Time tracking for developers and software teams that want to reuse their data

Time tracking as a data layer: quick to book for the team, reliable for billing and planning. And if you build integrations: readable and automatable via the Web API and queries, with clear permissions.

See the Web API Try 30 days for free

Fewer questions about the numbers, less of the "Excel ritual" at the end of the month.

Customers who trust time cockpit
Doka
Dynatrace
KUKA
LPA
Softline
valantic

Time tracking for developers and software teams is time tracking that fits into a developer’s day: book time quickly, assign it to projects and tickets and reuse the data via an API. For this, time cockpit offers a Web API with REST, OData and TCQL, an MCP server for AI assistants, automation with IronPython and customizations that are versioned as code. time cockpit is not a Jira plugin: tickets from Jira or Azure DevOps can be created as tasks via the Web API.

Why developers track time (and why it is often annoying)

Not because of bureaucracy, but for planning, billing, utilization and post-project costing. It goes wrong when time tracking is just a form and the data cannot be reused in the end.

The four typical failure modesand what time cockpit does instead, each with an excerpt from the product.

  • Booking is slow → entries are added late and inaccurately

    Booking in the calendar, with a memory aid

    Next to the calendar, automatic time tracking with sidekick shows when you were in which application and repository; visible only to you. If you stay in the terminal, you book via the MCP server.

  • Data ends up in an export → nobody really trusts the reports

    Reports read straight from time cockpit

    Power BI and Excel access the same data the team books via OData; complex queries run via TCQL. No export that goes stale. Web API

  • The model is too rigid for roles, workflows and "types of effort"

    A data model you can adapt

    Custom fields and tables are added without a new release and are immediately available via the Web API. Customizations exist as code and can be versioned. Customizable time tracking

  • Permissions are unclear → integrations become risky

    Integrations with clear permissions

    The Web API authenticates with Personal Access Tokens and follows the time cockpit permission system. With the MCP server, your own permissions apply, and changes only happen after you confirm them.

When it is done well, time tracking becomes a useful data stream: faster for the team, reliable for the numbers and technically integrable.

If you mainly want to record project hours: Project time tracking.
If you need to adapt fields and structures to your process: Customizable time tracking.

What development teams need from time tracking

Quick to book for the team, reliable for the numbers. Time tracking has to satisfy both sides.

For the team

Quick to book, so it actually gets used

Time tracking rarely fails because of its feature set, but because of friction. Good UX, sensible defaults and clear structures make sure times are not added "some time later".

Less context switching: When entering and correcting times is easy, your flow stays intact. Drag booking templates into the calendar, move and extend entries with the mouse.

For project managers and management

Numbers that end discussions

Reliable data per project, customer and team, with approvals, reporting and reproducible analyses.

Billing, forecasting, utilization: When the data is right, nobody has to "argue about numbers" any more.

Both come from the same time entry.

Time tracking in software development: day to day

Software development is complex. Developers work on features, bug fixes, code reviews, meetings and support cases at the same time. Projects run in parallel, requirements change at short notice and context switching is part of everyday work.

Typical activities include, for example:

  • Implementing new features
  • Analyzing and fixing bugs
  • Code reviews
  • Coordination within the team
  • Architecture decisions
  • Documentation
  • Supporting the support or operations team
  • Meetings with project management or customers

It is exactly in this working environment that time tracking problems often arise:

  • Activities are hard to separate
  • The context changes frequently
  • Times are reconstructed after the fact
  • Information gets lost

The result is inaccurate or late entries. Time data then quickly loses its value for project controlling and planning.

Typical challenges of time tracking in development teams

Context switching

If time tracking is done manually on top, every switch means another administrative task. In practice, this often leads to times being entered only at the end of the day or even at the end of the week. With AI agents working on several tasks in parallel, there tend to be more switches, not fewer: Working with AI agents.

Reconstructing work manually

If time data is not captured straight away, developers have to reconstruct their activities later. This is error-prone and costs extra time.

Missing integration between tools

If time tracking is not integrated into the existing toolchain, data has to be maintained twice. This significantly reduces acceptance.

Little transparency about project effort

Without reliable time data, analyses of project effort, profitability or bottlenecks are only possible to a limited extent. An important basis for strategic decisions is missing.

Time tracking that adapts to development processes

time cockpit takes a different approach from classic time tracking systems: instead of forcing developers to adapt the way they work to the tool, time cockpit is designed to be integrated into existing work processes.

This means:

  • existing tools stay in place
  • processes can be automated
  • customizations are possible

Time tracking with Jira, Azure DevOps and your own toolchain

time cockpit provides a Web API based on HTTP/REST/JSON. Other systems can communicate directly with time cockpit through this interface. If you work in Claude Code, Cursor or Codex, query projects and timesheets right in your editor through the MCP server for AI assistants.

This makes scenarios like the following possible:

  • taking over ticket information from project management systems
  • creating time entries automatically from worklogs
  • synchronizing project data
  • automated reports for business intelligence systems

The API supports classic CRUD operations via OData as well as more complex queries via the query endpoint with TCQL.

time cockpit is not a Jira plugin and does not replace a ticket system. Tickets and backlog items from Jira or Azure DevOps can be created as tasks via the Web API, and the ticket system reads the time entries back; we build individual interfaces on request. That way the ticket system steers the work, and time cockpit shows effort, budget and billing. How IT service providers combine the two: Time tracking for IT service providers.

More: Integration & Web API and the Web API overview.

Auth & permissions (so integrations do not get out of hand)

Stable does not mean that everyone may do everything.

  • Authentication via Personal Access Tokens (PAT)
  • Scopes and permissions clearly separate who may do what
  • Actions and automations run with defined roles and rules

If security and data protection are a gate for you: Security & data protection.
More: Authentication (PAT) and Permissions.

