Time Tracking for Agencies: 8 Tools Honestly Compared

If you run a creative agency, a digital agency, a consultancy, or any service business that bills clients by the hour, picking the wrong time tracking tool costs you margin you cannot get back.

The agency time tracking market is crowded. Most comparison guides are written by affiliates who get paid per click. This one is written by people who sell one of the tools below and still tell you when somebody else's product fits your agency better than ours does.

The eight tools covered, with each one's primary fit:

1. MyHours — Solo to small agency, listicle-friendly UX
2. Timely — Automatic tracking, no manual entry
3. Toggl Track — Clean UX, anti-surveillance positioning
4. Harvest — Invoicing-to-payment strongest
5. Clockify — Free tier largest
6. Float — Resource planning + tracking integrated
7. Memtime — Automatic timeline, no buttons
8. Worktivity — Operations-first, AI coaching, lowest price

Mid-piece, there is a case study from a 12-person digital agency that cut write-offs by 18% in two quarters. The math behind that number is in the case study section, not buried at the end.

If you only have five minutes, skip to the decision framework. It maps tool fit to agency size and operating model.

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How agency time tracking is different from generic time tracking

Before any tool comparison, the buyer needs to know what makes agency time tracking specifically hard.

Generic time tracking captures hours. Agency time tracking has to capture hours, attribute them to the right client and matter, apply the right billable rate (which varies by person and sometimes by task type), capture cross-team contributions, and produce data the operations director can use to make staffing and pricing decisions.

That stack of requirements is what makes most general-purpose tools feel almost-right for agencies. They do the time tracking. They miss the agency-specific layer.

The agency-specific requirements that matter:

• Billable rate per individual, not per category. A partner's hour costs more than a junior's hour, regardless of the task label.
• Project margin visibility. Operations needs to see which projects are losing money before the invoice goes out, not after.
• Cross-team time logging. When the strategy team helps the creative team, those hours need to bill back to the right client.
• Utilization tracking by individual and team. Operations needs to know who is over-committed and who has capacity.
• Write-off tracking. Operations needs to see which hours got logged but did not bill, and why.

The eight tools below are evaluated through this agency lens.

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1. MyHours

What it actually does: Time tracking and billing tool with project management features, billable rate management, and invoicing. Slovenia-based, used by 600.000+ users.

Where it wins: Generous free tier (5 users), straightforward billing rate management at the project and person level, branded PDF invoices included in free tier. MyHours is the highest-ranked listicle result for "time tracking for agencies" search because the product is intentionally agency-shaped from day one.

Where it does not win: Less brand recognition than Toggl or Harvest. Smaller integration library. The reporting layer is functional but not deep enough for larger operations. For agencies over 30 people with complex retainer books, MyHours starts to feel undersized.

Ideal agency: Solo consultants to small agencies (under 20 people) who need billing rate management without enterprise complexity.

Mobile, integrations, pricing: Mobile yes. Integrations limited but include Trello, Asana, Slack via Zapier. Pricing: Free (5 users), Pro $9 per user per month, Business $11.

Verdict: A solid first-pick for small agencies whose operations director wants billable hour management without Harvest's price point.

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2. Timely

What it actually does: Automatic time tracking that captures activity in the background and lets contributors review and approve entries. Built specifically for consultancies and agencies.

Where it wins: Zero manual entry. Timely captures app and document usage in the background, then surfaces draft time entries that the contributor approves or edits. For agencies whose contributors hate timesheets, this is the closest thing to "billable hours that log themselves." Privacy-first design (data stays on the user's machine until approved).

Where it does not win: Higher price than most competitors ($11+ per user per month). The "approve all" review step still requires daily contributor discipline. For agencies that bill by matter with strict client portal requirements, the automatic-first design feels too loose.

Ideal agency: Mid-size creative and consulting agencies where contributor resistance to manual timesheets is the primary blocker. Especially good fit for agencies with senior contributors who refuse to log time manually.

Mobile, integrations, pricing: Mobile yes. Integrations cover Asana, Trello, Slack, Google Calendar. Pricing: Starter $11, Premium $20, Unlimited $28 per user per month.

Verdict: The right pick when contributor adoption is the bottleneck and the operations director will accept the price for guaranteed data capture.

