TimeStation Review 2026: Pricing, Pros and Cons
Reviewed November 1, 2026 by Loïc Joachim
A low cost cloud time clock that uses QR or NFC cards on a tablet, free for up to 10 employees.
| Best for | Small businesses that want a cheap card based kiosk. |
|---|---|
| How staff clock in | Tablet kiosk |
| Free plan | Yes |
| 20 staff | $19.95 / month |
| 50 staff | $29.95 / month |
| 100 staff | $39.95 / month |
| Made in | USA |
| Website | mytimestation.com |
Prices are in US dollars for the cheapest plan that includes a time clock, as of our last review. Check the vendor's site for current pricing.
Our TimeStation review
TimeStation turns a smartphone or tablet into a time clock that scans employee ID cards. It is free for up to 10 employees and two administrators, and paid tiers stay cheap (around $20 a month for 20 employees).
The card based approach is quick when it works, but cards get lost, forgotten and lent to colleagues, which is exactly the buddy punching problem a time clock should solve. Features and reporting are basic.
For a small business that wants something cheap, it is good value.
Pros
- Free for up to 10 employees
- Cheap tiered pricing as you grow
- Uses ID cards on any tablet, so no special hardware
Cons
- Card based clock in means lost and shared cards
- Limited admins per tier
- Basic features and reporting
TimeStation features
- Tablet kiosk app
- Clock in from a phone
- Desktop app
- Proprietary hardware clock
- Paper card punching
- PIN entry
- NFC cards or tags
- Face recognition
- Fingerprint reader
- GPS location checks
- Cloud based
- Ongoing subscription
- Locks you into their hardware
Looking for something simpler?
Timeclock.Kiwi was built by people who were fed up with time clocks that take three screens and a training session to use. Staff tap their name and a PIN on any tablet, a photo is taken in the background, and hours export straight to your payroll. You pay per kiosk, not per employee, from $5 a month.
Free for 3 months, no credit card required.
TimeStation alternatives
- Homebase A broad scheduling, time clock and HR toolkit for hourly teams, with a free plan for small single location businesses.
- 7shifts Restaurant scheduling software with a separate time clock app called 7punches.
- Connecteam An all in one app for deskless teams with a time clock, scheduling, chat and forms, priced with a flat base for the first 30 users.
- Punch IO A focused small business time clock with fast face recognition on any tablet or computer.