Best Time Tracking Software for Animation Studios

Website: https://www.getharvest.com

Best for: studios that invoice clients from tracked time

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

Free plan: Yes

Pros: one-click timers with weekly and daily timesheets, invoicing and expense tracking on every plan; 50-plus integrations including QuickBooks, Xero and Stripe

Cons: free plan covers only 1 seat and 2 projects; entry plans can add Flex usage-based charges for active projects, clients, tasks and invoicing on top of the seat price

Harvest suits a studio that bills clients by the hour and needs a short path from timer to invoice. Artists start a one-click timer, switch between shots during the day, and the weekly timesheet gathers those entries into a record a producer can review before invoicing. Invoicing and expense tracking sit on every plan, so a small studio needs no second app to turn tracked hours into a client bill.

The limits matter for a growing studio. The free plan covers only 1 seat and 2 projects, so it works as a trial for a solo freelancer rather than a working studio setup. Entry plans can also add Flex usage-based charges for active projects, clients, tasks and invoicing on top of the seat price, so a studio with many concurrent shots should model the total before committing.

Website: https://toggl.com

Best for: simple timers that sync across every device

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

Free plan: Yes

Pros: one-click timer that syncs across web, desktop, mobile and browser extension; explicit anti-surveillance stance, no screenshots, keystroke, location or webcam monitoring

Cons: billable rates and team reports need an entry plan; timesheet approvals, labor costs, profitability reports and SSO are gated to Premium at $16

Toggl Track fits animation teams that want tracking to feel light. An animator can start the timer on a desktop, stop it on a phone, and see the same entries in the browser extension, which suits a studio where people move between workstations, review rooms and home setups. The vendor states an explicit anti-surveillance stance, with no screenshots, keystroke, location or webcam monitoring, and that position may matter to a studio that wants trust with its artists.

The trade-off is that reporting depth sits behind higher tiers. Billable rates and team reports need an entry plan, and timesheet approvals, labor costs, profitability reports and SSO are gated to Premium at $16 per user per month. A studio that only needs honest time records can stay on the lower tiers, but one that needs approval flows or margin analysis should budget for Premium.

Website: https://clockify.me

Best for: small studios that need the lowest entry cost

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

Free plan: Yes

Pros: free plan covers up to 5 users with unlimited time entries and projects; cheapest entry tier in this set at $3.99

Cons: free plan is capped at 5 users and excludes billable rates, invoicing, timesheet approval and exports; once a workspace upgrades, every active or invited user occupies a seat

Clockify is the lowest-cost entry point in this comparison, and that makes it a natural first look for a small animation studio watching its monthly spend. The free plan covers up to 5 users with unlimited time entries and projects, which is enough for a compact team to track real production work without paying anything at first. The entry tier at $3.99 per seat per month on annual billing keeps the cost low when the team grows past the free plan.

The free plan has clear edges. It is capped at 5 users and excludes billable rates, invoicing, timesheet approval and exports, so a studio that bills clients from tracked time will need to upgrade or pair Clockify with an invoicing tool. Once a workspace upgrades, every active or invited user occupies a seat, so a studio should keep its member list tidy and remove people who no longer work on active shots.

Website: https://everhour.com

Best for: studios that manage shots inside Asana, Jira or ClickUp

Starting price: $8.50 per seat/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Yes

Pros: timer lives inside Asana, Jira, ClickUp, Trello, Notion, Monday and Linear; one Team plan includes all features with no tier juggling

Cons: Team plan has a 5-seat minimum, so a team of 2 or 3 pays for 5 seats ($42.50 per month minimum on annual billing); free plan has no integrations, billing or invoicing

Everhour is built for teams that already plan their work inside another tool. The timer lives inside Asana, Jira, ClickUp, Trello, Notion, Monday and Linear, so an animator can log time against a shot task without opening a second app or copying task names between systems. That placement reduces missed entries, because the timer sits where the work is assigned and discussed. The single Team plan includes all features with no tier juggling.

The pricing structure needs a close look for very small teams. The Team plan has a 5-seat minimum, so a team of 2 or 3 pays for 5 seats, which is $42.50 per month minimum on annual billing. The free plan has no integrations, billing or invoicing, so the integration that makes Everhour attractive is not part of the free tier.

