Best Billable Hours Tracker: Maximize Accuracy and Boost Invoicing

Billable hours trackers help freelancers, consultants, agencies, and other service businesses accurately record client work, separate billable vs non-billable time, and generate accurate invoices. The best tool depends on your workflow: some focus on simple time tracking, while others include project budgeting, profitability reporting, and integrations with project management software. We compared the leading billable hours trackers to help you find the right fit.

How We Evaluated These Billable Hours Trackers

We tested each tool by creating an account, logging billable and non-billable hours across sample projects, testing invoicing where available, and reviewing reporting and export options. Pricing and feature availability were verified directly on each vendor’s site as of June 2026, since plans and tiers in this category change frequently. We cross-referenced user sentiment on Capterra and G2 to make sure our assessments reflected real-world experience.

Disclosure: Everhour is our product and appears first on this list. We’ve tried to give every other tool here a fair, accurate writeup including real limitations, so you can judge whether Everhour is actually the right fit for your workflow. If it isn’t, other tools on the list are all strong options depending on your needs, and we say so below.

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What is a Billable Hours Tracker?

A billable hours tracker is software that records time spent on client work and converts it into accurate timesheets for invoicing.

Unlike a basic timer, a billable hours tracker can apply different hourly rates per client or project, distinguish billable from non-billable work, track project budgets, generate invoices, and report on project profitability.

These tools are commonly used by freelancers, consultants, agencies, law firms, accounting firms, and software development teams that charge clients based on time worked.

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Quick Overview: Best Billable Hours Trackers

• Best for agencies and project-based teams: Everhour
• Best for consultants billing by the hour: Harvest
• Best for freelancers wanting fast simple tracking: Toggl Track
• Best for QuickBooks-based businesses: QuickBooks Time
• Best free option with no user limits: Clockify

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TL;DR: Best Billable Hours Trackers

Tool	Best for	Invoicing	Integrations	Free plan
Everhour	Agencies, freelancers	✅	Asana, ClickUp, Trello	✅ Up to 5 users
Harvest	Consultants, hourly teams	✅	Slack, Basecamp, QuickBooks	✅ 1 user, 2 projects
Toggl Track	Freelancers, solo users	❌	Asana, Trello, Linear	✅ Up to 5 users
QuickBooks Time	SMBs needing payroll sync	✅	QuickBooks	❌
Clockify	Free-first teams	✅ paid only	Trello, Jira, Asana	✅ Unlimited users

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What to Look For in a Billable Hours Tracker

Choose based on where billing fits in your workflow, not just which tool has the most features.

• ⏱️ Real-time vs manual tracking — most tools support both, but automatic tracking is rarer in this category
• 🏷️ Project and client tagging — essential for separating work across multiple clients
• 💲 Billable vs non-billable distinction — should be easy to toggle per entry or per project
• 🧾 Native invoicing vs export — some tools generate invoices directly, others require you to export and invoice separately
• 🚨 Budget alerts — useful for agencies and teams managing fixed-fee projects
• 👀 Team visibility — managers need to see billable hours across the whole team, not just their own

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Everhour – Best for Agencies and Project-Based Teams

Everhour is a time tracker and a billing platform built for teams that need to separate billable from non-billable hours, track project budgets, and generate invoices without leaving their existing workflow. It integrates directly into ClickUp, Trello, and Asana, and many more, so time is logged against the actual tasks being worked on rather than in a separate app.

• Real-time tracking with billable vs non-billable hours separated per project

• Per-project, per-task, and per-member billing rates
• Budget alerts when a project approaches its limit
• Native invoice generation from tracked time

• Profitability reports showing revenue vs cost per project
• Direct integrations with Asana, ClickUp, Trello, Jira, Notion, and Basecamp

Pricing

Free plan supports up to five users and includes unlimited time tracking, projects, reports, and integrations. The Team plan is $8.50 per user per month (minimum five users) and includes invoicing, expenses, budget tracking, timesheet approvals, and API access.

