Time Tracking Software

 

As a VA I have to track my time, not only to invoice my clients accurately but, also because I feel it is important to have an open and honest relationship with your client and showing them how you are spending your time is a big part of that.  My clients do look through the log of hours as I have been asked questions based on them in the past, however I have never had a client question the time I have spent on something.

When I first started out, I used to write down my working time on a log sheet, then type it up at the end of the month when I invoiced; as you can imagine this very soon became a hugely time-consuming task so, I then moved onto a time tracking software that recorded my working time and brought it all together in an invoice when I needed it!  What a relief!

 

Many time trackers are free, or offer free packages and when you are starting out this is more than adequate for your needs; let’s face it who wants to pay money out unnecessarily!  As you grow you may find you want to take on staff or associates, or get involved with a team and at this point you may want to use more of the ‘paid for’ features.

 

So, the burning question is, which time tracking software should I use?  Well, there are many, many different time tracking tools out there, some you can use on the computer, some on your phone / tablet and some with all the whistles and bells.  Some are created with remote teams in mind, while others prioritise individual sole traders.

 

Obviously, you need to find the one that fits you and your business so we have put together a list of some of the better time tracking tools to give you an idea of what may work for you.  The first four have been used and tested by us so we have been able to give you a little more information on them, the rest have not been tried and tested but, we would encourage you to look at a few, have a play and see which one is the best fit for you.

 

1.       myhours.com – myhours.com
This is a web based time tracking tool which can be used on your computer or download the free app for your phone/tablet (IOS and Android).  Tracking time is easy with a start, stop and pause button.  As well as time tracking it manages your billing, allows you to delegate tasks if you are working with a team, you can set up your clients, projects, tasks and hourly rates easily and create invoices within the programme.  I have used myhours.com for three years and am very happy with it.

 

Free or $3 per month for the Pro Package.

 

If you use our referral code “q94r92” you will receive 50% off your subscription fee for 2 months when subscribing to Pro package.

 

2.       Minute Dock – minutedock.com
I know a lot of VA’s who use Minute Dock and are very happy with it.  Minute Dock is an online time tracking tool that you can use in your browser or on the mobile phone app (IOS only). has I It offers a simple one-click time tracking, integrates with Xero and creates professional looking invoices.   Pricing starts at $19 a month for one user and has options for small teams and larger businesses, test it out by taking advantage of the 14 day free trial.

 

3.       Toggl – toggl.com
Toggl tracks your time with a single click, online or via the mobile app (Android and IOS).  See the hours spent on various projects and tasks and dig deeper into details with professional looking visual reports. Toggl also produces professional looking reports that you can share with your clients to increase transparency and client satisfaction.  You can also estimate project timelines and keep track of your progress with project dashboards.  Starter Package $9 per month, Premium Package $18 and Enterprise Package $49.  All packages have a 30 day free trial.

 

4.       Due – due.com
Due allows you to track time by clicking play, and a new session will begin. You can use Due to generate invoices based on the hourly rates you set. Due also makes it easy to organise client information by name, address, hourly rates, and the unusual feature of being able to use different currencies; handy if you have international clients who want to be billed in their own currency.

 

Free but, has extra paid elements that you can add on to your package.

 

Before you sign up for any packages, do ensure you look for the https://  If the ‘s’ is missing (http://) do not use it, as you will be storing secure data on here and their website is not security protected.  Also, with GDPR changes, please try and ensure that they are compliant with GDPR, as this will come back to haunt you too if they are not compliant.  More information on GDPR will be coming soon on our blog but, if you are unsure then please go to the ICO Website for more information.

 

Here are a list of other time tracking tools that you may want to look at:
Trigger – www.triggerapp.com

Tick – www.tickspot.com

Harvest – www.getharvest.com

TimeCamp – www.timecamp.com

TMetric – tmetric.com

WorkTime – www.worktime.com

ClickTime – www.clicktime.com

Freckle – letsfreckle.com

Freshbooks – www.freshbooks.com

Ronin – www.roninapp.com

TimeDoctor – www.timedoctor.com

Hours – www.hourstimetracking.com

ATracker – www.wonderapps.se

Timely – timelyapp.com

 

Let us know what you use.