Best Time Tracking App for Contractors

Website: https://clockify.me

Best for: Low cost crew tracking

Starting price: $3.99 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Yes

Pros: Free plan for up to 5 users; simple timer and timesheet views

Cons: GPS tracking and scheduling need Pro at $7.99 per user per month

Clockify is the cheapest way for a contractor to start tracking time, with a free plan for up to 5 users and a Basic plan at $3.99 per user per month billed annually. Crews can start a timer from a phone, log time against a job, and submit weekly timesheets that the office can review. The interface is simple enough that a crew member can learn it in minutes, which matters when the team changes from job to job.

The limit is that GPS tracking and scheduling need the Pro plan at $7.99 per user per month, and there is no built in payroll, so hours must be exported to another provider. The free plan caps at 5 users, so a larger crew must move to a subscription plan. Clockify is the best fit for a small contractor who wants low cost tracking without a complex setup.

Website: https://toggl.com

Best for: Simple hourly billing

Starting price: $9 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Yes

Pros: Very simple one click timer; clean reports by client and project

Cons: Timesheet approvals and profitability reports need Premium at $16 per user per month

Toggl Track is the simplest time tracker in this guide, built around a one click timer that anyone can use. A contractor can set up a project per job, tag entries by trade or task, and run reports that show how many hours went to each client. The Starter plan at $9 per user per month billed annually adds billable rates, which is the feature most contractors need first, and the free plan covers a limited number of users for a solo contractor.

The drawback is that timesheet approvals, labour costs, profitability reports and single sign on are locked to Premium at $16 per user per month, so the features that matter for a growing crew sit on the higher tier. Toggl Track has no GPS tracking and no scheduling, so it suits office based billing more than field supervision. It is the right pick when the main need is clean, simple hourly billing.

Website: https://getharvest.com

Best for: Client billing and invoicing

Starting price: $9 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Yes

Pros: Time, expenses and invoicing joined together; clear budget views per project

Cons: Timesheet approval and profitability reporting need Enterprise at $14 per user per month

Harvest joins time tracking with expenses and invoicing, so a contractor can log hours against a job and turn them into an invoice without leaving the tool. The Teams plan at $9 per user per month billed annually covers timers, timesheets, budgets and basic reports, and the free plan covers 1 seat and 2 projects, which is enough for a solo contractor to test it. Budget views show whether a job is on track before the money runs out.

The catch is that timesheet approval and profitability reporting are Enterprise only at $14 per user per month, so a contractor on Teams cannot approve timesheets or see profit by client without paying more. Harvest also adds usage based Flex fees on top of the seat rate for active projects, clients, tasks and invoicing. Harvest suits a contractor who bills clients by the hour and wants invoicing in the same place as time.

Website: https://hubstaff.com

Best for: GPS and activity tracking

Starting price: $4.99 per seat/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Pros: GPS tracking and geofencing for field crews; screenshots and activity levels

Cons: No free plan; every plan has a 2 seat minimum

Hubstaff is built for field teams, with GPS tracking, geofencing and mobile time clocks that suit contractors with crews on site. The Starter plan at $4.99 per seat per month billed annually covers time tracking, screenshots and basic reports, and higher tiers add scheduling, payroll and more integrations. A contractor can see where the crew clocked in and out, which helps with job costing and with disputes about hours on site.

There is no free plan, only a 14 day trial, and every plan has a 2 seat minimum, so a one person business pays for two seats. Starter caps screenshots and app and URL tracking at 500 per seat per month. Hubstaff is the best fit when the contractor needs to verify where and when the crew worked, rather than simply record hours.

Website: https://www.timedoctor.com

Best for: Productivity and screenshots

Starting price: $6.67 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Pros: Screenshots and detailed activity reports; payroll and client login features

Cons: No free plan; video screen recording and single sign on need Premium at $16.70 per user per month

Time Doctor tracks time with screenshots, app and website usage, and detailed productivity reports, which suits a contractor who manages remote office staff as well as field crews. The Basic plan at $6.67 per user per month billed annually covers time tracking, screenshots and basic reports, and annual billing includes two free months. Payroll features and client login help a contractor bill clients and pay staff from the same data.

There is no free plan, only a 14 day trial of Premium features, and video screen recording, single sign on, several AI reports and other advanced features are Premium only at $16.70 per user per month. Extra add ons such as Software Cost Insights cost $3 per user per month. Time Doctor suits a contractor who wants detailed proof of work and is comfortable with screenshot based monitoring.

Website: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/time-tracking/

Best for: Payroll ready tracking

Starting price: $20 per month base + $10 per user/month

Free plan: Free trial (30 days)

Pros: Built for payroll with GPS and job costing; connects to QuickBooks Online

Cons: Needs a separate QuickBooks Online subscription; no annual billing discount

QuickBooks Time is the payroll ready option in this guide, built to feed hours straight into QuickBooks payroll. The Time Premium plan costs $20 per month as a base fee plus $10 per user per month, and Time Elite costs $40 per month plus $12 per user per month, with a 30 day free trial. GPS tracking, geofencing and mileage tracking help a contractor verify field hours, and job costing links hours to each project.

The meter starts before anyone clocks in, because the base fee sits on top of the per user fee, and a separate QuickBooks Online subscription from about $38 per month is required to use it at all. There is no annual billing discount. QuickBooks Time suits a contractor who already runs payroll in QuickBooks and wants hours to flow into pay without manual entry.

Website: https://buddypunch.com

Best for: Time clocks and scheduling

Starting price: $4.99 per user/month + $19 per month base (billed annually)

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Pros: Simple time clocks with GPS and photos; scheduling and overtime rules

Cons: No free plan; scheduling costs an extra $1 per user a month on Starter

Buddy Punch is built around time clocks, with GPS location, photo capture and facial recognition options that suit a contractor with a fixed site or a yard. The Starter plan at $4.99 per user per month billed annually plus a $19 monthly base fee covers time tracking, overtime rules and basic reports, and a 14 day free trial lets a crew test it on a real job. The interface is simple, which helps when the team changes often.

There is no free plan, and scheduling costs an extra $1 per user a month on the Starter plan, while payroll is a separate add on at $8 per user plus a $49 base fee. The base fee means a small crew pays more than the per user price alone suggests. Buddy Punch is the best fit for a contractor who wants a straightforward time clock with location checks.

Website: https://www.deputy.com

Best for: Scheduling and time clocks

Starting price: $5 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Free trial (30 days)

Pros: Scheduling and time tracking in one place; simple mobile clock in and out

Cons: No free plan; every user including admins and managers counts toward the bill

Deputy joins scheduling with time tracking, so a contractor can build the rota and record the hours in the same system. The Lite plan at $5 per user per month billed annually covers scheduling and time clocks, with Core at $6.50 and Pro at $9 adding more features. Staff clock in and out from a phone, managers approve timesheets, and the schedule shows who is on site each day. A 30 day free trial covers all plans.

There is no free plan, and every user, including admins, managers and supervisors, counts toward the bill, so the real seat count is higher than the crew count. There is a $30 minimum monthly spend on monthly plans. Deputy suits a contractor who needs scheduling and time tracking together and wants one place to manage the crew week.