ActivityPulse vs Hubstaff
Hubstaff is the broadest product in this comparison — it bundles time tracking with screenshots, activity percentages, GPS for field teams and payroll runs. ActivityPulse is narrower on purpose: it answers where the hours went, captures metadata only unless an admin deliberately enables more, and gives each organisation its own database. If you want one vendor for field-service GPS and payroll, Hubstaff covers more ground.
At a glance
Hubstaff facts come from their own public pages, last checked 2026-09-05.
| Dimension | ActivityPulse | Hubstaff |
|---|---|---|
| How time gets recorded | Automatically, from the foreground window. Nobody starts or stops a timer, so nothing is lost to forgetting. | A timer the person starts and stops, with idle prompts; app and URL activity is recorded while it runs. |
| What is captured by default | Foreground app and window metadata only. Nothing more without an explicit admin change. | Time plus activity levels from mouse and keyboard frequency; screenshots configurable per organisation. |
| Screenshots | Off by default. Available on higher plans and only after a compliance review. | A core feature, configurable in frequency and available on paid plans. |
| Keystroke capture | Never records keystroke content, on any plan. | Records keystroke and mouse frequency to compute an activity percentage; not the content of what is typed. |
| Productivity scoring | None. Hours are attributed to projects; the product does not grade the person. | Activity percentages per person, used as the headline productivity signal. |
| Tenant data isolation | A separate database per organisation, so isolation is structural. | Shared multi-tenant architecture, per their security documentation. |
| Offline capture | Queues locally and syncs idempotently — no hour lost, none counted twice. | Offline tracking is supported and syncs when the connection returns. |
| Desktop platforms | Windows and macOS. | Windows, macOS, Linux, Chrome, iOS and Android. |
| Entry price (per user / month) | Free up to 3 users, then $4 billed annually ($5 monthly). | Free for one user, then around $7 on the entry paid tier. |
Source: Hubstaff 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 Products change — if something here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it.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 Hubstaff is the better choice
Hubstaff is the better choice if you need GPS and geofencing for a field workforce, or want time tracking and payroll processing from a single vendor — ActivityPulse exports payroll-ready data but does not run payroll, and has no mobile or field-service capability.
When ActivityPulse is the better choice
ActivityPulse is the better choice where the rollout has to survive a works council or a privacy-conscious engineering team: sensitive capture is off unless someone turns it on, there is no activity percentage attached to a person's name, and each organisation's data sits in its own database.
Hubstaff alternatives — questions
Is ActivityPulse a Hubstaff alternative without screenshots?
Yes. ActivityPulse captures foreground application and window metadata by default. Screenshots are off unless an administrator enables them, and are gated to higher plans behind a compliance review.
Does ActivityPulse have activity percentages like Hubstaff?
No, and that is deliberate. ActivityPulse attributes time to projects and tasks but does not compute a productivity or activity score for a person.
Can ActivityPulse track a field team like Hubstaff can?
No. ActivityPulse is desktop-only, on Windows and macOS, with no GPS, geofencing or mobile client. For field-service tracking, Hubstaff is the appropriate tool.
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.