Here is an article about The Best Time Tracking Apps for Freelancers.
Imagine having a digital personal assistant that keeps tabs on all your moves and, more importantly, helps you get the most out of your time. Isn’t that fantastic?
Well, that is what you get when you use the best time-tracking apps for freelancers. And the good thing is that we are going to reveal them to you in this article.
Whether you are a starter or a seasoned freelancer, having the right time-tracking app is like unveiling the secret to efficiency.
So, if you are still doing things the manual way or have some unintuitive program to track and manage your time, then it is time to bid farewell to chaos and usher in efficiency and productivity.
Get ready because we are about to explore the top 7 time-tracking apps for freelancers. But before we get to the details of the best time-tracking apps, we should highlight why it is important to have such tools in your virtual toolbox.
The Importance of Having the Best Time Tracking Apps for Freelancers
Reality has shown that freelancers thrive in a fast-paced and dynamic work environment. They are able to juggle multiple clients and projects concurrently.
So, with the right time-tracking app, they can achieve a lot. Here are some of the ways in which the best time tracking apps for freelancers contribute to their success:
- Project Management: Managing several projects at once could create chaos. So, the right time-tracking apps serve as an efficient compass. Such a tool will provide the necessary insights into the time required by the various tasks and projects. This way, freelancers can navigate the various projects more efficiently, optimizing the use of resources.
- Client Billing: Efficient time tracking is the major cornerstone of client billing. With the right time tracking software, you can accurately invoice for the exact time invested in each project, thus fostering credibility and trust with your customers.
- Making Informed Decisions: Time-tracking data provides critical insights that enable freelancers to make better data-driven decisions. Essentially, time-tracking apps will empower you to manage your workload, set realistic goals and deadlines, and improve your pricing strategy. In other words, they act as a compass that guides you onto the right path.
- Productivity Analysis: As mentioned above, the best time-tracking apps for freelancers will help improve productivity and efficiency. By understanding the hours spent on each task and project, freelancers can be able to identify inefficiencies and eliminate time-wasting practices, therefore supercharging their productivity.
The Best Time Tracking Apps for Freelancers
Now that you understand the importance of having the right time-tracking apps and how they contribute to the success of your profession, let’s look at the best time-tracking apps for freelancers.
Don’t forget to take advantage of the free trial to try all the functionalities of these systems before investing in one of them.
1. Toggl Track
Toggl Track is not only one of the best time-tracking apps for freelancers, but it is also a lightweight app that can simplify how you track and manage projects and tasks.
It is available on mobile, desktop, and as a web extension. Most freelancers love this tool because it can integrate with more than 100 apps for project management and productivity.
Pricing
- The free plan offers only limited features.
- Paid packages start at $10 per user each month.
2. Clockify
Clockify is not only popular but also among the best time-tracking apps for freelancers. It is ideal for any freelancer who bills by the hour.
The good thing about this app is that you can get a detailed report of your weekly activities. Apart from time tracking, you can use the app to invoice customers. It can also track earnings and project progress.
Pricing
- It has a free plan.
- Paid offers start at $3.99 per user each month.
3. TimeCamp
TimeCamp is one of the best time tracking apps for freelancers and teams. This tool combines the features of project management and time tracking and brings them together in one place.
It is also very intuitive and is available as a mobile app, a web time tracker, and a browser extension. The good thing is that all these versions synchronize seamlessly, allowing you to fill your timesheets in seconds.
Pricing
- The free plan has basic features.
- Paid packages start at $2.99 per user each month.
4. Harvest
This is also one of the best time tracking apps for freelancers, especially when it comes to tracking project budgets and expenses.
Besides allowing you to track time spent on projects, it also lets you track the profitability of projects. Another good thing about it is that it can turn normal timesheet data into visual reports.
Pricing
- The free version is available and limited to one user and two projects.
- Premium packages start at $12 per user per month.
5. Freshbooks
Freshbook is essentially an accounting and invoicing application for small and growing businesses, including freelancers.
