How to Switch Time Clock Software: A Step-by-Step Plan for the New Year
Quick Answer
To switch time clock software, pick a go-live date at the start of a pay period, export employee lists, pay rates, PTO balances and historical time records from the old system, set up the new system with the same workweek, overtime rules and pay periods, test a payroll export, run both systems side by side for one pay period if you can, train employees on clocking in and then turn off the old system. Keep old time records for as long as recordkeeping rules require.
The new year is when many businesses finally replace a time clock that's been frustrating them for months. Maybe employees forget to punch on a clunky app, managers spend hours fixing timesheets, payroll export never quite works or the price went up again. January feels like a clean starting line: new pay year, new PTO year, new budget.
The worry is payroll. Switch time clock software the wrong way and you risk missing hours, lost PTO balances or a payroll run nobody trusts. Switch it the right way and most employees barely notice, except that clocking in gets easier. This guide walks through how to switch time clock software step by step, with a free checklist, so your first payroll on the new system is clean.
Signs It's Time to Switch
- Managers fix timesheets every pay period because of missed punches and errors.
- Payroll export doesn't match your payroll provider without manual cleanup.
- Overtime surprises show up only after payroll runs.
- Employees struggle to clock in on the app, kiosk or browser.
- You pay for features you don't use, or pay extra for ones you need, like GPS or scheduling.
- PTO is tracked somewhere else, like a spreadsheet, and never matches.
- Support is slow or hard to reach.
See finding the best online time clock and compare employee time clock features.
Free Time Clock Switch Checklist
Time Clock Switch Checklist
Old system: __________ | New system: __________ | Go-live date: ______ | Project owner: __________
| Step | Owner | Due | Done |
|---|---|---|---|
| Choose go-live date at start of a pay period | ☐ | ||
| Check old contract cancellation terms | ☐ | ||
| Export employee list, pay rates and departments | ☐ | ||
| Export PTO balances as of the cutover date | ☐ | ||
| Export and save historical time records | ☐ | ||
| Set workweek, pay periods and overtime rules | ☐ | ||
| Set up locations, jobs, GPS or kiosk | ☐ | ||
| Add employees and send invites | ☐ | ||
| Enter PTO balances and policies | ☐ | ||
| Test payroll export with your payroll provider | ☐ | ||
| Train managers and employees | ☐ | ||
| Run parallel pay period (if possible) | ☐ | ||
| Turn off old system after final payroll | ☐ |
Step 1: Pick the Right Go-Live Date
Start the new time clock on the first day of a pay period, and ideally the first day of a workweek. Switching mid-period means splitting one pay period across two systems, which is where hours get lost. January 1 is popular, but it's also a holiday and often falls mid-week. The first full pay period of the year is usually a better choice. Avoid switching during your busiest week. See the 2027 payroll calendar.
| Go-live option | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| January 1 | Clean calendar-year start | Holiday; may fall mid-week and mid-pay period |
| First pay period start in January | Clean payroll cutover | Slightly after the new year |
| Start of a quiet month | Less disruption | Splits the year across systems |
Step 2: Check Your Old Contract
Before you commit, check how and when you can cancel the old system. Some time clock contracts renew annually or require notice. Note the last day you'll have access, because you need time to export records before it shuts off. Don't cancel until the new system has run at least one clean payroll.
Step 3: Export Everything You Need
Export data from the old system before you set up the new one. You'll need it for setup and for your records.
| Data | Why you need it | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Employee list with IDs, emails, phone numbers | Set up users | CSV or Excel |
| Pay rates, departments, locations, jobs | Accurate gross pay and costing | CSV or Excel |
| PTO balances by type | Carry balances forward | CSV, Excel or report |
| Historical timesheets and punches | Recordkeeping and disputes | PDF and CSV |
| Overtime and pay period settings | Recreate rules | Screenshot or notes |
| Approval history and edits | Audit trail | PDF or CSV |
Under federal law, employers must keep records of hours worked each day and each workweek for non-exempt employees. The DOL says payroll records should be kept for at least three years and time cards for two. Save exports somewhere safe and backed up, not just in the old system that you're about to cancel.
Step 4: Set Up the Basics Before Adding Employees
- Workweek: use the same workweek start day as before, unless you have a reason to change it. See how to set your workweek.
- Pay periods: weekly, biweekly, semimonthly or monthly, matching your payroll provider.
- Overtime rules: weekly, daily or state-specific, such as California's daily overtime.
- Rounding and breaks: match your current policy or improve it. See time clock rounding.
- Locations and jobs: for GPS, geofences and job costing.
- Clock-in methods: mobile app, browser, kiosk or a mix.
Step 5: Add Employees and Pay Rates
Import employees from your export instead of typing them in. Double-check pay rates, hourly vs. salaried status, departments and managers. Salaried exempt employees may only need PTO tracking, while hourly employees need full time tracking and overtime. A mistake here flows straight into payroll, so have someone review the list before you invite employees.
Step 6: Move PTO Balances
PTO balances are where switches most often go wrong. Pick a cutover date, usually the last day of the final pay period in the old system, and record every employee's balance by type as of that date. Enter those balances as starting balances in the new system, then check a sample against the old report. If your PTO year resets on January 1, decide whether you're entering balances before or after the reset. See year-end PTO and PTO accrual.
| Employee | PTO type | Balance in old system | Balance entered | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ☐ | ||||
| ☐ | ||||
| ☐ |
Step 7: Test Payroll Export
Before go-live, create a few test time entries and run a payroll export to your provider, such as Gusto, ADP or Paychex. Make sure employee IDs match, regular and overtime hours land in the right columns and PTO comes through correctly. Fixing the export now is much easier than fixing it the night before payroll is due. See time and scheduling apps with payroll export.
