15 Best Time-Tracking and Billing Software Tools for Your Service Business

Time is a valuable resource for any business, but that’s even more true in professional services. Your time’s value is directly tied to your potential profitability. That’s why time-tracking software for accurate time management is something most service-based businesses can’t afford to go without.

A time-tracking business tool can improve resource management, help divide workload evenly across your team and give your leaders new insights into billable vs. non-billable time. With this information at the ready, you can accurately charge clients for the work you deliver — and that’s where having the right invoicing tool comes in.

Regardless of business size, building an invoicing process that relies on accurate time data is the best way to ensure your business remains profitable. Because of this, many businesses seek an invoicing solution with time-tracking capabilities.

No matter what stage your business may be in today, there are tools that can help your team better manage — and charge for — your time. Below we’re diving into some of the best time-tracking and invoicing software solutions for tracking time, billing clients and managing your client work so that you can find the solutions that meet your current needs.

We’ll cover:

• Reasons your business needs time-tracking software
• Benefits of using billing software
• Top platforms that combine time-tracking and billing features
• Why you may need an end-to-end client work management platform 

Why Should You Use Time-Tracking Software?

Time management is important for any business looking to be productive, but for a professional services business, the quality of your time management can determine your ability to sustain and grow your business. For teams just getting started or that may be in need of granular time management, finding a time-tracking software solution should be a top priority.

Scenario: Your company recently implemented a new project management software with the ability to generate custom invoices based on projects completed. As your team begins to create invoices to send to clients, you realize that you may be missing critical billable hours. You need a more advanced time-tracking tool that can capture granular time reports and provide the data you need to accurately bill for your client work.

In the above case and countless others, the conclusion is that outdating timekeeping methods and tedious timesheet approvals can’t keep up with the needs of modern businesses. When you equip your team with a way to easily complete time entries from anywhere via a cloud-based software solution, you’re almost guaranteed to see:

• Fewer timesheet errors — and, therefore, a less time-consuming billing process
• A boost in employee productivity due to decreased administrative tasks
• Increased employee utilization because of the ability to focus on billable work

Why Should You Use a Billing Management Solution?

When you’re managing multiple clients with multiple projects each, keeping track of employee time by itself isn’t enough to efficiently manage your business processes. You need an invoicing solution to make use of that time data so that you can confidently invoice and get paid for all of your billable work. 

Scenario: You run a growing service-based business and are looking to develop your tech stack to meet the demands of your expanding client base. You’ve been managing employee time or client payment records manually in a spreadsheet, but in order to sustainably scale, you need a tool that can automate these processes and provide you with more reliable data so you know for sure that you’re billing your clients accurately.

Choosing an invoicing software with built-in time-tracking features is a great way to:

• Ensure you’re getting paid for ad-hoc work
• Increase efficiency by streamlining software functionality
• Reduce the need for additional integrations in your tech stack 

Best Time and Billing Software Platforms

Let's explore the top time-tracking software solutions with client billing features:

1. Accelo
2. ActiveCollab
3. Avaza
4. Clockify
5. FreshBooks
6. Harvest
7. Hiveage
8. Hubstaff
9. Paymo
10. Time Analytics
11. Timely
12. Toggl Track
13. TrackingTime
14. Workamajig
15. Zoho Invoice

1. Accelo

Accelo is an end-to-end client work management platform built to help professional services businesses automate tasks, improve visibility and increase profits. 

While it offers advanced time-tracking features and automated invoicing, Accelo also offers solutions for all stages of client work, including sales and quoting, customer relationship management and contact management, a complete ticketing system and retainer management.

Features

• An end-to-end solution for the quote-to-cash journey
• Time logs across work objects and activities to track billable and non-billable hours 
• Custom workflows and custom fields to fit your unique business processes
• Customizable invoices and easy-to-use templates 

Pros

• Built-in CRM connects your projects to a contact or company record, seamlessly merging your client information and time-tracking data across the entire platform
• Automated time tracking collects important data with no additional work and feeds into the platform’s robust reporting capabilities

Cons

• Teams only seeking invoicing or time-tracking solutions may not need Accelo’s end-to-end solution for managing all aspects of client work

Pricing

Accelo offers five pricing plans that scale with your business, from a self-serve plan for managing client information, tasks and communication all the way to the Elite tier, which includes all quote-to-cash features, premium support and more.

