10 Best Employee Whereabouts Tracking Apps & Systems (2025)

Below are the 10 strongest GPS and indoor-positioning solutions you can deploy in 2025 to see exactly where your people are, keep them safe, and stay compliant with U.S. privacy law. From the moment a driver pulls out of the yard to the second a technician enters a client site, these tools provide the visibility and proof you need to run a tighter, safer operation.

To save you hours of research, we stacked rugged push-to-talk radios, smartphone apps, ultra-wideband RTLS tags, and fleet telematics systems against the same yardstick. Accuracy, uptime, ease of rollout, scalability, total cost, and industry fit were weighted heavily so you can compare apples to apples. We also noted privacy controls—think on-shift-only tracking and configurable data retention—because transparency matters as much as technology. Each summary below highlights the standout features, real-world use cases, and gotchas you’ll want to know before committing.

Let’s dive straight into the list, starting with the option that delivers voice plus live GPS in one rugged device. Grab a notebook or forward this guide to your safety team; the right match is pages away.

1. PeakPTT — Rugged Push-to-Talk Radios With Built-In GPS Tracking

If you’d rather hand crews one purpose-built device than ask them to juggle a phone, time-clock app, and two-way radio, PeakPTT is the straight-shot solution. The company’s nationwide push-to-talk radios double as live GPS beacons, giving dispatchers a bird’s-eye view of every unit without sacrificing the instant voice comms field teams rely on. Think of it as employee whereabouts tracking plus mission-critical audio rolled into a single, glove-friendly handset.

Key GPS & Safety Capabilities

• 60-second location pings viewable on the cloud portal or PC dispatch console
• Historical breadcrumb playback with exportable CSV and KML reports
• Dedicated orange panic button that sends GPS, user ID, and an audible alarm in < 2 seconds
• Optional man-down sensor triggers when the radio is tilted or motionless beyond a threshold

How the System Works

Radios connect over 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, or any available data network, so there’s no need to buy or maintain repeaters. Press-to-talk latency is typically under one second, even coast-to-coast, thanks to encrypted VoIP routing. GPS data streams in parallel; supervisors simply log in to the web dashboard to watch units move in real time, drill into a single track, or rewind the day for proof of service.

Ideal Industries & Real-World Use Cases

Construction foremen tracking subcontractors hopping between job sites.
Logistics managers who need voice and live location in the cab without DOT-defying phone fiddling.
Campus security teams running covert ear-bud setups during events yet still wanting an SOS button every guard can reach blindfolded.

Pricing, Hardware & Scalability

PeakPTT sells and leases handsets, from entry-level models to IP67 ultra-rugged radios built to survive a ten-foot drop. Airtime is a fixed monthly fee—no long-term contracts, no per-minute gotchas. Add or deactivate devices any time, making the system as comfortable for a five-truck fleet as it is for a 5,000-employee utility.

Pros, Cons & Stand-Out Reason to Choose It

Pros

• All-in-one hardware: voice, GPS, man-down, and panic in one device
• Military-grade durability with 24/7 U.S. tech support and a 45-day money-back guarantee
• Nationwide coverage without infrastructure headaches

Cons

• Requires issuing dedicated radios; not a payroll or scheduling app
• GPS refreshes every 60 seconds, not sub-second like UWB systems indoors

Stand-Out
PeakPTT uniquely marries instant voice and dependable employee whereabouts tracking in a single buttoned device—ideal for high-risk field operations where seconds and situational awareness mean safety.

2. Connecteam — All-In-One Workforce App With Live GPS Map

If your crews already carry smartphones and you’d rather not add another gadget to their pockets, Connecteam rolls scheduling, chat, task management, and employee whereabouts tracking into one slick mobile HQ. The cloud dashboard gives managers the same “single-pane” visibility you’d expect from high-end dispatch software—without the hardware bill. Because GPS ties directly to the time clock and shifts, location data stays relevant, not creepy, helping you stay on the right side of both morale and the law.

