Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Review 2023- businessnewsdaily.com (2023)

  • Paychex Flex offers multiple HR solutions in one platform that can help with employee onboarding, time tracking, benefits administration, payroll and HR consulting.
  • Paychex offers two time and attendance solutions (Paychex Flex Time Essentials and Paychex Flex Time) that come with custom pricing.
  • Paychex has a variety of time-recording options, including web punching, mobile apps, a tablet kiosk app with optical facial verification and an InVision Iris time clock.
  • This review is for business owners and managers who are considering Paychex Flex for their time and attendance system.

Some small businesses that need a time and attendance solution prefer to use one comprehensive human resources solution to address multiple HR needs, such as employee hiring and onboarding, time and attendance, employee benefits administration, payroll, business insurance and HR consulting. Paychex Flex is our choice for the best all-in-one HR solution for tracking time and attendance because it does all of this and more.

An all-in-one solution like Paychex Flex can simplify and streamline your HR processes without the need to integrate several solutions. Paychex’s time and attendance software is cloud-based and compatible with multiple time clock options, including a web app, mobile apps, a tablet kiosk app (with optional facial verification) and biometric time clocks.

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Editor’s Score: 95/100

Cost90
Features98
Integrations96
Usability96
Customer service97

Why Paychex Flex Is the Best All-in-One HR Solution for Tracking Time and Attendance

Many companies that offer time and attendance solutions are limited in the other HR solutions they offer, but that is not the case with Paychex. Paychex is easily the most comprehensive HR solution we reviewed, and it can fulfill a variety of HR needs in one integrated platform. In addition to time and attendance, users can take advantage of features such as payroll processing, employee hiring and onboarding, benefits administration, business insurance and HR consulting. If you need one or more of these services, you can streamline your overall HR process using Paychex.

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Review 2023- businessnewsdaily.com (1)Key takeaway: Partnering with Paychex Flex Time can streamline and simplify your HR solutions because it can automatically sync employee hours to Paychex payroll and perform other HR functions.

Pros

  • Paychex offers many HR services, like time and attendance, payroll, employee benefits, hiring and onboarding, and HR consulting.
  • Paychex can process your payroll in-house instead of integrating with a third-party payroll provider.
  • Paychex offers a range of time clock options, including web browsers, mobile apps, a tablet kiosk app with facial verification, and a biometric iris or fingerprint scanner.

Cons

  • Paychex does not list its time and attendance software pricing online.
  • Paychex does not offer a free trial.

Usability

Whereas many competitors we reviewed offer limited HR features – like time tracking, time off management and employee scheduling – Paychex is an all-in-one HR solution that also offers other HR processes, like employee hiring and onboarding, benefits administration, business insurance and payroll processing.

Having access to the fully integrated Paychex Flex solution can greatly improve your HR processes. Because all of your HR information will live in one comprehensive system, all of your functions will work together seamlessly, thereby reducing the potential for error, frustration and time spent working on HR. The comprehensive solution makes HR easier because you don’t have to spend time transferring information from one platform to the next (e.g., from a time and attendance system to payroll software).

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Review 2023- businessnewsdaily.com (2)

Source: Paychex

With the Paychex Flex time and attendance plans, you can access several useful features that simplify time scheduling and tracking. For example, the software has visual schedulers and schedule templates to streamline employee scheduling, messaging features to communicate with your employees, and a host of reporting and tracking features to provide a clear view of where and when employees are working. Paychex’s employee scheduling and tracking features are highly competitive in the industry.

Paychex also has a mobile app with online employee self-service features that put a variety of HR functions in the hands of your workers. For example, employees can view and approve timecards, see work schedules and time off balances, and request time off. Their actions are automatically synced with the platform for review as needed.

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Features

Paychex Flex time and attendance plans (Paychex Flex Time and Paychex Flex Time Essentials) can easily integrate with the rest of the Paychex HCM suite, including payroll, employee benefits, HR services and product integrations. Many competitors do not offer this functionality, and Paychex’s integrations with such a long list of in-house functions makes it a great one-stop shop for businesses that want various services from one platform.

