Time Tracking Apps for Electrical Contractors: 2026 Prices and QuickBooks Details Compared
Picking a time tracking app for an electrical crew comes down to three questions. Will the crew actually use it? Will the hours reach QuickBooks without retyping? Will the record hold up when a customer asks what the hours were for?
This page is the price-and-plan side of that decision. It lays out what five common time tracking tools publish on their own pricing pages, what that works out to for an example electrical crew, and what to ask each vendor before you sign. If you want the shorter yes/no checklist to run during a trial, use the buyer's checklist for electricians alongside this page.
All competitor prices and plan details below were read from each vendor's public pricing page on November 1, 2026. Prices change often. Confirm them on the vendor's page before you decide.
What Electrical Contractors Should Compare
Six things separate a tool that works for an electrical crew from one that only works in a demo.
1. Whether the crew will use it. A clock-in that takes three taps on any phone gets used. One that needs a long setup, a separate badge, or a manager to fix every missed punch gets skipped, and then the office is rebuilding the week from texts. 2. What gets written down about the work. Hours alone do not explain a time-and-material invoice.8.5 hrs invites a question. Pulled and terminated circuits 12 to 18, second-floor east wing answers it. Check whether the app asks for a note, where that note shows up, and whether it can go on something you hand a customer. See T&M billing best practices for what customers tend to question.
3. The QuickBooks path. "Integrates with QuickBooks" can mean an API push of time entries, a payroll export, or a file you download and import. Ask which QuickBooks product it supports (Online or Desktop), what record type lands there, whether the sync runs on its own or someone presses a button, and which plan tier includes it.
4. What happens with no signal. Basements, mechanical rooms, and new concrete shells eat cell signal. Ask what the app does when a worker taps clock-in with no bars: is the punch saved on the phone with the real time, and when does it upload?
5. The pricing shape. Some tools charge a base fee plus a per-user fee, some charge per seat only, and some charge a flat fee for the first block of users. The cheapest at 5 people is not always the cheapest at 25. Run the math at your real headcount, including office users.
6. What the GPS actually records. "GPS tracking" ranges from one location point at clock-in to continuous breadcrumb trails to geofences that block a punch outside a boundary. Decide which one you need and how your crew will feel about it before you compare.
QuickBooks Time
What the pricing page says (Nov 1, 2026): A QuickBooks Online account is required. Time Premium is $20/month base plus $10 per user per month. Time Elite is $40/month base plus $12 per user per month. The base fee includes 1 admin. Both show a 50% discount on the base fee for the first 3 months.Premium lists the workforce app, payroll and invoicing, time off, alerts, photo attachments, and a time kiosk. Elite adds mileage tracking, project tracking, project estimates vs. actuals, a project activity feed, and timesheet signatures.
Ask before you buy:- Which of your workers count as paid users, and does a foreman with approval rights cost more?
- On Premium, is job-level time enough for your reports, or do you need Elite's project estimates vs. actuals?
- What does the crew see at clock-out, and does a work description reach your invoice?
ClockShark
What the pricing page says (Nov 1, 2026): Standard is $42/month plus $9.50 per user per month. Pro is $63/month plus $11.50 per user per month. Prices are shown in USD per month. The trial runs 14 days with Pro features.Standard lists time and attendance, GPS tracking, job and task tracking, Spanish language support, drag-and-drop scheduling, manager roles and approvals, third-party integrations, draft schedules, and task checklists; its plan description also mentions geofencing. Pro adds paid time off, multi-department controls, advanced job costing controls, and shift wrap-up and compliance forms.
Ask before you buy:- Which accounting integrations are on Standard, and does QuickBooks Online receive time entries or a payroll export?
- How often does GPS record a location while a worker is clocked in?
- If you only need time tracking, do you still pay for the scheduling features in the base fee?
BusyBusy
What the pricing page says (Nov 1, 2026): A Free plan with unlimited users lists GPS time tracking, job costing, and equipment tracking. Pro is $9.99 per user per month billed annually, plus a $40 admin license (first user included). Premium is $14.99 per user per month billed annually on the same admin terms. Pro and Premium have a 14-day trial with no credit card. Annual billing is described as two free months.Pro lists GPS breadcrumbing, supervisor tools, daily sign-offs, photos and notes, scheduling, and a payroll add-on. Premium adds documents, daily project reports, progress tracking, checklists, team messaging, photo and video markup, and Zapier. Offline mode appears in the feature comparison grid.
Ask before you buy:- How exactly does the $40 admin license count against your user total? The page wording leaves room for two readings, so get a written quote for your headcount.
- What is the monthly (not annual) price per user?
- Which plan includes offline mode and the QuickBooks Online connection, and what does the connection send?
Clockify
What the pricing page says (Nov 1, 2026): Free for up to 5 users. Basic is $3.99 per seat per month billed annually ($4.99 monthly). Standard is $5.49 annual ($6.99 monthly). Pro is $7.99 annual ($9.99 monthly). Enterprise is $11.99 annual ($14.99 monthly).Basic adds billable rates, kiosk, breaks, and time audit. Standard adds the QuickBooks integration, approvals, invoicing, time off, and attendance and overtime. Pro adds GPS tracking, scheduling, labor cost and profit, budgets and estimates, and kiosk photo capture.
Ask before you buy:- Clockify is built for many industries. Can you set it up so a field worker picks a job and clocks in quickly on a phone, without a desktop-style timer?
- The QuickBooks integration starts on Standard and GPS starts on Pro. Do you need both, which puts you on Pro?
- What does the QuickBooks integration send, and to which QuickBooks product?
