What does the Chrome extension do, and how do I install it?

Worktivity Time Tracker is a browser extension that lets you track your hours from Chrome. You can start and end a shift, take a break, pick a task and write a work note without installing anything on your computer.

Who it is for

Anyone who cannot or would rather not install software. If you have no administrator rights on a work computer, you share a machine, or you simply do not want the detailed tracking the desktop app does, the extension is enough on its own.

How to install it

1. Open the Worktivity Time Tracker page on the Chrome Web Store and choose "Add to Chrome".
2. Click the Worktivity icon in the toolbar. If you cannot see it, pin the extension from Chrome's puzzle-piece menu.
3. Sign in with your Worktivity account. If you belong to more than one organization, choose the one you are working in.
4. Choose "Clock in". The first time, a consent screen explains what is recorded; tracking does not start until you accept it.

The extension runs in English, Turkish and German. You change the language in the Settings tab.

What it does

• Start and end a shift.
• Take a break and come back from it.
• Log time against a task; the task list comes from your Worktivity account.
• Write a work note describing what you are working on.
• A summary of your day: how long you have worked and where that sits against your target.
• A keyboard shortcut that clocks you in and out.

What it does not do

The extension is deliberately narrow. It does not:

• take screenshots or produce timelapse video.
• record which sites you visit. Addresses, tab titles and browsing history are never read by the extension.
• record which applications you use.
• measure idle time.

The application name sent to the server is a constant: "Chrome Extension". It is not a measurement. It exists only so that time tracked from Chrome can be told apart from time tracked by the desktop apps.

One limit worth knowing

The extension only works while Chrome is open.

If you close Chrome, the extension stops with it. When the browser starts again and finds a shift that was left open, it closes that shift one minute after the last record it managed to write. It does not count the hours in between as work.

So time you spend outside the browser is time this extension cannot see. If you need tracking that continues while the browser is closed, use the desktop app.

How it differs from the desktop app

The desktop app sees the whole computer: application usage, screenshots, idle time and browser addresses. The extension only knows what you tell it. Both work on the same account and write to the same timesheet; what differs is how much they see.

If your connection drops

Records wait in a queue on your device and are sent in order once the connection returns. The Queue tab shows how many records are waiting, and "Retry now" sends them without waiting. Your shift keeps running throughout.

What is recorded

What the extension collects, what it deliberately does not collect and what your employer sees is set out on its own page: Chrome Extension Privacy Notice.