Even the time and attendance features on their own are comprehensive. Here are some of the services you can receive with Paychex Flex:

Time tracking Paychex Flex has web punch time clocks, mobile apps, facial verification time clocks and biometric time clocks that can track employee hours, locations, breaks and more.
PTO management Employees can submit PTO requests and pay adjustments, and managers can approve or deny requests under their employee benefits and pay policies.
Employee scheduling Users can access a visual scheduler, schedule templates, schedule exceptions, capacity scheduling and shift swapping.
Reports and notifications Paychex offers standard and ad hoc reports and configurable alerts.

Time Tracking

Paychex Flex offers a multitude of time collection methods. These flexible punch-in options can include basic time clocks, like those accessible from web browsers and mobile apps, or advanced time clocks, like a tablet kiosk app with facial verification or biometric iris or fingerprint scan time clocks. This variety of options gives you the flexibility to collect employee hours in a way that suits your business. Not many competitors offer such a wide variety of clock-in options, and even fewer offer biometric scanning.

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Review 2023- businessnewsdaily.com (3)

Source: Paychex

Administrators can set a variety of restrictions and guidelines for how time can be collected. For example, they can set IP user restrictions, designate break and meal times, and adjust pay as needed. If you want to track the locations of your mobile workers, you can even use the geolocation and geofencing technology to ensure they are clocking in and out from the correct locations.

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Review 2023- businessnewsdaily.com (4)Tip: If tracking a mobile workforce is your top priority, you might also want to check out our review of QuickBooks Time.

In addition to recording the hours your employees work, Paychex Flex Time allows you to use job costing and labor distribution features to ensure you are designating the correct number of resources to each project. Because Paychex Flex Time can integrate with the Paychex payroll solution, all of your employee hours can be automatically funneled into your payroll process. Although most competitors can integrate with payroll, not many offer in-house payroll themselves.

PTO Management

Managing employee paid time off (PTO) is an essential element in maintaining compliance with labor laws (which Paychex can also help you with), and once again, Paychex Flex has the features you will need. Employees can use the mobile app or dashboard to submit PTO requests and pay adjustments, and managers can use the software to respond to PTO requests and track employee leave. These features are on a par with the industry standard.

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Review 2023- businessnewsdaily.com (5)

Source: Paychex

Employee Scheduling

With Paychex Flex Time, managers gain access to a number of scheduling features that can help ensure they are properly staffed. The software comes with a visual scheduler and templates to simplify the scheduling process. You can also set schedule exceptions and access capacity scheduling with worker availability and a weekly view. Employees can swap shifts as well, which is competitive with the industry standard for shift planning.

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Review 2023- businessnewsdaily.com (6)

Source: Paychex

Reports and Notifications

Paychex offers a variety of reporting and notification features that can help you track employee attendance data and key performance indicators. We liked Paychex Flex Time because it offers real-time updates, activity, attendance data and labor analytics; for example, managers can easily see who is working and who is on break. Paychex also offers standard and ad hoc reporting and analytics, so you can pull the relevant data and forecast future labor needs.

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Review 2023- businessnewsdaily.com (7)

Source: Paychex

Users can set overtime rules and receive alerts when employees are approaching overtime, which is a great way to maintain compliance with labor laws. You can also receive email and configurable alerts about other time and attendance matters. These functions are competitive with those of other companies in the industry.

Cost

Paychex is a comprehensive HR solution that offers several services. The company has two core offerings for time and attendance: Paychex Flex Time and Paychex Flex Time Essentials. As with most other Paychex products, you will need to contact the company directly to receive a quote that is customized to your specific business needs. Keep in mind that the price will likely go up if you want access to multiple Paychex services (e.g., time tracking, payroll, onboarding), but the convenience of having several HR solutions in one platform can be worth the cost.

Although online pricing is not necessarily a must-have, most competitors do list it. Most competitors also offer free trials, which Paychex does not advertise.

