Your whole team's hours in Xero, without handing out Xero access.
On a solo licence, everyone connects Xero themselves, and Xero only lets senior users do that. Team mode flips it: one admin connects once, and staff just track time.
Connecting an app needs more Xero access than logging time.
Xero only lets a user connect an app to an organisation if they have the Standard or Adviser role and permission to connect apps. Invoice-only and Projects-only users can't. So to let a contractor send time from a solo licence, you'd have to make them a Standard user, and Standard can see sales, invoices and bank transactions.
Two ways to run Punchcard.
| Solo licence | Team | |
|---|---|---|
| Who connects Xero | You, from your own Mac. | One admin, once, in the browser, for the whole team. |
| Xero role needed | Standard or Adviser, with permission to connect apps. | Only the admin needs it. Staff keep whatever role they have now, or none. |
| How staff join | Not applicable. | An invite link from the admin, or a Xero sign-in that only shares their name and email. |
| Where time goes | Straight from your Mac to Xero. | From each Mac through Punchcard's team service, which files it in Xero under that person's name. Entries pass straight through; the service doesn't keep them. |
| Xero connections used | One per person. | One for the whole team. |
| Price | Standard or Pro licence, per person. | Per seat, billed yearly, from 3 seats. Or each person uses their own licence, with no minimum. |
Solo is the right fit if you run your own Xero, or you're already a Standard user in the organisation you bill from. Solo pricing →
One connection, everyone's time.
Each entry is still saved on the person's Mac first, so nothing is lost if the network or the service is down.
- STEP 1
Admin connects Xero
A Standard or Adviser user connects the organisation once, in the browser at teams.usepunchcard.app. They don't need the Mac app unless they track time too.
- STEP 2
Staff join
The admin sends invite links, or staff sign in with Xero just to prove who they are. The admin matches each person to their Xero user.
- STEP 3
Time lands under each name
Staff track time as usual. Punchcard's team service files each entry in Xero Projects as the person who did the work.
What the team service keeps.
- Your organisation's Xero connection, encrypted, so it can file time for the team.
- Who's on the team and which Xero user each person files time as.
- On teams where each person uses their own licence: that licence key, encrypted, so the service can check it's still active.
Passes through, never stored
- Each time entry on its way to Xero: project, task, date, duration and description. Once Xero has it, the service forgets it; the copy lives on the person's Mac and in Xero.
- Project and task names, fetched from Xero when the app asks, so everyone's picker matches Xero.
And what it never sees.
- Invoices, contacts, bank accounts or anything else outside Xero Projects. The connection only asks for Projects access.
- What runs on anyone's Mac. Pro's activity tracking stays on each Mac, as it does for solo users.
- Other people's time. Each person can only add, change or remove their own entries.
Solo licences don't use the team service at all: entries go straight from your Mac to Xero.
Two ways to pay.
The business pays per seat, from 3 seats with the admin included, or each person uses their own licence. Either way the whole team uses one Xero connection, and the admin can switch later. Prices in US dollars.
Team Standard
$8 per seat / month
$96 per seat, billed yearly · from $288 a year
Everything in Standard for each person, with one Xero connection for the whole team.
Team Pro
$18 per seat / month
$216 per seat, billed yearly · from $648 a year
Everything in Pro for each person: auto-tracking, rules and AI-written descriptions.
Your own licence
$0 for the business
Each person pays for their own Standard or Pro licence · no minimum
No minimum and no seats. Each person who tracks time uses their own Punchcard licence, and it sets whether they get Pro. Good for one or two people, or contractors who already use Punchcard. Solo pricing →
The admin chooses how to pay during setup, and can buy the Team licence there. Questions? Ask us →
Team questions.
Why can't my staff just sign in to Xero themselves?
Xero only lets a user connect an app to an organisation if they have the Standard or Adviser role and permission to connect apps. Invoice-only and Projects-only users can't. Raising a contractor to Standard so they can log time also lets them see sales, invoices and bank transactions. Team mode avoids that: one admin connects, and staff never need more access in Xero.
Does each person still show up as themselves in Xero?
Yes. Every entry is filed under the Xero user it belongs to, so project reports, staff time and invoicing work as they do now. The admin matches each person to their Xero user once.
What if the team service is down?
Time is never lost. Every entry is saved on the Mac first, as it is for solo users, and sends when the service is back.
Can I start solo and move to a team later?
Yes. Entries already in Xero stay where they are, and the app keeps your history. Get in touch through support when you switch and we'll sort out your solo licence.
How does billing work?
The admin chooses when they set up the team, and can switch later. Either the business pays for everyone with one yearly subscription, priced per seat, with a minimum of 3 seats (the admin's included), or each person uses their own Punchcard licence and the business pays nothing. Prices are in US dollars.
I'm a contractor. Can my client's admin add just me?
Yes. The admin sets up the team so each person uses their own licence, which has no minimum. They connect Xero once and add you, and you join with the Punchcard licence you already have. The client doesn't pay anything, and you don't need permission to connect apps in their Xero. Someone who does have it still needs to do that one-off setup.
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