Resource Planning and PSA · Researched comparison

Best PSA Software With Time Tracking

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The short answer

Accelo is the top pick for most professional services firms. It runs client work from sale to invoice in one place, with time tracking on every task and retainers built in. Productive is the best value at a published price, while HaloPSA suits MSPs that want a fixed per agent rate.

On this page

Key takeaways

  • Accelo leads for full quote to cash work, but it hides its prices behind a quote.
  • HaloPSA is the only MSP tool here with a published price, at £66 per agent a month.
  • Productive is the cheapest published PSA here, from $10 per user a month.
  • ConnectWise and Autotask are the standard MSP choices, and both are quote only.
  • Scoro and BigTime suit agencies and service firms that want billing without a sales call.

Comparison

How these compare
ToolBest forPrice rangeFree plan
AcceloClient work from sale to invoicequote onlyFree trial (7 days)
ConnectWise PSAMSPs needing tickets and billingquote onlyNo
Autotask PSAMSPs that run on Dattoquote onlyNo
HaloPSAMSPs wanting a fixed per agent price£66 per agent/month (billed annually)Free trial (30 days)
ScoroAgencies needing projects and CRM$26 per user/month (billed annually)Free trial (14 days)
BigTimeTime and billing for service firms$20 per user/month (billed annually)Free trial (14 days)
ProductiveAgency budgets with time tracking$10 per user/month (billed annually)Free trial (14 days)
KantataLarge services firms needing forecastsquote onlyNo

How we choose

We compared vendor pricing pages, plan documents and feature lists for each tool, and we checked the entry price and free plan status on the vendor site. We looked for tools that cover the full PSA job: a sales or pipeline view, project delivery, time tracking and billing in one system. We left out tools that only track time and tools whose price we could not confirm at all. We did not run hands on tests and we did not score the tools, so the order here follows fit for the topic, not a ranking. Prices change, so confirm the figure on the pricing page before you commit.

Our full method

The shortlist

★ Best overall

Accelo

Best for client work from sale to invoice

  • full quote to cash flow
  • strong retainers
Pricequote only
See Accelo pricing

Accelo covers the full journey of client work in one system. A deal in the sales pipeline becomes a project with tasks, a budget and a retainer, and every hour logged against it flows into billing and reporting. Time entries carry billable rates and approval states, so managers can see which projects are on budget and which retainers are burning too fast. Tickets, expenses and client communications sit on the same record, which means a team member can answer a client question without opening a second tool.

The price is not published. Accelo removed its price list and now asks every buyer to book a demo and request a quote, so the first step is a sales call rather than a comparison page. The last figures the company published, in 2023, ranged from about $20 per user a month for Core to $90 for Advanced, with seat minimums from three to ten users, but Accelo no longer stands behind those numbers. A 7 day trial is available. The limits are the hidden price, the seat minimums and the onboarding fee, which is charged separately.

Price: quote only

Free plan: Free trial (7 days)

Website: accelo.com

Watch out for

  • quote only
  • onboarding is charged separately
2

ConnectWise PSA

Best for MSPs needing tickets and billing
quote only

ConnectWise PSA, now part of ConnectWise Manage, is the standard platform for managed service providers. Tickets, projects, time entries, agreements and billing share one system, so a technician logs time against a ticket and the hours flow straight into the client invoice. Service agreements define what is covered and at what rate, and the dashboards show utilisation, agreement profitability and ticket backlogs. The platform connects to the wider ConnectWise suite, including RMM, quoting and automation tools, which is why large MSPs build their whole stack on it.

ConnectWise does not publish prices for its PSA, and every deal starts with a sales conversation and a custom quote based on technician count and modules. There is no free plan and no published trial, and implementation takes weeks, with training and data migration included in the onboarding. The limits are the hidden price, the long setup and the weight of the platform for a small MSP under ten technicians. For larger MSPs, the depth of the ticket and agreement system can justify the effort.