Live GPS & Geofencing Features

• Real-time map shows every on-shift employee, color-coded by job or team
• Automatic location sampling starts at clock-in and stops at clock-out, conserving battery
• Geofence rules remind users to punch in/out or block punches outside approved zones
• Breadcrumb history lets supervisors verify site visits and service windows

Broader Operational Toolkit

Beyond location tracking, Connecteam packs the operational Swiss-army knife many SMBs crave:

• Drag-and-drop scheduling with shift swaps and open-shift bidding
• Mobile checklists, forms, and digital signatures to capture job-site proof
• Built-in chat channels organized by team or project—no more WhatsApp chaos
• In-app training modules for SOPs, safety videos, and quizzes

Privacy & Compliance Controls

Transparency is baked in: employees opt-in during onboarding and see a banner when tracking is active. Admins can:

• Limit GPS collection strictly to scheduled hours
• Choose data-retention windows (e.g., auto-purge after 90 days)
• Export location logs for wage-and-hour or OSHA audits without exposing off-shift movement

Pricing & Best-Fit Businesses

Connecteam’s Free plan covers up to 10 users with core time clock and chat features. Paid tiers start at a small per-user monthly fee and unlock advanced scheduling, forms, and HR modules. Because everything rides on iOS or Android, the app shines for multi-site retail, hospitality, and service operations that need an all-in-one command center—not just dots on a map—while keeping tech overhead low.

3. Timeero — GPS Time, Mileage & Route Replay

Timeero focuses on the nitty-gritty details that drive payroll accuracy and mileage reimbursement. Instead of just dropping a pin on a live map, the mobile app records every leg of an employee’s day and lines up each GPS point with a time entry and odometer reading. That tight coupling turns Timeero into a trusty sidekick for finance and operations teams that need airtight employee whereabouts tracking without drowning in admin work.

Whereabouts Tracking Mechanics

• One-tap clock-in automatically logs a GPS coordinate and device timestamp
• Breadcrumb trail every 2–10 minutes (admin-selectable) builds a turn-by-turn route
• Offline mode caches location data and syncs the moment coverage returns
• Admin dashboard shows active, paused, and off-shift users in real time

Because location collection starts and stops with the time clock, Timeero minimizes battery drain and addresses privacy concerns—employees aren’t tracked after hours, period.

Route Replay & Audit Protection

Need to prove a technician actually arrived at 9:02 AM or settle a client dispute about service windows? Timeero’s Route Replay lets managers watch a 3-second animation of the entire shift, complete with speed, distance, and stops. Each route is exportable to CSV or KML for IRS, DOL, or client audits. Pair that with photo attachments and job notes, and you have a defensible paper trail that beats “he-said-she-said” scenarios.

Ideal Use Cases & Pricing

• Field sales reps driving between customer sites
• Home-health nurses logging mileage for Medicare compliance
• Subcontractors and gig teams paid by the hour and mile

Pricing is straightforward: a per-user monthly fee covers GPS time tracking, while an optional mileage add-on auto-calculates reimbursements using the current IRS rate ($0.67 per mile in 2025). New accounts get a 14-day free trial—no credit card required—so you can test route accuracy before rolling it out company-wide.

4. Buddy Punch — Simple Punch Clock With GPS & Photo Verification

Need a no-fuss way to know who’s on the clock and where they’re standing when they start the shift? Buddy Punch strips employee whereabouts tracking down to brass tacks: a clean mobile or web punch clock that tags every time entry with location data and, if you like, a selfie. It was built to stop “buddy punching” without burying small teams in features they’ll never use, which is why thousands of businesses under 100 heads lean on it as their first digital time solution.

Location & Identity Verification

• GPS tagging captures latitude/longitude at the second of punch; managers view pins on a live map.
• Optional IP restrictions lock web punches to an office network, perfect for hybrid teams.
• Photo-on-punch snaps a quick webcam or phone selfie, adding a visual audit trail.
• Geofenced “punch zones” prevent clock-ins outside approved job sites—no more clocking in from the parking lot.

Taken together, these controls make it nearly impossible for an employee to punch in for a co-worker or misreport their start time.

Scheduling & Payroll Exports

Buddy Punch isn’t just a punch button. The drag-and-drop schedule builder lets managers assign shifts, color-code roles, and push alerts when a slot changes. Overtime warnings pop up before budgets blow. When payroll day rolls around, one click exports hours to QuickBooks, ADP, Gusto, or a standard CSV—saving finance from manual re-entry and formula mishaps.

Best For

Small to midsize businesses that need bulletproof time stamps but don’t want to pay enterprise prices for route replay or mileage. Think medical offices, landscaping crews, local retailers, and franchise restaurants where face-to-face verification matters more than second-by-second tracking. Rollout takes about 15 minutes, and employees only need a phone or shared kiosk to punch, making Buddy Punch an easy gateway into digital attendance and lightweight employee whereabouts tracking.