One of its notable additions is the time tracking module, which helps you track how you spend time on tasks and projects. This module makes a great addition to the interesting accounting functionalities.
Pricing
- The free trial lasts for 30 days.
- Paid plans start at $15 per user per month.
6. TMetric
TMetric is also one of the most straightforward time-tracking apps for freelancers. This tool lets you monitor the progress of your projects while measuring the time and budget spent on each task.
It also has nearly all the features of a sound time-tracking app, including tracking billable hours, automatic time tracking, manual editing of time entries, and insightful reports.
Besides this, it can integrate with several other apps via Zapier.
Pricing
- It doesn’t have a free plan.
- Paid plans start at $7 for each user per month.
7. HubStaff
This is another simple time and activity monitoring application for freelancers. With activity monitoring and screenshots, you will be able to check what your freelancers are doing in real-time.
Other fantastic features of the tool include manual editing of time entries, integration with different platforms, and tracking billable hours.
Pricing
- The free trial lasts for 14 days; after that, you can remain with the free version with limited features.
- Premium offers start at $7 per user per month.
Other popular time-tracking applications include:
- Timeular
- DOL-Timesheet
- Traqq
- RescueTime
- Timely
- Everhour
- Timing
- Timeneye
What Features Should You Look for When Choosing a Time Tracking App?
The principal functionality of any time-tracking application is to record time with a digital clock that can start and stop when prompted.
Some time tracking software may also allow you to make minor manual adjustments to your time logs. For instance, you may need to update the time entries to reflect the correct position if you forgot to start or stop the timer.
Intelligent time-tracking apps will be able to automatically record when you are working or exclude inactive time, i.e., the time your computer is idle.
Here are some of the features that you should look for when choosing your time-tracking app:
- Ease of Use: If you started to use time-tracking apps recently, then it is important to choose a system that is easy to learn and also intuitive.
- Cost: It is common sense, but you should look for something that fits your budget. This could mean that your budget could restrict you to using free time tracking apps, which is still okay if you can do without some advanced features. Your mantra should be not to pay for extra functionality that you may not need. The good thing is that some time tracking systems have a free trial period or even a free option.
- Billing and Accounting: One of the purposes of tracking time is so that you can be billed for the hours worked. So, you may want to choose a system that offers accounting-related features such as invoicing and expense tracking.
- Flexibility: Some time tracking apps are offered as software for desktop and mobile gadgets, while others are entirely internet-based. Regardless of the type of platform offered, you should choose a system that is flexible for your needs. In most cases, you will need to track time while working on your different devices.
- Data and Insights: If you have data on how you spend your time, then it will be easy to analyze your working pattern and be able to make smarter decisions. Also, when you track time for projects, you will be able to estimate the time required to complete similar projects. Thankfully, some time tracking systems offer insightful monitoring that enables you to break down your time usage.
- Team Collaboration and Project Management: If you are working with a team on your projects, then you might need a system that allows for collaborations in terms of time tracking. You need to consider how you receive feedback and incorporate clients’ reviews throughout your process. Usually, efficient time management and project management go hand-in-hand. That is why some project management systems have built-in time-tracking tools.
- Integration with Third-Party Apps: If you already have other systems such as accounting, project management, client management, and so on, you may need a time-tracking app that can connect seamlessly to these systems.
- Coordinating Multiple Clients, Employees, and Contracts: Some time management applications will show you how your team is spending most of its time and if there are many overlaps or unnecessary bottlenecks. Also, if you have several clients and contracts, you may need a time-tracking app that categorizes your time.
Summing It Up
We live in a time where technological advancement allows professionals to work from anywhere in the world and possibly work as freelancers, meaning that they can work with many clients at once.
However, this flexibility comes with challenges, especially relating to time management. It requires self-discipline, constant communication with clients, and, more importantly, proper time management.
But the good thing is that you can improve efficiency and productivity using the best time-tracking apps for freelancers.
With the above-recommended time tracking systems, you can improve your project delivery, bill clients more accurately, and optimize your use of time. Try checking all of them to find the one that matches your needs.
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