If an employee can't clock in on the Toast POS, can't access the POS with their passcode, or another employee's name appears when they enter their code, this article walks through the most common causes and how to fix each one.

Overview Steps

Applies to: Toast Web, Toast POS, Toast Payroll (where noted) | Permissions needed: 4.9 Employee Info in Toast Web (to view or edit POS access codes), access to Toast Payroll (only if your restaurant uses it)

What you'll accomplish: Identify why an employee can't clock in on the POS and apply the matching fix so they can clock in successfully.

Most clock-in issues come from one of a handful of causes. Start with the most common fix and work down:

Verify the employee's POS access code in Toast Web. See Find or Edit an Employee's POS Access Code.
Confirm the employee's profile is Active in Toast Web (not Archived or Expired).
If the wrong employee's name appears at clock-in, check for a duplicate POS access code or a duplicate employee profile.
Have the employee try clocking in on a different terminal to rule out a device-specific issue.
If you use Toast Payroll, confirm the employee's Payroll and Toast Web profiles are mapped correctly.
If none of the above resolves the issue, see Before You Contact Customer Care at the bottom of this article.

For details on each scenario, continue to the Quick Fix table below.

Quick Fix

Match the symptom to the most likely cause and jump to the fix.

Symptom	Most common cause	Quick fix	Self-service?
Employee enters their POS access code and gets "Invalid Passcode" or nothing happens	Code is incorrect, was changed, or device is out of sync	See Wrong or Non-Working POS Access Code	Yes
Employee enters their unique POS access code and a different employee's name appears	Two employees share the same POS access code, a duplicate employee profile exists, or the terminal needs a resync	See Wrong Employee Name Appears at Clock-in	Yes
POS shows "Your account has been disabled, please contact your manager"	The user logged in to the Toast app on the device is inactive	See Account Disabled Error on the POS	Yes
POS shows "Invalid Passcode"	The passcode entered is incorrect, or the employee's Toast Web and Toast Payroll profiles aren't mapped	See Invalid Passcode Error on the POS	Yes
Employee's name doesn't appear at all in Toast Web, or their profile shows an Expired badge	Profile is archived or access has expired	See Archived or Expired Employee Profile	Yes
New Toast Payroll employee can't clock in; no Toast Web profile exists	Toast Web profile wasn't auto-created, or mapping failed	See Missing Toast Web Profile (Toast Payroll Users)	Yes (Toast Payroll users)
Issue happens only on one terminal; employee can clock in on others	Terminal-specific session or sync issue	See Clock-in Issues on One Terminal	Yes
Employee can clock in at some locations but not at one specific location	Job role, permissions, or POS access code is misconfigured for that location	See Clock-in Issues at One Location	Yes
None of the above resolved the issue	Underlying account or backend issue	See Persistent Clock-in Problems, then Before You Contact Customer Care	Mixed

Wrong or Non-Working POS Access Code

If an employee enters their POS access code and the POS doesn't accept it, the code may be incorrect, the employee may be using an old code, or the POS device may be out of sync with Toast Web.

A POS access code (also called a passcode or PIN) is a unique three-to-eight digit number assigned to each employee in Toast Web.

In Toast Web, navigate to Employees > Employee management > Employees.
Select the employee's hyperlinked last name.
Select the Profile tab and locate the POS access code in the Account info section.
Confirm the employee is using this exact code. If the employee was rehired, the code on their old profile may have been changed in the interim—verify the current code.
If the code is correct but still not working, on the affected POS device:
1. From the passcode screen, select Switch User if needed to return to the passcode screen.
2. Select the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner.
3. Select Resync All Data and confirm the action.

Before resyncing, make sure all queues are clear (no pending credit card payments or red checks) to avoid data loss. See Resync All Data on Your Devices for full instructions.

If the code still doesn't work after resyncing, enter a new POS access code on the employee's profile and select Save Changes. Then resync the device again.

Expected outcome: The employee can clock in with the verified or updated POS access code.

For details on locating, changing, or enabling POS access codes, see Find or Edit an Employee's POS Access Code.

