Article
Time Tracking System – How to Choose the Right Solution for Your Business
The Short Version
- A time tracking system is a digital solution for recording work hours for clients, projects, and employees, used by companies that invoice based on time spent.
How Does a Time Tracking System Work?
The workflow starts with registering a client and a project in the system. When work is performed, hours are recorded under the correct client and project. The system associates an hourly rate with the project, so recorded hours form the basis for invoicing. Once the period is over, the business can extract an overview of all hours to be invoiced, possibly exporting them directly to the invoicing system or accounting software.
Instead of tracking hours in Excel, on paper, or in one’s head, the business has one place where all hours are collected. For businesses with multiple employees, each employee can register their own hours, while the administrator gets a consolidated overview across employees, clients, and projects. When time tracking is digital, the risk of forgetting hours, entering them under the wrong client, or inaccurately estimating them later disappears.
Who Needs a Time Tracking System?
The system is suitable for businesses that invoice based on time spent. This includes consultants, craftsmen, freelancers, advisors, creative agencies, and small businesses that work on a project basis. If the business has multiple clients, delivers various types of assignments, or has employees working on different projects simultaneously, the need for a system becomes clear.
Self-employed individuals use the system to keep track of their own hours, clients, and invoicing basis. Consultants need to distinguish between billable hours and internal time and document what has been delivered to each client. Craftsmen often work on-site and need a solution that works from mobile devices, allowing them to register hours on the go instead of remembering and entering everything later. Small businesses with employees need a system where everyone can register their own hours while the administrator gets a consolidated overview and control.
What Should a Good Time Tracking System Include?
A good system makes it easy to register hours, link them to the correct client and project, and use them as an invoicing basis. The features that matter most in practice are:
- Easy hour registration: Employees or owners should be able to log hours quickly, either manually or with a start/stop timer that automatically measures time spent.
- Clients and projects: Hours are registered under the correct client and project, ensuring clarity and accuracy in the invoicing basis.
- Billable and non-billable hours: Distinguishes between work that should be invoiced and internal time, allowing the business to see which hours generate income.
- Hourly rate and invoicing basis: The system links the hourly rate to the project and calculates what should be invoiced based on recorded hours.
- Mobile app and web: Employees register hours where they work, whether from the office or on-site.
- Overview and reporting: The administrator gets a consolidated overview of hours per client, project, employee, and period, making it easier to follow up on finances and progress.
- Multiple employees and users: As the business grows, the system must support multiple users with different roles and access levels.
- Export and integrations: Recorded hours can be exported to invoicing software, accounting systems, or used further in financial tracking.
These features are important because they consolidate the entire workflow from registered work to invoicing basis in one place. For small businesses, it is better to choose a system that meets the most important needs than to invest in large, complicated ERP systems with features the business never uses.
How to Choose the Right Time Tracking System?
The choice starts with assessing how the business actually operates. How many clients and projects does the business have? Do employees work on-site or in the office? Will hours be used for invoicing, or only for internal tracking?
The most important considerations are:
1. How easy it is for employees to register hours, both from mobile and web 2. Whether hours can be linked to clients and projects 3. Whether the business needs billable hours and hourly rates 4. How recorded hours are used for invoicing 5. How good an overview the administrator gets of hours, clients, and projects 6. Whether the solution works as the business gains more employees 7. Price and how complicated the system is to implement
For small businesses, the best system is not always the one with the most features. The best system is the one that meets the business's real needs, is easy to implement, and is actually used by employees.
Excel or Time Tracking System?
Excel can work for very simple time tracking, especially for one person and a few projects. Challenges increase rapidly when the business has more clients, projects, or employees. The risk of errors and double work becomes greater, and the administrator spends more time compiling hours than following up on work.
Common challenges with Excel:
- Forgotten hours that are never recorded
- Multiple versions of spreadsheets that do not match
- Manual compilation when hours are to be used for invoicing
- Hours logged under the wrong project or client
- Errors in the invoicing basis leading to lost income
- Lack of overview of what has actually been delivered
- Time spent on administration that could have been used for value-creating work
When the business notices that Excel takes too much time, that hours are lost, or that errors in the invoicing basis occur regularly, it is time to consider a dedicated time tracking system. The transition becomes easier the earlier it happens, as the system has time to become part of the routines before the workload becomes large.
