Clocking in
Kiosk mode
Turn a tablet you already own into a big-type clock-in appliance: tap your name, type a PIN, with a manager exit code and the tablet’s own lock keeping staff out of the rest of the app.
Kiosk mode turns a single shared tablet on the counter into a clock-in appliance. Staff tap their name on a big, glanceable roster and confirm with their PIN to clock in or out. It helps when not everyone has their phone to hand, or when you want one obvious place to clock in. You set it up on the Kiosk mode page, then open the full-screen kiosk on the tablet.
Before you start
The kiosk is a shared device holding a signed-in session, so it is worth having all of this in place before the first shift uses it:
- A tablet you control: one that lives on your counter, not a personal phone.
- The Kiosk module switched on in Settings → Modules. Kiosk mode itself is on every plan, Free included.
- That tablet signed in to WagePilot as the owner or a manager (the kiosk runs inside the employer app).
- Every member of staff who will use it assigned to that site: the roster only lists people assigned there.
- A Kiosk PIN set for each of them on their profile, because "Require a PIN" is on by default.
- A manager exit code set, so tapping Exit does not drop someone into your pay and reports.
- The tablet's own Guided Access (iOS) or Screen Pinning (Android) turned on.
Opening the kiosk on a tablet
- 1
Sign in on the tablet first
The kiosk is a screen inside the employer app, so the tablet needs an owner or manager already signed in on it. Open WagePilot on the tablet and sign in before anything else. Pasting the kiosk link into a fresh browser will only land on the sign-in page.
- 2
Open the kiosk on that tablet
Then use any of the routes below to get from the signed-in app into the full-screen kiosk.
- 3
Lock the tablet down
Set the manager exit code, then turn on the tablet’s own Guided Access or Screen Pinning so the home button and address bar are blocked too.
The top card on the Kiosk mode page gives you a QR code and the kiosk link, and four ways to get the kiosk open:
- Scan the QR
- Point the tablet’s camera at the code on this page to open the kiosk there. The tablet still has to be signed in.
- Copy
- Copies the kiosk link so you can paste it into the signed-in tablet’s browser or save it as a bookmark.
- Launch on this device
- Opens the full-screen kiosk right here — good for testing, or to run the kiosk on this same machine.
- Open in new tab
- Opens the kiosk in a fresh tab, leaving your owner app where it is.
Settings that shape the kiosk
The Kiosk settings card tailors how the tablet behaves. Change anything and the Save button lights up — it stays disabled until your settings are valid.
- Require a PIN
- On by default. After tapping their name, staff type a personal PIN (set on each person's profile). This is what stops one person clocking in as another at the tablet. Switch it off and a single tap records the punch, which is faster but takes that protection away.
- Require an identity photo
- Off by default. When on, the webcam takes a quick photo at clock-in and again at clock-out, and it is stored against that entry. Be clear-eyed about what it is: a deterrent and a stored record. No screen in WagePilot plays those photos back yet, so it is not something you can sit and review. Staff can skip it if the camera won’t play.
- Breaks at the kiosk
- Off by default, so the promise on the tin stays one tap. When on, someone already on shift who confirms their PIN gets a choice screen instead: Clock out as the main button, with Start break / End break beside it. Turn it on where you need unpaid breaks recorded at the counter rather than on a phone.
- Return to roster after
- How long the confirmation shows before the kiosk resets for the next person. Pick 2, 3, 5, 8 or 12 seconds.
- Manager exit code
- 4–6 digits required to leave the kiosk. Type it in the field, or press Clear to remove it. Without a code, anyone could tap “Exit” and reach your pay and reports — so set one.
What staff see at the kiosk
- 1
Tap your name
The roster shows everyone assigned to that site, including new starters who have been added but have not signed in yet. People already on shift come first (ringed and showing their running time), then the rest alphabetically. If the roster is long, a search box appears to type a name.
- 2
Enter your PIN
If PINs are on, a big numpad appears. The check happens on the server, which locks that person out for 60 seconds once six wrong tries pile up inside about two minutes, and because it is held server-side, closing or reloading the page does not clear it. The tablet stops accepting tries for that person after five wrong ones as well, so the pad usually goes quiet first. Both lockouts are per person, so the next person in the queue is unaffected.
- 3
Choose, if breaks are on
Someone already on shift sees Clock out with Start break / End break beside it, when "Breaks at the kiosk" is switched on. Off, the punch is simply a clock-out.
- 4
Take a photo
If identity photos are on, and only for a clock-in or clock-out (never a break), the webcam snaps a quick shot (or the person can skip).
- 5
Done
A "Welcome" (mint) or "See you" (amber) confirmation shows the time recorded, a countdown bar runs, and the kiosk returns to the roster for the next person.
Leaving the kiosk
The Exit kiosk button sits at the bottom. With a manager exit code set, tapping it opens a code gate, a compact numpad on a blurred scrim, instead of dropping straight into the app. The code is checked on the server, not held in the tablet’s browser where a curious member of staff could read it, and five wrong tries lock the gate for 60 seconds. Enter the code and you are back in the owner app.