Best Remote Employee Monitoring Software Shortlist
Here’s the shortlist of the best remote employee monitoring software systems that I’ll cover in this article, with detailed summaries below:
Remote employee monitoring software has gained a whole new level of importance in recent years. Now that virtual teams have become the norm rather than the exception, employers need better ways to manage worldwide teams effectively.
How can you ensure you’re getting the best from your remote teams? And how do you know employees are working productively and not slacking off? These are important questions and a number of cloud-based software tools have been developed to answer them.
In this article, I’m evaluating the best employee monitoring software on the market today. I’ll show you a range of available options, and the pros and cons associated with each tool. Armed with this information, you’ll be able to choose the tool that best suits your needs.
If you have general questions about how remote employee monitoring software works, or how to pick the best option for your organization, take a look at my People Also Ask section below. Or, if you’re curious how I prepared this list, see How I Selected the Best Remote Employee Monitoring Software below.
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Overviews of the 10 Best Remote Employee Monitoring Software
Here’s a brief description of each remote employee monitoring software that showcases each system’s best use case, their noteworthy features, and some pros & cons. I’ve also included screenshots to give you a snapshot of their user interface too.
DeskTime
Best for non-intrusive employee monitoring
Desktime helps small business owners manage remote employees by monitoring their performance with time-tracking software and providing detailed productivity reports.
Why I picked DeskTime: This app tracks employee activity automatically and calculates productivity. The URL and app tracking features show you exactly what websites, programs, and apps your employees use. These can be categorized as being productive or unproductive.
You can also see exactly which documents employees are working on. The integrated web time tracker measures time, projects, and tasks. A broken timer allows employees to take time off when permitted. A booking facility also allows people to book meeting rooms and other shared resources.
DeskTime Standout Features and Integrations
Features include automatic time-tracking, offline time tracking, private time options, document title tracking, a Pomodoro timer, custom reports, cost calculations, a mobile app, and shift scheduling.
Integrations include Asana, Basecamp, Google Calendar, GitLab, Jira, Outlook Calendar, and Trello.
Pros
- Can be accessed from mobile devices
- Simple onboarding process
- Easy to assess productivity
Cons
- Integrations need improvement
- Gap management could be improved
ActivTrak
Best for balancing employee productivity and well being
ActivTrak is an employee tracking tool that facilitates flexible schedules, ensures compliance, and promotes a healthy work balance for better long-term productivity.
Why I picked ActivTrak: Using ActivTrak, you gain visibility into digital work so you can balance productivity, flexibility, and employee well-being. The software analyzes daily work activity data, giving you insights into time and technology usage, resource gaps, and productivity trends.
You can measure daily work activity across hybrid and remote employees, and determine active or passive online status and current work focus. You can also categorize apps and websites by team, role, or job function to analyze usage. ActivTrak compares the habits of remote and in-office employees to understand productivity and process bottlenecks.
ActivTrak Standout Features and Integrations
Features include dashboards, productivity reports, location insights, impact analysis, application and website usage, workload management, productivity coaching, team summaries, and website blocking.
Integrations include Asana, Google Calendar, Jira, Lattice, Microsoft Teams, Salesforce, ServiceNow, Slack, Workday, and Zoom.
Pros
- Useful alarm feature
- Compatible with anti-virus software
- Invisible to the user
Cons
- Historical records are clunky
- No keystroke logging
Time Doctor
Best for employee monitoring software with extensive integrations
TimeDoctor gives you direct visibility into your team’s workflow and productivity, showing you the websites and apps used by each employee throughout the day.
Why I picked TimeDoctor: This app gives you actionable insights and information on employee performance trends designed to help you boost productivity. You can take screencasts of your employee’s screens at specified intervals and see which websites and apps they use the most.
Time Doctor also helps you generate accurate payroll information and process invoices. Thanks to integrations with a wide range of popular business applications, you can adapt TimeDoctor to suit your organization’s needs. Overall, you get a clear picture of how employees are performing, allowing you to optimize team productivity and efficiency.
TimeDoctor Standout Features and Integrations
Features include time-tracking, employee monitoring, online timesheets, payroll, project budgeting, distraction alerts, chat monitoring, offline time tracking, and email notifications.
Integrations include Asana, ClickUp, Evernote, HelpScout, Jira, Payoneer, PayPal, Pipedrive, Salesforce, and Trello.