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3. Toggl Track

What it actually does: Time tracker known for clean UX, one-click timers, billable rate management at workspace and project level. (See the generic time tracking comparison piece for the broader product overview; this section focuses on agency fit.)

Where it wins for agencies: Best contributor experience in the category. Anti-surveillance positioning (no screenshots, no keystroke tracking) fits creative agency culture. 100+ integrations cover most agency stacks. The "auto-tracker" desktop app captures background activity for review.

Where it does not win for agencies: No native invoicing in lower tiers. Project profitability analysis is less deep than Harvest. For agencies where invoicing-to-payment in one tool matters, Toggl requires a Stripe or QuickBooks integration on top.

Ideal agency: Creative agencies, design studios, consultancies where contributor adoption matters more than invoicing depth.

Mobile, integrations, pricing: Mobile yes (excellent app). Integrations 100+ native. Pricing: Free (5 users), Starter $9, Premium $18, Enterprise custom.

Verdict: Strongest "the team will actually use it" choice. Pair with QuickBooks or Stripe for invoicing depth.

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4. Harvest

What it actually does: Time tracking and invoicing platform with strong project profitability features. Long history as an agency tool. (See the generic comparison piece for the broader product overview.)

Where it wins for agencies: Invoicing-to-payment flow is the strongest in this list. Native Stripe and PayPal integration. Project profitability tracking with budget alerts. QuickBooks and Xero direct sync. Expense tracking included.

Where it does not win for agencies: Fewer integrations than Clockify or Toggl. The product is opinionated about how billing should work. No utilization dashboards as deep as Worktivity or ActivTrak.

Ideal agency: Small-to-mid design agencies, creative studios, billable consultants where the invoicing chain is the bottleneck.

Mobile, integrations, pricing: Mobile yes. Integrations cover Asana, Slack, Stripe, PayPal, QuickBooks, Xero. Pricing: Free for solo, Pro $13.75 per user per month.

Verdict: The agency favorite for invoicing depth. Pick Harvest when the team tracks the time but never finishes the invoicing.

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5. Clockify

What it actually does: Free-forever time tracker with paid tiers for billable hour reporting, invoicing, and team management. 4M+ users globally. (See the generic comparison piece for the broader product overview.)

Where it wins for agencies: Free tier supports unlimited users and unlimited projects, which is rare. 90+ native integrations. The "Kiosk" mode helps with shift-based agency teams (call centers, BPO-style operations).

Where it does not win for agencies: The agency-specific features (billable rate flexibility, project profitability, budget alerts) are gated behind higher tiers. UI density is higher than Toggl or Harvest. For agencies that want premium polish, Clockify can feel utilitarian.

Ideal agency: Distributed agencies on tight budgets. Newly launched agencies that need a working tool without subscription costs.

Mobile, integrations, pricing: Mobile yes. Integrations 90+. Pricing: Free, Basic $4.99, Standard $6.99, Pro $9.99, Enterprise $14.99 per user per month.

Verdict: The default first pick when budget is the primary constraint. Upgrade when invoicing or project profitability becomes critical.

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6. Float

What it actually does: Resource planning and time tracking integrated into a single tool. Built specifically for agencies that need to plan capacity ahead and track actual time against the plan.

Where it wins: The plan-and-track integration is rare in the category. Operations leaders can drag a contributor onto a project for a given week, then see the planned hours next to the actual hours as the week progresses. Variance reporting is built in. Strong agency-specific positioning since launch.

Where it does not win: Less of a "pure time tracker" than Toggl or Clockify. Contributors who just want to log billable hours without engaging with the planning layer find Float overengineered. Pricing is higher than basic trackers.

Ideal agency: Mid-size agencies (20-100 people) where capacity planning and resource allocation are operational pain points, not just billing pain points.

Mobile, integrations, pricing: Mobile yes. Integrations cover Asana, Slack, Google Calendar, Outlook. Pricing: Starter $7.50, Pro $12.50, Business $25 per user per month.

Verdict: The right pick when the operations director's primary question is "who is doing what next week" before it is "how much did we bill last week."

