What is the best timesheet software in 2026?
Good timesheet software almost fills itself in. On Friday you approve, you invoice, and nobody chases last week's hours.
If you run a US agency or a service shop, hours are money twice over. They go on client invoices, and for non-exempt staff they drive payroll: every hour past 40 in a week is paid at time and a half under the FLSA. A shared Google Sheet works until payroll week, when half the team fills in Friday from memory and nobody can say who changed Tuesday. Timesheet software fixes that: people run a timer or log their week, a manager approves, and approved hours push to invoicing or to payroll.
The short answer. Clockify is the best value: approvals and locked pay periods come with Standard at $5.49 per user per month, billed annually. Toggl Track is the one people actually enjoy using. TimeCamp is free for unlimited users. Harvest is the shortest path from hours to a QuickBooks or Xero invoice. Timely drafts your timesheet for you. Hubstaff is for remote contractors, with screenshots and GPS.
What the usual roundups skip: the price on the box rarely includes approvals. They sit on the second, third or fourth tier. We priced it out for a team of 5 and a team of 10.
The ranking is editorial: a sponsored spot is always labeled on its card, and no affiliate link changes a score.
The best timesheet app for your situation
Approvals from $5.49 per user
Nicest to useOne-click timer everywhere
Widest free planUnlimited users at $0
Best for client billingInvoices built from hours
Best automatic timesheetFills itself in while you work
For remote teamsScreenshots and GPS
6 timesheet apps compared
The ranking targets freelancers, agencies, consultancies and service businesses from 1 to 50 people who log time by client and project. Every ranked app publishes its prices. Shift clock-in and attendance tracking (arrivals, departures, breaks) is a different job, covered on our time and attendance page.
| Best for | What sets it apart | Free plan | Team size | Visit | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clockify | Best value | Approvals and locking from Standard | 4.2/5 | $3.99/user/mo billed annually | ✓ | Freelancers, SMBs, 1 to 50 people | Visit → |
| 2 | Toggl Track | Nicest to use | Fastest time entry in the ranking | 4.0/5 | $9/user/mo billed annually | ✓ | Freelancers, agencies, small teams | Visit → |
| 3 | TimeCamp | Widest free plan | Free with unlimited users | 3.8/5 | $3.99/user/mo billed annually | ✓ | Teams starting with no budget | Visit → |
| 4 | Harvest | Best for client billing | Invoices built from hours | 3.7/5 | $9/seat/mo billed annually | ✓ | Agencies, studios, consultants | Visit → |
| 5 | Timely | Best automatic timesheet | Automatic app tracking | 3.7/5 | $9/user/mo billed annually | — | Consultants, creatives | Visit → |
| 6 | Hubstaff | For remote teams | Screenshots and GPS | 2.9/5 | $4.99/seat/mo billed annually | ✓ | Remote teams, contractors | Visit → |
Scores across five criteria, explained in the method. Prices taken in 2026 from each vendor's official pricing page, before tax.
Is your tool missing from this page? Email us: hello@hackceleration.com
How we compared and scored
This page is for owners and ops leads who need hours they can defend: in front of a client disputing an invoice, or in front of an employee asking about overtime. It doesn't cover punch clocks for retail floors or job sites, which record clock-in and clock-out rather than time per project.
The core test is approval. Under the FLSA you have to keep accurate records of hours worked by non-exempt employees, and a timesheet nobody signs off is a weak record. So for each vendor we found the exact tier where a manager can approve and lock a pay period. That's usually where the price doubles.
Weights follow what hurts a small US team. Value weighs 25%, based on the annual price of the tier with approvals. Features weigh 25%: billable rates, invoices, budgets, client reports, payroll export. Ease of use counts for 20%, because a clunky app gets filled in on Friday from memory. Integrations weigh 15% (QuickBooks, Xero, project tools, calendars) and support 15%.
Then we read user reviews, worst first. In 2026 many long-time Clockify users say the free plan lost billable rates, decimal hours and CSV export without warning; Clockify says it gave a month's in-app notice. Harvest's top complaint is still price. TimeCamp's are occasional bugs and a dated interface.
- Value for moneyAnnual price of the plan with approvals, free plan, minimum seats.25%
- Features and depthBillable rates, invoices, budgets, client and project reports, approval and locking.25%
- Ease of useEntry speed, timer, browser extension, mobile app, editing past entries.20%
- IntegrationsProject management tools, accounting, calendar, payroll export.15%
- SupportReachability, documentation, trial length, transparency on plan changes.15%
No affiliate link changes a score or a rank.