Pros
- Reduces wasted time
- Improves billing
- Accurate time-tracking
Cons
- Occasional tracking glitches
- Redundant notifications
Hubstaff
Best for real-time employee monitoring
Hubstaff offers a unique blend of time-tracking and employee-monitoring software so you can see how your team works in real-time.
Why I picked Hubstaff: You can use Hubstaff’s remote employee monitoring software to track your workforce’s time and generate accurate timesheets. You can also create automatic reminders to ensure that people don’t forget to track their time.
Website and app usage are directly measured by the software, giving you insights into potential distractions. You can also arrange automatic screenshots to keep track of user activity.
The software tracks keyboard and mouse activity, but never obtains sensitive data. Instead, it measures the frequency of activity.
Hubstaff Standout Features and Integrations
Features include time-tracking, online timesheets, time reports, timesheet approvals, screenshots, employee monitoring, and productivity tracking.
Integrations include ActiveCollab, Asana, Breeze, ClickUp, GitHub, GitLab, Insightly, Jira, Liquid Planner, and Mavenlink.
Pros
- Lots of integrations
- Very customizable
- Excellent idle time management
Cons
- Reporting can be confusing
- Manual start for time-tracking
Teramind
Best for combining employee monitoring & security
Teramind offers remote work monitoring software that aims to increase both employee productivity and data security.
Why I picked Teramind: This software application visually records every action that remote users make, including contractors and third parties. You can track all activities, including those taken in custom apps, and configure rules and policies to collect data on any user action.
You can track all user activity while complying with any applicable employee privacy requirements. The software can monitor work done on local machines, remote domains, servers, or terminal servers. You can request a breakdown of work-related versus non-work related tasks, and get minute-to-minute trends graphs showing how much time is spent on specific projects.
Teramind Standout Features and Integrations
Features include smart rules, automated alerts, live view, historical playback, website monitoring, application monitoring, email monitoring, instant message monitoring, time-tracking tools, and social media monitoring.
Integrations include ArcSight ESM, IBM Security Jira, QRadar, Redmine, Splunk Enterprise, and Zendesk.
Pros
- Great user behavior analytics
- Excellent tracking features
- Robust feature set
Cons
- False positives with anti-virus software
- Minimum of 5 seats
EmailAnalytics
Best for improving email response time
EmailAnalytics gives you visibility into daily email activity and unlocks insights into how your team members respond to email inquiries.
Why I picked EmailAnalytics: This tool shows your sales team’s email activity in an email analytics dashboard, so you can see how many emails are sent and received each day. You get insights into how many people your team corresponds with and the number of spam complaints received. You can also drill down into any metric to get further information.
It’s easy to see who sends the most emails, which clients team members respond to, and the average response time for each recipient. You can also check how many unread emails are in each person’s inbox or how many are labeled ‘important.’ The system also analyzes emails by time of day, so you can see when people are most active.
EmailAnalytics Standout Features and Integrations
Features include emails sent & received, email traffic by day of the week, top senders & recipients, traffic by hour of the day, email response time, and team management.
Integrations include Gmail, HubSpot, and Outlook.
Pros
- Comprehensive email insights
- Gives complete team reports
- No software to install
Cons
- Designed for sales teams only
- Only tracks email
Monitask
Best for employee monitoring with customizable settings
Monitask offers employee monitoring for remote workplaces, including everything from automatic time-tracking to proof-of-work screenshots.
Why I picked Monitask: This app keeps a record of when home-based employees start work and when they finish. In addition, it monitors the work hours of remote employees and ensures they work their full shifts. The employee productivity tracking ensures that team members stay focused and avoid distractions.
Their employee monitoring solution also helps in ensuring the safety of sensitive data, especially when it is to be accessed outside the safe website. The system monitors if such sensitive data is being sent by email, uploaded to the cloud, or copied to an external USB device. Admins are alerted accordingly.
Monitask Standout Features and Integrations
Features include screenshot monitoring, a live dashboard, automatic time-tracking, productivity monitoring, app tracking, project management, and idle time removal.
Integrations include ActiveCollab, Active Directory, Acuity Scheduling, Basecamp, Box Time, ClickFunnels, ClickUp, Convertri, DeskTime, and Easy Projects.
Pros
- Keeps everyone productive
- Offline time tracking
- Easy to set up
Cons
- Limited history logs
- Huge number of integrations
InterGuard
Best for employee monitoring with proactive alerts
Interguard helps you monitor remote and work-from-home employees, keeping your business safe and productive wherever your team members are located.