✅ When it works best

• You track billable hours inside Asana, ClickUp, Trello, Jira, or Notion
• You need per-project or per-client billing rates
• You want invoicing, budget alerts, and profitability reports in one platform
• You manage a team and need visibility into billable vs non-billable time across projects

❌ When to avoid it

• You only need a simple personal timer with no team or billing features
• You want fully automatic background tracking rather than manual timers
• You don’t use project management tools and don’t need project-based reporting

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Harvest – Best for Consultants and Hourly Billing

Harvest makes it easy to go from tracked hours to paid invoice without a complicated setup. It’s built for freelancers and small teams that bill clients by the hour and want online payment collection built in. It’s been around since 2006 and is particularly well regarded for the simplicity of its invoicing workflow.

• Time tracking via web, desktop app, or mobile
• Invoicing with Stripe and PayPal payment collection built in
• Automatic payment reminders for outstanding invoices
• QuickBooks and Xero sync for accounting
• Integrations with Slack, Asana, Basecamp, and more
• Timesheet approval workflow for teams

Pricing

Free plan supports one user and up to two active projects. The Pro plan is $10.80 per user per month billed annually and includes unlimited projects, users, clients, and invoicing.

✅ When it works best

• You bill clients hourly and want a clean, fast path from tracked time to sent invoice
• You want to accept online payments directly from invoices via Stripe or PayPal
• You use QuickBooks or Xero and want time tracking that syncs with your accounting
• You need a simple tool your whole team can use without a long onboarding process

❌ When to avoid it

• You need deep project budgeting or profitability reporting — Harvest’s budget tracking is basic
• You work inside Asana, ClickUp, or Jira and want time tracking embedded in those tools
• You manage a large team and need workload visibility or resource planning

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Toggl Track – Best for Freelancers Who Want Speed

Toggl Track is one of the most widely used time trackers in the freelance market, known for its clean interface, one-click timer, and browser extension that lets you track time inside other tools without switching apps. It prioritizes ease of use over depth, making it the fastest tool to get started with on this list.

• One-click timer via web, desktop, mobile, or browser extension
• Billable vs non-billable tagging per project and client
• Idle detection to prompt you to correct missed time
• Exportable reports for manual invoicing
• Integrations with Asana, Trello, Linear, GitHub, and more via browser extension

Pricing

Free plan supports up to five users with unlimited tracking and basic reporting. The Starter plan is $10 per user per month and adds billable rates and project estimates. The Premium plan is $20 per user per month and adds forecasting and timesheet approvals.

✅ When it works best

• You want the fastest, simplest time tracking with minimal setup
• You are a freelancer tracking time across multiple clients and projects
• You want a browser extension that works inside your existing tools
• You need basic billable hour reporting for reference when invoicing manually

❌ When to avoid it

• You need native invoicing — Toggl Track doesn’t generate invoices
• You need deep project budgeting or profitability tracking
• You manage a larger team and need workload visibility or timesheet approvals on a budget

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QuickBooks Time – Best for Payroll-Linked Businesses

QuickBooks Time (formerly TSheets) is built for businesses that run payroll through QuickBooks and want time tracking to feed directly into it. Its main advantage is a native sync with QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Payroll, removing the need to export and re-import time data for payroll processing. It’s a stronger fit for businesses with hourly employees than for project-based freelancers or agencies.

• Direct sync with QuickBooks Online and Payroll
• GPS clock-in and geofencing for field teams
• Shift scheduling and overtime calculations
• Job costing reports tied to tracked hours
• Mobile app for on-the-go clock-in and management

Pricing

No free plan. The Premium plan is $20 per month base fee plus $8 per user per month. The Elite plan is $40 per month base fee plus $10 per user per month and adds project tracking, geofencing, and mileage tracking.

✅ When it works best

• You already use QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Payroll and want time data to sync directly
• You manage hourly employees and need scheduling alongside time tracking
• You need job costing or payroll reporting tied directly to tracked hours
• You have field workers who need GPS clock-in and geofencing

❌ When to avoid it

• You don’t use QuickBooks — the main advantage disappears without that integration
• You are a freelancer or agency billing clients by project rather than managing employee payroll
• You want a free or low-cost option — QuickBooks Time has no free plan and charges a base fee on top of per-user pricing

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Clockify – Best Free Billable Hours Tracker

Clockify is the most widely used free time tracker on the market, offering unlimited users, projects, and clients on its free plan with no time limit. It covers the core billable hours workflow without requiring a paid plan, making it a strong starting point for teams evaluating time tracking for the first time.

