10 Best Timesheet Software for Engineering Firms

Website: https://www.bigtime.net/

Best for: Larger firms needing project accounting

Starting price: $20 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: No

Pros: Project accounting and utilization reports; built for professional services

Cons: Highest starting price in this list; no free plan

BigTime is the most complete timesheet tool in this list for a larger engineering firm. The Essentials plan starts at $20 per user per month and includes time tracking, expenses, invoicing, and project management, with higher tiers adding utilization, budgeting, and accounting links. A firm with several engineers, project managers, and drafters can track hours, costs, and fees in one system and see which projects are making money and which engineers are overbooked.

The limits are the price and the lack of a free plan, so do not buy BigTime for a small firm that only needs timesheets. The full value comes from using the accounting and utilization reports, not just the timer. Choose BigTime when your firm has outgrown simple timesheets and needs to manage project profit and staff capacity, not just hours.

Website: https://getharvest.com/

Best for: Hours, expenses, and invoices in one place

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

Free plan: Yes

Pros: Time, expenses, and invoices in one place; simple project budgets

Cons: Free plan covers only 1 seat and 2 projects; Flex usage fees apply to active items

Harvest ties timesheets straight to money, which suits an engineering firm that bills clients for time and materials. The Teams plan at $9 per seat per month on annual billing includes timers, timesheets, expenses, estimates, invoices, and project budgets, so hours flow from a timer into a client invoice without retyping. Project budgets show how much of a fixed fee has been used, which helps a project manager spot a job that is running over.

The costs to watch are the Flex usage fees, which apply to active projects, clients, tasks, and invoicing on top of the seat price, and the Enterprise plan at $14 per seat per month on annual billing, which adds the controls a larger firm needs. The free plan covers 1 seat and 2 projects, which is enough for a solo engineer to test the full loop. Price Harvest on your real project count, not just the seat count.

Website: https://www.scoro.com/

Best for: Quoting, scheduling, and billing in one system

Starting price: from EUR 15 per user/month (billed annually)

Free plan: No

Pros: Quotes, projects, and billing in one system; strong utilization views

Cons: 5 user minimum and a two app minimum; onboarding can take weeks

Scoro suits an engineering firm that wants quoting, scheduling, time tracking, and billing in one system instead of four separate tools. Pricing starts from EUR 15 per user per month on annual billing, with a 5 user minimum. A project manager can quote a job, schedule engineers, track hours against the quote, and invoice from the same record.

The limits are the minimums and the setup time. Scoro requires at least 5 users and at least two core apps, and onboarding can take weeks to months, so it fits a firm that is ready to commit to one system. Add-ons are priced separately, so confirm the full price before you buy. Choose Scoro when your firm wants one system for the whole project cycle and has the staff to run it.

Website: https://www.accelo.com/

Best for: Full professional services system

Starting price: quote only

Free plan: No

Pros: Full system for sales, projects, and billing; built for services firms

Cons: No published prices at all; everything goes through a sales quote

Accelo is the broadest system in this list, covering sales, projects, retainers, time, and billing for a professional services firm. The pricing page shows no figures and asks for a custom quote, so the price depends on the size of the firm and the modules it needs. An engineering firm that wants one system for the whole client lifecycle should ask Accelo for a quote and compare it against BigTime and Scoro.

The limits are the lack of published prices and the sales process itself. A firm cannot budget Accelo without a quote, and the full system takes time to set up. There is no free plan and no trial stated on the pricing page. Ask for a written quote that lists every module, confirm the implementation cost, and compare the total against the entry prices in this list before you commit.

Website: https://toggl.com/

Best for: Simple timers and project reports

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

Free plan: Yes

Pros: Very simple timer and reporting; clear reports by client and project

Cons: No built-in invoicing on the entry plan; project budgeting sits on higher tiers

Toggl Track keeps timesheets simple, which matters for engineers who need to start and stop a timer fast between tasks. The Starter plan at $9 per user per month on annual billing adds billable rates, time estimates, project templates, and saved reports, while the free plan covers basic timers and reporting for a small team. A project manager can run one timer per project and pull a weekly report by project, task, or person.

The limits are around billing and budgets. Invoicing is not built into the entry plan, and project budgeting with alerts sits on Premium at $16 per user per month. Toggl Track also has no expense tracking on the entry plan, so receipts need a separate tool. Choose it when your firm wants clean, simple hours and already handles invoicing and expenses elsewhere.

