Time Tracking · Researched comparison

Best Time Tracking Software for Staffing Agencies

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Key takeaways

  • Staffing agencies track hours for placed workers across many client sites, so the winning tool must handle many clients, approvals and payroll exports.
  • Hubstaff at $4.99 per seat per month billed annually and Time Doctor at $6.67 per user per month billed annually add the location and activity proof that client sites demand.
  • Clockify and TimeCamp start at $3.99 per user per month billed annually, the lowest entry prices here, and both include a free plan.
  • Free plans cap at 1 to 5 users on most tools, so an agency with dozens of placed workers should budget for a billing plan from the start.

Comparison

How these compare
ToolBest forPrice rangeFree plan
HubstaffPlaced workers and GPS proof$4.99 per seat/month (billed annually)Yes, 1 user only
ClockifyTight budgets and small teams$3.99 per user/month (billed annually)Yes, up to 5 users
TimeCampLow-cost automatic tracking$3.99 per user/month (billed annually)Yes, unlimited users and projects
HarvestClient billing and invoicing$9 per seat/month (billed annually)Yes, 1 seat and 2 projects
Toggl TrackSimple timers and clean reports$9 per user/month (billed annually)Yes, up to 5 users
PaymoSmall teams that bill clients$10.90 per user/month (billed annually)Yes, 1 user, 1 client, 2 projects
EverhourTeams inside Asana, Trello or Jira$8.50 per user/month (billed annually)Yes, up to 5 users
TimelyAutomatic AI-drafted timesheets$9 per user/month (billed annually)Free trial (14 days)
DeskTimeAutomatic tracking and attendance$6.42 per user/month (billed annually)Free trial (14 days)

How we choose

We reviewed the vendor pricing pages, feature lists and documentation for each tool on 2026-11-11, and compared starting prices, free plan limits, trial lengths, placement and payroll features, and the plan level where approvals, GPS and invoicing appear. We compared tools that serve staffing agencies specifically: many clients and placements, attendance proof at client sites, payroll exports, and invoicing that turns approved hours into a client bill. We did not run hands-on tests, and we did not use review scores or star ratings. Prices change, so check the vendor pricing page linked in Sources before you buy.

Our full method

The shortlist

★ Best overall

The best time tracking software for staffing agencies

2

Hubstaff

Best for staffing agencies that need GPS and activity proof

Website: https://hubstaff.com

Best for: staffing agencies that need GPS and activity proof

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

Free plan: Yes, 1 user only

Pros: screenshots, activity levels and app and URL tracking; GPS and geofencing for client sites

Cons: 2-seat minimum on Starter, Grow and Team; Insights, Tasks and Locations cost extra as add-ons; Starter caps screenshots and app and URL tracking at 500 per seat per month

Hubstaff fits the staffing model better than any tool in this list, because it proves where placed workers were and what they did. The desktop app records activity levels, takes screenshots and logs apps and websites, while GPS and geofencing confirm attendance at a client site. Starter costs $4.99 per seat per month billed annually and includes time tracking, screenshots, activity levels, and limited app and URL tracking, plus payments through PayPal and Wise.

The monitoring features are the point, and they are also the risk. An agency should agree in writing with both the client and the placed worker what gets recorded and why, because screenshots of a client site carry extra rules. Starter caps screenshots and app and URL tracking at 500 per seat per month, and the Insights, Tasks and Locations features cost extra as add-ons. The free plan covers a single user, so any real agency will pay from day one.

3

Clockify

Best for staffing agencies on a tight budget

Website: https://clockify.me

Best for: staffing agencies on a tight budget

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

Free plan: Yes, up to 5 users

Pros: low entry price with a free plan for up to 5 users; calendar view and kiosk mode for site check-ins

Cons: invoicing, timesheet approvals and time off start at Standard at $5.49 per user per month billed annually; project budgets, profitability, GPS and screenshots start at Pro at $7.99

Clockify is the cheapest way to give a staffing agency a shared record of placed hours. The free plan covers up to 5 users, and Basic at $3.99 per user per month billed annually adds project templates, time off policies and the ability to hide pages from regular users. A coordinator can see how many hours each placed worker logged at each client site this week, and the kiosk mode lets workers clock in from a shared tablet at the door.

The limits show up as the agency grows. Invoicing and approvals sit on Standard, while budgets and profitability sit on Pro, so a 20-person agency that bills clients will likely land on Pro at $7.99 per user per month billed annually. Even then, the total stays below most rivals, which matters when margins per placement are thin.

4

TimeCamp

Best for staffing agencies that want automatic tracking at a low price

Website: https://www.timecamp.com

Best for: staffing agencies that want automatic tracking at a low price

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

Free plan: Yes, unlimited users and projects

Pros: free plan covers unlimited users and projects; automatic tracking with invoicing

Cons: billable rates, labor costs and timesheet approvals need Ultimate at $9.99 per user per month billed annually; Premium allows only 1 integration

TimeCamp has the most generous free plan on this list: unlimited users and unlimited projects, with no user cap at all. That matters for a staffing agency, because placed workers come and go and the headcount changes every month. Starter costs $3.99 per user per month billed annually and adds automatic time tracking, invoicing and basic reporting, with a 14-day trial and no credit card required.

