ActivityPulse vs ActivTrak
ActivTrak is an analytics product built around productivity measurement — benchmarks, focus scores and comparisons across teams. ActivityPulse deliberately does not compute any of those. It reports the hours and what they were spent on, and leaves the judgement to a manager. If you want productivity benchmarking, ActivTrak is built for it; if a score attached to a person is the thing your legal team objects to, it is the reason to look elsewhere.
At a glance
ActivTrak facts come from their own public pages, last checked 2026-09-05.
| Dimension | ActivityPulse | ActivTrak |
|---|---|---|
| How time gets recorded | Automatically, from the foreground window. Nobody starts or stops a timer, so nothing is lost to forgetting. | Automatically and continuously while the agent runs; there is no timer for a person to start. |
| What is captured by default | Foreground app and window metadata only. Nothing more without an explicit admin change. | Application and website usage, with productivity classification applied automatically. |
| Screenshots | Off by default. Available on higher plans and only after a compliance review. | Optional screen captures, configurable by policy. |
| Keystroke capture | Never records keystroke content, on any plan. | Does not record keystroke content. |
| Productivity scoring | None. Hours are attributed to projects; the product does not grade the person. | Central to the product: productivity scores, focus and collaboration metrics, and benchmarking across teams. |
| Tenant data isolation | A separate database per organisation, so isolation is structural. | Shared multi-tenant architecture. |
| Offline capture | Queues locally and syncs idempotently — no hour lost, none counted twice. | Records activity offline and uploads when the agent reconnects. |
| Desktop platforms | Windows and macOS. | Windows, macOS and ChromeOS. |
| Entry price (per user / month) | Free up to 3 users, then $4 billed annually ($5 monthly). | Free for up to 3 users, then around $10 with a seat minimum. |
Source: ActivTrak public pricing and documentation, checked 2026-09-05. Products change — if something here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it.
When ActivTrak is the better choice
ActivTrak is the better choice if productivity benchmarking is the deliverable — you want to compare teams, measure focus time and track those metrics over quarters. It is a mature analytics product and ActivityPulse offers no equivalent.
When ActivityPulse is the better choice
ActivityPulse is the better choice when a productivity score is the thing that would sink the rollout. It reports what happened without grading who it happened to, which is a materially easier conversation with a works council.
ActivTrak alternatives — questions
Does ActivityPulse have productivity scores like ActivTrak?
No. Producing a headline productivity score is an explicit non-goal, and the dashboard is built not to compute one. ActivityPulse reports attributed hours, idle time and which applications the time was spent in.
Is ActivityPulse an ActivTrak alternative for compliance-sensitive teams?
That is the case it is designed for. Sensitive capture is off by default, a narrower scope can never widen a broader one, and every configuration change is audited.
Can ActivityPulse benchmark one team against another?
No. It reports per-project and per-person hours within the scope a viewer is allowed to see. It does not rank teams or individuals against each other.
See where the hours actually went
Free for up to three people. Windows and macOS. No keystroke content on any plan, and screenshots off unless an administrator turns them on.