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Review 2023- businessnewsdaily.com (8)Did you know? The average industry rate for time and attendance software ranges from $2 to $10 per employee per month.

Setup

Because Paychex offers so many HR solutions in one platform, getting set up might take a little longer on the front end. First, you will need to contact a Paychex representative to discuss your specific needs and the features you need access to. Next, a representative will help you get your account set up, and you can begin inputting employee information. If you are integrating with the Paychex payroll solution, you will also need employee details specific to payroll processing services.

With the Paychex time and attendance solutions, you have the option to collect employee time in various ways (e.g., web browser, mobile app, kiosk app with facial verification, biometric iris and finger scanning, interactive voice response system). If you want one of the more complex time collection methods, you will want to set it up with your system.

Although Paychex is a comprehensive solution, it can also integrate with more than 190 third-party applications. If you are currently using other business platforms that you intend to keep, inquire about integrating them with your Paychex Flex solution.

Customer Service

Paychex offers a wealth of online resources about the Paycheck software and services, as well as general human resources information. For example, there is a knowledge center, a coronavirus help center, calculators, webinars and podcasts. There are also customer testimonials that provide firsthand accounts of the service.

If you need to contact a support representative directly, you can reach out via phone or web chat. Paychex says users gain access to a dedicated support professional, which not all competitors offer.

Drawbacks

One potential drawback of Paychex is that it does not list time and attendance software pricing online. Instead, you will need to contact Paychex directly to receive a quote based on your needs. While customized pricing can benefit some employers, having transparent online pricing can be a priority for companies that are on a budget and want to quickly compare costs.

Another potential limitation of Paychex is that it does not offer a free trial of the time and attendance software, whereas most competitors do. A free trial is not typically a dealbreaker, but it can be a risk-free way to learn if the software is right for you.

Methodology

We spent weeks researching and analyzing time and attendance systems to identify the top solutions on the market. We looked at features, pricing, integrations, usability and customer support, and we got hands-on experience with demos and product videos when possible. When looking for the best all-in-one HR solution for tracking time and attendance, we prioritized essential time and attendance features, like time clock options, employee scheduling, PTO management, and reports and notifications. We also looked at other HR services, like payroll, employee benefits, hiring and onboarding, and HR consulting.

What Is a Time and Attendance System?

A time and attendance system is a digital solution that employees can use to clock in and out via web browsers, mobile apps and tablet kiosks. Although the specific features and hardware vary among systems, businesses often use time and attendance systems to track employee hours and locations, schedule employee shifts, manage paid time off, track job and project expenses, and communicate with team members.

FAQs

What is Paychex Flex Time?

Paychex offers two integrated time and attendance solutions: Paychex Flex Time Essentials and Paychex Flex Time. Paychex Flex Time Essentials offers standard time and attendance features, and Paychex Flex Time is a more comprehensive time tracking solution with administrative functions, employee scheduling features, overtime rules and alerts, and communication capabilities. It also has a variety of reporting and tracking features. Employee data from Paychex Flex Time can flow seamlessly into your Paychex payroll and other HR functions.

Does Paychex have a time clock?

Yes, Paychex offers a variety of flexible time clock options, such as web punches (available on desktops, tablets and smartphones), proximity badges, PIN entry and biometrics (iris, facial verification, fingerprint scanning).

Can you clock in and out on the Paychex Flex app?

Yes, employees can use the Paychex Flex mobile app, available on iOS and Android devices, to clock in and out for each shift. As long as you have an internet connection, you can access the clock in/out feature anytime.

Bottom Line

We recommend Paychex Flex Time for …

  • Businesses that want an all-in-one HR solution.
  • Small and midsize businesses.
  • Businesses that want a range of time clock options.
  • Businesses that want an internally integrated payroll solution.

We don’t recommend Paychex Flex Time for …

  • Businesses that need immediate online pricing.
  • Businesses that need a free trial.

