Best Time Tracking Software for Freelancers

Freelancers are often the only ones in a company who have to track their time and pay tax on it. In fact, many freelancers end up paying more than they should because of this. The best solution for these workers is an easy-to-use software that tracks all your hours, breaks down every task into its own category, and even keeps you updated with how much taxes you’ll owe at the end of the year. Even better? It doesn’t cost any money!

The “time tracker” is a software that helps freelancers keep track of their time. It can be used to help figure out how much you should charge for your services.

Tracking how you spend your work hours as a freelancer does more than only help you charge customers correctly. The finest freelance time tracking software also allows you to view your time spent so you can improve your bids or see if you’re wasting too much time on irrelevant chores. Invoicing, online payments, reporting, and integrations should all be included in the better ones, in addition to timers that can be quickly started and stopped. Most people will do it for a moderate fee, if not for free.

We reviewed 20 options to identify the best time tracking software for freelancers and reduced it down to our top five choices.

• Clockify is the best time tracking software for freelancers (overall).
• TimeCamp is ideal for freelancers who want powerful productivity tools.
• Harvest is ideal for freelancers who want to keep track of their time, bill customers, and take payments for free.
• Track Toggl is the best alternative for freelancers that need a lot of integration possibilities.
• Hubstaff is the best option for those looking for a safe method to pay freelancer teams.

How We Decided on the Best Freelance Time Tracking Software

We began our search by analyzing the cost, convenience of use, and online user ratings of 20 different time monitoring products. We also looked at features that are important to freelancers, such as cross-platform time trackers, online timers with simple start/stop buttons, reporting tools, and the option to assign hours to assignments. Extra points were awarded to software that can measure idle time, produce invoices, take client payments, and interact with accounting, scheduling, and project management systems.

Clockify is the finest time tracking software for freelancers, according to our research. It came out on top of our list due to its simplicity of use and free time monitoring tools, which include limitless projects and user seats. While invoicing and productivity tools like idle time monitoring and a Pomodoro timer come at a premium, the monthly rates are reasonable (starting at $4.99 per person).

To view our complete assessment criteria, click through the categories below.

25%

Features for keeping track of time

15%

Tools for calculating billable hours and task labor costs

25% of the Total Points

We looked to determine whether the service offered a free plan as well as clear pricing for its premium levels. Extra points were granted to companies who charged $10 or less per employee each month. All of the services we looked at have free plans, but Harvest is the best choice if you want a feature-rich solution that also allows you to issue invoices and take client payments. Its free tier, on the other hand, only allows for one user seat and two active projects.

25% of the Total Points

We sought for timers with simple start/stop buttons, as well as applications that could be used on both desktop computers and mobile devices. Users favored software that included idle time monitoring and scheduling capabilities to help them plan out their day. While all of the programs in this article include effective time tracking features, we suggest TimeCamp, Track Toggl, Clockify, and Harvest since many of their work efficiency functions are available for free.

20% of the Total Points

It’s critical to have time tracking software that’s simple to use and understand. We also looked at whether the company provides live phone assistance, training, accounting and scheduling system connection, and an offline mode for its time tracking software. Clockify and Harvest received good grades in this category, whereas Track Toggl came in last due to a lack of phone assistance and integration choices that don’t offer scheduling solutions.

10% of the Total Points

We looked at internet user ratings, including those from our rivals, and decided that any choice with a rating of four stars or above is the best. Additionally, software with 1,000 or more third-party evaluations is recommended. Harvest and TimeCamp came in last (with a score of 3 out of 5) since their average number of internet evaluations is less than 500 as of this writing.

5% of the Total Points

Users should be able to modify reports in addition to having access to basic and pre-built reports. Because of the restricted report customizability, TimeCamp earned perfect marks while the others did not.

*Percentages based on total score

Clockify

The Best Time Tracking Software for Freelancers Overall

PROS

• The user interface is simple and straightforward.
• The free tier includes time monitoring tools for the web, desktop, and mobile devices, as well as unlimited users and projects.
• Billing customers using built-in invoicing tools

CONS

• Extra charges apply to invoicing, time sheet approvals, and labor cost vs budget comparisons.
• Users can’t modify or add new fields to reports, which limits their customizability.
• Clients’ online payments are not accepted.