5. Jibble — Forever-Free GPS Tracking for Unlimited Users

Shoestring budget? Jibble lets you clock in an entire workforce—five employees or five thousand—without ever pulling out a credit card. The forever-free tier covers core time and attendance plus mobile GPS stamping, making it a low-risk gateway into employee whereabouts tracking for nonprofits, franchises, and hyper-growth startups that can’t justify per-seat fees yet.

Free Plan Functionality

• Mobile punches tag latitude/longitude and device time; managers view live pins and daily maps.
• Geofence rules block or remind staff when they try to clock in outside job-site boundaries.
• Automatic timesheets roll hours, breaks, and PTO into exportable Excel or CSV files.
• Web, iOS, and Android apps sync in real time, so office staff and field teams live under one roof.

Premium Add-Ons

Need more horsepower later? Upgrading unlocks:

1. Overtime and shift differential automation—handy for complying with state wage laws.
2. Project and activity tracking to break hours down by client or cost code.
3. Facial-recognition kiosk that turns any tablet into a clock-in terminal; Jibble’s AI compares live selfies to stored templates for buddy-punch prevention.
4. Payroll integrations with Xero, QuickBooks Online, and Gusto.

Pros & Drawbacks

Pros

• Zero-dollar entry with unlimited active users—rare in the time-tracking space.
• Clean UI and one-tap onboarding; most teams go live in under 30 minutes.
• GDPR-compliant data policies and admin-set retention periods support privacy transparency.

Drawbacks

• GPS points log only at punch events, not continuous breadcrumbs, so route history is limited.
• No built-in mileage reimbursement or dispatch functions; you’ll need another app for those.

If you simply need proof that staff showed up where and when they said they did—and you’d like that proof for free—Jibble is as no-brainer as it gets.

6. busybusy — Construction-Focused GPS Time Tracking

Concrete doesn’t wait for Wi-Fi, and neither do crews using busybusy. Built by former contractors, the mobile app zeroes in on the realities of dirt, rebar, and spotty cell coverage: simple clock-ins, automatic job-cost coding, and reliable GPS breadcrumbs—even miles from the nearest tower. If you’re juggling change orders, equipment rentals, and certified payroll, busybusy keeps the paperwork flowing while your people keep building.

Construction-Specific Toolkit

• Project, phase, and cost-code selectors appear at clock-in so labor is tagged correctly from the start.
• Attach site photos, safety checklists, and daily reports right inside the shift log.
• Equipment tracking logs which operator ran which machine and for how long, giving accounting the data it needs to bill accurately.

Offline Mode & Durability Tips

busybusy’s app stores punches and location pings locally when signal drops, then syncs the moment a bar appears. That means back-country utility work or basement remodels still generate a complete breadcrumb trail. The company even publishes recommended rugged phone cases and screen protectors—small touches field managers appreciate when phones double as time clocks.

Plans & Compliance Extras

• Free Basic tier covers GPS time cards, photo uploads, and unlimited projects.
• Pro plan (per active user) unlocks cost-code budgets, equipment tracking, and advanced reports.
• Premium layer adds Davis-Bacon, OSHA, and certified payroll exports—critical for government contracts.

Because location tracking is tied to the time clock, busybusy satisfies privacy expectations while giving GCs the granular data they need for bids and audits. For contractors who’ve outgrown paper timesheets but aren’t ready to hand everyone a dedicated device, this construction-minded app nails the balance between field-rugged practicality and office-grade reporting.

7. Hubstaff — GPS Location + Productivity Monitoring

Some organizations need more than just dots on a map—they also want to know how long technicians spent at a site and what happened when they returned to the laptop. Hubstaff blends field‐ready GPS tracking with desktop productivity analytics, giving distributed companies a 360-degree view of time, place, and output in a single dashboard. Think of it as employee whereabouts tracking married to lightweight workforce analytics that works just as well for coders in coffee shops as for crews in company vans.

GPS & Geofence Automation

• iOS and Android apps auto-start a time entry the moment an employee walks into a geofenced job site and stop it once they leave—no forgotten punches.
• Live map shows active, idle, and offline workers; pins expand to reveal client, project, and total hours logged.
• Breadcrumb history and route visualizations help managers verify mileage, optimize dispatch routes, or double-check billable time.
• Custom job budget alerts pop when labor or travel time approaches client thresholds, keeping projects profitable.

