

TimeCamp offers features such as timesheets, project management, attendance tracking, invoicing, among others. Users can analyze where their time is spent and improve their time management skills. TimeCamp provides managers with detailed reports that project to improve their team’s overall efficiency.

Pros:

• Offers a rich feature set, tagging, and reporting which benchmark it over other competing software
• Has automatic time tracking which can reduce workloads of time tracking administration

Cons:

• Does not offer task management
• Can get expensive, defeating the point of being a cost-effective time management solution

8. Hubstaff:

Hubstaff offers employee time tracking, employee monitoring, team payroll management, and employee scheduling. Hubstaff empowers management with the data necessary to inform business decisions. It allows users to see which applications their employees use and provides reports for weekly status updates and payroll calculations.

Pros:

• Offers team tracking in more than 14 languages
• Has a free version for small teams

Cons:

• May require more technical proficiency and increased complexity than software targeted to small businesses
• User activity tracking is limited

Comprehensive Comparison of Each Software:

Our Thoughts on Staffcounter Alternatives:

Staffcounter is a competent employee monitoring software, but it may not fit every business’s needs. There are several employee monitoring software options that are equally great. Some of the features, such as time tracking and productivity monitoring, appear to be similar across platforms; however, pricing, user interfaces, and additional features may vary substantially. Among our top Staffcounter alternatives, Teramind and ActivTrak are great options for companies looking for an enhanced set of features. HiveDesk and DeskTime are suitable for small businesses that want a simple yet effective time tracking software. Tools like Time Doctor and RescueTime are suitable for experienced remote team managers who need to track team time, productivity and flexible work arrangements. TimeCamp is a well-rounded time management solution that works well for smaller organizations. Lastly, Hubstaff is great for teams that are just starting to implement remote work. At the end of the day, the choice comes down to individual needs and preferences.

FAQs

Q1: Is employee monitoring software illegal?

A: No, employee monitoring software is not illegal if used appropriately. You need to inform your employees that you will monitor their activities. It is always better to have a clear policy on employee monitoring to avoid any issues.

Q2: What are the benefits of using employee monitoring software?

A: Employee monitoring software provides several benefits such as time tracking, productivity monitoring, activity logging and website filtering, among others. With these benefits, employers can track their employees’ productivity, which ensures that they are meeting their targets.

Q3: Which employee monitoring software is easiest to use?

A: DeskTime and HiveDesk are the easiest to use employee monitoring software. They have simple and clean interfaces that users can easily navigate.

Q4: What are the best free employee monitoring software?

A: ActivTrak and Hubstaff provide free versions for small teams. However, these versions are limited in features and do not offer advanced functionality as the paid versions do.

Q5: Is there any employee monitoring software that does not monitor keystrokes?

A: Yes, some employee monitoring software, such as Time Doctor and DeskTime, do not monitor keystrokes. These software uses non-invasive privacy-respecting approaches to track worktime without involving monitoring keystrokes.

In Conclusion

Employee monitoring software is essential for managing remote teams. Staffcounter is a good option for employee time tracking and productivity monitoring, and there are several other alternatives to Staffcounter that offer similar features. The best alternative will depend on your specific needs. We recommend using our comparison table to help determine the best employee monitoring tool for your business.