Total Points

4.49

OUT OF

5

Clockify is one of two providers in this tutorial (the other being TimeCamp) that allows you to monitor time for an infinite number of projects and users for free. It outranks TimeCamp because it tracks billable and non-billable hours for free (this is a premium feature in TimeCamp), it gives live phone help in addition to email and chat (TimeCamp only offers email and chat), and it has a larger user base.

Clockify’s timer applications operate on online browsers, desktop PCs, and mobile iOS/Android devices, making time monitoring for freelancers even simpler. If you want to produce invoices from monitored time and measure your team’s productivity across projects, you’ll have to pay extra. Furthermore, unlike Harvest and TimeCamp, it does not accept online client payments. Harvest could be a better fit for you, particularly if you just require one user seat and two active projects and want free time tracking, invoicing, expense tracking, and client payment capabilities.

Clockify received a 4.49 out of 5 rating in our review, with perfect scores in price and time tracking, and good ratings in virtually all of our categories except reporting. While you can build and export pre-built reports to CSV, PDF, and Excel files, your customization choices are limited—you can’t modify and add your own data fields. Users, on the other hand, have claimed that the reports are useful, and that it is both efficient and easy to use.

Pricing using Clockify

• Clockify’s free plan offers project and task tracking, reporting tools, and a calendar where you can see tasks and add/edit time blocks, in addition to online timers and time sheets for monitoring billable/non-billable hours. It also allows for an infinite number of projects and users.
• Upgrades: If you need more functionality, Clockify has five packages to choose from:
  • Basic: For $4.99 per month per user, you receive administrative capabilities including project templates, time audits, and the opportunity to add time for one or more people.
  • Standard: For $6.99 per user each month, you receive all of the capabilities of Basic plus time sheets and billing tools such as time sheet approvals, invoicing, and QuickBooks connection.
  • Pro: This plan adds productivity and profit tools, scheduled reporting, GPS monitoring, and automated email notifications when a project exceeds its assigned budget for $9.99 per user each month.
  • Enterprise: This tier costs $14.99 per user per month and includes advanced security and control features such as account management, single sign-on (SSO), and a custom subdomain.
  • Clockify may be hosted on your own servers with this custom-priced option.

Unique Features of Clockify

• Clockify allows you to monitor time on a variety of devices, so you’re not confined to just one. Its online timer is available on iOS and Android mobile devices, as well as web browsers (Firefox, Google Chrome, and Microsoft Edge). It even offers desktop applications for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. The other companies on this list (such as Harvest and TimeCamp) only provide desktop and mobile applications, not all three.
• Leave management: If you upgrade to at least the Standard plan, you’ll have access to a leave management module that allows you to monitor accruals and balances, as well as handle paid time-off requests and approvals. Other providers (with the exception of TimeCamp and Hubstaff) do not have this capability, although they may monitor leave hours by setting unique “leave tasks” to track vacation, sick, and holiday hours.
• Computer screenshots: In addition to idle time detection, website and app tracking, and a Pomodoro timer, Clockify has a screenshot recording tool that takes snapshots of your computer screen every five minutes while your timer is running, though you must upgrade to either the Pro or Enterprise version to use it. If your customers don’t want precise evidence of work or you find it intrusive, Harvest is a better option since it lacks this function and offers additional capabilities in its free plan.
• Integrations with third-party software: Clockify connects with over 50 online programs, enabling you to monitor time from inside Asana, Trello, Salesforce, Basecamp, and Zendesk. It does not, however, integrate with scheduling applications, payment gateways, or accounting software (except QuickBooks). Toggl is a wonderful alternative if you need a lot of integration possibilities since it links to over 100 applications.

TimeCamp

Best for Freelancers in Search of High-Efficiency Tools

PROS

• Users and projects are limitless with the free plan.
• Has powerful productivity tools for employees
• Provides leave management services.

CONS

• If you want billable/non-billable hours labeling and email/chat support, you’ll have to subscribe to one of its premium plans.
• Only higher levels include client invoicing and online payments.
• There is no phone support.

Total Points

4.46

OUT OF

5

TimeCamp is another time tracking software for freelancers that, like Clockify, offers a free tier with unlimited projects and user seats. It didn’t top our list since it There is no phone support. (Clockify provides phone, email, and chat assistance) and because you have to get a paid plan if you want to tag hours as billable or non-billable (this is free with Clockify). It also has a lower number of average user reviews on G2 and Capterra as of this writing—Clockify has 800 online users reviews, whereas TimeCamp only has 350.