Why I picked InterGuard: This software application will alert you if employees break rules, such as by exporting your customer list from your CRM. You can also go beyond monitoring and set up policies to block sensitive data from being sent by email, uploaded to the cloud, or copied to an external storage device. If employees are suspected of committing fraud or theft, you can lock down their computers remotely.
The software also monitors employee productivity to ensure you get the best value on your investment. It helps you eliminate distractions and keep projects on track. You can also track the time spent on a project and identify potential delays that slow work down.
InterGuard Standout Features and Integrations
Features include email monitoring, website blocking, chat monitoring, file tracking, screenshot taking, cell phone monitoring, keystroke logging, insider threat detection, and active time tracking.
Integrations are available through Zapier.
Pros
- Runs in the background
- Keyword capture
- Easy to set up
Cons
- Dated interface
- Reports are not intuitive
Veriato
Best for monitoring employees in regulated environments
Veriato is a workforce behavior analytics company that gives you the tools you need to manage remote or hybrid employee productivity.
Why I picked Veriato: Veriato helps you manage remote teams effectively, highlighting unproductive employees and optimizing efficiency across the team. The software is ideal for dealing with complex corporate and regulatory compliance requirements in industries such as healthcare, legal, and financial services.
Veriato makes it easier to run audits and stay compliant, with real-time alerts, customizable reporting, and dashboards. You can track how many minutes an employee’s computer was active or idle during the day, monitor chats, and take automatic screenshots. It’s also easy to set flexible start and finish times and decide when tracking starts or ends.
Veriato Standout Features and Integrations
Monitoring features include email & chat monitoring, web & app tracking, automatic screenshots, idle & active time-tracking, network activity, file & document tracking, fully-customizable settings, reports, an employee monitoring system, and real-time alerts.
Integrations with Veriato are available through Zapier.
Pros
- Descriptive reporting
- Can be customized extensively
- Comprehensive overview of activity
Cons
- Needs better screenshot archives
- Takes time to set up
Controlio
Best for ensuring remote employee complianc
Controlio is a scalable cloud solution that helps organizations of all sizes monitor employee productivity from anywhere.
Why I picked Controlio: This solution offers a dashboard available from any device in any location, with all data fully encrypted. It can be deployed on-premises to meet HIPAA and GDPR requirements. The client software is completely invisible to the end user.
Controlio automatically tracks productive and distracting activities, calculating a productivity score for individual users and departments. You can control user behavior, get alerts, and track keystrokes, idle periods, and other data. Managers can also watch users live and see what apps they’re using.
Controlio Standout Features and Integrations
Features include productivity monitoring, user behavior management, live view, screen recording, app & web usage, compliance monitoring, on-premises deployment, and stealth mode.
Integrations are available through Zapier.
Pros
- Easy-to-understand dashboard
- End-to-end encryption
- Advanced features for compliance monitoring
Cons
- No native integrations
- Only available for PCs
The 10 Best Remote Employee Monitoring Software Comparison Chart
Here’s a comparison chart that summarizes basic details about each of my top remote employee monitoring software selections. You can view pricing details and the availability of free trials or demos side-by-side to help you find the best software for your budget.
Tool | Free Option | Price | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | DeskTime Best for non-intrusive employee monitoring | 14-day free trial | From $7/user/month | Visit Website |
2 | ActivTrak Best for balancing employee productivity and well being | 14-day free trial + freemium plan available | From $10/user/month | Visit Website |
3 | Time Doctor Best for employee monitoring software with extensive integrations | 14 days free trial | From $7/user/month | Visit Website |
4 | Hubstaff Best for real-time employee monitoring | 14-day free trial | From $7/user/month | Visit Website |
5 | Teramind Best for combining employee monitoring & security | 3-day free trial | From $15/user/month | Visit Website |
6 | EmailAnalytics Best for improving email response time | 14 days free trial | From $15/user/month | Visit Website |
7 | Monitask Best for employee monitoring with customizable settings | 10-day free trial | From $5.99/user/month | Visit Website |
8 | InterGuard Best for employee monitoring with proactive alerts | Free demo available | From $25/user/month (5 user minimum) | Visit Website |
9 | Veriato Best for monitoring employees in regulated environments | Free demo available | From $25/user/month | Visit Website |
10 | Controlio Best for ensuring remote employee complianc | Free trial available | From $7.99/user/month | Visit Website |
Other Options
Here are a few more worthwhile options that didn’t make the best remote employee monitoring software list:
- iMonitor EAM
Best for employee monitoring with automatic backup
- Insightful
Best for employee productivity monitoring
- Timely
Best remote employee monitoring software for background time tracking
- Kickidler
Best remote employee monitoring software for visual monitoring tools
- RescueTime
Best remote employee monitoring software for winning back unproductive time
- Ekran System
Best remote employee monitoring software for auditing employee activity
- CleverControl
Best remote employee monitoring software for tracking messenger communications
- WE Controlio
Best remote employee monitoring software for productivity analytics
- ActiveOps WorkiQ
Best remote employee monitoring software for remote workforce intelligence
- ControlUp
Best remote employee monitoring software for digital work experience management
How I Selected the Best Remote Employee Monitoring Software
If you’re wondering how I selected the best remote employee monitoring software for this list, here’s some information on my methodology. To construct this top 10 list, I evaluated and compared a wide range of employee monitoring tools with helpful features and positive user ratings.