Paychex Flex Time and Attendance Review 2023- businessnewsdaily.com (9)

Skye Schooley

Business News Daily

Staff

Skye Schooley is a human resources writer at business.com and Business News Daily, where she has researched and written more than 300 articles on HR-focused topics including human resources operations, management leadership, and HR technology. In addition to researching and analyzing products and services that help business owners run a smoother human resources department, such as HR software, PEOs, HROs, employee monitoring software and time and attendance systems, Skye investigates and writes on topics aimed at building better professional culture, like protecting employee privacy, managing human capital, improving communication, and fostering workplace diversity and culture.

FAQs

What is Paychex time and attendance? ›

Time and attendance systems are a method for employers to track and monitor their employees' work hours. Manual or paper-based time tracking methods commonly include time cards, while automated time-collection options include tracking via badge, biometrics (iris, fingerscan), mobile, or web entry.

Who pays better ADP or Paychex? ›

ADP includes payroll with direct deposit, a self-service employee platform and new hire onboarding along with other useful HR features. However, it's a bit more expensive than Paychex, which offers similar services. Paychex is regarded as the better choice for SMBs.

How do I contact Paychex time and attendance? ›

Please visit our customer support page for help regarding your services, including specific ways you can contact us. You can also call 833-299-0168 for additional support options.

Can I trust Paychex Flex? ›

Paychex Flex is a strong competitor in the online payroll services space. Its price and its robustness make it an excellent choice, and in the case of a company that is looking for a highly scalable solution that can also offer HR and other human-capital services, it may even be the best choice.

Can Paychex track you? ›

With GPS tracking, you can get real-time notifications of where your employees work from. Additionally, Paychex's geofencing feature lets you set work perimeters or mark places from where your employees can clock in.

Who is Paychex biggest competitor? ›

Most Commonly Comparedto Paychex Flex
  • Gusto. Compare. See how Gusto works.
  • Paycom. Compare. Contact Vendor.
  • Paylocity. Compare. Learn More.
  • ADP TotalSource. Compare.
  • Toast Payroll & Team Management. Compare.
  • QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise. Compare. Learn More.
  • Paycor. Compare. Contact Vendor.
  • ADP Workforce Now. Compare. Contact Vendor.

Does Paychex give bonuses? ›

Paychex has a list of reasons why it is such a great place to work: amazing benefits, fun and knowledgeable teams, annual raises, lots of training, easy to access resources, annual bonuses, and overall just an awesome company. I don't really have any cons to list.

Who is the biggest payroll company? ›

ADP is the largest and probably best-known payroll processing company in the United States.

Can you work from home with Paychex? ›

We have in-office, remote, and hybrid ways to work. We know you have a life outside of Paychex, which is why we're committed to providing a flexible, responsive workplace that enables all employees to find a balance between work and not being at work.

How much can you make at Paychex? ›

FAQs About Paychex, Inc.

pays its employees an average of $70,924 a year. Salaries at Paychex, Inc. range from an average of $46,180 to $107,663 a year.

What holidays do Paychex employees get off? ›

Paychex makes it simple.
  • 2020 Check Date Processing for Federal/Banking Holidays. ...
  • New Year's Day. ...
  • Martin Luther King. ...
  • Presidents' Day. ...
  • Memorial Day. ...
  • Independence. ...
  • Labor Day. ...
  • Columbus Day.

Can Paychex Flex track your location? ›

Employee Users

The Geolocation and Geo-fencing features are available only if your company or organization subscribes to the functionality. The Geolocation feature allows the Paychex Flex Time application to register the location of your clock punches from a mobile device.

Was Paychex hacked? ›

Paychex systems are secure and have not been hacked or compromised.

Does Paychex pay weekly or biweekly? ›

Biweekly Pay Periods

In a biweekly pay schedule, employees receive a paycheck every two weeks, totaling 26 paychecks per year (some years will have 27 paychecks). There are some months where a biweekly pay period means that employees receive three paychecks in one month.