TimeCamp received a flawless score of 4.46 out of 5 in price, time tracking, and reporting. Given its productivity, invoicing, and online payment facilities, it also scored well in billable hours and job labor price aspects. Many users have even said that TimeCamp is an excellent application for tracking project hours and providing relevant information on their daily work routine and productivity.

Pricing for TimeCamp

• TimeCamp’s desktop and mobile applications are free to use for tracking time for an infinite number of projects and users. Project templates, bulk modifications, PDF outputs, and interaction with one program are all included in this plan.
• Basic cost: For $7 per user per month, you receive all of the capabilities of the Free tier plus custom reports, management roles, billable time, and XLS file exports. You’ll also get limitless integrations, email and chat support, and tools to help you measure the productivity of your staff.
• Option for professionals: Billing rates, invoicing, client payments, time sheet approvals, and custom user roles are all included in this $10 per user monthly package.
• Enterprise package: This custom-priced plan includes all of Pro’s features as well as specialized training, private cloud installation, and a self-hosted service.

Standout Features of TimeCamp

• Attendance and leave management: Its time tracker may be used to not just enter hours for projects, but also to track clock-ins/outs and overtime. It also features leave management tools, similar to Clockify and Hubstaff, to help you monitor vacation, sick, and holiday leaves.
• TimeCamp features a variety of online productivity tools to help you keep track of your job productivity. It keeps track of how much time you spend on websites, applications, and documents. You may create objectives and track your productive and idle hours using its productivity assistant tool. You may also turn on the computer snapshots feature if you want complete transparency and to show customers evidence of work. It doesn’t have a Pomodoro timer like Harvest and Hubstaff, but it does feature a private time mode that you can put on if you want to take breaks or whatnot.
• TimeCamp provides smart bills that you can simply prepare and send to customers through email, a private link, or a PDF file. Clients may also pay you using PayPal straight from the invoice. To enjoy these features, you must upgrade to at least the Pro plan. Harvest is a more cost-effective choice since it provides free invoicing and online payment tools—all you need is one user seat and two active projects.

Harvest

It’s ideal for freelancers. Looking for Free Time Tracking, Billing, and Payment Acceptance Software?

PROS

• You may use the free version to keep track of project time, issue invoices, receive client payments, and submit expense reports.
• Stripe and PayPal connections are used to process online payments.
• Its premium Pro plan comes with a 30-day free trial.

CONS

• Only one user seat and two projects are available in the free tier.
• Only the premium Pro plan includes time monitoring for limitless projects; this option might be expensive, particularly if you have a large crew.
• Mobile applications may be buggy at times, and the features aren’t always as extensive as the desktop version.

Total Points

4.33

OUT OF

5

Harvest is a wonderful time tracking program for freelancers who only work on a few projects but want all of the necessary functionality like invoicing, expense tracking, and online payments. All of these capabilities are available for free, but you only receive one user seat and two active projects. You must subscribe to the premium tier if you desire limitless projects and user seats. Consider Clockify or TimeCamp if you want unlimited time tracking, projects, and users for free.

Harvest scored a 4.33 out of 5 rating in our study, with flawless scores in billable hours and work labor costs aspects. However, due of its restricted customization choices, it received a poor ranking in reporting capabilities.

Users who posted comments on web sites such as G2 and Capterra noted that it features user-friendly tools and good integration choices. However, some users have expressed concern that the subscription plan is too pricey for freelancers and small company owners. Its mobile app, according to some reviews, might be glitchy at times.

Whether you’re unsure if Harvest provides the time tracking capabilities your company need, read our Harvest review to see if it’s the best fit for you.

Pricing for the Harvest

• Harvest’s time tracking applications, client invoicing, online payments, and cost reporting tools are all free to use, but only one user seat and time tracking for two projects are included.
• Pro plan: This package is $12 per user per month and includes unlimited user seats and projects. While this solution may seem to be cost-effective, it is not if you have a big workforce. TimeCamp’s Pro plan, which costs $7.50 per user, per month, is a budget-friendly subscription tier featuring invoicing and payment capabilities.

