A paper log can catch daily client time, while Everhour keeps rated billing records current after the calculation.
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A printed time log answers a practical billing question: how much client charge should come from the hours recorded for a matter, project, or service period. The useful columns are date, client, project or matter, task description, start time, end time, billable status, billing rate, rounded billable hours, and line amount.
The log should not treat every worked hour as billable. Internal admin, training, unapproved rework, and client-excluded tasks belong in the record, but they should stay outside the billable subtotal. In the United States, billable-hour totals are normally shown in USD. Any sales tax or gross receipts tax input is separate because there is no federal VAT/GST or national sales-tax rate.
A printable log works best when each row captures the billing decision at the time the work is recorded. Write the rate source beside the entry: project rate, person rate, task rate, or contract exception. That prevents a later reviewer from guessing why two entries on the same client carry different dollar values.
Rounding is the common paper-log mistake. If the engagement uses 0.1-hour increments, 18 minutes becomes 0.3 hours. If it uses 15-minute increments, the same entry becomes 0.25 hours. Use one stated increment for the client or matter unless the agreement says otherwise. A clean log shows raw time, rounded billable time, and any write-down as separate fields.
The basic formula is billable hours multiplied by the approved billing rate. For multiple people, tasks, or matter phases, calculate each rate group separately and then add the line amounts. Keep non-billable time visible for analysis, but do not multiply it into the client charge.
For example, a client onboarding project has 23 approved planning hours at $185 per hour and 14 approved documentation hours at $110 per hour. The planning line is $4,255, the documentation line is $1,540, and the billable labor subtotal is $5,795 before state or local tax, expenses, discounts, write-downs, or collections.
A one-page printed log is enough for a solo review, a small one-time job, or a back-of-envelope invoice check. It stops being enough when different people use different rates, when dated rate changes affect older work, or when billable and non-billable time must be reviewed before invoicing.
That is where a managed workflow matters. Everhour separates internal cost rates from client-facing billable rates, supports default person rates and project overrides, preserves dated rate history, and prices billable work by project, member, or task. That structure turns the same billing math into an auditable workflow instead of a recreated spreadsheet.
This content is for general information only, may not be fully up to date, and is provided without any warranty or liability.
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Include date, client, project or matter, task description, worker, start time, end time, worked time, rounded billable time, billable status, rate, and line amount. Add notes for write-downs, non-billable work, and expenses so the invoice reviewer can see what changed between raw time and the billable subtotal.
Record the actual time first, then the rounded billable time in a separate column. The billing increment should come from the client agreement, firm policy, or project terms. Do not round each task by memory at the end of the week; that loses the audit trail and changes totals quickly on short entries.
Yes. Non-billable work should stay on the log for utilization, profitability, and scope review, but it should not enter the billable labor subtotal. Mark it clearly as non-billable and leave the invoice amount blank or excluded from the subtotal column, depending on the log format.
Keep tax outside the hourly labor subtotal. The United States has no federal VAT/GST or national sales-tax rate for billed professional time. Tax treatment is state and local, and some services are not taxed. Use a jurisdiction-specific tax input only when the service is taxable.
The biggest risk is reconstructing time after the work is done. Recreated entries usually blur task details, miss short sessions, and apply rounding inconsistently. A usable printed log is filled in daily, shows the rate source, and separates worked time from approved billable time.
Everhour supports separate cost and billable rates, default per-person rates, per-project overrides, dated rate changes, and project, member, or task pricing. That lets admins calculate billable amounts from the correct rate structure instead of rewriting rates on a printable log.
Set dated rates, project overrides, and task pricing in Everhour so approved time becomes invoice-ready billing data with less spreadsheet cleanup and clearer Everhour rate control.
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