Project Time Tracking Software
Keep track of the budget and time spent on every project and decide on costs and effort based on real numbers.
30 days free · no credit card · cancel any day afterwards
- Track
- Control
- Invoice
Project time tracking records working time per client, project and task, so that service companies know effort, budget and billable hours for every project. time cockpit is project time tracking software from Austria that turns tracked time directly into planned-versus-actual comparisons, timesheets and invoices, in the browser on PC, Mac, Android and iOS.
Project-Based Time Tracking for Better Decisions
For service providers such as IT service providers, project time decides the margin. When every hour is booked to client, project and task, you see for every project how much of the budget is used and which hours have not been billed yet. That lets you act before a project runs over budget and price the next proposal with real numbers.
Not tracking time by project or task yet? time cockpit also covers employee time tracking, and with our Made-to-Measure offer we adapt project-based time tracking to your structure: book a free consultation.
Project Time Tracking with time cockpit at a Glance
- Entries per client, project and task
- Hourly rates per level
- Budget control with planned-versus-actual comparison
- Booking templates
- Price
- €10.85 per user per month
- Trial
- 30 days free, no credit card
- Hosting
- Microsoft Azure, data centers in the EU
- Single sign-on
- Microsoft Entra ID
How Project Time Tracking Works
Three steps from project structure to invoice.
Set up projects and tasks
Create clients, projects and tasks, each with a budget and an hourly rate, manually or via Excel import. There is no limit on their number. Projects that are not invoiced are marked as non-billable.
Track time
Your team books time on projects and tasks in the browser, most conveniently in the time tracking calendar by drag and drop. Office 365 appointments and booking templates appear right next to the team's own entries.
Analyze and invoice
The planned-versus-actual comparison shows how much of the budget is used. Billable hours become invoice items in project invoicing, optionally with a time sheet attached.
Features of Project Time Tracking
Online Project Time Tracking in the Calendar
Your team tracks project time in the browser, on PC and Mac as well as on Android and iOS. You decide how detailed: without a project as pure employee time tracking, on the project only, or on project and task.
Drag recurring work such as e-mails or client meetings into the calendar as a time sheet template. Formatting profiles show there at all times how many hours per month were booked on a client or project, for example billable and non-billable. More on the time tracking calendar with booking templates page.
Budget Control (Planned vs. Actual Comparisons)
For every project you see how much of the budget is used, which hours are billable and which of them are still open. Because this also works per task, you notice early whether a project pays off and where hours go unpaid.
Hourly Rates and Billing of Tracked Time
Set hourly rates per client, project or task; a single time entry can deviate from them. Billable hours automatically become invoice items, one per task, and kilometers driven a separate travel costs item. Further services are added based on predefined articles.
The invoice document is generated with a single click, with a list of the tracked time entries if you like. Adapt the template to your design with Microsoft Report Builder; our team is happy to help. Everything else is on the project invoicing page.
Integration with Project Management Software (Import/Export)
Create projects by hand or take them over from a spreadsheet with the Excel importer. For an ongoing connection to other systems there is the Web API. On request we build interfaces to your ticket system, project planning or ERP system for you.
Customizable Project Structure
You book time on clients, orders or cost centers rather than projects? As customizable time tracking, time cockpit takes on your units: as a field of its own in the data model that shows up in the form and in the report. It stays a standard SaaS product that runs reliably and is easy to use.
Project Time Tracking by Industry
The same project time tracking, different priorities: this is how service companies use time cockpit.
IT Service Providers and Software Teams
Tickets, effort and fixed price
IT service providers book time on clients, projects and tickets and bill by effort or at a fixed price. How this fits together is shown on the page time tracking for IT service providers. MSPs and IT system houses also keep an eye on the hour quotas of their maintenance contracts (time tracking for MSPs), and development teams connect their tools via the Web API (time tracking for developers).