Note: If the employee only has a salaried job assigned, they will not see the clock-in screen and will be taken directly to an order screen when they enter their POS access code.

Wrong Employee Name Appears at Clock-in

If an employee enters their POS access code and a different employee's name appears, three causes are possible. Check them in this order—most common first.

Cause 1: Two employees share the same POS access code

Even if their employee numbers are different, the POS access codes themselves must be unique within a location.

In Toast Web, navigate to Employees > Employee management > Employees.
Open the profile of the employee who is clocking in, and the profile of the employee whose name appears.
Compare the POS access code on each Profile tab. The POS access code is separate from the employee number.
If the codes match, change one to a unique code and select Save Changes.
Resync data on the POS device.

Expected outcome: Each employee clocks in under their own name.

Cause 2: A duplicate employee profile exists in Toast Web

Even if both POS access codes are unique, the employee may have two profiles—one mapped to the wrong identity.

In Toast Web, navigate to Employees > Employee management > Employees.
Search the affected employee's name. If two profiles appear, the duplicate is likely the cause.
Keep the profile with the POS access code the employee actually uses (this is where their tip and time entry data is stored). Archive the duplicate profile.

For full duplicate-profile resolution steps, including handling archived duplicates and Toast Payroll mapping, see Duplicate Employee Profiles in Toast Web.

Expected outcome: Each employee has a single active Toast Web profile and clocks in under their own name.

Cause 3: The terminal is out of sync with Toast Web

If POS access codes are unique and no duplicate profile exists, the terminal itself may be holding stale data.

Confirm there are no pending credit card payments or red checks on the affected terminal. Resyncing without clearing these will cause permanent data loss.
Reboot the terminal: hold the power button for five to ten seconds, then power it back on.
Detach from Wi-Fi. Toast recommends removing all devices from Wi-Fi connection and having all devices directly connected with Ethernet.
From the passcode screen, select the three-dot menu and select Resync All Data.
Repeat on every terminal at the location if the issue is widespread.

Resync All Data is best performed when the restaurant is closed and there are no open checks or pending payments. See Resync All Data on Your Devices for full guidance.

Expected outcome: The terminal recognizes each employee's POS access code and shows the correct name at clock-in.

Account Disabled Error on the POS

If the POS device shows the error "Your account has been disabled, please contact your manager," the user logged in to the Toast app on the device is inactive. The fix requires an active user's email address and password—typically a manager or owner.

On the affected POS device, select the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner and select Logout.
Enter an active user's email address and password.
To investigate further in Toast Web, navigate to Employees > Employee management > Employees and confirm the previously logged-in user's status. The status should display as Active.

Expected outcome: The POS device accepts logins again and employees can clock in.

For full troubleshooting of the account disabled error, see Get Help with Toast Flex Error: Your account has been disabled, please contact your manager.

Invalid Passcode Error on the POS

If an employee receives the "Invalid Passcode" error, the passcode they entered is incorrect, or—for Toast Payroll users—their Toast Web and Toast Payroll profiles may not be mapped.

Have the employee try entering their POS access code again, in case of a typo.
If it still doesn't work, verify the code in Toast Web following the steps in Wrong or Non-Working POS Access Code above.
If you use Toast Payroll and the code is verified correct, confirm the employee's Toast Web and Toast Payroll profiles are mapped. See Toast Payroll: Get Help With Employee Mapping.

Expected outcome: The error clears and the employee can clock in.

For full background on this error, see Get Help With Account Error: Invalid Passcode.

Archived or Expired Employee Profile

If you can't find the employee's name in Toast Web, or their profile shows an Expired badge, their access may have been archived or expired.

If the profile is archived:

In Toast Web, navigate to Employees > Employee management > Employees.
If the employee's name doesn't appear on the Active tab, select the Archived tab and search again.
To restore the profile, select the restore (up arrow) icon next to the employee's name.

If the profile shows an Expired badge:

In Toast Web, navigate to Employees > Employee management > Employees.
Locate the employee profile with the Expired badge.
Resend the invitation email so the employee can update their access.