• Unlimited users, projects, and clients on the free plan
• Billable vs non-billable tracking with custom hourly rates
• Timesheet, timer, and manual entry modes
• Exportable reports in PDF, CSV, and Excel
• Browser extension for tracking inside other tools
• Invoicing available on paid plans

Pricing

Free plan includes unlimited users, projects, and clients with basic tracking and reporting. The Basic plan is $3.99 per user per month and adds project templates and time rounding. The Standard plan is $5.49 per user per month and adds invoicing and timesheet approvals. The Pro plan is $7.99 per user per month and adds budgeting and forecasting.

✅ When it works best

• You want a genuinely free time tracking solution with no user or project caps
• You are a small team or startup evaluating time tracking before committing to a paid tool
• You need basic billable hour tracking and reporting without invoicing
• You want a simple tool your whole team can adopt quickly

❌ When to avoid it

• You need invoicing built in on a free plan — Clockify requires a paid upgrade for that
• You want deep integrations inside project management tools rather than a browser extension
• You need profitability reporting or budget alerts without paying

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Tools Also Worth Considering

The tools above cover the most common billable hours tracking workflows, but depending on your industry or setup, these are also worth a look:

• Bonsai – Built specifically for freelancers, Bonsai combines time tracking with contracts, proposals, and invoicing in one platform. It’s a strong choice if client relationship management matters as much as accurate billing. Paid plans start at $21/month.
• Avaza – An all-in-one platform that combines time tracking, project management, expenses, and invoicing. It’s well suited to small agencies that want to manage projects and client billing in one place. Paid plans start at $11.95/month.
• FreshBooks – Accounting-first software with built-in time tracking and invoicing. A good fit for freelancers and small businesses that want to connect billable hours directly to accounting and client payments. Paid plans start at $17/month.
• My Hours – A straightforward billable hours tracker for freelancers, consultants, and small teams. It supports billable rates, project budgeting, timesheet approvals, and detailed reporting without the complexity of enterprise platforms. Paid plans start at $9/user/month.
• TimeCamp – Combines automatic and manual time tracking with billable rates, invoicing, budgeting, and productivity reporting. A strong choice for businesses looking to reduce manual time entry while maintaining accurate client billing. Paid plans start at $2.99/user/month (billed annually).

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Best for Freelancers

• Everhour – Best for project-based freelancers who need invoicing, budgeting, and project management integrations.
• Toggl Track – Best for freelancers who want fast, lightweight time tracking with minimal setup.
• Harvest – Best for freelancers who invoice clients regularly and want online payment collection built in.
• Clockify – Best free option with unlimited users, projects, and clients.
• Bonsai – Best for freelancers who want to manage contracts, proposals, invoicing, and time tracking in one platform.

All five support billable time tracking and client/project organization, but they cater to different workflows. Everhour and Harvest offer the strongest built-in invoicing, Clockify is ideal if you want to keep costs low, Toggl Track prioritizes speed and simplicity, while Bonsai is designed for freelancers who need client management alongside billing.

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Best for Agencies and Multi-Member Teams

• Everhour – Best for agencies that need project budgeting, profitability reporting, team dashboards, and deep project management integrations.
• Harvest – Best for agencies focused on straightforward invoicing, online payments, and accounting integrations.
• Clockify – Best free option for growing teams that need unlimited users and basic billable time tracking.
• QuickBooks Time – Best for businesses that want time tracking tightly connected to payroll and accounting.
• Avaza – Best for small agencies looking for a single platform for project management, time tracking, expenses, and invoicing.

Everhour stands out for its embedded integrations with tools like Asana, ClickUp, Trello, and Jira, making it a strong choice for project-based teams. Harvest excels at turning tracked time into invoices, Clockify offers one of the most generous free plans, QuickBooks Time is ideal for payroll-centric businesses, and Avaza provides an all-in-one workflow for agencies that prefer fewer separate tools.

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FAQ

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In Summary

Choose Everhour for billable tracking with invoicing, budgets, and profitability reporting
Choose Harvest for fast hourly invoicing with online payment collection
Choose Toggl Track for simple freelance tracking with minimal setup
Choose Clockify for a free no-limit starting point
Choose QuickBooks Time if your payroll and accounting run through QuickBooks