What Geofencing Does
A geofence is a virtual boundary around a location. In Clean Smarts, the boundary is a circle around the location's map pin.
Depending on your settings, Clean Smarts can:
- Record the employee's GPS position when they clock in or out.
- Block clock in or clock out when the employee is outside the geofence.
- Automatically clock an employee out after they leave the geofence for more than five minutes.
Geofencing works best when the location pin is accurate, the radius gives phones enough room for normal GPS drift, and employees allow the mobile app to use precise location.
Choose the Right Enforcement Level
Go to Admin > Company Settings > Timekeeping > Geolocation to set the company default.
Require location services for clock in/out
Turn this on when you want the mobile app to ask for the employee's location during clock in and clock out.
This setting records location data, but it does not block an employee for being outside the geofence by itself. Use Geofence enforcement if you also want Clean Smarts to enforce the work area.
Geofence enforcement
Choose one of these options:
- No enforcement: Employees can clock in and out without being blocked by the geofence. If location services are required or already allowed, Clean Smarts can still record GPS data.
- Must be on-site to clock in/out: Employees must be inside the geofence when they clock in and when they clock out.
- Auto clock-out when leaving site: Employees must be on site to clock in, and the mobile app monitors the geofence while they are clocked in. If they leave the site and stay outside the geofence for more than five minutes, Clean Smarts clocks them out automatically.
Use Must be on-site to clock in/out for most teams. Use Auto clock-out when leaving site when missed clock-outs are a recurring problem and supervisors can help employees set up the extra phone permissions it requires.
Set a Practical Radius
In Admin > Company Settings > Timekeeping > Geolocation, set the Default geofence radius.
Then review each site in Locations > [location] > General:
- Confirm the address and map pin are on the actual work site.
- Under Geofence options, choose Use the default company setting or set a location-specific option.
- Set the Geofence radius for that location when the company default is not a good fit.
- Save the location.
We recommend avoiding radiuses smaller than 0.125 miles, which is about 200 meters. Phones do not report exact positions every time, especially indoors, near tall buildings, or when battery-saving settings are active. A very tight radius can block employees who are physically on site.
For small buildings, start at 0.125 miles and adjust only after reviewing real check-in attempts. For large campuses, hospitals, schools, warehouses, or multi-building accounts, use a larger radius that covers the actual work area.
Override Settings for One Location
Company settings are the default. A location can use the company setting or override it.
Go to Locations > [location] > General and use Geofence options:
- Use the default company setting keeps the location aligned with company-wide geolocation rules.
- Do not enforce the geofence at this location is useful for remote work, supply pickup, or sites where GPS is not reliable enough.
- Users must be on-site to clock in and out blocks mobile clock in and clock out outside the radius.
- Enforce the geofence at this location and clock users out when they leave enables active monitoring for that location.
If only one site is causing trouble, change that location first. You usually do not need to loosen geofencing for the entire company.
Let One User Bypass the Geofence
Some users have a valid reason to clock in or out from another place. For example, an operations manager may need to correct time while traveling, or a supervisor may manage several locations.
To allow that user through:
- Go to Users > [user] > Time & Pay.
- Turn on Bypass Geofence.
- Save the user.
Use this setting sparingly. It allows that user to clock in and out from any location, even when the location normally enforces the geofence.
What Mobile Users See
When an employee clocks in at a location that requires geofencing, the mobile app asks for location permission and explains why Clean Smarts needs it.
For Must be on-site to clock in/out, employees need:
- Location services turned on for the phone.
- Clean Smarts location permission allowed while using the app.
- Precise Location enabled.
For Auto clock-out when leaving site, employees also need these settings while they are clocked in:
- Location permission set to Always or Allow all the time.
- Notifications enabled, so the app can warn them when they leave the work area.
- Motion or activity permission allowed when the phone asks for it. This helps the app monitor the geofence with less battery use.
If an employee leaves an actively monitored geofence, the app warns them that they will be clocked out if they do not return within five minutes. If they stay outside, Clean Smarts clocks them out automatically.
What to Tell Your Mobile Team
Use plain instructions when you roll this out. Here is a message you can adapt:
Clean Smarts may ask for your location when you clock in or out. Please choose Precise Location and allow location access for Clean Smarts. We use this to confirm you are at the work site while using the time clock. If your site uses automatic clock-out, please also allow Always location access and notifications so the app can warn you before it clocks you out.
For teams that do not manage phone settings often, have supervisors help employees check permissions before the first shift that uses geofencing.
Troubleshoot Check-In Problems
Use Time Tracking > Check-In Attempts when an employee says they were on site but could not clock in or out.
Location sharing is off
The report may show:
- Location sharing is off while checking in
- Location sharing is off while checking out
Ask the employee to open their phone settings and allow location access for Clean Smarts. They should also enable Precise Location.
Out of bounds
The report may show:
- Out of bounds checking in
- Out of bounds checking out
Click View Map on the attempt. The map shows the location pin, geofence circle, attempted check-in or check-out point, and the phone's reported accuracy.
Check these items in order:
- Is the location pin on the correct building or property?
- Does the geofence circle cover the area where employees actually work?
- Is the employee's reported point just outside the circle? If yes, the radius may be too tight.
- Is the accuracy circle large? If yes, the phone gave Clean Smarts a low-confidence GPS reading.
- Does the same employee have repeated problems at multiple locations? If yes, help them check phone permissions, Precise Location, battery saver, and app updates.
When the map confirms the user was close to the site, expand the geofence for that location before changing company-wide settings.
Auto clock-out happens too often
If employees are clocked out while still on site:
- Confirm the location is set to Auto clock-out when leaving site only where you actually need active monitoring.
- Check that the radius is at least 0.125 miles or about 200 meters.
- Make sure employees have Always location access, Precise Location, and notifications enabled.
- If the site still has unreliable background location behavior, switch that location to Users must be on-site to clock in and out.
That option still verifies location at the start and end of the shift, but it does not rely on background monitoring during the shift.