Customisability as a core concept

Many time tracking systems offer only limited options for customization. time cockpit deliberately takes the opposite approach.

Among other things, the system allows you to:

  • extend the data model
  • define additional fields
  • adapt forms
  • extend business logic

More complex requirements can be implemented as well, such as project-specific billing models, individual approval processes or automated validations.

More: Customizable time tracking.

Automation with IronPython

Besides structural customization, time cockpit also supports integrating your own logic. A scripting environment based on IronPython and .NET is available for this.

This lets companies implement business rules, for example:

  • automatic calculation of fields
  • validation of input
  • integration with external services
  • creation of complex workflows

More: Scripting overview.

Managing customizations as code

time cockpit supports an approach in which customizations can be managed as code. This means:

  • customizations can be versioned
  • changes can be tested
  • migrations between test and production environments are traceable

For technically minded teams in particular, this approach fits much better into existing development processes.

Support from automatic time tracking

Another way to support time tracking is sidekick, time cockpit’s optional automatic time tracking for Windows and macOS. It records on your local computer which applications and files you used, when you were active, which Git commits, branch switches and pushes happened and how long sessions with Claude Code or Codex ran.

What matters here:

  • using it is voluntary
  • every user can configure the feature individually
  • the goal is support, not control

sidekick is therefore a digital assistant for time tracking. The signals stay on your computer and are not uploaded.

More: Automatic time tracking on PC and Mac.

A clear view in the calendar

All activities and time entries are shown in the graphical time tracking calendar. This calendar lets you get a quick overview of your working day:

  • activities become visible as time blocks
  • entries can be adjusted directly
  • missing times are easy to fill in

For developers whose work consists of many small tasks, this view makes reconstructing the working day much easier.

Transparency for projects and companies

Companies can analyze, for example:

  • time spent per project
  • distribution of activities
  • team utilization
  • development of project costs

This information is an important basis for project planning, budgeting, resource management and strategic decisions. More: Project invoicing.

Areas of use

time cockpit is particularly suited to organizations that work on a project basis. Typical areas of use include, for example:

Conclusion

For many developers, time tracking is at first an unloved chore. At the same time, time data is indispensable for companies.

That is why time cockpit follows an approach based on three core principles:

  • Integration into existing systems
  • Customisability to individual processes
  • Support through automation

The result is a solution that does not treat time tracking as an isolated tool, but as part of a company’s entire project and system landscape.

Next steps

Find out how time cockpit works with your team and your toolchain.

30 days free, no credit card, then cancellable any day. The Web API and the MCP server are included in all plans.

What is the quickest way to find out whether time cockpit suits us?

Three ways, pick one:

  1. Try 30 days for free with your team, no credit card
  2. Book a consultation discuss processes, integrations and plan
  3. Read about the Web API and customization REST, OData, TCQL, custom fields and tables

time cockpit at a Glance

Product
time cockpit, project and employee time tracking as software-as-a-service
Vendor
software architects gmbh, Leonding (Austria), time cockpit since 2010
Hosting
Microsoft Azure, data centers in the EU (Amsterdam and Dublin), dedicated database per customer, 35-day point-in-time recovery
Price
€10.85 per user per month; Freelancer plan free in the first year; Starter €29.90 in the first year for up to 10 users
Trial
30 days free, no credit card, cancel any day afterwards
Master data
Unlimited clients, projects, tasks and invoices
Platforms
Browser on PC, Mac, Android and iOS; automatic time tracking with sidekick for Windows and macOS (early preview)
Integrations
Web API (REST, OData, TCQL) with personal access tokens, MCP server for AI assistants, Excel import and export, Office 365 appointments in the calendar
Single sign-on
Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD)

FAQ: time tracking for developers

How can I make my time tracking more accurate?

Book times on the same day if possible instead of reconstructing them at the end of the month. time cockpit helps with sidekick, which records on Windows and macOS which applications, windows, files and repositories you used and shows these signals in the calendar. This turns them into time entries with a few clicks instead of from memory.

How do I get time entries from time cockpit into other systems?

Via the Web API: the OData endpoint returns every entity as JSON, filterable and secured with a Personal Access Token. The Query and ExecuteList endpoints return TCQL queries and lists, and Power BI and Excel connect without code.

Can I book time on tickets from Jira or Azure DevOps?

Yes, if the tickets exist as projects or tasks in time cockpit. Via the Web API, ticket systems can create projects and tasks and read bookings back. We build individual interfaces to Jira or Azure DevOps on request.

Can managers see what sidekick records?

No. The signals stay on the person’s own computer and are not uploaded, not even to the time cockpit server. Neither administrators nor managers can view them; only the time entries created from them are visible to the team.

Is time cockpit a Jira plugin?

No. time cockpit is standalone time tracking with project controlling and billing that runs alongside Jira or Azure DevOps. Tickets and backlog items can be created as tasks via the Web API, and the ticket system can read the time entries back. We build individual interfaces on request.

Can I query time cockpit from Claude Code, Cursor or Codex?

Yes, via the time cockpit MCP server. Your AI assistant queries projects, budgets, tasks and time entries and prepares entries; you confirm creating, changing and deleting first. You sign in with your Microsoft Entra ID account, and your time cockpit permissions apply. The MCP server is included in all plans.

What does time cockpit cost for a development team?

time cockpit costs €10.85 per user per month, billed by the day and cancellable daily. Teams of up to 10 users pay a one-off €29.90 for the first year in the Starter plan. The Web API and the MCP server are included in all plans, and you can try time cockpit free for 30 days.

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.

Alexander HuberProduct Management and Implementation Michael KubitschkaProject Management and Implementation
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.
Book a free 30-minute call or try it yourself, no credit card needed

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