AI-Powered Timesheet OCR

Digitize handwritten and printed timesheets into structured payroll data—employee names, dates, hours, job codes, and overtime—without manual data entry.

HIPAA compliant BAA available SOC 2 Type 2 certified

See timesheet OCR in action

Upload any document — PDF, scan, or photo — and get structured data back immediately. No setup, no templates, no waiting.

What teams are saying

“Our construction crews submit 300 handwritten timesheets every week. Automated OCR replaced two payroll clerks’ worth of data entry and reduced our payroll error rate by 70 percent.”
JH
Jim H.
Payroll Manager, General Contractor
“Staffing agencies live and die by timesheet accuracy. Misread hours meant we were either overbilling clients or underpaying temps. OCR extraction solved both problems.”
CP
Carla P.
Operations Director, Staffing Agency
“The confidence scoring is critical for us. When a field worker writes a 7 that could be a 1, the system flags it instead of guessing. That single feature prevented thousands of dollars in payroll errors.”
RM
Rick M.
Field Operations Manager
Compliance

Healthcare-grade security

SOC 2 Type 2

Audited controls over a sustained period, not a point-in-time check.

AES-256 encryption

Bank-grade encryption at rest and TLS 1.2+ in transit.

24-hour deletion

Documents deleted within 24 hours. No copies retained.

How it works

Three steps from document to structured data

Upload or forward

Drag and drop files, connect a cloud drive, or set up email auto-forwarding. Any file format works—PDF, JPEG, PNG, TIFF, or digital documents.

AI reads and extracts

The AI identifies fields by context and meaning, not fixed coordinates. Names, dates, amounts, and custom fields are extracted automatically.

Export anywhere

Get structured output in Excel, Google Sheets, CSV, or JSON. Use the REST API for direct integration into your systems.

Why paper timesheets still matter and how OCR solves the data entry problem

Despite the availability of digital time tracking tools, paper timesheets remain a reality for millions of workers. Construction crews, manufacturing floor workers, field service technicians, and agricultural laborers often work in environments where digital devices are impractical or prohibited. Temporary staffing agencies receive handwritten timesheets from client sites. Healthcare facilities use paper sign-in sheets for per-diem and agency staff. The data from these timesheets must eventually enter payroll systems, and the manual keying process is time-consuming, error-prone, and a persistent source of payroll disputes.

Timesheet OCR converts paper and scanned timesheets into structured digital data. The AI reads employee names, dates, start and end times, break durations, total hours, job codes, cost centers, and supervisor signatures from any timesheet format. This includes the pre-printed grid-style timesheets used in construction, the daily sign-in sheets used in healthcare, and the weekly summary sheets used by staffing agencies. The extracted data can flow directly into payroll processing.

Accuracy in timesheet processing has direct financial consequences. Overpaying by misreading hours costs the employer. Underpaying creates compliance violations and employee grievances. Misallocating hours to wrong job codes distorts project costing. Lido provides field-level confidence scoring on every extracted value, and the AI is specifically trained to handle the messy handwriting that is common on field timesheets—smudged entries, abbreviated job codes, and inconsistent time formats.

Organizations evaluating timesheet OCR should consider accuracy on handwritten entries, support for their specific timesheet formats, ability to handle varied time entry conventions (military time, AM/PM, decimal hours), and integration with their payroll system. Lido processes any timesheet layout without templates and exports to formats compatible with all major payroll platforms.

Frequently asked questions

What types of timesheets can be digitized?

Timesheet OCR handles weekly timesheet grids, daily sign-in sheets, project-based time logs, construction daily reports with time entries, and staffing agency time records. The AI adapts to any layout including pre-printed forms and blank-sheet formats.

How accurate is timesheet OCR on handwritten entries?

AI-powered timesheet OCR achieves 90 to 97 percent accuracy on typical handwritten entries, with higher accuracy on clearly written forms. Confidence scoring flags uncertain values so payroll staff can verify only the entries that need human review.

Can timesheet OCR handle different time formats?

Yes. The AI recognizes standard time formats including AM/PM notation, 24-hour military time, and decimal hour formats (e.g., 7.5 hours). It also handles abbreviated entries and common shorthand used on field timesheets.

How does timesheet OCR integrate with payroll systems?

Extracted timesheet data can be exported to Excel, CSV, or JSON formats compatible with payroll systems like ADP, Paychex, Gusto, and QuickBooks Payroll. The REST API enables direct integration for automated payroll workflows.

Can timesheet OCR calculate overtime automatically?

The extraction produces structured time data (start, end, break, total hours) per day. While Lido extracts the raw data, overtime calculations are typically handled by the payroll system using the extracted hours. The structured output makes this calculation straightforward.

Simple, transparent pricing

Start free with 50 pages. Upgrade when you’re ready.

Standard
$29 /month
100 pages per month · 1 user
  • Any file type supported
  • Excel, CSV, JSON export
  • Email auto-forwarding
  • AI columns for custom fields
  • SOC 2 Type 2 compliant

Built on Lido’s OCR engine

Enterprise
Custom
From $30,000/year
  • Everything in Scale
  • Custom ERP integrations
  • Dedicated account manager
  • Live onboarding
  • BAA for HIPAA
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Built on Lido’s OCR engine

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