Productivity Measurement

• Optional screenshots at user-defined intervals (e.g., every 10 minutes) capture real work without drowning managers in images.
• App and URL tracking lists the tools each employee used, along with an “activity percentage” based on keyboard and mouse input.
• Idle-time detection prompts employees to keep or discard inactive minutes, preventing accidental over-billing.
• Over 40 integrations—including Jira, Trello, QuickBooks, and Asana—push tracked time directly into project boards or invoices, removing double entry.

Legal/Ethical Best Practices

• Hubstaff requires explicit opt-in during onboarding and flashes a live timer when tracking is active, so no one is in the dark.
• Admins can disable screenshots, blur captures, or limit GPS collection to scheduled hours to satisfy varying privacy laws.
• Role-based permissions ensure only authorized staff see location or screen data, and retention rules let you auto-purge visuals after a set period.
• For union or EU teams, written policies backed by Hubstaff’s GDPR compliance docs and at-rest encryption help demonstrate good-faith data stewardship.

By combining site-aware GPS automation with configurable productivity tools, Hubstaff suits consultancies, agencies, and field service companies that bill by the hour and outcome—not just presence. If you need to prove both where and what your team worked on, it’s hard to beat this all-in-one approach.

8. Where’s My Staff — Hybrid NFC Check-Points + GPS

When clock-in apps aren’t precise enough indoors and full-blown RTLS is overkill, Where’s My Staff lands squarely in the sweet spot. The mobile platform pairs low-cost NFC tags with standard smartphone GPS to create a two-layer safety net: tap a tag to prove you were inside the building, let GPS fill in the gaps between stops. Because the system lives entirely on Android and iOS, companies can launch a location-audit program in an afternoon—no servers, no proprietary scanners, no headache.

Dual-Mode Tracking

• NFC Check-Points: Stick inexpensive NFC stickers on doors, equipment rooms, or retail end-caps. Employees tap with their phone; the app logs user ID, tag ID, timestamp, and indoor location in one shot.
• GPS Breadcrumbs: Between taps, background GPS pings record outdoor movement, giving managers real-time “last known” positions.
• Live Dashboard: A web console shows the most recent tag scanned, current GPS point, and missed check-ins, so supervisors can intervene before small lapses become compliance issues.

Typical Deployments

• Janitorial or security rounds that require proof every floor was visited.
• Multi-unit retail audits where regional managers must validate in-store merchandising.
• Facility-management teams logging equipment inspections without lugging extra hardware.

Pricing Model

Where’s My Staff charges per location—not per employee—making it cost-effective for high-turnover industries. One flat annual license unlocks unlimited users, tags, and cloud storage. The app supports Android and iOS; older iPhones without native NFC can scan a printed QR code instead, ensuring zero staff are left out of the loop.

9. Sewio RTLS — Ultra-Wideband Indoor Positioning for Factories

Forklifts, cranes, and foot traffic rarely play nicely together. When the goal is sub-meter accuracy inside a metal-packed facility, GPS simply can’t keep up. Sewio’s Ultra-Wideband (UWB) real-time locating system turns every badge, hard-hat tag, or pallet tracker into a high-frequency beacon that triangulates in milliseconds—even through concrete and steel. For operations managers chasing OSHA zero-incident goals or Lean engineers mapping bottlenecks, Sewio delivers industrial-grade employee whereabouts tracking where consumer apps tap out.

UWB Precision & Coverage

• Anchor antennas mounted on ceilings or beams listen for 8–10 GHz UWB pulses and pinpoint tags to roughly 30 cm (≈ 1 ft)—tight enough to see which side of a conveyor someone is standing on.
• Refresh rates up to 50 Hz let dashboards show movement almost in real time, not the 30–60 second blips common with Wi-Fi or Bluetooth beacons.
• Because UWB signals hop across nanosecond-length pulses, they shrug off multipath reflections that cripple RFID and BLE in echo-prone warehouses.
• Heat-map and spaghetti-diagram tools visualize high-traffic lanes, idle zones, and cross-path conflicts, letting CI teams redesign floor plans with data, not gut feel.