Website: https://www.paymoapp.com

Best for: studios that want proofing and invoicing in one place

Starting price: $5.90 per month (billed annually)

Free plan: Yes

Pros: projects, time tracking, invoicing, estimates and proofing in one app; Paymo Track records desktop app time automatically; free plan includes unlimited time tracking and invoices

Cons: free and Solo plans are limited to 1 user, so any team must pay for Plus at $10.90 per user per month; Gantt charts, task dependencies, scheduling, workload and timesheet approvals are only on Pro at $16.90

Paymo brings several studio jobs into one subscription. Projects, time tracking, invoicing, estimates and proofing sit in the same app, and proofing is a real draw for animation work, where client review cycles run on frames and versions rather than on plain task lists. Paymo Track records desktop app time automatically, which can catch hours that a busy animator forgets to log by hand.

The catch is the jump from solo to team pricing. The free and Solo plans are limited to 1 user, so any team must move to Plus at $10.90 per user per month, which changes the monthly total well above the $5.90 headline. Gantt charts, task dependencies, scheduling, workload and timesheet approvals are only on Pro at $16.90 per user per month, so a studio that needs scheduling and approval flows should price Pro, not Plus.

Website: https://timely.com

Best for: studios that want time captured automatically

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

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Pros: Memory AI records app, document and website use in the background and drafts timesheets for one-click approval; entries stay private until approved

Cons: no free plan, only a 14-day trial; Starter is capped at 5 users and 20 projects; budgets, capacity management and multi-currency need Premium or Unlimited

Timely takes a different approach from a manual timer. Its Memory AI records app, document and website use in the background and drafts timesheets for one-click approval, which suits animators who switch between a dozen tools during a shot and forget to start and stop a timer. Entries stay private until approved, so each person reviews the draft before it becomes part of the studio record.

The limits are the absence of a free plan and the caps on the Starter tier. There is no free plan, only a 14-day trial, so a studio must decide within two weeks whether automatic capture is worth the subscription. Starter is capped at 5 users and 20 projects, which a busy studio can reach quickly when every short, episode or ad runs as its own project. Budgets, capacity management and multi-currency need Premium or Unlimited.

Website: https://hubstaff.com

Best for: studios that need screenshots, scheduling and payroll

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

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Pros: time tracking plus screenshots, activity levels, app and URL tracking, scheduling, payroll and payments in one platform; 14-day trial needs no credit card

Cons: no free plan; Starter, Grow and Team each have a 2-seat minimum, so a solo user pays for two seats; screenshots and app and URL tracking are capped at 500 per user per month on Starter

Hubstaff combines time tracking with oversight and payment tools, which suits a studio that manages remote or contract animators across different locations. Time tracking plus screenshots, activity levels, app and URL tracking, scheduling, payroll and payments sit in one platform, so a producer can schedule a shift, see the work recorded, and pay the contractor without moving between three systems. The 14-day trial needs no credit card.

The trade-offs are the lack of a free plan and the seat minimums. There is no free plan, and Starter, Grow and Team each have a 2-seat minimum, so a solo user pays for two seats. Screenshots and app and URL tracking are capped at 500 per user per month on Starter, which a full-time animator can approach during a busy production month. A studio should also weigh how its artists feel about screenshots and activity tracking, since that level of monitoring changes the working relationship.

Website: https://www.avaza.com

Best for: studios that want a flat monthly rate

Starting price: $11.95 per month (billed monthly)

Free plan: Yes

Pros: flat monthly price with unlimited project collaborators on every plan; timesheets, expenses, quotes, invoicing, resource scheduling and team chat in one subscription

Cons: free plan allows only 1 timesheet user, 5 active projects and 5 invoices per month; every extra timesheet, admin or scheduling user costs $7 per user per month above the plan price

Avaza stands out in this set because its price is a flat monthly rate, not a per-user rate. The headline figure is $11.95 per month billed monthly, with unlimited project collaborators on every plan, and the subscription covers timesheets, expenses, quotes, invoicing, resource scheduling and team chat. That breadth is attractive for a studio that wants one app for scheduling, time and billing.

The real cost depends on how many people need a timesheet seat. The free plan allows only 1 timesheet user, 5 active projects and 5 invoices per month, so it suits a solo test rather than a working team. Every extra timesheet, admin or scheduling user costs $7 per user per month above the plan price, so a 10-person studio that needs timesheets for everyone would add a meaningful amount to the $11.95 base.