What accurate payroll data gets you

When the hours going into payroll are right first time, everything after it gets easier. We have written more about why payroll export matters.

Faster pay runs

Approved hours are ready to hand over, so the pay run starts with a file rather than a fortnight of collecting timesheets.

Problems found before payday

A missed clocking or an unapproved absence is flagged when it happens, not discovered by payroll the week after someone has been paid wrong.

Less admin

No spreadsheet in the middle, with absence and overtime already accounted for rather than added on at the end.

A record behind every figure

If someone questions their pay, the time and attendance record shows what was worked and what was amended, with an audit trail behind it.

How your data reaches payroll

Three steps take you from a clocking to figures your payroll team can run with.

  1. Staff clock in

    Hours, overtime and absence are recorded as people work, from a terminal or the mobile app.

  2. Managers approve

    Anything that looks wrong is flagged for a decision, so what moves forward has been checked by someone rather than assumed.

  3. Sent to payroll

    Approved figures go across as a file your payroll software imports, or directly into Sage on Realtime.

We integrate directly with Sage Payroll on Realtime, and export approved hours ready for Sage, Pegasus and QuickBooks from both our systems. If you run something else, tell us what it is and we will confirm whether the export format suits it before you commit to anything.

Why accurate payroll data matters

Most payroll problems start with the data going in. Get the hours right at source and the errors, costs and admin downstream fall away.

£5.8m

recovered by HMRC for more than 25,200 underpaid UK workers in a single year

HMRC, 2024 to 2025

25%

of UK employees have been paid the wrong amount at least once

Global Payroll Association

£20,000

maximum HMRC penalty per worker for underpaying the minimum wage

HMRC, National Minimum Wage Act

The payroll body CIPP names unpaid working time as one of the most common causes of underpayment, and it is rarely deliberate. It is the ten minutes before a shift starts, the handover that runs over, the training session nobody logged. Recording the hours as they happen is the simplest way to know what people are actually owed. See how time and attendance captures it.

What we send to payroll, and what it works with

Computime turns approved attendance into a payroll file, with direct Sage Payroll integration on Realtime and standard exports from both our systems.

What we send to payroll

  • Total hours worked, calculated from clock in and clock out
  • Overtime, calculated against your own rules and rates
  • Holiday and absence, so paid and unpaid leave is reflected correctly
  • Shift premiums and bank holiday rates
  • Cost centre and department splits for accurate allocation

How it reaches your payroll software

Sage Payroll · direct integration on Realtime, so approved hours pass across without a file in between

Pegasus and QuickBooks · export files produced in the format each expects, from Realtime and Syncro Connect

Running something else? Most payroll packages import a standard file, and in practice the question is whether the format matches what yours expects. Tell us which system you use and we will check before you commit to anything, rather than after.

Worth knowing: we handle the hours, not the pay itself. Payslips, P60s, tax and pension deductions all stay with your payroll software.

Not sure whether we work with your payroll software? Talk to our team and we will confirm.

Why choose Computime?

For over 35 years, since 1989, we have helped UK businesses turn time and attendance records into figures payroll can use, which removes the commonest source of pay errors: someone reading a number off one system and typing it into another.

Direct Sage Payroll integration comes with Realtime, and both our systems export for Sage, Pegasus and QuickBooks. If you run something else, ask us and we will check the format rather than assuming it fits.

The software is built and supported by our own team in Leeds, with no minimum headcount and room to scale to 5,000 employees. When you call, you speak to someone here.

800+

UK businesses trust Computime systems

35+

years of UK workforce experience since 1989

4.5

average from 41 Google reviews

UK

based support team on hand when you need them

What our customers say

“

We are really pleased with our Computime solution. Introducing this system means that payroll is now processed accurately and efficiently, helping to boost morale both for our head office staff and our field teams. Real time data means we know where our employees are, allowing us to operate more efficiently.