Price: quote only

Free plan: No

Website: connectwise.com

What we like

  • deep MSP feature set
  • strong integrations

Watch out for

  • quote only
  • long setup
3

Autotask PSA

Best for MSPs that run on Datto
quote only

Autotask PSA, owned by Datto, is a long standing platform for managed service providers. The ticket system is the core: tickets carry time entries, contracts, projects and billing, and the dashboards show queue health, technician utilisation and contract profitability. Projects run with tasks, milestones and budgets, and the time tracking feeds invoicing directly, with billable and non billable rates per contract. Integrations with Datto RMM and backup tools suit MSPs that already run their infrastructure on Datto.

Autotask does not publish prices, and buyers get a custom quote after a demo and a sales call. There is no free plan and no published trial, and the setup process takes weeks, with configuration and training included. The limits are the hidden price, the dated interface and the learning curve for new technicians. For an MSP already on Datto, the shared data between the PSA and the RMM can be worth the lock in.

Price: quote only

Free plan: No

Website: datto.com

What we like

  • strong ticketing
  • built for MSPs

Watch out for

  • quote only
  • dated interface
4

HaloPSA

Best for MSPs wanting a fixed per agent price
£66 per agent/month (billed annually)

HaloPSA is a PSA platform for MSPs and IT service teams that want the ConnectWise depth without the quote only pricing. Tickets, projects, time entries, contracts and billing share one system, and the dashboards show technician workload, contract profitability and service levels. Time tracking sits on tickets and projects, with billable rates and approvals, and the tool integrates with RMM, accounting and remote access tools. The interface is modern next to older MSP platforms, and the configuration is flexible enough to match most service desks.

HaloPSA lists its price at £66 per agent a month billed annually, which is the only published MSP price on this list. The figure is shown in pounds, so US buyers should check the dollar equivalent before budgeting. There is a 30 day trial. The limits are that per agent pricing adds up fast as the team grows, the setup takes time to get right, and some advanced features need the higher tiers. For an MSP that wants a clear price before the first sales call, HaloPSA is the honest option.

Price: £66 per agent/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Free trial (30 days)

Website: halopsa.com

What we like

  • published per agent price
  • strong ticketing

Watch out for

  • per agent pricing adds up
  • setup takes time
5

Scoro

Best for agencies needing projects and CRM
$26 per user/month (billed annually)

Scoro is a work management platform for agencies and consultancies that want projects, time and money in one place. Each project carries tasks, quotes, time entries and invoices, and the planner shows resource bookings against capacity so managers can see overload before it bites. Time tracking feeds billing directly, with billable and non billable rates, and the CRM holds clients, contacts and deals, so the pipeline and the delivery plan share the same data. Reports cover utilisation, project profit and team workload without exporting to a spreadsheet.

Essential costs $26 per user a month billed annually, with a five user minimum on every plan, so the real entry cost is $130 a month. Standard costs $37 and adds resource planning, while Pro costs $63 and adds the CRM and advanced reporting. There is no free plan, only a 14 day trial. The limits are the high entry price, the seat minimum and a setup process that takes longer than simpler tools.

Price: $26 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Website: scoro.com

What we like

  • projects, time and billing in one place
  • strong CRM

Watch out for

  • 5 user minimum
  • high entry price
6

BigTime

Best for time and billing for service firms
$20 per user/month (billed annually)

BigTime is built around time and billing for professional services firms. Time and expense entries feed project budgets directly, with alerts when a project nears its budget, and invoicing pulls from the same records, so the path from a logged hour to a client invoice is short. Resource planning and skills management sit on Premier, which adds staffing views and forecasting, while Advanced adds a client portal and DCAA compliance for government contractors. The QuickBooks integration syncs invoices, expenses and payments without manual entry.

Essentials costs $20 per user a month billed annually and covers time and expense tracking with basic project management. Advanced costs $35 and adds the client portal and compliance features, while Premier costs $45 and adds resource planning, skills management and forecasting. There is a free trial. The limits are that real resource planning needs Premier, the interface feels dated, and setup takes longer than lighter tools.

