Getting started on a time audit can feel overwhelming. You might be staring at a blank spreadsheet, unsure of how to fill it, or stuck on how to get started with tracking your time. Even if you’re familiar with the process of time tracking, switching to a new tool can be daunting. In this article, we’ll look at how to do a time audit, starting with Timeular and exploring some of the best Timeular alternatives for time tracking and productivity.
Tackle’s automatic time tracking software offers a simple, user-friendly solution to get right to your time audit. You can quickly discover areas where you can improve productivity without the hassle of manual time tracking.
14 Best Timeular Alternatives for Time Tracking & Management
1. Tackle: The Automatic Time Tracking Software That Redefines Time Management
Tackle revolutionizes time tracking through seamless calendar integration, eliminating the need for manual logging. Our platform automatically captures and categorizes your time, providing actionable insights through intuitive dashboards and reports.
We’ve built everything you need into one seamless package:
- An intelligent tagging system that works your way
- AI-powered automation to handle the tedious stuff
- Flexible reporting tools to track what matters
- Intelligent time capture right in your browser
Trusted by Roblox, Deel, and Lightspeed Ventures teams, Tackle helps executives, team leaders, and customer-facing professionals understand and optimize their time allocation. Simply connect your Google or Outlook calendar, set up custom tags and automations, and gain valuable insights into how your team spends their time.
Whether you’re tracking strategic initiatives, measuring team efficiency, or ensuring resource optimization, Tackle transforms time monitoring from a chore into a powerful decision-making tool.
Start using our automatic time-tracking software for free with one click today!
2. Time Doctor: The Time and Productivity Tracker for Remote Teams
Time Doctor is a time and productivity tracking app designed for companies whose employees primarily work on computers. In addition to letting you capture the hours employees work, you can see what employees do with their time while billing hours. Time Doctor has features like app and URL monitoring that let you know what websites employees spend their time on, automatic screenshots to see what they were doing on those sites, and idle detection to see when they’re logged in but not working.
It can do this monitoring silently, meaning employees won’t know you’re monitoring their activities. This makes it a great choice if you believe time theft is a problem among your team of knowledgeable workers.
3. QuickBooks Time: The Perfect Time Tracker for Small Businesses with Mobile Employees
QuickBooks Time has features like GPS tracking, mileage tracking, and geofencing that are great for businesses with traveling employees. With it, you can track time and mileage in one place, making it easy to calculate and include mileage reimbursements in payroll.
QuickBooks Time also supports automatic time tracking based on work schedules or geofencing, where clocking in and out can be triggered by location-based boundaries. Its smartphone apps can record time entries even when employees are offline, syncing the data once reconnected. And while most of the other tools on this list offer integrations with QuickBooks Online, Desktop, and Payroll, because QuickBooks Time is also an Intuit product, these tools all work together seamlessly, requiring no integration.
4. Harvest: The Time-Tracking Software That Makes Invoicing Easy
Harvest has a free plan that’s great for self-employed freelancers. With it, you can track your time toward up to two projects, create invoices, and accept payments through PayPal and Stripe. And if you use QuickBooks Online or Xero for accounting, Harvest will copy any payments you receive to those platforms.
Because Harvest tracks your time by task/project, creating detailed invoices is easy. It copies all of your tasks and the time attached to them, calculates the total hours, determines the amount owed, and details all of this information line-by-line on your client invoices automatically. Regarding tracking your time, Harvest is flexible and has handy features that ensure no billable time goes unbilled.
You can connect it to your calendar to capture the time I spend in meetings with clients, and you can download its apps for:
- Mac
- Windows
- iPhone
- Android
5. Clockify: A Free Time Tracking Tool for Teams
If you need to switch from manual to automatic time tracking but don’t have the budget to spend on a subscription app, Clockify might be the right choice for your business. It has a generous free plan with essential time tracking for unlimited team members. While free always sounds better than paid, Clockify’s free plan features are minimal and suitable only for fundamental time tracking. Team members can clock in and out, their time is collected into timesheets, and you can download timesheet reports at the end of the month for running payroll.