Highlights of the Harvest

• Harvest’s feature-rich free tier includes time tracking, expense tracking, invoicing, and online payment capabilities despite having just one user seat and two active projects. While several of the services on this list include invoicing, payments, and expense tracking, these features are only available if you switch to a premium plan.
• Expense reporting and client payments: Harvest allows you to billable expenditures incurred while working on client projects. You may also incorporate it in client billing invoices. Sending web invoices also gives your clients the option of paying you online using PayPal or Stripe.
• Harvest interfaces with over 50 third-party software solutions, and the systems with which it collaborates are more robust than Clockify, which focuses on productivity and project management applications. Harvest, on the other hand, interacts with software for communication, customer relationship management (CRM), analytics, and problem monitoring. Track Toggl, on the other hand, is a time tracking tool that links to over 100 applications.

Track Toggl

Best for Freelancers Who Require a Wide Range of Integration Options

PROS

• Idle time detection and a Pomodoro timer are included in the free plan, as well as unlimited time monitoring and projects.
• More than 100 applications are compatible.
• Interface that is simple to use

CONS

• Only five user slots are available for free.
• Doesn’t have the ability to generate invoices
• Paid choices are prohibitively costly.

Total Points

4.03

OUT OF

5

Track Toggl, one of Toggl’s online solutions, is an easy to use time tracking tool that can integrate with more than 100 apps—enabling you to log time from a wide range of software. It also has a free plan that can track unlimited projects like Clockify does, but it has a slightly higher user seat allocation than Harvest (five versus one). And, unlike Hubstaff, you can use many of its productivity tools like idle time detection and URL/apps tracking at no cost.

Overall, Track Toggl earned 4.03 out of 5 in our evaluation with perfect marks in pricing and time tracking. It posted low scores (2.5 out of 5) in reporting and managing billable hours because of its limited reporting customizability, plus it doesn’t have the online payment capabilities that Harvest does or the invoicing tools that other providers in this list offer. However, users still consider Track Toggl a good time tracking solution, especially for freelancers and solopreneurs. They also appreciate its free version that makes managing time, projects, and clients easy.

Track Toggl Pricing

• Option 1: This includes five user seats, unlimited projects, exportable reports, automated time tracking triggers, and access to 100+ integration options. Option 2: This includes five user seats, unlimited projects, exportable reports, automated time tracking triggers, and access to 100+ integration options. You may utilize its idle time detection tools and Pomodoro timer to help you know when it’s time to take breaks, in addition to its time tracker applications for desktops, web browsers, and mobile devices.
• Starter tier: For $10 per user per month, you receive everything from Free plus billable rates, project estimates and alerts, and pre-populated project templates.
• Optional upgrade: Project projections and analysis, team time tracking reminders, and time audits are among the extra capabilities available in this tier, which costs $20 per user each month.
• Enterprise package: This custom-priced plan includes unlimited users, all of Premium’s tools, and priority support, professional help, and bespoke solutions in addition to all of Premium’s features.

Track Toggl Standout Features

• Free-to-use productivity tools: Unlike Hubstaff, you don’t have to pay in order to access Track Toggl’s idle time detection and URL/apps tracking tools. It even has a Pomodoro timer that automatically reminds you to take breaks for every 25 minutes of work or any length of time you choose.
• Robust integrations: Track Toggl makes time tracking for freelancers seamless given its wide selection of integration options. You can log time from inside 100+ solutions such as Asana, Basecamp, Jira, Evernote, Trello, Wrike, Salesforce, Zendesk, Slack, and Zoho. However, it doesn’t integrate with QuickBooks and payment gateways like most of the providers in this list do.
• Flexible time tracking: You can log hours through Track Toggl’s apps for web browsers, computers, and mobile iOS and Android devices. While its desktop app works on Windows and Mac computers, it doesn’t support Linux computers like Clockify does.

Hubstaff

Best for Freelancer Teams Looking for a Safe Way to Pay

PROS

• Interface that is simple to use
• It provides a free plan that includes basic time and activity monitoring.
• For online employee payments, it integrates with a number of payment channels.

CONS

• Only one person may use the free version.
• Extra charges apply to invoicing, employee payments, expenditure monitoring, and sophisticated productivity features.
• App issues occur from time to time.