Free plans change every year. Get the updates
Clockify
Clockify is the easiest pick when budget matters. The Standard plan, at $5.49 per user per month billed annually, bundles what others charge far more for: manager approval of timesheets, locking of past weeks, and invoices built from tracked hours. For a team of 10, that's $54.90 a month.
Basic ($3.99) adds a kiosk mode, handy if your crew logs hours on a shared tablet. Pro ($7.99) adds GPS and project budgets. Enterprise ($11.99) is for larger organizations.
The free plan changed in 2026, and you should know how. It now caps at 5 users, and several features moved to paid tiers: billable rates, decimal hours, CSV and Excel export, some reports. Plenty of long-time users say they found out with no warning; Clockify says it posted an in-app notice a month ahead.
The catch: logging time after the fact takes several clicks to pick project, date and time, and reporting stays basic for big teams. By default nothing stops a manager from approving their own hours, so set roles on day one.
Tip: if you bill clients, go straight to Standard instead of Basic. For $1.50 more per person you get approvals and invoicing, which is the reason to buy a timesheet app in the first place.
- Approvals and locking from $5.49
- Invoices from hours on Standard
- Kiosk mode from Basic
- ✓Cheapest path to approvals
- ✓Clear public pricing
- ✓Web, desktop and mobile apps
- ✗Free plan cut back in 2026
- ✗Editing past entries is clunky
- ✗Basic reporting for large teams
The first pick for a team that bills or needs approved hours. Take Standard on annual billing, and skip the free plan if you need billable rates.
Toggl Track
Toggl Track wins on something that matters more than people think: it gets used. The timer starts in one click from the browser, desktop or phone, and the extension shows up right inside dozens of work tools. An accurate timesheet starts with a filled-in timesheet.
The free plan covers a freelancer or a very small team: unlimited tracking, unlimited projects, basic reports. Starter, at $9 per user per month billed annually, adds billable rates and project estimates. Premium, at $18, brings what an agency needs to steer: timesheet approvals, project profitability, scheduled reports.
The catch: approvals only come with Premium, which means $180 a month for 10 people, more than three times Clockify Standard for the same feature. Toggl Track also has no project views (boards, timelines): it plugs into your project tool, it doesn't replace it.
Tip: turn on tracking reminders and idle detection from day one. They're what stop a timer running all weekend.
- One-click timer everywhere
- Extension inside many tools
- Project profitability on Premium
- ✓Fastest entry in the ranking
- ✓Solid free plan to start
- ✓Zero learning curve
- ✗Approvals only on Premium
- ✗Pricey for a team of 10
- ✗No project views
The nicest for daily use. Perfect solo or for three people; beyond that, compare Premium's cost with Clockify before you sign.
TimeCamp
TimeCamp has the most generous free plan in the ranking by headcount: unlimited users, unlimited projects, timesheets, web, desktop and mobile apps. For a nonprofit or a team that first needs to build the habit of logging hours, it's the widest starting point.
Starter, at $3.99 per user per month billed annually, adds invoicing and attendance tracking. Premium costs $6.99. But timesheet approvals and billing rates only arrive on Ultimate, at $9.99 annually or $13.99 monthly. That's the trap: the lowest entry price on the market, yet the plan an agency really needs costs nearly twice Clockify Standard.
Reviews are good overall. The recurring complaints: occasional bugs, an interface people call dated, clunky timesheet editing and a mobile app that needs work.
The catch: most of what matters for billing sits on the most expensive public plan.
Tip: use the free plan for a month to check that your team actually logs time. If it sticks, compare Ultimate with Clockify Standard before choosing.
- Free with unlimited users
- Invoicing and attendance from Starter
- Approvals on Ultimate
- ✓Widest free plan
- ✓Low entry price
- ✓Attendance and time in one app
- ✗Approvals and rates locked to Ultimate
- ✗Dated interface
- ✗Occasional bugs per reviews
The best free start for a group. For billing with approvals, Ultimate costs more than Clockify.
Harvest
Harvest is built around one idea: every logged hour should be able to end up on an invoice. Billable rates, internal costs, expenses and invoices live in the same app, and sync with QuickBooks, Xero or Stripe is included from the Teams plan.
Teams costs $9 per seat per month billed annually ($108 a year) or $11 monthly. Enterprise, at $14 annually or $17.50 monthly, adds timesheet approvals, unlimited profitability reports and single sign-on. Annual billing saves 20%, and the trial lasts 30 days with no credit card.
The free plan is narrow: 1 seat and 2 projects. Enough for a freelancer testing invoicing from time, not for a team.
The catch: price. It's the number one complaint in reviews, especially since Harvest only does time and invoicing, no project management. Several users also find matching timesheets to invoices a bit manual. For 10 people with approvals, budget $140 a month.