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7. Memtime

What it actually does: Automatic time tracking that builds a personal timeline of every application, document, and browser tab the user touched, with no manual buttons to start or stop.

Where it wins: Zero manual tracking required. Memtime runs in the background and produces a timeline view that the contributor reviews and assigns to projects at the end of the day. Privacy-first (all data stays local). Especially strong for senior contributors who refuse to start timers but will accept reviewing a timeline.

Where it does not win: No native invoicing. No real-time visibility for operations (data is local to each contributor until exported). For agencies with strict project margin requirements, the asynchronous data model creates friction.

Ideal agency: Specialist consultancies, legal practices, knowledge-work agencies where senior contributors will not engage with timers but will tolerate timeline review.

Mobile, integrations, pricing: Limited mobile (desktop-led product). Integrations cover Trello, Asana, Jira, GitHub. Pricing: Starter $9, Premium $19 per user per month.

Verdict: The right pick when contributor resistance to active tracking is the unsolvable problem and asynchronous review is acceptable.

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Case study spotlight: How a 12-person agency cut write-offs by 18% in two quarters

A 12-person digital agency in the EU adopted Worktivity in early 2026 with a specific problem: they were writing off 22% of logged hours every quarter. The operations director suspected the gap was in capture, not in client renegotiation, but had no way to prove it.

The agency's billing model was a mix of retainer (60%) and project work (40%). Average billable rate was €120 per hour. Standard agency assumptions otherwise.

Baseline (Q4 2025, before adoption):

• 22% of logged hours written off
• End-of-week timesheet entry was standard practice
• Operations director reviewed timesheets manually each Monday
• No contributor-facing dashboard

Quarter 1 with Worktivity (Q1 2026):

• Switched to real-time timer entry, with calendar integration that pre-populated likely entries
• Configured billable rates per individual (not per category)
• Opened cross-project visibility so the strategy team could log time against creative projects
• Contributors got self-service dashboards showing their own utilization, billable mix, and project contribution data

Write-off rate dropped from 22% to 14% within the first quarter. The team described the shift as "uncomfortable for the first two weeks, then it stuck."

Quarter 2 with Worktivity (Q2 2026):

• Operations director shifted from individual timesheet review to weekly pattern review (projects trending negative margin, capacity variance, blocked work)
• Three project renegotiations happened based on margin data surfaced before deadlines
• One contributor's workload was rebalanced after the capacity variance dashboard surfaced consistent over-commitment

Write-off rate dropped further from 14% to 4% by end of Q2. Cumulative improvement: 18 percentage points.

For the agency's billing volume (approximately €2.4M annually), the math worked out to roughly €430K in recovered billable hours over the two quarters.

The operations director's summary: "The tool change was the easy part. The contributor-facing dashboard was the unlock. The team stopped fighting the tracking when they could see their own data."

This case study is anonymized but real. The agency's name is withheld at their request. The numbers are direct from their Worktivity dashboard exports.

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8. Worktivity

What it actually does: AI-powered workforce intelligence platform with billable hours capture, contributor-facing dashboards, productivity coaching, and operations-first reporting. Built for agency operations directors and remote team leads. (See the generic comparison piece for the broader product overview.)

Where it wins for agencies:

• Contributor-facing dashboards. Team members see their own utilization, billable mix, and project contribution data. The 12-person agency case study above is one example of what this unlocks.
• AI Productivity Coach that surfaces individual and team coaching insights. No other tool in this list ships this layer.
• Lowest paid pricing in the category at $3.99 per user per month. Harvest Pro is 3.5x this. Timely Starter is 2.75x this. Float Pro is 3x this.
• Operations-first positioning. Worktivity assumes the agency operations director is the buyer, not a BPO supervisor or HR planner.

Where it does not win for agencies:

• No mobile app yet. Field-based agency work (on-site at client events, off-site presentations) is not well supported. Harvest, Toggl, MyHours, Timely, and Float all ship mobile.
• Three native integrations live (Zapier, Asana, Trello). Jira, Monday, Notion, Slack, ClickUp on the roadmap. Compared to Toggl's 100+ or Clockify's 90+, the gap is real. Zapier bridges most workflows.
• No native invoicing-to-payment chain. Worktivity captures billable hours and exports billing data. Harvest's Stripe integration handles the full "invoice → payment → accounting sync" flow more natively.
• No legal-specific features. Trust accounting and matter-based billing for law firms is Bill4Time's territory.

