iPhones have become an extension of our work and personal lives. The Apple iPhone dominated the smartphone market in 2023, with 27.6% of the global market share and almost 58% of the market share in the U.S. 

Given their popularity, employers are increasingly adopting  BYOD (bring your own device) policies to permit employees to access work apps on their mobile and home devices. This is a big win for employees, who now have the freedom and flexibility to answer emails, access documents, and complete their work from anywhere. For employers, however, there’s a new challenge. If capturing accurate working hours for billing or time tracking purposes is core to the business, they need a way to enable employees to track their time on the go.

Luckily, if you need to track employee hours, there’s an app for that.

In this article, we will cover the basics of using a time tracker online, whether it’s an iPhone app, a time tracking app for Mac, or a desktop.  We’ll discuss how time tracking works and offer suggestions on what to look for in a time tracking solution. You can have the best of both worlds: your employees can use their smartphones to track time, and your finance and project management teams can get all of the data they need to do their jobs.

What is a time tracking app?

A time tracking app is a digital tool that uses an identifier to capture the time spent at work or on specific projects and tasks. Time tracking apps are perfect for freelancers, teams, and businesses looking to be more efficient, accurately track client projects and billing, and get insight into how employees are spending their time.

Time tracking apps include: 

  1. Time entry management: Where employees can log work hours and breaks.

  2. Project and task tracking: Know exactly where your team’s time is going – whether it's that project deadline or catching up on emails.

  3. Timesheets and reports: Get a neat summary of your team’s hours and how your projects are shaping up.

  4. Billable hours and invoicing: Invoice your clients based on your team’s tracked time.

  5. Analytics and insights: Have you ever wondered where all your time goes? This feature helps you understand your team's productivity and project success and spots areas where you can be a time-management superhero.

What is the simplest way to track time?

When it comes to time tracking, accuracy, convenience, and proximity are the most critical factors. Businesses need the most up-to-date data on hours worked to bill clients quickly and determine whether their projects are on track and on budget. From the employee’s perspective, capturing time spent on tasks has to be convenient for them to stay compliant with time tracking. An app on their mobile phone that runs in the background allows them to switch between tasks without disrupting their workflow.

The simplest way to track time is using technology already at your fingertips. Mobile devices like iPhones are great for tracking time because they’re usually in our hands, pockets, or on desks. For employees who remain on the go, it’s a great way to give them the option to capture their work tasks accurately without resorting to their memory or some manual method.

Time tracking vendors have created apps available on desktops, laptops, tablets, and phones. Look for vendors that offer both mobile and desktop solutions. IPhone and Android have time tracking apps for business and personal use in their app stores - be sure to test the user experience and ensure that the data captured on the mobile phone easily integrates with desktop reporting.

What is the best time tracking solution?

The best time tracking solutions make it easy for employees to track their time, regardless of where they work. It also integrates with your business applications so that your finance and project management teams have a unified view of the status of your clients and business. The best time tracking solutions should provide detailed reporting, a great user experience for your employees, and be flexible enough to grow with your business.

Learn more about the benefits of using a mobile phone for time tracking.

Modern time tracking for a mobile world

In the rapidly evolving landscape of mobile work, choosing the best time tracking solution for iPhones becomes crucial. With the ever-growing dominance of iPhones in the global market, businesses need efficient apps that seamlessly integrate into employees' lives. The ideal solution should prioritize accuracy, convenience, and integration, offering finance and project management teams a unified view. Mobile-friendly apps empower employees to effortlessly track time, ensuring productivity insights and streamlined billing processes.