When I Work vs WorkForce Software
time & attendance head-to-head for ERP teams: evidenced capabilities, published pricing, and which ERPs each actually integrates with.
| Starting price | From $2.50/user/mo (published) | Quote-based |
| Deployment | Cloud | Cloud |
| Company size | SMB, Mid-market, Enterprise | Enterprise |
| Stated ERP integrations | QuickBooks | SAP, Oracle Fusion Cloud, Workday |
| Vendor | When I Work | WorkForce Software (an ADP company) |
Our take
Where When I Work leads
- Stronger evidenced coverage on 8 of the 29 capabilities where they differ (led by photo capture at punch and ai-assisted auto-scheduling).
- Published pricing where the alternative quotes.
- Stated QuickBooks integration the alternative doesn't list.
Where WorkForce Software leads
- Stronger evidenced coverage on 21 of the 29 capabilities where they differ (led by dedicated time clock hardware and voice / sms / phone-based time entry).
- Stated SAP, Oracle Fusion Cloud, Workday integration the alternative doesn't list.
Where they differ
The 29 capabilities (of 54 in the time & attendance taxonomy) where the evidence separates them, biggest gaps first. “Not evidenced” means our research found no public documentation of this capability — the vendor may still offer it. Confirm on a demo.
| Capability | ||
|---|---|---|
| Dedicated time clock hardwareTime Capture & Punch Methods | Not evidenced | Core strength Wall-mounted and ruggedized/weatherized time clocks |
| Photo capture at punchTime Capture & Punch Methods | Core strength Photo verification at clock-in to prevent buddy punching | Not evidenced |
| Voice / SMS / phone-based time entryTime Capture & Punch Methods | Not evidenced | Core strength Voice and SMS phone-based time entry |
| Multi-jurisdiction / union pay-rule engineTimesheets & Pay Rules | Not evidenced | Core strength Configurable pay rules and CBA modeling; prebuilt compliance templates for 35+ countries |
| AI-assisted auto-schedulingScheduling | Core strength One-click auto scheduling based on availability and eligibility | Not evidenced |
| Real-time leave balance visibilityLeave & Absence Management | Not evidenced | Core strength Multi-format balance tracking (hours, days, weeks, currency); mobile balance viewing |
| Statutory / FMLA-type leave complianceLeave & Absence Management | Not evidenced | Core strength Automatic leave eligibility determination with continuous regulatory monitoring |
| Multi-country labor law coverageCompliance & Labor Law | Not evidenced | Core strength Prebuilt compliance templates for 35+ countries, support for 100+ nations |
| Union / collective bargaining agreement supportCompliance & Labor Law | Not evidenced | Core strength Collective bargaining agreement modeling |
| Team messaging / shift communicationEmployee Experience | Core strength WorkChat one-on-one, group and all-staff messaging | Not evidenced |
| Kiosk / shared-device clock-inTime Capture & Punch Methods | Not evidenced | Supported Wall-mounted time clocks |
| GeofencingLocation & Fraud Prevention | Core strength Blocks early or off-site clock-ins | Partial Geolocation capture documented; explicit geofence boundary enforcement not detailed |
| Buddy-punching prevention controlsLocation & Fraud Prevention | Core strength Photo verification at clock-in explicitly to prevent buddy punching | Partial Employee attestation for time and labor accuracy; no dedicated biometric/photo check documented |
| Timesheet submission & approval workflowTimesheets & Pay Rules | Partial Edit logs on digital timesheets imply review; no explicit approval workflow documented | Core strength Timesheet submission and open-timesheet-by-approver reporting |
| PTO accrual trackingLeave & Absence Management | Partial Time-off request submission documented; accrual-rule handling not detailed | Core strength Balance handling for prorations, carryovers, transfers and grandfather rules |
| Predictive scheduling / Fair Workweek complianceCompliance & Labor Law | Not evidenced | Supported Compliance-driven scheduling enforcing work-hour limits and rest periods |
| Custom report builderWorkforce Analytics & Reporting | Not evidenced | Supported Customizable dashboards by region or department |
| AI-driven benchmarking or anomaly insightsWorkforce Analytics & Reporting | Not evidenced | Supported Burnout-risk identification from long-hours and rest-pattern monitoring; demand anomaly handling |
| SSO & identity provisioningPlatform & Integrations | Supported SAML/SSO on the Premium plan | Not evidenced |
| ERP general ledger postingPlatform & Integrations | Not evidenced | Supported Bi-directional certified integration with SAP, Oracle and Workday as a Global Technology Partner |
| Demand-based / forecasted schedulingScheduling | Supported Custom unit forecasting (Pro and Premium plans) | Core strength Demand-driven scheduling using historical sales/traffic data and KPIs |
| Multi-location / multi-department schedulingScheduling | Core strength Multi-location and multi-week scheduling | Supported Segmentation by department, area or product line |
| Absence & attendance analyticsLeave & Absence Management | Supported 24-hour callout reporting (Pro and Premium plans) | Core strength Geographic mapping of absence impact; compliance document generation and audit trail |
| Job / task / project cost codingLabor Costing & Job Tracking | Supported Labor cost reporting by job, role or location | Core strength Unlimited labor distribution across cost centers, departments and projects |
| Multi-department / cost-center allocationLabor Costing & Job Tracking | Supported Labor cost reporting by job, role or location | Core strength Unlimited labor distribution across cost centers, departments and projects |
| Meal & rest break enforcementCompliance & Labor Law | Supported Scheduling around required breaks | Core strength Compliance-driven scheduling enforcing work-hour limits, breaks and rest periods |
| Audit trail & policy-violation logsCompliance & Labor Law | Supported Digital timesheets with edit logs | Core strength Audit trails from time capture through payroll |
| Labor cost dashboardsWorkforce Analytics & Reporting | Supported | Core strength Customizable dashboards, heat maps and bar-chart visualizations |
| iPaaS / prebuilt third-party connectivityPlatform & Integrations | Core strength Zapier plus a wide native HR/payroll integration roster | Supported Global Technology Partner integrations with SAP, Oracle and Workday |
Both grade identically on the other 25 capabilities — see each product's full profile: When I Work, WorkForce Software.
When I Work vs WorkForce Software — FAQs
Is When I Work or WorkForce Software better for ERP integration?
They state different ERP coverage: When I Work lists QuickBooks; WorkForce Software lists SAP, Oracle Fusion Cloud, Workday.
Which is cheaper, When I Work or WorkForce Software?
When I Work publishes a starting rate ($2.5/user/mo); WorkForce Software prices by quote, so a like-for-like number requires asking both.
Get pricing for both
Tell us your ERP, seat count and must-haves and we'll come back with an independent view of what When I Work and WorkForce Software should each cost you — and whether a third option belongs on your shortlist.