Tip: if approvals are your only reason to go Enterprise, run the math against Clockify Standard. If invoicing and accounting are the point, Harvest is still the smoothest.
- Invoices and expenses built in
- QuickBooks, Xero and Stripe from Teams
- 30-day trial, no card
- ✓Shortest path from hours to invoice
- ✓Clean interface
- ✓20% off on annual billing
- ✗Approvals only on Enterprise
- ✗Above-average price
- ✗Free plan capped at 2 projects
The right pick if you invoice clients every month. If you only need approved hours, others do it for less.
Timely
Timely flips the problem. Instead of asking you to start a timer, its Memory feature records the apps, documents, meetings and sites you use in the background. At the end of the day you get a timeline, drag the blocks onto the right projects, and your timesheet is done.
There's no free plan, only a 14-day trial. Starter costs $9 per user per month billed annually, but stops at 5 users. Beyond that you need Premium at $16 (up to 50) or Unlimited at $22. Monthly, it's $11, $20 and $28.
Reviews praise the time saved on logging. Complaints: Memory sometimes gets confused and needs fixes, advanced reporting is limited, and the price feels steep. Automatic tracking also raises a real privacy question, so explain it to your team before rollout.
The catch: for a team of 10, Timely runs $160 a month on Premium, and its pricing page lists no timesheet approval feature: if you need one, check it during the trial.
Tip: Memory data is private by default, and each person decides what becomes logged time. Say so clearly to your team; it's what gets the tool accepted.
- Automatic tracking with Memory
- Daily timeline to approve
- Memory data private by default
- ✓No more forgotten timers
- ✓Fastest end-of-day logging
- ✓Great for fragmented days
- ✗No free plan
- ✗Starter capped at 5 users
- ✗Pricey for teams
The most comfortable timesheet if you hate logging hours. If price is your priority, look elsewhere.
Hubstaff
Hubstaff isn't primarily timesheet software: it's an activity tracker. It takes screenshots, measures keyboard and mouse activity, and offers GPS for field teams. Timesheets come out of that, with approval before payroll.
The listed prices look low: Starter at $4.99 per seat per month billed annually, Grow at $7.50, Team at $10, Enterprise at $25. But every paid plan has a 2-seat minimum, owners and managers count as seats, and several features (GPS, advanced insights) sit behind add-ons or higher tiers.
The catch: monitoring. For an agency or consultancy that just needs billable hours, screenshots are pointless and erode trust. Our review scores it 2.9 out of 5, with weak support and value for money.
Tip: if you pick it for contractors, turn screenshots off for in-house staff. One rule for everyone makes no sense here.
- Screenshots and activity levels
- GPS for field teams
- Approval before payroll
- ✓Proof of work for remote teams
- ✓Low entry price
- ✓Built-in contractor payroll
- ✗Monitoring teams resent
- ✗2-seat minimum
- ✗Weak support per reviews
Keep it for remote hourly work. For plain timesheets, the five apps above do better.
What an approved timesheet really costs
The entry price tells you nothing. What counts is the price of the plan that includes timesheet approvals. Here's the monthly bill on annual billing, before tax, at official prices.
5 people, with approvals
Clockify Standard: $27.45. TimeCamp Ultimate: $49.95. Harvest Enterprise: $70. Toggl Track Premium: $90. Same feature, more than three times the price from cheapest to priciest.
10 people, with approvals
Clockify Standard: $54.90. TimeCamp Ultimate: $99.90. Harvest Enterprise: $140. Toggl Track Premium: $180.
The hidden cost: seat minimums
Everhour bills 5 seats minimum and Hubstaff 2. At Everhour, removing a user doesn't free the seat, though you can reassign it. Before you sign, count managers and inactive accounts: at Hubstaff they pay too.
- On which exact plan are timesheet approvals included?
- Are billable rates free or paid?
- Is the quoted price annual or monthly?
- Is there a minimum seat count?
- Can you lock an approved week to stop edits?
- Is export to your accounting or payroll tool included?
Other tools worth knowing
These tools come up often in searches. They aren't ranked because they serve a different use or don't publish all their prices clearly. Here's when they're worth a look.
Everhour: time inside your project tool
EmbeddedEverhour shows up right inside Asana, ClickUp, Trello or Jira. The free plan covers 5 seats but with no integrations at all, which removes its main appeal. Team costs $8.50 per seat per month billed annually, with a 5-seat minimum, paid by card in US dollars.