After deciding on my long list of top choices, I further honed my list by using the selection criteria below. This helped me understand how each platform stacked up against the next one. I also drew on my years of remote working experience to pinpoint the features that add a lot of value.
Selection Criteria
Here’s a short summary of the main selection and evaluation criteria I used to develop my list of the best remote employee monitoring software for this article:
Features
The software should offer the features you need to monitor your remote employees effectively. This may include time-tracking, productivity monitoring, user activity monitoring, screen recording, keystroke logging, and website blocking.
Compatibility
Look for a tool that’s compatible with the operating systems and devices used by your remote employees. You need the software to track all activity on all apps reliably.
Ease of Use
Monitoring software should be user-friendly and easy to set up and use. It should not require extensive technical expertise to implement.
Security
Your system should be secure and protect sensitive employee data from unauthorized access. You must be able to protect both company and employee data effectively.
Customization
The software should allow you to customize the monitoring settings according to your specific business needs. Every work situation is different, and your software should be able to accommodate your needs.
Reporting
Good tools also provide detailed reports giving you insights into employee productivity, time usage, and other key performance indicators.
Software Integrations
I expect the top tools to integrate with other tools and platforms, such as project management software, time-tracking software, or communication apps.
Pricing
Remote employee monitoring software should be affordable for organizations of all sizes, empowering both large and small teams to work more productively.
People Also Ask
People often ask me about the best way to manage remote teams and how to improve the employee experience. Here are answers to the most common questions:
What is employee monitoring software?
Employee monitoring software is a type of tool that enables employers to track and monitor their employees' activities and behavior while working, usually in a remote or virtual environment. The resulting data can help increase productivity, ensure compliance, and prevent security breaches.
What key features are included in remote employee monitoring software?
The best remote employee monitoring software typically includes features such as time-tracking, productivity monitoring, activity monitoring, screen recording, and reporting. These features allow employers to monitor and manage their remote employees effectively.
How can you detect employee monitoring software?
Detecting employee monitoring software can be difficult as it is designed to be stealthy and invisible to the employee. However, some signs of monitoring software can include a decrease in system performance or unusual network activity, the presence of unknown or suspicious processes in the task manager, or the appearance of pop-up notifications or warnings on the employee's computer.
Does your employer have to tell you if your computer is being monitored?
The answer to this question depends on the laws and regulations in your specific country or state. In general, employers may be legally required to inform their employees if they are being monitored, but the specific requirements can vary. You should consult with an employment lawyer or legal expert in your jurisdiction to determine your rights and obligations.
Are there ways to trick employee monitoring software?
It is not ethical or legal to try to trick employee monitoring software. However, some employees may try to bypass monitoring by using external devices, such as a separate computer or smartphone, or by using software tools designed to prevent monitoring or mask activity. This is not recommended, as it can result in disciplinary action or termination of employment.
Build Stronger Teams
Using the recommendations in this article, you can build stronger remote teams that are both productive and efficient. If you’d like a few more options to consider, take a look at our list of the Best Employee Monitoring Software too.
We’ll bring you more articles on related topics soon, so be sure to sign up for our People Managing People newsletter. That way, we can keep you up-to-date with the latest news and insights regarding people management.
New technology is making it possible to build effective remote teams like never before. So be ready to take advantage of the opportunities to take your organization to the next level.