Time Tracking System for Different Types of Businesses
Self-Employed and Freelancers
For self-employed individuals, the need is simple: register hours under the correct client and project, keep track of what can be invoiced, and transfer hours to the invoicing basis without unnecessary administration. The solution should be easy to use, work on mobile and web, and connect hours, hourly rates, and invoicing basis.
Consultants
Consultants invoice based on time spent and need good documentation of what has been delivered. The system must distinguish between billable hours and internal time, support different hourly rates for different types of assignments, and provide an overview per client and project. Many consultants also work on multiple projects simultaneously and therefore need a system that makes it easy to switch between clients without losing track.
Craftsmen
Craftsmen often work on-site and need a solution that works from mobile devices. Hours must be registered quickly during work without taking time away from client assignments. The system should be easy to use, link hours to the correct client and project, and make it easy to extract the invoicing basis when the project is completed.
Small Businesses with Employees
When a business has multiple employees, the system must support each employee registering their own hours while the administrator gets a consolidated overview. The business needs to see hours across employees and projects and receive reports showing what has been delivered, what can be invoiced, and how profitable the work has been.
Timero as a Time Tracking System
Timero is a Norwegian time tracking system developed for businesses that want a simple and modern tool to gather clients, projects, and hours in one place. The solution is suitable for self-employed individuals, consultants, craftsmen, and small businesses with employees.
In Timero, work is registered under the correct client and project, hours are linked to hourly rates, and recorded hours are used as an invoicing basis. The system works on both web and mobile, allowing employees to register hours where they work. The administrator gets an overview of hours across employees, clients, and projects and can extract reports showing what has been delivered and what can be invoiced.
Timero is built for businesses that have outgrown Excel or want to consolidate time tracking, project overview, and invoicing basis in one system. The solution is developed closely with users, ensuring that the features introduced are based on real needs from businesses using the system daily. The result is a tool that provides better overview, less administration, and more time for value-creating work.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a time tracking system?
A time tracking system is a digital solution for recording and organizing work hours for employees, clients, and projects. For businesses that invoice based on time spent, recorded hours form the basis for invoicing. The system collects hours, hourly rates, and invoicing basis in one place.
How does a time tracking system work?
The workflow starts with registering a client and a project in the system. Hours are recorded under the correct client and project, the system links the hourly rate to the project, and recorded hours form the invoicing basis. The business gets a consolidated overview of all work performed and can use hours directly for invoicing.
What should a time tracking system include?
A good system includes easy hour registration, clients and projects, distinction between billable and non-billable hours, hourly rates and invoicing basis, mobile app and web, overview and reporting, support for multiple employees, and the ability to export to invoicing software or accounting systems.
Which time tracking system is suitable for small businesses?
Small businesses should choose a system that is easy to use, works on both mobile and web, allows employees to register their own hours, provides the administrator with a consolidated overview, and connects hours, hourly rates, and invoicing basis. The best system meets the business's real needs without unnecessary complexity.
Are there free time tracking systems?
Yes, there are free solutions, but these often have limitations on the number of users, clients, projects, or lack features such as invoicing basis and reporting. For businesses that invoice based on time spent, it is often more practical to choose a paid system that covers the entire workflow from recorded work to invoicing.
Can employees register hours from their mobile devices?
Yes, modern time tracking systems have mobile apps so that employees can register hours where they work, whether from the office or on-site. This is especially important for craftsmen and consultants who work at client sites, as hours can be registered on the go instead of remembering and entering everything later.
Can a time tracking system be used for invoicing?
The time tracking system forms the invoicing basis, but the actual invoice is usually created in a dedicated invoicing program or accounting system. Recorded hours with hourly rates are exported from the time tracking system and used to create invoices. Some systems have integrated invoicing, while others focus on providing a good invoicing basis that is used further in existing financial systems.