- Price
- $8.50 per seat, 5-seat minimum
- For
- Teams already on Asana or ClickUp
Jibble: free for unlimited users
FreeJibble is free forever for unlimited users, with web and mobile clock-in, basic timesheets and Slack, Teams and QuickBooks integrations. Its paid plans use location-based pricing that isn't clearly shown, which is why we don't rank it.
- Price
- Free, unlimited users
- For
- Teams that also track attendance
Spreadsheets: fine, up to a point
FreeA shared spreadsheet is still a legal way to record hours. It breaks at three or four people: no approval, no locking, overwritten formulas. If you bill, the question isn't the app's price but the time lost fixing errors.
- Price
- Free
- Limit
- No approval or locking
What makes a timesheet rollout fail
These mistakes come up again and again in reviews and forums. None of them shows on a pricing page.
Building payroll on a free plan
PriceIn 2026 Clockify moved billable rates and CSV export off its free plan, and users who exported hours to payroll that way were stuck. Any free tier can change. Export your hours every pay period and keep payroll off free features.
- Do this
- Export each pay period
Buying the tier without approvals
PlanClockify puts approvals on Standard, Toggl Track on Premium, Harvest on Enterprise, TimeCamp on Ultimate. Without them, you have no sign-off trail when a client or an employee disputes hours.
- Cheapest
- Clockify Standard, $5.49
Letting people reconstruct the week on Friday
HabitHours rebuilt from memory skew overtime both ways. Turn on daily reminders, or an automatic tracker like Timely, and set a submission deadline before payroll cutoff.
- Turn on
- Daily logging reminders
Treating timesheets as surveillance
TeamScreenshots and app tracking alienate salaried staff who bill by the hour. Give written notice before you turn on any monitoring, and limit it to contractors or roles where it's justified.
- Plan for
- Written notice to staff
Accurate timesheets without the hassle
A few simple settings that work whatever app you choose.
Lock every approved week
BillingOnce a week is approved, lock it. Nobody edits hours you've already billed, and you never end up with two versions of the same month. Clockify offers this from Standard.
- Result
- Invoices that stop moving
Create an "Internal" project
ReportsMeetings, admin, sales: create a non-billable internal project. Your billable utilization finally becomes readable, and you see where unpaid time goes.
- Result
- Measurable utilization rate
Trial it on a real billing week
ChoosingHarvest gives you 30 days, Timely 14. Log a real week, approve it, then produce the invoice or accounting export. That's where you see if the app delivers.
- Longest trial
- 30 days, Harvest
Want approved hours to flow straight into invoicing? Get our automation guides
Keep going
These pages pick up where this one stops: attendance, project management and invoicing.
Time clocks and attendance.
You want time tracking inside your project toolProject management with time trackingTools with built-in tracking.
You're torn between the two best-known namesToggl vs HubstaffOur head-to-head.
Your questions about timesheet software
What's the difference between timesheet software and a time clock?
A timesheet shows what each person worked on, by client and project. A time clock records clock-in, clock-out and breaks. Agencies need the first, retail and field crews the second; some tools like Jibble or TimeCamp do both.
Is there free timesheet software?
Yes. TimeCamp is free for unlimited users, so is Jibble, and Clockify is free for up to 5 users. Neither TimeCamp nor Clockify includes timesheet approvals for free, and Clockify removed billable rates from its free plan in 2026.
Do I need timesheets for overtime under the FLSA?
For non-exempt employees, yes in practice: you must keep accurate records of hours worked, and anything past 40 hours a week is paid at 1.5 times the regular rate. Approved, locked timesheets are your best record if hours are ever disputed.
How much does timesheet software cost per user?
Among ranked apps, entry plans run from $3.99 (TimeCamp, Clockify) to $9 (Toggl Track, Harvest, Timely) per month billed annually. With approvals, expect $5.49 (Clockify Standard) to $18 (Toggl Track Premium).
Can I invoice directly from timesheets?
Yes with Harvest from Teams, Clockify from Standard and TimeCamp from Starter. Harvest is the most complete: expenses, per-person rates and sync with QuickBooks, Xero or Stripe.
How do I stop people forgetting to log time?
Turn on daily reminders and idle detection, set a submission deadline, and lock approved weeks. If the team still forgets, an automatic tracker like Timely rebuilds the day for you to approve.
Can timesheet software monitor employees?
Some can: Hubstaff takes screenshots and measures activity. Tell your team in writing before you enable it, and keep monitoring proportionate to what you actually need to know.
Can I track time from Asana, Trello or Jira?
Yes, with an extension. Toggl Track and Clockify show up in many tools, and Everhour integrates deeply with Asana, ClickUp and Jira, but only on its paid plan with a 5-seat minimum.