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Which Worktivity app should I install?

One desktop app per platform, an extension for Chrome, one web app that needs no install, and a table of what each of them can actually do.

4 minutes read
  • Web
  • Windows
  • macOS
  • Linux

There is one desktop app per platform, an extension for Chrome, and one web app that needs no install at all. Start from the computer you actually work on.

Start from the computer you work on

Windows

On Windows 10 version 2004 or newer, and on Windows 11, install Worktivity Desktop from the Microsoft Store. That is the native Windows app, and the Store keeps it updated on its own with no installer to run.

If the Store is blocked on the machine, or Windows is older than that, the installer on the download page does the same job; administrator rights are needed once. If you are rolling the app out to more than a handful of machines, take the MSI package instead: it can be deployed with Group Policy or your device management tool.

The step by step version, including the MSI and how updates arrive, is in How do I install and update the agent on Windows?.

macOS

On macOS 14 Sonoma or newer, install from the Mac App Store. That build is signed, sandboxed and keeps itself up to date. macOS asks for screen recording and accessibility permission the first time; without them the app still records hours, but not applications or screenshots.

On macOS 12 and 13 the App Store build cannot be installed. Use the direct download instead, from the same page.

Installing and updating are covered in How do I install and update the agent on a Mac?, and the two permissions have their own article: Why does macOS ask for screen recording permission?.

Linux

The Linux app is published as a .deb and an .rpm, for x86-64 and ARM64, and it runs on Ubuntu 22.04 or newer, Debian 12 or newer, Fedora 40 or newer and openSUSE. Take the package that matches your distribution from the download page and install it with your package manager. The package also registers the update repository, so later versions arrive with the machine's own updates.

The full walkthrough is in How do I install and update the agent on Linux?.

One thing is particular to Linux: your session type changes what the app can see. On an X11 session everything works with no extra setup. On a GNOME Wayland session, application tracking needs the Worktivity Window Tracker extension that travels inside the package, and screenshots go through the desktop portal. Your time, websites and activity level are recorded either way. Which session you are on, and what each one needs, is explained in What does the Linux agent need from my desktop session?.

The Chrome extension, tracking with nothing installed

If you cannot install software on your computer, or would rather not, the Worktivity Time Tracker extension is enough on its own. It starts and ends shifts, handles breaks, lets you pick a task and write a work note. What separates it from the desktop app is how much it sees: the extension takes no screenshots and records neither the sites you visit nor the applications you use.

It has one limit, and it is deliberate: the extension only works while Chrome is open. If you need tracking that continues when the browser is closed, the desktop app is the right choice. The detail is in What does the Chrome extension do, and how do I install it?.

The web app, with nothing installed

The web app is where administrators work: timesheets, reports, projects, tasks, invoices and settings. It does not track by itself. Hours that no desktop app recorded are added there as manual time entries and approved by an admin.

What differs between them

The same account works everywhere; what differs is the platform, the way you install and how much is recorded. On a narrow screen the table scrolls sideways.

The five ways to use Worktivity compared capability by capability, with notes on the conditional cases.
CapabilityWindowsMicrosoft StoreWindows.exe downloadmacOSMac App StoreLinux.deb and .rpmChrome extensionNo install
Start and end a shiftYesYesYesYesYes
BreaksYesYesYesYesYes
Clock in automaticallyPartial1NoPartial2NoNo
Work notesYesYesYesYesYes
TasksYesYesYesPartial3Yes
Application trackingYesYesYesPartial4No12
Browser host trackingYesPartial5YesYesNo12
ScreenshotsYesYesYesYesNo12
Offline queueYesYesYesYesYes
Launch at startupYesYesYesYesPartial13
Tray or menu bar counterPartial6No7YesPartial8Partial14
Dark themeYesYesYesYesYes
English, Turkish and GermanYesYesYesYesYes
Automatic updatesYesPartial9YesPartial10Yes
Distributed through a storeYesNoYesNo11Yes

Notes

  1. 1Clocking in automatically is an organization setting and it is off by default. When it is on, the Store build starts the shift at the scheduled time.
  2. 2Also an organization setting. Among the direct downloads only the Mac App Store build acts on it.
  3. 3The Linux app lists tasks and lets you pick one. Creating and editing tasks opens the web app.
  4. 4On a GNOME Wayland session, application tracking needs the Worktivity Window Tracker extension. Without it time, websites and activity level are still recorded, and the app says on screen that application tracking is off.
  5. 5In the direct download the address bar can only be read in Chromium based browsers. A Firefox window returns nothing. The Store build reads it through UI Automation and is not limited to Chromium.
  6. 6The Store build has a tray icon and it shows the state through four colours, but it does not print the elapsed time. Open the window for the counter.
  7. 7The direct download has no tray icon at all; open the window to see the counter.
  8. 8GNOME has had no tray area since version 3.26, so this depends on the user having an AppIndicator extension installed.
  9. 9The update is not downloaded on its own; the user starts it from Settings.
  10. 10Installing the .deb or the .rpm also registers the Worktivity repository, so later versions arrive with the machine's own updates. There is no Snap; see the note on distribution.
  11. 11Not a gap but a decision: the Linux app ships as .deb and .rpm from our own site. A Snap was ruled out because strict confinement blocks the bus name the GNOME Shell extension needs, and without that extension application tracking stops working.
  12. 12The Chrome extension does not do this on purpose. It reports only itself, under the fixed application name \"Chrome Extension\"; it never reads an address, a tab title or the name of a program.
  13. 13The extension starts with Chrome, not with the computer, and it only runs while Chrome is open. If Chrome is closed, a shift left open is ended one minute after the last record it managed to write.
  14. 14The toolbar icon shows the state by colour: grey when off, brand colour while working, blue on a break. It does not show elapsed time; the badge is used only for records waiting in the queue.

Still not sure

  1. On Windows 10 or 11: install from the Microsoft Store.
  2. On a Mac running macOS 14 or newer: install from the Mac App Store.
  3. On Windows, for more than a handful of machines: take the MSI package.
  4. On Linux: take the .deb or the .rpm that matches your distribution and your processor.
  5. On a computer you are not allowed to install software on, but where you still want your hours tracked: add the Chrome extension.
  6. If you can install neither software nor a browser extension: use the web app and add manual time entries.
  7. Anything else: the installer on the download page is the right one.

What changed in each release is listed in the changelog.

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