Step 8: Train Managers and Employees
Most employees need five minutes of training: how to clock in and out, take breaks, request time off and check their hours. Managers need a little more: approving timesheets, fixing missed punches, reading overtime alerts and running the payroll export.
- Send a short announcement a week before go-live with the date and why you're switching.
- Share a one-page how-to with screenshots.
- Hold a 15-minute demo at a team meeting or shift start.
- Have employees log in before go-live to confirm their accounts work.
- Name a go-to person for questions the first week.
Sample announcement: Starting [date], we're moving to a new time clock. You'll clock in and out on your phone, a browser or the kiosk at [location], and you can request time off and check your hours in the same app. Look for your invite email this week and log in before [date]. Questions? Ask [name].
See how to communicate change to employees.
Step 9: Run Both Systems in Parallel (If You Can)
For extra safety, have employees clock in on both systems for one pay period, then compare totals. Parallel runs catch setup errors like wrong overtime rules or missing employees before they affect pay. If double-punching isn't practical, have managers compare the first week's totals in the new system against schedules and spot-check a few employees closely.
Step 10: Review the First Payroll Carefully
- Check that every employee has hours or PTO for the period.
- Look for missed punches and fix them before approval.
- Compare overtime with what managers expected.
- Confirm PTO used and balances look right.
- Run the export and compare totals to the timesheet report.
- Ask employees to check their first pay stub.
See how to audit timesheets and timecard approval.
Step 11: Turn Off the Old System
After the first clean payroll, and after you've saved every export you need, cancel the old system. Remove the old app from shared devices and kiosks so nobody clocks in on the wrong one, and update any posters or instructions at your locations.
How Long Does a Switch Take?
| Business size | Typical timeline |
|---|---|
| 1–10 employees | A few days to a week |
| 10–50 employees | One to two weeks |
| 50+ employees or multiple locations | Two to four weeks, with a parallel run |
The setup itself is often quick. Most of the time goes to collecting data, testing payroll export and getting every employee logged in.
What to Look for in the New System
- Clock-in options that fit your team: mobile, browser, kiosk and GPS.
- Overtime tracking for your state, including daily overtime where required.
- PTO tracking in the same system.
- Scheduling connected to time tracking.
- Manager approvals and an audit log of edits.
- Payroll-ready export to your provider.
- Month-to-month pricing with no setup fees.
- Real human support.
See what software companies use for time tracking.
Example: A Landscaping Company
A landscaping company with 22 employees had used a time clock app that didn't handle GPS well and required manual payroll cleanup. The owner picked the first biweekly pay period in January as go-live, exported employees, pay rates and PTO balances in December, set up job sites and overtime rules and tested a payroll export to Gusto. Crew leads ran both apps for one week. The first payroll took 20 minutes to approve instead of the usual two hours, and the old system was cancelled at the end of January.
Common Mistakes
- Switching mid-pay period.
- Cancelling the old system before exporting records.
- Forgetting PTO balances.
- Not testing payroll export before go-live.
- Different overtime rules in the new system.
- Skipping employee training.
- Leaving the old app on kiosks and phones.
Switching From Paper Time Cards or Spreadsheets
If you're moving from paper time cards or a spreadsheet instead of another app, the steps are the same but simpler. There's no old contract to cancel, but you still need a clean go-live date, every employee's pay rate and PTO balance and a plan for storing the old paper or files for as long as recordkeeping rules require. Expect employees to need a little more help the first week, since clocking in on a phone or kiosk is new. See alternatives to paper time cards.
Setting Up Scheduling at the Same Time
If your new time clock includes scheduling, consider moving schedules over at the same time. When schedules and punches live in one system, managers can see late arrivals, early clock-ins and unscheduled overtime as they happen instead of after payroll. Build the first two weeks of schedules in the new system before go-live so employees see their shifts in the app on day one. See scheduling software for small business.
Who Should Own the Switch
Name one person to own the project: usually the office manager, payroll administrator or operations manager. They collect data, coordinate with the payroll provider, set up the system and answer questions in the first week. In a very small business, that's the owner. Give them a short checklist, a go-live date and a couple of hours a week for the month before the switch.
After the Switch: The First 30 Days
Check in with managers weekly for the first month. Look at missed punches, overtime alerts and how long approvals take, and ask employees what's confusing. Small setup fixes in the first month, like a geofence that's too tight or a break rule that's off, keep employees confident in the new system and make every payroll after that faster.
Keep a Switch Log
Write down every setting you chose and every issue you fixed during the switch. It helps when a question comes up months later and when you train new managers.
Final Thoughts
Switching time clock software at the start of the year doesn't have to put payroll at risk. Pick a go-live date at the start of a pay period, export everything before you cancel, set up workweek, pay periods and overtime rules first, move PTO balances carefully, test payroll export, train your team and review the first payroll closely. A week of planning turns the switch into an upgrade employees and managers notice for the right reasons.
Switch to Updoot's Time Clock
Updoot's employee time clock includes GPS, photo capture, kiosk mode, break timers, daily, weekly or California overtime tracking, PTO, scheduling, manager approvals with an audit log and payroll-ready export to Gusto, ADP, Paychex and more. Start with Time & Attendance Essentials at $4 per user per month, month to month with no setup fees, and move up to the Business Management Suite anytime. Your 14-day free trial includes every tool, with no credit card required.