You can’t customize report downloads on the free plan; its payroll integrations are only available on its paid plans. Other helpful features you’ll find in the free plan include the ability to download Clockify onto a tablet to use it as a time clock kiosk, unlimited projects to track time spent on specific projects and tasks, and integrations with Outlook, Google Calendar, and several project management platforms.
6. Toggl Track: An Easy Time Tracker for Small Teams
Like Clockify, Toggl Track also has a free plan. It’s more restrictive than Clockify’s in terms of user count; you can only have up to five users on Toggl Track’s free plan, but you get many more features in Toggl Track for those five users than you get in Clockify for unlimited users. This makes it a good option for small businesses.
At its most basic, Toggl Track’s free plan gives you time tracking for five users, timesheets, and timesheet reports. You can also add unlimited projects to track time toward specific projects and tasks. However, you also get access to much more advanced features.
Toggl Track: A Non-Surveillance Approach to Time Tracking
Toggl Track will track time for your employees, sorting time into the proper client projects and tasks based on keywords, applications, or URLs. And if a team member forgets to log time, they can view a timeline to see what they were working on and when. Team members can also track time for multiple employees at once.
For example, if you have numerous people in a meeting, add teammates to their time entries. Toggle Track is an anti-surveillance tool, which means the data it collects is designed to help employees track their time instead of for management to review.
7. ClickTime: A Time Tracker for Project Management
ClickTime is a project time-tracking and resource planning platform for professional services businesses and agencies. In addition to tracking employee time overall and against specific clients’ tasks and projects, you can also improve your forecasting and make sure projects stay on budget. With ClickTime, employees can log their time to billable or non-billable tasks.
Admins and managers can then review those reports to optimize productivity by reducing or eliminating the types of work you can’t bill clients for, such as unnecessary internal meetings. ClickTime also takes all of your historical data and pairs it with your plans to help you understand how many employee hours new projects will take to complete, how many hours you’ve worked compared to the hours you estimated you’d need, and how much work each member of your team is assigned.
8. DeskTime: An Employee Time Tracking Software
DeskTime is an all-in-one time tracker software with features for managing projects and supporting human resources. The software prioritizes employee productivity and goes beyond monitoring web clicks and activity. DeskTime software features DeskTime time tracking software provides the following core features:
- Pomodoro timer
- Random screenshots
- Idle time detection
- Integrations with many popular work tools
- Web and mobile applications (Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android)
- Highlights of DeskTime time tracking software
DeskTime allows each department to establish what constitutes productive work for their teams. Each department can categorize tools, websites, and apps into “Productive” and “Unproductive” groups.
9. My Hours: A Time Tracking Tool for Small Teams
My Hours is a time-tracking tool that focuses on empowering solo business owners and independent professional agencies rather than monitoring employee activity. The software allows users to manually and automatically track work hours and manage timesheets and expenses. My Hours time tracking software features My Hours and provides the following core features:
- Timesheet management
- Project and timeline management
- Invoicing and billing
- Vacation and leave tracking Web and mobile applications (Desktop, iOS, Android)
Highlights of My Hours time tracking software My Hours streamlines how teams work together. It keeps the focus on improving project profitability and limiting non-billable administrative tasks. It also prioritizes employee autonomy and does not support monitoring via website clicks or GPS tracking.
10. Timesheets.com: A Simple Time Tracking Tool for Small Businesses
Timesheets.com is a straightforward employee time tracking software for teams of any size. It has a feature set includes time tracking and logging, employee scheduling, and billing and invoicing. Timesheets.com tracking software features Timesheets.com provides the following core features:
- GPS tracking
- Calendar management
- Employee web activity tracking
- Billing and invoicing
- Easy-to-generate reports
Highlights of Timesheets.com time tracking software:
Timesheets.com keeps things simple and does what it’s supposed to do. It provides a simple and affordable option for freelancers and small businesses to share their work with clients and get paid quickly.