James Dunlop

Financial Manager, Landworth Electrics

“

We are very pleased with the smooth implementation. Computime worked very hard to make sure installation was completed within the time frame and with minimum disruption. The in-depth training allowed us to focus on production and keeping our employees safe at work while ensuring efficiency.

Clare Barker

HR Manager, Wholebake Limited

“

I was tasked with sourcing a computerised time and attendance solution to replace our manual clocking system. The Computime website contained all the information I needed, making the decision straightforward. The software proved easy to use and the helpdesk was very helpful and friendly. Computime have exceeded all of our expectations and objectives. I would definitely recommend them.

Purchasing Manager

BSK Laminating

Payroll export FAQs

What businesses ask about getting time data into payroll. If yours is not here, call the Leeds team on 0113 350 9043.

How do you export time data for payroll?
Once hours have been approved by a manager, the system produces a file containing what payroll needs: hours worked, overtime at the correct rate, holiday and absence, shift premiums, and cost centre splits if you use them. That file imports into your payroll software. On Realtime with Sage there is no file at all, since the data passes across directly. The whole job takes minutes rather than the days it takes to collect and re-key timesheets.
Does it calculate overtime automatically?
Yes, against your own rules rather than a generic assumption. You set what counts as overtime, at what point it starts, and what rate applies, including different rates for evenings, weekends and bank holidays. The system applies those rules to the recorded hours, so payroll receives overtime already calculated and split by rate rather than a total someone still has to work through. Getting these rules right at setup is where most of the value is, and we do it with you.
Does Computime integrate with QuickBooks?
We export in the format QuickBooks expects, so approved hours import without re-keying. It is an export rather than a live two-way connection, which in practice matters less than people expect: payroll runs on a cycle, so a file produced at the end of the period does the same job. Direct integration is available for Sage on Realtime.
What is the difference between integration and export?
Direct integration means the two systems talk to each other and the data moves without anyone handling a file. An export means we produce a file in the format your payroll expects and you import it, which takes a minute. We are straight about which you get: direct integration with Sage Payroll on Realtime, exports for Sage, Pegasus and QuickBooks from both systems. Some suppliers describe both as integration; we would rather you knew the difference.
Does Computime produce payslips or handle tax?
No. We handle the hours, not the pay. Payslips, P60s, tax codes, National Insurance, pension deductions and RTI submissions to HMRC all belong to your payroll software. What we do is make sure the hours going into it are right, which is where most pay errors originate. If you are looking for payroll software itself, we are not it, and we will say so rather than waste your time.
Will it work with our payroll software?
Probably, but ask us rather than take it on trust. Most UK payroll packages import a standard file, and the question is whether the format matches what yours expects. Tell us which system you run and we will check before you commit to anything. A supplier who tells you it works with everything, without asking what you use, has not checked.
How does it handle unpaid working time?
By recording when people actually started and finished, rather than when they were scheduled to. Unpaid working time is one of the most common causes of minimum wage underpayment, and it is rarely deliberate: it is the ten minutes before a shift, the handover that overran, the training nobody logged. Whether those hours are paid is your decision and your policy, but you cannot make that decision about hours you never knew were worked. gov.uk sets out the current rates and rules.
Can we split hours by cost centre or department?
Yes. Hours can be attributed to departments or cost centres and exported that way, so labour cost lands against the right part of the business rather than in one lump. If you need it against individual jobs rather than departments, that is job costing.
What happens if hours are wrong after they have been exported?
The correction happens in payroll for that period, as it would with any system, and the underlying record can be amended with an audit trail showing who changed it and when. The more useful point is that exceptions are flagged before the export, so most errors are caught while they are still easy to fix. What you want to avoid is finding out after someone has been paid, which is the situation manual timesheets tend to produce.
How long does setup take?
The export itself is quick to configure. The work is in your pay rules: overtime thresholds, premium rates, rounding, how bank holidays are treated, what counts as a late start. That is a conversation rather than a technical job, and it is worth doing properly, because rules set badly at the start produce wrong figures quietly for months.

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