Ideal agency: Mid-market agencies (15-100 people) running hybrid or distributed teams, operations-led decision-making, willing to bridge integration gaps with Zapier, value AI coaching and contributor-facing dashboards over invoicing depth.

Mobile, integrations, pricing: Mobile no (planned). Integrations 3 live + 5 on roadmap. Pricing $3.99 per user per month, 14-day free trial without credit card.

Verdict: The right pick when the agency operations director wants the cultural shift to contributor-visible data, the budget needs to stretch, and the team will accept the integration trade-off. Not the right pick for field-based agency work or when invoicing depth is the primary need.

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The agency decision framework

Three questions narrow the eight tools to one.

Question 1: What is the primary operational problem?

• Contributors will not log time consistently → Timely or Memtime (automatic tracking)
• The team logs time but invoicing falls through → Harvest
• The team logs time but margins still leak → Worktivity (contributor-facing dashboards + AI coaching)
• The team logs time but capacity planning is the gap → Float
• Budget is tight, basic tracking is enough → Clockify

Question 2: How big is the agency?

• Under 10 people → MyHours, Clockify, Toggl, Harvest
• 10-50 people → Toggl, Harvest, Worktivity, Float, Timely
• 50-100 people → Harvest, Worktivity, Float, Timely
• Over 100 people → Worktivity, Timely, Float, or enterprise-tier offerings

Question 3: What is the budget per user per month?

• Free or near-free → Clockify
• $4-9 → Worktivity ($3.99), MyHours Pro ($9), Toggl Starter ($9), Memtime Starter ($9)
• $9-15 → Harvest Pro ($13.75), Timely Starter ($11), Float Pro ($12.50)
• $15+ → Toggl Premium ($18), Timely Premium ($20), Float Business ($25)

Two answers usually narrow the list to two tools. A free trial settles it.

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FAQ

Which is the best time tracking software for agencies?

There is no single best. The right answer depends on the agency's primary operational problem (contributor adoption, invoicing, margin visibility, capacity planning, or budget). Harvest is the agency invoicing favorite. Toggl is the best contributor experience. Worktivity is the best for operations-led decision-making with budget constraint. Timely solves contributor resistance. The case study above shows what one specific agency saw with Worktivity.

Do agencies actually need time tracking software, or can they use spreadsheets?

Spreadsheets work for solo consultants. For agencies of 5 or more, spreadsheet tracking produces 15-25% under-billing due to memory gaps, attribution errors, and rounding. The case study in this piece shows what 18 percentage points of write-off recovery looks like in money. For most agencies, spreadsheet tracking costs more in lost billable hours than software subscription cost.

How do I get my agency team to actually log time?

The cultural shift comes from making the data visible to the contributor first, not the manager first. When team members see their own billable mix and utilization dashboards, they self-correct without being told. Tools that ship contributor-facing dashboards (Worktivity, ActivTrak) make this easier than tools that ship manager-only views. The 12-person agency case study in this piece is one example of how this plays out.

What is a normal billable utilization rate for an agency?

Industry standards: 70-80% for client services teams in mature agencies, 50-65% for mid-stage agencies still building processes. Anything above 85% usually means burnout is hiding in the data. The Worktivity 12-person agency case study landed at 78% by end of Q2 2026.

How do I switch time tracking tools without losing history?

Most tools support CSV export of historical entries. Toggl, Harvest, Clockify, MyHours, and Worktivity all offer export. Migrating client data, billable rates, and project structure takes a few hours of manual setup. Plan a two-week parallel run when switching, with the team logging in both tools during week one. This avoids data gaps and lets the team test the new tool before committing.

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Closing line

The eight tools above all work for agencies. The difference between them is which agency-specific problem each one was built to solve. Pick the tool whose ideal customer matches your agency's actual shape. Skip the rest.

If your agency is mid-market, operations-led, and the budget needs to stretch, Worktivity offers a 14-day free trial without a credit card at useworktivity.com. If your agency is not that shape, one of the other seven is your answer.