11. Hubstaff: A Time Tracking Tool for Remote Teams
Hubstaff is a time tracking tool for remote and off-site teams and outsourced collaborators. It tracks web activity and offline GPS locations for those out of the office. This allows project managers to know what their team members are doing and where they are at any time. Hubstaff time tracking software features The Hubstaff time tracking software provides the following core features:
- GPS tracking
- Random screenshots of employees’ work
- Online timesheets and templates
- Employee invoicing and payroll Web and mobile applications (Mac, Windows, Chromebook, Linux, iOS, Android)
Highlights of Hubstaff time tracking software:
Hubstaff helps teams that do not work in a single place to have a shared workspace and manage employee productivity and collaboration.
12. Resource Management by Smartsheet
Resource Management by Smartsheet provides a time tracker to empower large teams to streamline their timesheets, employee activity, and resource allocation in one centralized platform. The software gathers data and insights in a spreadsheet-style format, allowing users to see what teams are working on and what resources they need to deliver successful projects. Resource Management by Smartsheet software features Resource Management by Smartsheet provides the following core features:
- Dynamic reports
- Manual and automatic timesheets
- Project and timeline planning Integration with Smartsheet work management software
- Time tracking for resource management workflows
Highlights of Resource Management by Smartsheet Tracking Software:
This software helps managers save time by centralizing resource allocation and project management decisions in one place. Users benefit more when the time tracker is integrated with Smartsheet’s work management software.
13. Buddy Punch: A Punch Clock and Time Tracking App for Employees
Buddy Punch is a punch clock and time tracker app that helps monitor employees at work, including attendance, activity, location, productivity, and payroll. The program keeps managers updated on projects and teams without manual data entry and check-ins.
Buddy Punch time tracking software features Buddy Punch time tracking software provides the following core features:
- GPS tracking
- IP address lock-in
- Detailed reports
- Employee scheduling
- Web and mobile applications (Windows, iOS, Android, Chrome)
Highlights of Buddy Punch time tracking software:
Buddy Punch is user-friendly. Customer support is responsive, and the software is continually upgraded to satisfy users’ needs.
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What Exactly is Timeular?
Timeular is a time-tracking solution designed to help teams & individuals be more productive. With the most effortless time tracking on the market, you will always get accurate data. Key features of Timeular include
- Analytics
- Data export
- Categorization
- Reminders
- Real-time synchronization
- Activity management
Businesses can use @mentions, tagging, and other functionalities to categorize, assign, edit, or delete time entries and track billable and non-billable hours for each task performed.
Timeular: A Physical Tracker for Effortless Time Management
It offers exportable reports, graph visualization, and timeline views of preceding weeks, providing insight into activities, sub-activities, productivity, and time allocation across tasks. Timeular offers an API, which assists users with modifying and connecting the system with several third-party applications such as:
- JIRA
- iCal
- Outlook calendar
- Google Calendar and more
Timeular is an incredible tool that helps you understand where your time goes. It comprises two parts: a small physical tracker and an app. You flip the tracker to start timing different activities. The app lets you create projects and tasks. It uses the tracker’s position to record the time spent on each. All this data goes into the app, showing how you spend your day. It’s a simple way to track time and become more productive.
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Why Consider Using a Timeular Alternative Instead?
Timeular is a unique time-tracking tool, but it’s not perfect for everyone. While flipping a physical tracker to log work hours is appealing, many users find the execution frustrating. Whether it’s:
- Hardware inconsistencies
- Software issues
- Pricing concerns
You should explore other time-tracking solutions for plenty of reasons.
Hardware Integration Can Be Unreliable
One of Timeular’s standout features is its integration with the ZEI hardware, a physical, eight-sided device that you flip to track different tasks. In theory, it sounds like a great way to streamline time tracking. Not so much.
Many users have reported that the timer doesn’t always stop when it’s supposed to. You might think you’ve turned it off, only to check later and realize it’s been running for hours. A simple on/off switch would solve this, but Timeular relies on a button system that doesn’t always provide clear feedback.