Price: $20 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Website: bigtime.net

What we like

  • strong time and billing
  • QuickBooks integration

Watch out for

  • resource planning needs Premier
  • interface is dated
7

Productive

Best for agency budgets with time tracking
$10 per user/month (billed annually)

Productive treats the agency as one system: sales, delivery and finance share the same numbers. A new deal in the pipeline reserves future capacity, and once it becomes a project, time entries feed the budget in real time, so the margin on a job is visible while the work is still running. Rate cards set the billable value of each person, and the resource view shows who is booked, who is free and who is overbooked. Invoicing pulls from the same time records, which removes the end of month scramble to rebuild hours from memory.

Essential costs $10 per user a month billed annually and includes budgeting, time tracking, resource planning and reporting, with a three seat minimum on new accounts. Professional costs $25 and adds rate cards, approvals, recurring budgets and advanced reports, while Ultimate is quote only. There is no free plan, only a 14 day trial. The limits are that the tool is built for agencies, so teams outside services work may find the finance features heavy.

Price: $10 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Website: productive.io

What we like

  • budgets tied to time
  • agency focused

Watch out for

  • 3 seat minimum
  • no free plan
8

Kantata

Best for large services firms needing forecasts
quote only

Kantata serves large professional services firms that need to look ahead, not just track what happened. The planner maps people, skills and availability across the whole firm, and the forecast compares the sales pipeline with future capacity, so a manager can see a staffing gap months before it arrives. Time entries feed project budgets, burn rates and margins in real time, and the tool connects to Salesforce and NetSuite for firms that run their business on those platforms.

Kantata does not publish prices, so every deal starts with a demo and a custom quote, and the sales process is the first cost a buyer meets. There is no free plan and no published trial, and implementation takes weeks rather than days, with training and configuration included in the onboarding. The limits are the hidden price, the long setup and the weight of the tool for teams under fifty people. For large services firms, the forecasting depth can justify the effort.

Price: quote only

Free plan: No

Website: kantata.com

What we like

  • strong forecasting
  • built for large services firms

Watch out for

  • quote only
  • long implementation

What to check before you buy

Before you commit, check four things. First, ask for the full quote in writing, because four of the eight tools here hide their prices and the final figure depends on seat count, modules and onboarding. Second, test the time entry flow with your real staff, because a PSA lives or dies on whether people log hours every day. Third, confirm the trial length, because Accelo gives seven days, HaloPSA gives thirty and ConnectWise, Autotask and Kantata give no trial at all. Fourth, check the seat minimum, because Scoro needs five users and Productive needs three, so the real entry cost is higher than the per user price suggests.

FAQ

What is the best PSA software with time tracking?

Accelo is the best fit for most professional services firms because it runs client work from sale to invoice in one place, with time tracking on every task and retainers built in. Productive is the best value at a published price, and HaloPSA suits MSPs that want a fixed per agent rate. The right pick depends on firm type, size and whether you need ticketing.

How much does PSA software cost?

Published entry prices on this list run from $10 per user a month for Productive to $26 for Scoro, with BigTime at $20 in between. Four of the eight tools hide their prices behind a quote, so the real range is wider than the published figures suggest. A 10 person firm on Productive Essential costs $100 a month, while a 10 agent MSP on HaloPSA costs £660 a month. Always get the quote in writing.

What is the difference between PSA software and project management software?

Project management software tracks tasks, dates and deliverables, while PSA software adds the business around them: sales, retainers, time tracking, billing and utilisation. A project tool can show that a task is done, but only a PSA can show whether the project made money. If you bill clients by the hour or run retainers, you need the PSA layer.

Do MSPs need a different PSA from agencies?

Yes, in most cases. MSPs need ticketing, service agreements and RMM integrations, which is why ConnectWise, Autotask and HaloPSA lead for them. Agencies need budgets, rate cards and creative workflows, which is why Accelo, Scoro and Productive fit better. A tool built for one rarely serves the other well, so pick the PSA that matches your business model.

Why do some PSA tools hide their prices?

Vendors hide prices when the cost depends on seat count, modules, onboarding and contract length, which is common for large platforms sold through a sales team. It also lets them discount per deal. The cost to you is time: every quote needs a demo and a call. If you want a fast comparison, start with the tools that publish a price, then take one or two quotes for the rest.

Sources we checked

How we score

Need the method behind these picks?

We publish the criteria and the weights, so you can disagree with them.

Accelo#1 PICK
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