The free plan is generous, but the higher features are gated firmly. Billable rates, labor costs and timesheet approvals need Ultimate at $9.99 per user per month billed annually, and the Premium tier allows only 1 integration. For an agency that mainly needs hours logged per placement and invoiced, TimeCamp delivers a lot for very little money.

5

Harvest

Best for staffing agencies that bill clients by the hour

Website: https://www.getharvest.com

Best for: staffing agencies that bill clients by the hour

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

Free plan: Yes, 1 seat and 2 projects

Pros: simple timers plus invoicing from tracked time; expense tracking built in

Cons: profitability reporting, timesheet approvals, activity log and single sign-on need Enterprise at $14 per seat per month billed annually; Flex usage fees apply for invoices, projects, clients and tasks

Harvest pairs a timer with an invoice, which is the weekly loop a staffing agency runs for every placement. Placed workers log hours against clients and assignments, a coordinator reviews the week, and Harvest turns the approved hours into an invoice with expenses attached. The Teams plan costs $9 per seat per month billed annually and includes unlimited projects, clients and invoices, plus integrations with tools such as Asana, Slack and QuickBooks.

The free plan covers only 1 seat and 2 projects, so it works for a solo recruiter and not much beyond that. Enterprise at $14 per seat per month billed annually adds approvals, profitability reporting and single sign-on, which a larger agency will want when client margins matter. Harvest also charges Flex usage fees on top of the seat price, so check the pricing page for the current fee schedule before budgeting.

6

Toggl Track

Best for staffing agencies that want a simple timer and clean reports

Website: https://toggl.com

Best for: staffing agencies that want a simple timer and clean reports

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

Free plan: Yes, up to 5 users

Pros: one-click timer across desktop, web and mobile; more than 100 integrations with project tools

Cons: profitability reports and timesheet approvals need Premium at $16 per user per month billed annually; no built-in invoicing or GPS

Toggl Track keeps time tracking light, which suits placed workers who move between client sites and should not spend their day inside admin screens. A worker starts the timer in one click, picks a client, and the entry lands in a shared report that a coordinator can read before payroll runs. Starter costs $9 per user per month billed annually and adds billable rates, project time estimates and scheduled reports on top of the free plan, which covers up to 5 users.

The gaps are billing and location. Toggl Track has no built-in invoicing and no GPS, so hours must be exported before a client sees a bill, and attendance at a site cannot be proven from the tool alone. Premium at $16 per user per month billed annually adds profitability reports, labor costs, timesheet approvals and single sign-on. For an agency that invoices from a separate system and only needs clean hours, Toggl Track is an easy pick.

7

Paymo

Best for small staffing agencies that bill clients

Website: https://www.paymoapp.com

Best for: small staffing agencies that bill clients

Starting price: $10.90 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Yes, 1 user, 1 client, 2 projects

Pros: projects, time tracking and invoicing in one tool; Gantt charts and scheduling on Pro

Cons: Free and Solo are single-user, so a team must pay Plus at $10.90 per user per month billed annually; Gantt charts, scheduling, workload and timesheet approvals are Pro only at $16.90

Paymo suits a small staffing agency that wants one tool for placements, time and invoices instead of three. The Plus plan costs $10.90 per user per month billed annually and covers team time tracking, project templates, invoicing and expenses. A placed worker logs hours against a client assignment, a coordinator approves the week, and Paymo turns the approved time into an invoice without leaving the app.

The single-user limits shape the whole decision. The free plan covers 1 user, 1 client and 2 projects, and Solo at $5.90 per user per month billed annually is also single-user, so any team must pay Plus. Gantt charts, scheduling, workload and timesheet approvals need Pro at $16.90 per user per month billed annually. Paymo is a strong pick for an agency of 3 to 15 people, and a weak pick for a larger agency that needs capacity planning.

8

Everhour

Best for staffing agencies already using Asana, Trello, Jira or ClickUp

Website: https://everhour.com

Best for: staffing agencies already using Asana, Trello, Jira or ClickUp

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

Free plan: Yes, up to 5 users

Pros: time tracking inside Asana, Trello, Jira and ClickUp; budgets and invoicing included

Cons: Team has a 5-seat minimum, so the smallest billing account is $42.50 per month billed annually; free plan has no project-management integrations

Everhour is the right choice when a staffing agency already lives inside a project tool and does not want a second home for time. It adds timers, estimates, budgets and invoices directly inside Asana, Trello, Jira, ClickUp, Basecamp and Monday, so hours are logged where the placement work already sits. The Team plan costs $8.50 per user per month billed annually and includes budgets, invoicing, approvals and reporting, with a 14-day trial and no credit card required.

The catch is the seat minimum. Team requires at least 5 seats, so the smallest billing account costs $42.50 per month billed annually even if only three people track time. The free plan covers up to 5 users but has no project-management integrations, which removes the main reason to pick Everhour in the first place. For an agency of five or more that already uses one of the supported tools, Everhour is hard to beat.