Expected outcome: The employee's profile is active and they receive an email to reactivate access if needed. Once they complete the reactivation, they can clock in again.

For more on managing back-end access for existing employees, see Grant or Remove Toast Web Access for Existing Employees.

Missing Toast Web Profile (Toast Payroll Users)

If an employee has a Toast Payroll profile but no Toast Web profile, they cannot clock in on POS devices. This typically happens when the employee was added in Toast Web first and Toast Payroll second, or when the auto-creation of a Toast Web profile failed.

In Toast Payroll, navigate to Profile > User Account.
Locate the employee's profile and confirm it is not archived.
Add an email address to the employee profile. This should trigger automatic creation of a Toast Web profile.
If the Toast Web profile is not automatically created, manually create one and map the employee. See Toast Payroll: Manage Employee Mapping.
Confirm the new Toast Web profile has a POS access code assigned. See Find or Edit an Employee's POS Access Code.
If the employee has multiple Toast Web profiles, verify only one is active per employee. If the Toast Payroll profile is mapped to an archived Toast Web profile, unarchive that profile or create a new one.

Expected outcome: The employee has a single active Toast Web profile with a valid POS access code and can clock in.

For more on resolving duplicate profile issues that affect shifts and time entries, see Duplicate Employee Profiles in Toast Web.

Clock-in Issues on One Terminal

If the issue happens only on one terminal but the employee can clock in on other devices, the terminal itself likely needs a refresh.

Have the employee try clocking in from a different terminal to confirm the issue is device-specific.
On the affected terminal, fully log out: from the passcode screen, select the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner and select Logout. Sign back in with your email address and password. See Log Out and Into Another Location in the Toast POS App.
If the issue persists, force stop the Toast POS app and clear its cache. See Get Help With the Toast App on the POS.
After restarting the app, resync all data on the device.

Expected outcome: The terminal accepts employee clock-ins after the restart and resync.

Clock-in Issues at One Location

If an employee cannot clock in at a specific location but can at others, their job role, permissions, or POS access code may be configured differently for that location.

In Toast Web, confirm the employee's job roles and access permissions are configured correctly for the affected location.
Verify the POS access code assigned to the employee for that location.
Save and publish any changes.
Resync data on the POS device at the affected location.
Have the employee try to clock in again.

Expected outcome: The employee can clock in at the affected location after permissions and sync are confirmed.

For employees assigned to multiple locations, see Get Help With MLM Employee Access & Permissions.

Persistent Clock-in Problems

If none of the above sections resolve the issue, you can replace the employee's profile as a last-resort step before contacting Customer Care.

Archive the employee's profile in Toast Web.
Create a new employee profile.
Assign a fresh POS access code and confirm all permissions are accurate.
If you use Toast Payroll, ensure the new and old profiles are mapped correctly. See Toast Payroll: Manage Employee Mapping.
Resync data on all POS devices at the affected location.

Expected outcome: The employee can clock in with the new profile and POS access code.

If the issue persists, see Before You Contact Customer Care below.

Before You Contact Customer Care

If you cannot resolve the issue using the steps above, gather the following before reaching out so Customer Care can assist faster:

The employee's name and current POS access code
The specific error message or behavior (for example, "Invalid Passcode," wrong name appearing, or "account disabled")
The terminal or location where the issue occurs
The steps you have already tried from this article
Whether the employee has a Toast Payroll profile
Whether the employee was recently onboarded, rehired, or transferred from another location

Frequently Asked Questions

Can Employees Clock In From the Toast Now App?

No, employees cannot clock in or view POS access codes on the Toast Now app at this time. Employees must clock in using a Toast POS device at the restaurant.

Can I Set Clock-in Restrictions for Employees?

You can prevent employees from clocking in early by navigating to Schedule Enforcement and adjusting the Minutes Before Clock-In. For example, if you set Minutes Before Clock-In as "15," your employees will not be allowed to clock in earlier than 15 minutes before their scheduled shift start time.

What if an Employee Forgets to Clock Out?

If an employee forgets to clock out, a manager can manually edit their time clock entry to add the correct clock-out time. See Edit Employee Time Clock Entries.