Total Points

3.82

OUT OF

5

Hubstaff is great for freelancers who manage teams because, aside from offering time and productivity tracking tools, it integrates with several payment gateways where you can easily send payments. While the other providers in this list (except for Track Toggl and Clockify) also partner with online payment solutions, this is mainly to accept client payments and not process worker pay.

Hubstaff received 4 or higher marks in price, billable hours, work labor costs, and user popularity in our review of the best time tracking software for freelancers, earning it a 3.82 out of 5 rating. Reporting is the sole criterion for which it received a poor score (2.5 out of 5) since users cannot add their own data fields to reports.

Many users who offered comments on G2 and Capterra claimed that it is typically simple to understand and use, with effective capabilities for monitoring time and productivity at work. Some users, on the other hand, complained about poor loading times, mobile app difficulties, and integration concerns.

Pricing for Hubstaff

Hubstaff provides three time-tracking solutions (Hubstaff Time, Hubstaff Desk, and Hubstaff Field), each with many levels. Hubstaff Desk, which includes time tracking, team management, and productivity monitoring features, is our recommendation for freelancers. It features four different plans:

• This package is excellent for individuals that simply need one user seat. You receive basic time and activity monitoring, as well as a limited number of reports, payment choices, and screenshots from your PC.
• The Desk Starter tier includes all of the features of the Free tier, as well as unlimited screenshots, one integration, per-user settings, and two user seats. It costs $7 per user each month, but given the two user seats, the monthly minimum is $14.
• Additional utilities include invoicing, client and project budgets, URL and app tracking, time sheet approvals, expensing, and complete payment and integration possibilities with the Desk Pro option. It costs $10 a month per user, with a monthly minimum of $20 for the first two users.
• Enterprise package: This plan offers all of Hubstaff Desk and Hubstaff Field’s features plus VIP assistance, concierge setup, and limitless work sites for a monthly charge of $40 ($20 per user X two user seats).

Consider Hubstaff Time if you merely need to log time, produce invoices, and pay your freelancers. It has comparable plan choices and features as Hubstaff Desk, but none of the productivity tools. You may join up for a free tier (with one user seat) or upgrade to a premium tier (with two user seats) for a monthly price of $7–$20 per user.

Hubstaff Field is a wonderful solution for people who need to monitor the time and location of field employees. This package includes geolocation tracking, work orders and tasks, and fleet monitoring in addition to Hubstaff Desk’s services. Subscription choices, on the other hand, are limited to paid plans with a minimum of two users seats and monthly costs ranging from $15–$20 per user.

Unique Characteristics of Hubstaff

• Multiple time tracking solutions: Hubstaff offers three time tracking products, each of which caters to the demands of customers in somewhat different ways. Hubstaff Time is ideal for users who just need basic time tracking and reporting, Hubstaff Desk is ideal for users who also need good productivity tools, and Hubstaff Field is ideal for users who need geolocation tracking in addition to time tracking.
• Tools for increasing productivity include: Hubstaff’s features include idle time detection, computer snapshots, and URL/apps monitoring, to name a few. You may see dips and gains in productivity rates depending on keyboard and mouse use. You can celebrate achievements and congratulate workers by giving them virtual high fives with Hubstaff if you establish hours or productivity objectives for your freelancing team. This functionality is not available with any of the providers on our list.
• While Harvest and TimeCamp interact with payment gateways to receive client payments, Hubstaff integrates with PayPal, Wise (previously TransferWise), Payoneer, and Bitwage to allow you to pay your team members online. You may also export your time tracking data to payroll software such as FreshBooks, QuickBooks, and Gusto.

Conclusion

The best time tracking software for freelancers is determined by their specific requirements. Some just monitor and record time, whereas others include include expenditure tracking and invoicing. Almost all will work with groups and interact with other applications, particularly project management software. Consider what you need, popular choices (some of which are even free to use), and if you are prepared to pay more for additional features before making your decision.

We find Clockify to be the best time tracking application for most freelancers working on work assignments. PTO management, invoicing, and a broad variety of productivity tools are all available. There’s a free edition with limitless projects and user seats, as well as subscription levels with monthly payments starting at $4.99 per user. Today is the last day to sign up for a free plan.

Visit Clockify for more information.

Freelancers are always on the go. They work long hours and need a way to track their time. The “best free time tracker” is an app that can help them keep track of their time.

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