Start a free trial today to see Accelo in action. If you have questions or want to explore custom solutions for your time-tracking, billing and client management needs, schedule a demo to speak with an Accelo expert.

2. ActiveCollab

ActiveCollab is meant to be a workspace hub for your entire organization. It combines a variety of tools in addition to time tracking and invoicing, including task management. ActiveCollab checks real-time task progress against the accuracy of time estimates. 

Features

• Built-in timer and time-tracking reports
• High-level resource management
• Search and filtering of tasks help you find what you need
• Integration with email tools

Pros

• Intuitive drag-and-drop interface

• Reasonable price

Cons

• Very little customization of billing rates
• Some users report unreliable payment processing

Pricing

ActiveCollab has three pricing tiers:

• Plus: $9.50 per user per month
• Pro: $8 per user per month
• Pro + Get Paid: $11.75 per user per month

3. Avaza 

Avaza is primarily a project management platform with pick-and-choose modules for functions such as team scheduling, expense management, quoting and invoicing. Businesses in a variety of industries use Avaza to piece together a solution from just the work management features they need.

Features

• Team availability tool
• Time tracking for employees and contractors
• Group timesheets
• Multi-language invoices

Pros

• Flexible timesheet approvals
• Billable rates at project, category and person levels

Cons

• Mobile app is limited to time tracking

• Confusing reports

Pricing

Avaza has four pricing tiers:

• Free (for one user with timesheet access)
• Startup: $11.95 per user per month
• Basic: $23.95 per user per month
• Business: $47.95 per user per month

4. Clockify

Clockify is a free time-tracking app that helps teams and individuals log time spent on tasks and projects using a combination of automatic timers and manual entry. Clockify can be used to calculate payroll and billable hours.

Features

• Timesheets categorized by activity
• Automatically tracks time for synced calendar events
• Integrates with popular project management apps
• Visible location history, multi-device clock-in kiosk and team check-ins for on-site work

Pros

• Free plan for unlimited users
• Users like the simplicity and ease of onboarding

Cons

• Some users point out that reports lack detail
• Others report difficulty with activity and task sorting

Pricing

Clockify’s free plan includes limited features. There are four paid tiers with additional functionality:

• Basic: $3.99 per user per month
• Standard: $5.49 per user per month
• Pro: $7.99 per user per month
• Enterprise: $11.99 per user per month

READ NEXT: 28 Surprising Time-Tracking Statistics

5. FreshBooks

FreshBooks is an accounting and invoicing platform with time-tracking features. It’s known as an accessible accounting solution for small businesses — an alternative to QuickBooks and Xero. Its robust invoicing features make it popular with teams that need to greatly customize invoices to fit their industries or service types.

Features

• Invoice generator that syncs with billable time
• Expense tracking
• Payment processing
• Timer extension for Chrome

Pros

• Usable for businesses of all sizes
• Over 100 integrations

Cons

• May be too robust for those with simple invoicing needs
• Some users report difficulty contacting support

Pricing

Users can select from four FreshBooks pricing tiers:

• Lite: $4.25 per user per month
• Plus: $7.50 per user per month
• Premium: $13.75 per user per month
• Select: Requires a custom quote

6. Harvest

Harvest is a time-tracking software with desktop, browser and mobile versions. It offers flexible timesheets and the ability to invoice clients and accept payments directly through the platform. The range of reports goes beyond simple time logs to display team capacity, project costs and more.

Features

• Budget tracking
• Invoice creation from billable time records
• In-app payment collection with PayPal or Stripe
• Custom time-tracking reminders for teams

Pros

• Integrates with popular accounting software
• Visually engaging reports that track project budgets and visualize team capacity 

Cons

• Requires third-party integrations to effectively manage workflows
• Some users feel the app is slow and outdated

Pricing

Harvest has just two pricing plans:

• Harvest: Free for one user
• Harvest Pro: $10.80 per user per month

7. Hiveage

Hiveage is a time and billing software solution that helps businesses manage their money, their teams and their customers. The platform offers quote creation, time tracking, invoice creation and recurring billing management. 