Connecteam
What the pricing page says (Nov 1, 2026): Pricing is split into hubs (Operations, Communications, HR). A Small Business Plan is free for up to 10 users. The Operations hub Basic plan is $29/month billed yearly or $35 monthly for the first 30 users, then $0.80 (yearly) or $1.00 (monthly) per additional user. Advanced is $49 yearly / $59 monthly for the first 30 users; Expert is $99 / $119. The trial is 14 days with no card.Operations Basic lists clock in and out with GPS, unlimited jobs, payroll integration, basic scheduling, and checklists and forms. Advanced adds auto clock-out and up to 10 geofence sites. Expert adds unlimited geofences, API access, and webhooks.
Ask before you buy:- The free plan covers up to 10 users. Do your office users count toward that 10?
- Does the payroll integration on Basic include QuickBooks Online, and does it send time per job or only payroll totals?
- If you also want team chat or HR tools, those are separate hubs with their own prices.
Example Monthly Cost at Three Crew Sizes
The table below is example arithmetic, not a quote. Inputs: the November 1, 2026 list prices above, every field worker counted as one paid user or seat, office users not included, annual-billing prices where a vendor shows both, no promotional discounts. Your real total depends on how each vendor counts admins, foremen, and inactive users.
| Plan | 10 workers | 15 workers | 30 workers | How it is priced |
| QuickBooks Time Premium | $120 | $170 | $320 | $20 base + $10/user, QBO required |
| QuickBooks Time Elite | $160 | $220 | $400 | $40 base + $12/user, QBO required |
| ClockShark Standard | $137 | $184.50 | $327 | $42 base + $9.50/user |
| ClockShark Pro | $178 | $235.50 | $408 | $63 base + $11.50/user |
| BusyBusy Pro | Ask | Ask | Ask | $9.99/user annual + $40 admin license; count unclear |
| Clockify Standard | $54.90 | $82.35 | $164.70 | $5.49/seat annual; QuickBooks integration starts here |
| Clockify Pro | $79.90 | $119.85 | $239.70 | $7.99/seat annual; GPS starts here |
| Connecteam Ops Basic | $29 | $29 | $29 | Flat for first 30 users, yearly; free plan up to 10 users |
Which Kind of Tool Fits Which Shop
| If your shop mostly needs | Look hardest at | Watch for |
| Payroll and time in one Intuit account | QuickBooks Time | Per-user cost as the crew grows; QBO subscription on top |
| Time tracking plus crew scheduling | ClockShark, Connecteam | Paying for scheduling in the base fee if you do not use it |
| Daily reports, photos, equipment | BusyBusy Premium | How the admin license counts; monthly vs. annual price |
| Low cost per seat across many trades | Clockify | Field-crew phone workflow; which tier has QuickBooks and GPS |
| Clean hours plus a written record of the work for T&M customers | Any tool that asks for a note at clock-out and puts it on customer paperwork | Notes that stay buried in an admin screen and never reach the invoice |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best free time tracking app for electrical contractors?
On their pricing pages as of November 1, 2026: BusyBusy has a free plan with unlimited users that lists GPS time tracking and job costing, Connecteam's Small Business Plan is free for up to 10 users, and Clockify is free for up to 5 users. Check which of these includes a QuickBooks connection on the free tier before you count on it; for Clockify, the QuickBooks integration starts on the paid Standard plan.
Do I need a construction-specific time tracking app?
Not always, but test the field workflow. A tool built for office timers can work for a crew if a worker can pick the job and clock in on a phone in a few seconds. It fails when clock-in needs a desktop, a long project list, or a manager to fix every punch. Trade paperwork matters too, such as electrician apprentice hour tracking, which a generic tracker may not support.
Which time tracking app has the best QuickBooks integration?
It depends on what you need QuickBooks to receive. QuickBooks Time is Intuit's own product and requires QuickBooks Online. Clockify lists a QuickBooks integration from its Standard plan. ClockShark, BusyBusy, and Connecteam list accounting or payroll integrations; ask each which QuickBooks product they support, what record type they create, and whether the sync runs automatically or on demand.
How much does time tracking software cost for a 15-person electrical crew?
Using the example inputs above (15 field workers, annual prices, office users excluded): from $29/month on Connecteam Ops Basic to $235.50/month on ClockShark Pro, with QuickBooks Time Premium at $170 plus a QuickBooks Online subscription. Get a written quote for your exact headcount, because admin and foreman seats change the total.
Can my crew use time tracking apps without cell service?
Ask each vendor directly and test it in your worst-signal building. BusyBusy lists offline mode in its feature grid. For every tool, check three things: the punch keeps the real tap time, it uploads without the worker re-entering anything, and you can see which punches came in late.
Is GPS tracking necessary for electrical contractors?
A location point at clock-in and clock-out is useful context when a customer asks whether the crew was there. Continuous tracking and geofences are a bigger commitment that some crews push back on. A location point by itself does not prove what work was done; a written note about the work does more for a disputed T&M invoice. See the time tracking guide for how the pieces fit.
How long does it take to switch time tracking apps?
Plan on one to two pay periods. Run the new app in parallel with your current method for one week, compare the totals, then cut over at the start of a pay period. The hard part is crew habit, not setup, so pick the tool your crew finds fastest on their own phones.
The Bottom Line
There is no single best time tracking app for every electrical contractor. Start with your must-haves (the QuickBooks path you need, how GPS should work, what happens with no signal), find the cheapest plan at each vendor that actually includes them, and run the cost at your real headcount. Then run a two-week trial with your actual crew and look at one thing: could you hand last week's records to a customer and have them understand what they are paying for? A sample billing packet shows what that record can look like.
This guide is published by FieldTimesheet, which also makes a time clock for electrical contractors; its pricing is public if you want to add it to your comparison.