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Time tracking can be a challenge for any business, and when the efficiency of your small business relies on it, finding the right time tracking app can be more difficult than it needs to be. To help you find the perfect tool for your business, here’s a quick breakdown of three time tracking apps that we recommend, and a few key factors to consider.

Why use time tracking?

As a business owner, your time, and the time your staff spend working for you, is quite literally “money”. How you and your team spend your time needs to be efficient, and if you have no way to track time management, you have no measure of productivity.

Using a recommended time tracking app can not only allow you to keep tabs on how time is being spent, but it can also be an invaluable tool for business analysis. By considering the relationships between activities and their corresponding time spend, you can better allocate resources, cut back on unnecessary time wastage, and create more efficient processes to better use time within your business.

At The Accounting Hub, we know time tracking is an issue for a lot of our clients. Three time tracking systems we commonly see in use are Xero Projects, WorkflowMax, and Harvest. To provide you with some clarity, we’ve briefly listed the key benefits of these products, who they would suit, and pros and cons to consider for each.

 Xero Projects

Best for: Freelancers, sole traders, small businesses

Major pro: Included in established plan

Major con: Very basic

Xero Projects is a simple job costing tool that allows service businesses to track their time and expenses against each job. The cost per month starts at $10/month on top of your Xero subscription. Integrated with key Xero features, Projects provides a real-time view of how all your jobs are tracking financially. This means you can proactively invoice, make informed decisions and drive profitability.

WorkflowMax

Android, iOS, macOS, Windows

Best for: Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMBs)

Major pro: We use WorkflowMax in our business, and at The Accounting Hub, we are also trained to help you integrate the software in yours! Our in-house specialist is Richa, you can email her here.

Major con: Can be complex and costly

WorkflowMax is Xero-owned financial project management software for SMBs. It is an end-to-end, fully integrated job management solution, and the cost is $15 per month for one user with options for more. WorkflowMax also offers a free trial.

Things to love about WorkflowMax:

• Instant Quotes
• Flexible Time Tracking
• Easy Job Management
• Streamlined Invoicing
• Actionable Reporting
• Xero Owned and Integrated

All plans include:

• Client Manager Quoting/Estimating Time Sheets
• Job Management Job Costing Collaboration Manager
• Document Management Mobile Site Integration with 25+ Add-Ons
• Custom Fields Purchase Orders Invoicing
• Xero Integration Reporting

Harvest

Android, iOS, macOS, web, Windows

Best for: Individuals and teams

Major pro: Free plan for up to two projects

Major con: Can get expensive for small businesses

Harvest is a time tracker for freelances and teams that also helps you track expenses and billable hours. Harvest offers a free plan for up to two projects, after which a subscription is $12 per user. The software also supports invoicing and offers flat-rate $0.50 PayPal Business Payments (if you have a USA bank account). The Harvest apps work offline, and to make it easy for you to get started, we are a reseller for Harvest here at The Accounting Hub!

Things to love about Harvest:

• Built-in invoicing
• Lots of integrations with tools, including project management, invoicing, CRM, customer support, developer tools, and more.
• Offers time tracking via a mobile app, browser extension or desktop app
• Built-in expense tracking and scanner for receipts

To learn more

 Get in touch with us at The Accounting Hub! Our qualified staff would love to help set you up with the best time tracking app for your business.