Consulting
Billable or internal
Consulting firms usually bill by effort, with hourly rates per client, project or consultant. Book business development, proposals and internal projects as non-billable and see how much time actually reaches the client. Your own service types, fields and reports are added with customizable time tracking for consultancies and agencies.
Agencies
Flat fees and revision rounds
Agencies often work with fixed prices and monthly flat fees. With a budget per project and task you notice early when revision rounds eat up the budget, and additional work is billed by effort as a task of its own. When each model pays off is explained in the post Fixed Price vs. Time & Material.
Engineering and Architecture Firms
Work stages and fees
Architecture and engineering firms book hours per work stage and enter a fee under the HOAI or a lump sum as the budget. This shows at any time whether a stage is still profitable and when additional work justifies a change order. More on the page time tracking for architects and engineering firms.
The best way to see it is with your own projects: Try it free for 30 days no credit card needed
Project Time Tracking: Excel or Software?
Many teams start with an Excel spreadsheet. That works as long as a few people work on a few projects. As soon as hourly rates, budgets, vacations and invoices come into play, maintaining the sheet by hand costs more time than it saves, and errors only show up at billing time. Why a spreadsheet stops being enough at some point is explained in 10 Reasons Not to Use Excel for Project Time Tracking. time cockpit costs €10.85 per user per month, and the Freelancer plan is free in the first year. All details are on the pricing page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I assign my working hours to projects or clients?
In time cockpit, working hours can be recorded directly for a project, which is always assigned to a client. Of course, you also have the option to use time cockpit for classic time tracking without assigning time to a project or task. This flexibility allows time cockpit to adapt to your individual requirements.
How can I use time cockpit for general time tracking in addition to project time tracking?
Comprehensive time tracking is essential – even for hours not linked to traditional billable projects. With time cockpit, you can easily define projects for overarching tasks like HR, marketing, or administration. This way, you can structure all working hours and maintain an overview of all activities. Additionally, you can leverage the benefits of project time tracking: the tracked hours can be analyzed for controlling purposes, helping you identify optimization opportunities and better manage internal processes.
Can I create custom reports?
Yes, with Microsoft Report Builder for SQL Server you create custom printable reports. In addition, any list can be exported as a Word, Excel or PDF document for further processing.
Is there a limit on clients, projects, or tasks?
No, there is no fixed limit for clients, projects, or tasks in time cockpit. You can create as many records as needed, making the software adaptable to the size and complexity of your organization.
Can I define permissions for clients, projects, and tasks?
time cockpit provides a standard set of permissions that covers many typical requirements. If your needs go beyond this, you can define a custom permission framework tailored to your organization’s specific needs. Our team is happy to assist you in developing the ideal solution for your requirements.
Can I import or export data?
Yes, time cockpit allows both data import and export. For importing, practical features like the Excel Importer enable you to easily import projects, clients, or tasks from spreadsheets. Export options include lists and reports in formats such as MS Excel, MS Word, or PDF. This makes it easy to process your data further and integrate it into other systems.
Does time cockpit offer a start/stop function?
Instead of a traditional start/stop function, time cockpit offers automatic time tracking with sidekick. This optional program for Windows and macOS automatically records what you’re working on at your computer – without requiring you to manually start or stop a task. If you forget to operate the timer, you might lose track of your work. With sidekick, this won’t happen: it simply records along. In the time cockpit graphical calendar, you can see what you’ve worked on at any time and conveniently log your project times at the end of the day, week, or even month – ensuring no billable time is overlooked.
Does time cockpit fit your process, from time tracking to invoicing?
In 30 minutes you will know whether time cockpit covers your project hours, project controlling and invoicing.
- What we cover
- You tell us how you track and bill time today. We show you live how that works in time cockpit and what switching involves.
- Who you talk to
- Someone from the team that builds time cockpit and rolls it out for customers, for example Alexander or Michael.
- How
- 30 minutes online via Microsoft Teams, free and without obligation.
You pick a free slot in Microsoft Bookings (opens in a new tab) and receive the confirmation with the Teams link by email. Prefer to write? support@timecockpit.com