Features

• Integrates with multiple payment gateways, including PayPal and Stripe 
• Mileage tracker for accurate travel estimates and invoicing
• Recurring payments and subscription billing options
• Detailed financial reports and expense tracking

Pros

• Task templates for easy time tracking
• Users share that the platform has a simple, easy-to-use interface  

Cons

• One user shares that both accounting and reporting features are limited
• Credit card payment acceptance is limited to US-based subscribers

Pricing

Hiveage has four pricing plans:

• Free: up to 5 clients
• Basic: $16 per month for up to 50 clients
• Pro: $25 per month for up to 250 clients and 5 team members
• Plus: $42 per month for up to 1,000 clients and 10 team members

8. Hubstaff

Hubstaff is a time-tracking and employee-monitoring software with productivity features meant to help businesses gain improved insights into employee workload. The app tracks time through manual and automated tools, sets employee time limits and collects data for detailed timesheets and time reports.  

Features

• Automated timesheets generated by built-in time trackers
• Geofence time tracking to automate employees clocking in and out
• Invoice widget to track payment status and record full or partial payments 
• Create invoices with set billing rates and auto-add line items

Pros

• Invoice reporting helps teams visualize on-time and past-due invoices
• Custom invoice templates make it easy to create branded invoices based on billable and non-billable employee time and project expenses 

Cons

• Users share that there are some limitations to setting different hourly rates per project per team member or setting hourly rates per client
• Multiple users share their privacy concerns while using the product due to the app’s location tracking and screen captures 

Pricing

Hubstaff pricing is broken into just two tiers:

• Free: up to 5 users
• Premium: $4.17 per user per month for unlimited users

9. Paymo

Paymo is a business management solution built for small and medium businesses across multiple industries. The platform includes collaboration tools, time tracking and timesheet management, project management and invoicing capabilities.

Features

• Multiple time-tracking options, including a web timer, desktop timer, mobile timer and manual entry
• Live time reports that offer visualization of your team’s time
• Task management with multi-user assignments, dependencies and more
• Ability to collect online payments through PayPal, Stripe, Authorize.net

Pros

• Users are happy with the accuracy of time-tracking features
• Paymo Plus add-on automatically tracks time spent in every browser and desktop app

Cons

• One user wishes there were more options to customize client estimates and invoices
• Some users have had issues with payments in currencies other than the US dollar, wishing that they could convert currencies in the platform or have access to international payment integrations for users outside of the US

Pricing

There are four pricing tiers for Paymo:

• Free: limited features for unlimited users
• Starter: $5.90 per user per month
• Small Office: $10.90 per user per month
• Business: $16.90 per user per month

10. Time Analytics

Time Analytics is a simple time-tracking and invoicing app that allows users to track time, send invoices and create estimates for client work. The platform includes the functionality to track labor, overhead and billing rates, as well as team capacity and work hours.

Features

• Manual and automated time tracking
• Time tracking can be linked to individual tasks, projects and clients
• Invoicing assistant to prepare data for the invoice creation
• Performance management to track client and project profitability

Pros

• Easy method for tracking time off
• The platform’s cost-tracking solution automatically allocates generated costs to clients, projects and service lines

Cons

• Invoices cannot be created and shared within the platform — all invoice data must first be exported into an Excel spreadsheet
• Recently founded, so there isn’t a lot of user feedback available

Pricing

There are two pricing tiers for Time Analytics:

• Starter: $4.99 per user per month
• Optimum: $6.99 per user per month

11. Timely

Timely is an AI-powered time-tracking app with built-in project and resource management, payroll and capacity planning capabilities. The platform allows businesses to easily track employee time, monitor project tasks and budgets and access full visibility of their teams’ performance. 

Features

• Invoice creation and sending
• Team dashboards to visualize efforts across your client portfolio
• Project health reports to highlight tasks, activity, performance and budget changes
• Scheduling tools to optimize task assignments based on availability and team priorities

Pros

• Captures time automatically in the background as you work
• Daily reminders and insights for awareness of overall efficiency

Cons

• AI requires time to learn user habits
• No timesheet approvals

Pricing

Timely has four pricing tiers:

• Starter: $9 per user per month
• Premium: $16 per user per month
• Unlimited: $22 per user per month

12. Toggl Track

Toggl Track is a time-tracking tool with timesheets, billable time reports and budgeting features. Users can simply use timers or customize them with added details like tags to categorize segments of time. Toggl Track can be used to calculate payroll for both employees and contractors.