Forgetting to Flip the Device Leads to Inaccurate Tracking
Flipping the device every time you switch tasks. But when you’re deep in work, remembering to do that isn’t always easy. This often results in incorrect tracking that users must fix later, defeating the purpose of an effortless time-tracking solution.
Some users have suggested built-in reminders or LED indicators to make remembering easier, but these features don’t exist. If you struggle with remembering to track your time, an alternative with automated tracking or background reminders might be a better fit.
Inconsistent Software Performance
Timeular’s desktop app was highly buggy. Updates wouldn’t install correctly, and some users had to do full re-installs just to get things working again. While the platform has improved, it’s still missing key features that users have requested for years, like the ability to turn off military time for those who prefer a standard 12-hour format. While the in-app support is helpful, waiting over a month to resolve a software bug isn’t exactly an ideal experience.
Rising Costs and Subscription-Only Pricing
Timeular has also gotten more expensive. Recent price increases and the requirement for teams to register multiple users make it a pricier option than before. There’s no longer a one-time purchase option; you must commit to a monthly subscription.
While many competitors operate on a subscription model, they often justify the price with more robust features. If cost is a concern, it might be worth looking at alternatives offering better value.
Choosing The Best Timeular Alternative for Your Needs
Different users need different levels of tracking. Freelancers need a straightforward timer to log billable hours, while teams may require:
- Detailed analytics
- Automated reporting
- Integrations with other productivity tools
Understanding your specific needs will make it much easier to find the right fit.
Calendar Export: Keep Everything in Sync
If you rely on Google Calendar or other scheduling tools, having a time tracker that exports data to your calendar can be a game-changer. It helps you visualize how your time is allocated without switching between apps.
Calendar Analytics: See Where Your Time Goes
Want to know exactly how much time you’re spending in meetings versus deep work? Calendar analytics break it down, helping you spot inefficiencies and reclaim lost hours.
Custom Tags & Properties: Organize Your Work
Flexibility is key. If your work is diverse, you can tag time entries like:
- Client work
- Internal tasks
- R&D
Makes it easier to categorize and analyze your work later. The more flexibility, the better.
Custom Charts & Reports: Turn Data into Insights
Basic tracking is fine, but look for a tool to create custom reports and charts to improve efficiency. Seeing patterns in your work habits can help you make smarter productivity decisions.
Goal Alignment: Work Smarter, Not Harder
Are you tracking time just for the sake of it, or do you have specific productivity goals? Some tools let you set targets, like spending a certain number of hours on focused work or reducing unnecessary meetings.
Google Sheets Sync: For Data Lovers
If you love spreadsheets (or need to share data with a team), a tool that syncs with Google Sheets lets you create custom reports and track trends over time. Perfect for number crunchers and managers who want more control over their data.
Chrome Extension: Lightweight and Fast
You just need a quick way to log time without opening another app. A Chrome extension lets you start and stop tracking with a single click, making it easy to stay on top of things without breaking your workflow.
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Start Using Our Automatic Time Tracking Software for Free with One-click Today
A time audit helps you understand how you spend your time. This process reveals what you do with your time so you can identify opportunities to improve and optimize your time management.
For example, a time audit can show you whether you spend too much time on specific tasks or projects, how much time you spend on strategic initiatives versus operational work, and how your team’s time allocation compares to established benchmarks or goals. With this knowledge, you can make informed decisions to help you improve your efficiency, decrease burnout, and reallocate resources more effectively.
How to Do a Time Audit
To accurately assess how your team spends its time, you must first define clear goals for your time audit. What are you trying to achieve? You can track time to improve operational efficiency, ensure your team meets project deadlines, or identify areas for improvement before a significant transition.
Communicate your goals with your team and explain how time tracking can help achieve these objectives. Use automatic time-tracking software to record and analyze your team’s time data. After a set period, review the reports to uncover actionable insights to help meet your objectives.