Website: https://www.paymoapp.com/

Best for: Estimates, hours, and invoices together

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

Free plan: Yes

Pros: Estimates, time tracking, and invoicing together; team scheduling included

Cons: Price rises to $15.90 after 3 months; solo plan covers only 1 user

Paymo suits an engineering firm that estimates a job, tracks hours against it, and then invoices the client from the same record. The Plus plan at $10.90 per user per month on annual billing includes task management, time tracking, estimates, invoicing, and team scheduling, while the Solo plan at $5.90 per month covers a single user. The link between estimate and actual hours shows whether a fixed fee job made money.

The price to watch is the rise after the first 3 months, when Plus goes to $15.90 per user per month, and Pro at $16.90 adds the most advanced reporting. The free plan covers 1 user, which lets a solo engineer test the flow before adding staff.

Website: https://www.avaza.com/

Best for: Small firms wanting one flat monthly price

Starting price: $9.96 per month (billed annually)

Free plan: Yes

Pros: Flat monthly price for the whole team; scheduling and invoicing included

Cons: Flat price covers only 2 timesheet users; extra timesheet users cost $7 each

Avaza is the cheapest option in this list for a very small engineering firm, because the Startup plan costs $9.96 per month on yearly billing as a flat price, not per user. That flat price includes 2 timesheet users, and each extra timesheet user costs $7, so a 5 person firm costs $30.96 per month and a 10 person firm costs $65.96 per month. The same plan includes timesheets, scheduling, expenses, and invoicing.

The limits are the user count and the tiers above. Basic at $19.96 and Business at $39.96 per month add more users and features, and a firm that grows past a handful of timesheet users should compare the flat price against a per user tool. Choose Avaza when your firm is small and you want one predictable monthly bill.

Website: https://everhour.com/

Best for: Firms inside Asana, Jira, or ClickUp

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

Free plan: Yes

Pros: Deep links into Asana, Jira, and ClickUp; free plan for up to 5 seats

Cons: Team plan has a 5 seat minimum; no built-in invoicing on the entry plan

Everhour is the strongest choice for an engineering firm that already plans work in Asana, Jira, or ClickUp. The Team plan at $8.50 per seat per month on yearly billing adds timers, estimates, budgets, and reports directly inside those project tools, so an engineer can track hours against a task without opening a second app. The free plan covers up to 5 seats, which lets a small team try the workflow before buying.

The limits are the seat rules and the billing gap. The Team plan has a 5 seat minimum, so a firm with fewer than 5 users either stays on the free plan or pays for 5 seats. Invoicing is not part of the entry plan, so pair Everhour with your accounting tool when client billing matters.

Website: https://clockify.me/

Best for: Lowest cost entry for small firms

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

Free plan: Yes

Pros: Free plan for up to 5 users; low Basic price with billable rates

Cons: Activity monitoring starts on Pro at $7.99; free plan limited to 5 users

Clockify gives an engineering firm a full timesheet tool for less than any other option in this list. The free plan covers up to 5 users with unlimited tracking, timers, timesheets, and a calendar view, which is enough for a small firm to run its week. The Basic plan at $3.99 per user per month on annual billing adds time estimates, project templates, required fields, and bulk editing, plus the ability to add time for other people, so a manager can log hours for the whole team from one screen.

Higher tiers add the pieces a growing firm needs. Standard at $5.49 brings timesheet approval, time off management, and invoicing, while Pro at $7.99 adds activity monitoring, scheduling, forecasting, expenses, and labor costs. Monitoring and forecasting sit behind the higher tiers, and a team above 5 users cannot stay on the free plan.

Website: https://timelyapp.com/

Best for: Automatic tracking with little manual entry

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

Free plan: Free trial (14 days)

Pros: Automatic time capture from apps and calendars; clean project budgets

Cons: Starter caps at 5 users and 20 projects; no free plan

Timely suits an engineering firm whose staff work across many projects and forget to start timers. It records time automatically from calendars, documents, and apps, then lets each person review and assign those hours to a project, which cuts the end of week chase for missing timesheets. The Starter plan at $9 per user per month on annual billing covers automatic tracking, project budgets, and team capacity views for a small team.

The limits are the caps. Starter allows at most 5 users and 20 projects, so a firm with more engineers or more active jobs must move to Premium at $16 or Unlimited at $22 per user per month. There is no free plan, only a trial, so use the trial to check whether the automatic capture matches your real hours. Timely fits office and management staff best.