Hey there, my lovely friends! Today, I will introduce you to my free Google Sheets attendance tracking template. Keeping track of attendance can sometimes be a headache, but with this template, you will simplify the process.
What is Attendance Tracking?
Attendance tracking is the practice of recording the presence of a group of individuals in a spreadsheet. Whether it’s for a classroom, an event, or even a company, this sheet helps keep an accurate record of attendance.
In my Google Sheets attendance template, I have included all the essential information. You can also easily customize it by adding additional fields, such as class name or department.
How to Use the Free Google Sheets Attendance Tracking Template
If you don’t want to waste time creating a new template, you can simply download my free attendance tracking template for Google Sheets. Here’s how to use it.
Rename Cells and Add Your Data
The first thing you need to do when using this template is to change the name and modify the start date. You can customize these settings based on your needs. For example, if you’re using it to track employee attendance in a store, you can modify the settings to include the “Manager’s Name,” “Store Name,” and “Employee Name.”
Next, make sure to add the start date of the week. This will automatically update the days of the week. Then, add the names of the people you want to mark as present in your class or team.
Edit Attendance Codes
The attendance template I created includes five default attendance codes. Only the first attendance code, “Present” in the spreadsheet, will be considered as present. All other codes will be counted as an absence.
To make marking attendance easier, you can click on the arrow next to the cell where you want to mark attendance. This will open a dropdown menu where you can choose one of the five attendance codes. If you want to change a specific attendance code to consider it as an absence, simply modify the ARRAYFORMULA formula to exclude the corresponding cell.
Add Additional Sheets
Our template is designed so that each sheet represents a week starting from the date you chose for the first week. Depending on the number of weeks you need to track attendance for, feel free to duplicate and rename the first sheet.
To do this:
- Right-click on the sheet name in the bottom-left corner, which will open a context menu.
- Click on the “Duplicate” option. You will then be redirected to the duplicated sheet’s tab.
- Right-click on the copied sheet name and click on the “Rename” option.
- Enter the new name for the sheet and press “Enter.”
- Repeat this process until you have the desired number of sheets.
Don’t forget to make a copy of the spreadsheet once you’ve finished making all the modifications, so you won’t have to redo them.
Mark Attendance
Our template uses checkboxes to mark attendance instead of having to write them in cells. The option you choose will automatically be conditionally formatted with one of the three predefined colors, allowing you to quickly see a person’s attendance.
These colors are:
- Green for “Present”
- Yellow for “Partially Absent (late arrival or early departure)”
- Red for “Absent (justified or unjustified absence)”
Tips for Creating a Google Sheets Attendance Tracking Template
Tracking attendance is important whether you’re a business or an educational institution, as it helps determine employee or student productivity and track their progress. Here are some tips for creating your own Google Sheets attendance tracking template:
Create with a Specific Goal in Mind
Before starting work on the attendance template, first define your goal. For example, if you’re creating an attendance template for a restaurant’s employees, make sure to add all team members. If you’re creating an attendance sheet for students, include all student names and ID numbers. You can also add custom fields, such as whether students wear a uniform or not.
Set Intervals
This parameter is entirely up to you. You can create monthly, weekly, or even daily attendance sheets. Choose the option that suits you best. If you need to submit attendance at the end of the day, it’s advisable to create a daily attendance sheet. If you need to download the spreadsheet every month, it’s better to divide it into weeks and track attendance on a large spreadsheet.
Choose Distinct Indicators
You can leave cells blank and type anything to mark attendance. However, to keep your Google Sheets attendance template clean, it’s recommended to set a few keywords. For example, “P” for “Present,” “L” for “Late,” and “A” for “Absent” are commonly used. You don’t have to follow this format, but make sure your spreadsheet is consistent.
Name List
The name list in your attendance template is one of the most important tasks. How you add names to your spreadsheet is entirely up to you. Some prefer to sort names alphabetically, while others prefer to sort them by serial or ID number. Having a properly formatted name list allows you to find names and track them consistently.
Leave Room for Signatures (Optional)
Many companies and schools still use the traditional attendance system, with pages containing a list of names. Some institutions require each student or employee to sign next to their name, while others ask the teacher or supervisor to sign the sheet once attendance is taken. Make sure to add a larger cell if you need to add space for signatures in your Google Sheets attendance template.
Why Use Google Sheets for Online Attendance Tracking?
The main reason for using Google Sheets to track attendance is cost. Many businesses use expensive software. Using Google Sheets is an obvious free alternative. Additionally, it is an extremely customizable tool and much more accessible than a PDF.
Here are some reasons to use Google Sheets for creating attendance tracking sheets:
Flexibility
This is one of the main reasons to use a Google Sheets attendance sheet over other software. With Google Sheets, you have full control over how you want to format your attendance template. You can create it from scratch based on your specific needs.
If you need to modify or delete a column, you can easily do so with just a few clicks. Most teachers already use Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel to store their students’ data, so there’s no need to learn new software.
Accessibility
Google Sheets allows data to synchronize in real time with cloud servers. This means you can use Google Sheets anywhere in the world, as long as you have a device with an internet browser and an internet connection.
Online storage saves you from carrying the attendance sheet on external storage or on your laptop. This can be very useful if your laptop crashes in the middle of a class, and you can use Google Sheets on your smartphone to take attendance. It’s also essential when you want to share attendance data with your colleagues.
Compatibility
An incredible advantage of using a Google Sheets attendance template is that Google Sheets has native integration that allows you to connect your spreadsheet to other software. For example, you can integrate Classroom with Sheets using other Google services like Google Classroom. You can also automate the process so that students can mark their attendance in Classroom.
Ease of Use
Spreadsheets are used by almost every professional at some point in their career. This means you probably have a basic understanding of spreadsheet software, whether you’re using Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel. I use spreadsheets to track my reading lists, for example.
Google Sheets is a simple and user-friendly solution, even for people with minimal spreadsheet experience. This makes maintenance and training more accessible, and your attendance template is guaranteed to stand the test of time.
Collaboration
Google Sheets has built-in collaboration features that allow you to share your spreadsheet with anyone. This can be very useful when you want multiple teachers to mark attendance on a Google Sheets attendance template. You can also set the permissions you want to grant to the person joining the spreadsheet.
You can allow the person to edit, comment, or simply view the spreadsheet. This greatly facilitates collaboration in many situations because you can simply give access to the spreadsheet to the supervisor instead of having to email the spreadsheet file every time.
Conclusion
The easiest way to create a Google Sheets attendance tracking template is to use an existing template and modify it to fit your needs. Then, you can save a permanent copy by accessing “File > Make a copy.” Our Google Sheets attendance template is a good starting point, or you can do a simple Google search to find others.
I hope this article has been helpful to you and will simplify your attendance tracking. Don’t forget to download the free Google Sheets attendance tracking template from Crawlan.com to get started right away!
Enjoy your newfound attendance management skills with our Google Sheets attendance tracking template. See you soon, friends!
