Employee Attendance Tracker: Overview, Instructions & Template

An employee attendance tracker is a way to track employee attendance, tardiness, absenteeism, and time off—a major part of managing employees. A good employee attendance tracker allows you to quickly identify repeat attendance-related offenses and act swiftly to discipline and coach your staff to correct such behavior.

You can track employee attendance in two ways:

• Manual Tracking: Data is manually input onto a spreadsheet
• Attendance Tracking Software: Data is automatically configured from clock-in/out entries

If you choose to track manually, download our free printable employee attendance tracker template to get started. Instructions for using the template can be found below.

Manually Tracking Employee Attendance

Our free employee attendance tracker template simplifies your life by providing you with relevant information and nothing more. It requires manual entry on your part to input the data, but it will help in managing employees by showing each employee’s attendance history in one tracker.

We’ve set up our free attendance tracker template as a two-week view, which works well with companies that run payroll every two weeks. We have also started the template with four payroll periods for your convenience. You can add tabs and customize the template to fit your needs.

Fill in Employee Data

Your first step when using our free employee attendance tracker template is to fill in Column A. Here you will enter the employee’s name and the date of each day being tracked. You can duplicate tabs at the bottom for each of your employees.

Enter Clock-in and Out Times

Columns B and C are for you to enter the time the employee clocked in and the time the employee clocked out each day. This will allow you to physically see where there may be a late arrival or early departure.

Enter Drop-down Data

The drop-down fields in the cells of columns D-H are where you will record your employee’s attendance-related behaviors and actions. You will need to manually select from each of the fields whether an employee met a certain condition on each day. The drop-down feature allows you to select “yes” or “no” for whether the employee arrived late, left early, was on PTO, was sick, or was a no-call no-show for the day.

• Late Arrival: For each day in the pay period, select “Yes” if the employee was late to work. If they were on time, you can leave the field blank, or select “No.”
• Early Departure: If an employee leaves work early without giving notice or receiving prior approval, select “Yes” in the drop-down on the date the employee left early. Make sure you are only marking an employee as “Yes” if they have left early in violation of your company’s attendance policy.
• Paid Time Off: When an employee takes paid time off (PTO), mark that day as “Yes.” While your team’s PTO and vacation days should not be a penalty against them, it does help you manage your team to see how frequently an employee is out in a pay period.
• Sick Days: If an employee calls their manager or supervisor to let them know they are sick and cannot come to work, mark that day as “Yes” in the appropriate drop-down. Recording sick days is important to accurately track how often an employee calls out.
• No Call, No Show: Sometimes, employees do not show up to work and don’t call out. When this happens, mark the appropriate day as “Yes” to record them as a no call, no show. This information is vital if you need to reprimand or terminate an employee for excessive absenteeism.

Related Articles:

• Clocking In and Out Policy: What to Include (+ Free Template)
• How to Create a PTO Policy: Small Business Guide [+ Template]
• Paid Sick Leave Laws by State
• No Call, No Show Policy: How to Create One [+ Free Template]

Calculation Fields

For each column, the totals will automatically be calculated. The totals for “Late Arrival,” “Early Departure,” and “No Call, No Show” are triggered to shade the box red if there are too many “Yes” selections. It is currently set at three or more Yes selections, however, you can change the number that triggers a red color by right-clicking on the corresponding total field and selecting “Conditional Formatting” to change the value.

Ultimately, this sheet gives you a quick snapshot of your team’s attendance and whether you need to take action and discuss concerns with any particular team member. Modifying this sheet to fit your needs will help you keep track of whether you have any attendance problems with employees.

Using Software to Track Employee Attendance

Although manually tracking employee attendance can be fairly straightforward, attendance tracking software is the most efficient way to track your employees’ attendance. Using a tracker to keep attendance-related concerns in check will also help in counteracting a drop in employee engagement before it becomes a major problem.

For instance, when employees continually show up for work tardy, that causes a ripple effect—affecting business productivity and employee morale. If other employees see one employee show up late consistently and not suffer any consequences, they may start acting the same way and not care as much about their work.

With attendance tracking software, you can:

• Let employees punch in and out electronically
• Use verification methods for employee punches (like GPS restriction)
• Approve PTO requests electronically at your leisure
• Run reports to see employee attendance issues

The best part of using employee attendance tracking software is that it helps you streamline your processes. It combines timesheets and attendance tracking, giving you a one-stop shop for all of your payroll and attendance-related data.

The right software will automate data entry, integrate with your time tracking system, and generate easy-to-view reports—making employee management easy for you while helping you save time. We recommend the following software: Homebase, Deputy, and Buddy Punch.

	Free Plan	Monthly Pricing	Best For	Standout Features
	✓	$24.95–$99.95	Small businesses with 1 location	Efficient time and scheduling tools Per-location pricing scheme Secure clock-ins Labor cost forecasts
	Visit Homebase
	✓	$4.50–$6 per employee	Businesses with rotating staff	Flexible time tracking Employee scheduling Labor compliance tools Flexible weekly option
	Visit Deputy
	✕	$19 base fee + $4.99–$7.99 per employee	Companies with multiple departments	Multiple clock-in/out options Standalone time tracking solution Drag-and-drop scheduling tool Geolocation
	Visit Buddy Punch

Homebase Deputy Buddy Punch

Homebase is free for businesses with one location (and up to 20 employees). It’s ideal for mom-and-pop shops that need to track their employees’ time for payroll while keeping track of attendance.

With this platform, managers can track when employees clock in and out for work, take breaks, or are on PTO. Managers can log in to the Homebase dashboard or download the app for easy access to their employees’ attendance directly from their mobile devices.

Tips for Tracking Employee Attendance

To ensure your employees’ attendance is properly tracked and kept in check, it’s important to establish rules and regularly check into what’s causing any issues. Here are a few tips to consider when establishing your attendance check process:

• Establish a clear attendance policy: When you have an employee attendance policy in place, your employees know what is expected. Your policy should touch on absences, tardiness, early departures, and job abandonment. Plus, your policy should set clear disciplinary procedures.
• Regularly analyze attendance data: Reviewing attendance data regularly will allow you to identify trends and patterns so you can pinpoint recurring issues and address them proactively.
• Create a culture of accountability: Encouraging open communication about attendance expectations, providing feedback on individual performance, and recognizing employees who consistently meet attendance requirements can all contribute to a more engaged workforce with better attendance records.
• Implement incentives for good attendance behavior: Consider giving rewards or recognition to those who consistently show up on time and fulfill their work obligations.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Bottom Line

Employee attendance tracking gives you vital information about how your business operates. It makes it easy to keep track of the days each employee comes to work—and when they don’t. You can manually track by downloading our free employee attendance tracker or by using attendance tracking software.