Fingerprint time clock pros and cons

If you are a small business looking for a time clock, using a fingerprint time clock is still a very popular choice.

I won't go into detail about different types and models, as they all do basically the same thing. That is, employees place a finger on a sensor to record a timestamp.

That's all there is to it.

How do we know? Webtimeclock has been selling fingerprint time clocks for years, we have customers using them every day. You can see them here.

The fact you may be looking to use a fingerprint time clock, you probably have one primary purpose in mind. You want to prevent any chance of buddy punching (also known as time theft).

If that is true, keep reading, here are a few pros and cons to consider.

The pros of using a fingerprint time clock

• They prevent buddy punching.
• Are generally less expensive compared to facial, voice, iris, or other types of biometric clocks.
• Employees typically clock by placing a finger, but some clocks may require a PIN or badge as confirmation.
• Fingerprints are not photo images, they are a mathematical equivalent known as a template. You can't print out each fingerprint.
• Most clocks, but not all, will save punch data in its memory.

The cons of using a fingerprint time clock

• Depending on the quality of the finger sensor, not all employee fingerprints will be recognized.
• Works best when employee fingers are clean. May not work well when fingers are dirty or greasy.
• Some employees may be opposed to the notion. To them, it may be a violation of their personal information.
• Some states have strict laws. If you operate in Illinois as an example, be extra careful to abide by their laws, otherwise you could be fined heavily for violations.
• It may show employees you don't trust them.

General suggestions

Like with most products you buy, the more you spend on a fingerprint time clock, the better the quality. The more expensive clocks have better components including the finger sensor itself, meaning better accuracy, more features, and a wider range of employees being able to use it.

Make sure you mount the fingerprint time clock to a wall to prevent someone from walking away with it, and to keep it stable as employees clock in. If you can't, be sure to always monitor as it's being used.

If you use time clock software, make sure the clock you are purchasing is supported. For example, many inexpensive fingerprint time clocks out of China do not support time clock software at all. With these, all you can do is download the punches and insert them into a spreadsheet.

Conclusion

Despite the cons, using a fingerprint time clock can be an effective way to capture employee time for payroll.

The advantage with us is your fingerprint time clock will sync with our web-based time clock software.

And... it comes with a free 15-day trial.