Can an employer track your personal cell phone? ›

Employers need your permission before they can monitor texts on a personal device. The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits unreasonable search and seizure and may offer additional protection to public sector employees.

How long does it take to get hired at Paychex? ›

It takes 1 month . They present their self very well. Several meetings and lots of waiting for an answer whether you have the job or not.

Does Paychex do drug test? ›

Welcome Paychex Clients

Universal Background Screening provides employment background checks and drug testing to thousands of companies nationwide.

Is flex time the same as PTO? ›

Flexible time off is a form of paid time off, or PTO. It's generally unlimited, a form of PTO that doesn't need to be earned or accrued. You simply get it when you need it. Plenty of corporations don't offer flexible time off.

How do you get unpaid time off on Paychex Flex? ›

Submit PTO Request
  1. Click employee | Compensation | Attendance/Time-Off.
  2. Click Submit PTO Request. ...
  3. Type the date of your time off request in the PTO Date: field or click the calendar icon next to the PTO Date: field to select a date.
  4. Select your time off type in the PTO Type: drop-down menu.

How do I track my employees time and attendance? ›

5 ways to accurately track employee hours
  1. Manual timekeeping — pen and paper.
  2. Time clocks or punch-in tools.
  3. Automated time-and-attendance solutions.
  4. Mobile apps.
  5. GPS clock-ins.
Feb 25, 2021

What is time and attendance tracking? ›

Time and attendance systems (TNA) are used to track and monitor when employees start and stop work. A time and attendance system enables an employer to monitor their employees working hours and late arrivals, early departures, time taken on breaks and absenteeism.

What is Paychex used for? ›

Paychex can help the owners and HR managers of small to medium-sized businesses manage human resource administration tasks, streamline talent management, and access critical data to help them make informed business decisions with confidence.

What is the difference between time attendance and access control? ›

Attendance Systems help you to monitor employee attendance and their working hours. This can be integrated with payroll software for easy salary calculation. Access Control System recognizes, authenticates, and authorizes entry of a person offering complete protection for the place.

What kind of company is Paychex? ›

Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ: PAYX) is a leading provider of integrated human capital management solutions for payroll, benefits, human resources, and insurance services.

Is time and attendance HR or payroll? ›

Time and attendance, in the HR world, is the process of tracking employee work hours. Time and attendance includes the following components: Designing a time and attendance policy. Creating and publishing employee schedules.

How does time and attendance work? ›

Time and attendance systems offer self-service that allows employees to handle many time-tracking tasks on their own, such as reviewing the hours they've worked, their current and future schedules, and their PTO accruals. Many of these systems offer both cloud-based and on-premises solutions.

What is time and attendance business process? ›

Time and attendance is the process of tracking work hours. In the past this was always a manual system. Employees may have manually completed a time card and that information was used for payroll and benefits. Another option for tracking time was a punch clock now businesses have the option of attendance software.

What are the weaknesses of Paychex? ›

Weakness of Paychex – Internal Strategic Factors

The profitability ratio and Net Contribution % of Paychex are below the industry average. Not very good at product demand forecasting leading to higher rate of missed opportunities compare to its competitors.

How do you monitor employees time and attendance? ›

The most efficient way to track attendance
  1. Employees can clock in and out with a time clock app, including GPS and photo verification.
  2. You can see everyone's schedules and and real-time attendance in one place online.
  3. You can quickly approve timesheets, shift swaps, and time-off requests.
Mar 17, 2021

What are the 3 types of access control? ›

Three main types of access control systems are: Discretionary Access Control (DAC), Role Based Access Control (RBAC), and Mandatory Access Control (MAC). DAC is a type of access control system that assigns access rights based on rules specified by users.

What software is used for time and attendance? ›

Compare Our Best Picks
CompanyEditor's scoreMobile app
QuickBooks Time95/100iOS and Android
Rippling96/100iOS and Android
Paychex Flex94/100iOS and Android
OnTheClock85/100iOS and Android
6 more rows
Feb 7, 2023

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