Features

• Timesheets are broken down by project
• Billable rates and reports for workspaces, projects and users
• Idle time reminders
• 100+ integrations

Pros

• Users report ease of setup
• Custom sorting by user, tag or project

Cons

• Paid tiers may be pricey for larger businesses
• Users claim manually entering info retroactively is complicated

Pricing

Toggl Track has four pricing tiers:

• Free: up to 5 users
• Starter: $9 per user per month
• Premium: $18 per user per month
• Enterprise: Custom quotes required

13. TrackingTime

TrackingTime is a time-tracking software for businesses to plan and track their team's work through time cards, work schedules, timesheet creation and employee time reporting. The tool can be used by small, medium and enterprise-sized businesses to track team performance, budget project time and generate time reporting.

Features

• Employee time card approvals
• Defined employee work schedules
• Ability to export timesheets to create invoices
• Automated timesheet audits to identify inaccuracies 

Pros 

• Generates payroll, project and client reports
• Integrates with 40+ software solutions, including Trello, Jira, Asana and Slack

Cons

• No automated time tracking
• No built-in invoicing, although reports are set up for easy integration with invoicing software

Pricing

TrackingTime offers four pricing plans:

• Free: up to 3 users
• Freelancer: $8 per month for a single user
• Pro: $5.75 per user per month
• Business: $10 per user per month

14. Workamajig

Workamajig is a work management software for agencies and creative teams. Its key features include a variety of financial reports that tie time logs and team capacity to projects and tasks, making it a good option for agencies looking to focus on maximizing the profit potential of billable time.  

Features

• Invoice management with capabilities to create, send and track invoices and payments
• Time tracking attached to projects
• Budgeting tools to track income and expenses
• Detailed reporting on cash flow, project budgets and more

Pros

• Not limited to time and billing
• Reports on company performance and financial health

Cons

• Built specifically for creative teams and agencies
• Some say the platform is slow and complex

Pricing

Workamajig has three pricing tiers: In-house, Agency and Enterprise. The lower two tiers start at $37 per user per month, and fees change based on number of users. Those looking for Enterprise pricing must request a quote.

15. Zoho Invoice

Zoho Invoice is online invoicing software that helps users manage invoices, track expenses and accept online payments. The platform can be customized to meet the needs of multiple industries and offers project billing, time tracking, reporting and a client portal.

Features

• Compliant digital signatures to ensure payment security
• Customizable templates for branded invoices
• Time tracking at the task level
• Recurring invoice scheduler

Pros

• Free platform
• Multi-currency invoicing support

Cons

• Users said that support can be lacking, one explaining that there are limited local and remote support options available in certain time zones
• Some users share that the user interface is not intuitive and can be hard to navigate

Pricing

Zoho Invoice is free, although users must pay to connect other Zoho applications.

The Ultimate Time-Tracking and Invoicing Software Choice

For those seeking time-tracking and invoicing software, a complete business management platform may be a more appropriate solution to consider.

Scenario: Your team has been functioning with its existing tech stack for a while, but you’ve recently realized you’re spending too much time switching between tools and searching for data across multiple platforms. You’ve made it work until now, but you know that continuing with this inefficiency is preventing your business from growing. You determine you need a more complete tool to support your complex workflows and connect all aspects of your client journey.

The ability to connect all the features highlighted in the list above with the other crucial aspects of your client work in one centralized space is transformative. You’ll reduce the need for a complex — and expensive — tech stack and create one source of truth for your entire business. 

Why users prefer Accelo to plan and manage client work 

From quoting and sales to project management and retainer tracking, Accelo goes beyond time tracking and invoicing in a way that no other platform does. Accelo has consistently received G2 Leader Badges in Professional Services Automation, Client Portal and other categories.

Learn why users love the platform and how they’ve achieved results by booking a demo.

About the Author

Chelsea Williams is Senior Copywriter at Accelo, where she shares unique insights with service professionals and tells user stories via blogs, eBooks, industry reports and more. She has over 15 years of B2B and B2C writing experience — primarily in tech, sales, education and healthcare. Chelsea is an AWAI-certified Master Copywriter trained in brand storytelling and microcopy.