9

Timely

Best for staffing agencies whose workers forget to start timers

Website: https://timely.com

Best for: staffing agencies whose workers forget to start timers

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

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Pros: automatic AI-drafted timesheets from app and calendar activity; clean team capacity views

Cons: no free plan; Starter is capped at 5 users and 20 projects; task-level timers cost an extra $5 per user per month

Timely solves the most common time tracking failure among placed workers: forgetting to start the timer while moving between tasks at a client site. Its Memory feature records app and calendar activity and drafts a timesheet from it, so a worker reviews and confirms the day instead of reconstructing it from memory. Starter costs $9 per user per month billed annually and includes automatic time tracking, the AI-drafted timesheet and team capacity views, with a 14-day trial and no credit card required.

The Starter limits are tight. Five users and 20 projects cover a small agency and no more, and task-level timers cost an extra $5 per user per month. Premium at $16 per user per month billed annually removes the caps and adds project budgets and profitability. Timely is a strong pick for a small agency that values accurate hours over detailed monitoring.

10

DeskTime

Best for staffing agencies that want automatic tracking and attendance

Website: https://desktime.com

Best for: staffing agencies that want automatic tracking and attendance

Starting price: $6.42 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Pros: automatic time tracking with productivity calculations; absence calendar and shift scheduling on Premium

Cons: no free plan, only a 14-day trial; screenshots and integrations need Premium at $9.17 per user per month billed annually; prices shown excluding VAT

DeskTime runs quietly in the background and sorts the day into productive time, unproductive time and idle time without anyone pressing a button. The Pro plan costs $6.42 per user per month billed annually and includes automatic tracking, document title tracking, productivity calculations and calendar integrations with Google Calendar and Outlook. Premium at $9.17 adds screenshots, integrations and an API, plus shift scheduling and an absence calendar, which help when placed workers rotate across client sites.

The automatic approach suits placed workers who switch between many small tasks and would forget a manual timer. The catch is that screenshots and integrations sit on Premium, so an agency that wants proof of work or a connection to Jira or Asana will pay the higher tier. There is no free plan, only a 14-day trial, and the prices on the vendor page exclude VAT, so agencies in the EU should add tax when they budget.

What to check before you buy

Check how the tool handles many clients and many workers first. A staffing agency needs placements grouped by client and site, approvals from the client as well as the coordinator, and a payroll export that matches the pay cycle. Next, check the seat minimum and how the bill changes when placed workers join and leave, since a per-seat price can spike in a busy month. Then check whether GPS and screenshots are on or off by default, and whether your client contracts and local law allow them. Finally, test the export: hours should leave the tool as a CSV or through an API, so a vendor change never traps a year's worth of placement records.

FAQ

What is the best time tracking software for staffing agencies?

The best pick depends on what your agency must prove. Hubstaff and Time Doctor suit agencies that need GPS and activity proof at client sites, Clockify and TimeCamp suit tight budgets, and Harvest suits agencies that invoice from tracked time. Start with the free plan or trial, run it with one client placement for two weeks, and keep the tool that produces the clearest payroll export.

How should a staffing agency track time for placed workers?

Set each client as a project and each placement as a task, log every hour against the right client and site, and have both the coordinator and the client approve the week. The tool should export hours by client, worker and date range, so payroll and invoicing use the same numbers. Monthly reports should show hours by placement, so the agency sees which clients are profitable.

How much should a staffing agency budget per user per month?

A small agency can start at $0 to $4 per user per month on a free plan or a low tier such as Clockify or TimeCamp. An agency of 6 to 20 that needs approvals, GPS and a payroll export should budget $4 to $10, and an agency that needs scheduling, single sign-on and profitability reporting should budget $10 to $17. Add the cost of add-ons, since some tools charge extra for features that look included.

Do staffing agencies need GPS tracking for placed workers?

Not always, but many client contracts ask for proof of attendance at the site. Hubstaff offers GPS and geofencing, which confirm that a worker was on site during the logged hours. If you turn GPS on, agree in writing with the worker and the client what is recorded, who can see it, and how long it is kept, and check local law first. A timer plus a client approval is enough for many placements.

Is there a free time tracking tool for staffing agencies?

Yes. Clockify offers a free plan for up to 5 users, TimeCamp offers a free plan with unlimited users and projects, and Toggl Track and Everhour offer free plans for up to 5 users. Free plans usually lack approvals, GPS and payroll exports, so an agency with many placements will likely upgrade. Harvest offers a free plan for 1 seat and 2 projects, which suits a solo recruiter.

Sources we checked

  • https://hubstaff.com/pricing
  • https://clockify.me/pricing
  • https://www.timecamp.com/pricing/
  • https://www.getharvest.com/pricing
  • https://toggl.com/track/pricing/
  • https://www.paymoapp.com/pricing
  • https://everhour.com/pricing
  • https://timely.com/pricing
  • https://desktime.com/pricing
How we score

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The best time tracking software for staffing agencies#1 PICK