Safety & Efficiency Modules

• Collision Avoidance: When two tagged objects—say a worker and a reach truck—enter a defined risk bubble, both parties get audible or wearable alerts.
• Emergency Mustering: Pull a fire alarm and the UI shows who is still inside each zone and the fastest egress route, shaving minutes off headcounts.
• Workflow Analytics: APIs push dwell time, queue length, and travel distance directly into MES or WMS platforms, automating OEE and labor-cost KPIs.
• Zone-based Access Control: Virtual fences lock out unauthorized personnel from hazardous areas without expensive physical barriers.

Implementation & Cost Considerations

Rolling out Sewio is a capital project, not a lunch-break app install. Expect to deploy:

1. Ceiling anchors every 50–80 ft for line-of-sight coverage.
2. Power-over-Ethernet switches or industrial Wi-Fi for backhaul.
3. Wearable or vehicle-mounted UWB tags (battery life 3–5 years).

Licensing is site-based plus tag count; ROI typically hinges on reduced accidents, faster root-cause analyses, and labor optimization. For factories, distribution centers, and chemical plants where safety margins are razor-thin, Sewio’s centimeter-level accuracy turns employee whereabouts tracking into a strategic, life-saving asset rather than a compliance checkbox.

10. Samsara Fleet GPS — Vehicle & Driver Whereabouts Combined

When you manage dozens—or hundreds—of rolling assets, tracking the person behind the wheel matters as much as tracking the truck itself. Samsara fuses hard-wired vehicle telematics with driver mobile apps, AI dash cams, and compliance modules so you see every mile, minute, and safety event in one portal. The platform reads engine data straight off the CAN bus, layers on real-time driver GPS, and even streams road-facing video, turning routine employee whereabouts tracking into a granular fleet-performance dashboard.

Integrated Fleet & Personnel Tracking

• Dual-view live map places vehicles and driver handhelds on the same screen; hover over a pin to see speed, ETA, duty status, and HOS remaining.
• Engine Control Module (ECM) taps pull odometer, fault codes, and fuel-burn metrics without extra sensors.
• Electronic Logging Device (ELD) compliance is automatic—drivers log duty changes on the Samsara Driver App, while admins get violation alerts before fines stack up.
• Maintenance workflows trigger when diagnostics cross thresholds, auto-generating work orders so shops can schedule repairs before breakdowns strand freight.

AI Dash-Cam Safety Layer

• Forward- and driver-facing HD cameras record continuously and auto-bookmark harsh braking, speeding, or cell-phone usage events detected via accelerometer + computer vision.
• Event clips arrive at the dashboard within seconds, synced to GPS coordinates and vehicle telemetry for full context.
• In-cab voice coaching calls out tailgating or lane-drift in real time, reducing risky behavior before it becomes an accident.
• Safety scores roll up per driver, route, and terminal—handy for coaching programs and insurance negotiations.

Pricing & Best-Fit Users

Samsara sells the gear (OBD/9-pin gateway, cameras, asset trackers) at a one-time cost, then layers a per-device SaaS subscription that covers cellular data, cloud storage, and 24/7 support. Volume discounts kick in around 50 units. The system shines for:

• Long-haul carriers needing bullet-proof ELD and CSA compliance
• Last-mile and parcel operators chasing tighter ETAs and customer live-tracking links
• Private fleets hauling food, fuel, or hazmat where safety footage and temperature-probe add-ons can avert costly claims

If you want a telematics stack that marries GPS, driver behavior, compliance, and video evidence without juggling vendors, Samsara puts it all in one cab-friendly ecosystem.

Key Takeaways & Next Steps

No single tool owns every use-case. Rugged push-to-talk radios like PeakPTT nail voice + live GPS for crews in hard hats; smartphone suites such as Connecteam and busybusy blend scheduling with on-shift location pings; UWB systems (Sewio) deliver sub-foot accuracy indoors; and fleet platforms like Samsara wrap vehicles, drivers, and dash cams into one map.

Before you pick, jot down the non-negotiables for your operation:

• Voice communication or just dots on a screen?
• Continuous breadcrumbs, geofenced punches, or centimeter-level indoor tracking?
• Extras like mileage, man-down alerts, payroll exports, or ELD compliance?
• Hardware budget vs. per-user SaaS fees.

Match that list to the ten options above and you’ll trim the field fast. Most vendors let you trial the software or borrow hardware, so there’s little risk in running a head-to-head test.

Ready to see instant voice and GPS in action? Book a free PeakPTT demo or start a seven-day trial and put rugged radios to the test with your own team.