10 Exceptional Harvest Alternatives for Improved Time Tracking

Harvest has been at the forefront of time-tracking software since its inception in 2006, but as the technology has become more democratized, a wealth of excellent Harvest alternatives have sprouted up. 

At their core, all time-tracking apps do the same thing. They record the time spent on activities, monitor performance, produce billable hours for invoices, and plan future projects more accurately.

So why would you go for an alternative to Harvest?

• Lower-cost alternatives are on the market. Why pay more when you don’t have to?

• Fully integrated systems combine time-tracking software with project management and collaboration tools, simplifying your operations and keeping your subscription budget low.

• Top time-tracking apps are beginning to use more advanced technology than Harvest, such as artificial intelligence (AI). 

In this article, we’re going to showcase 10 of the best Harvest alternatives on the market, allowing you to judge which one best suits your organizational needs. Let’s get right to it!

1. Bitrix24 — The all-encompassing solution for time and task management

Bitrix24 is one of the most comprehensive Harvest alternatives with time trackers spanning every tool in its all-in-one platform. As a manager, the tasks you create come with the built-in time tracker activated, so when you get to work, you can start the timer from within the same window. 

Unlike other time-tracking apps, you don’t need to switch between screens to start or stop your timer. Therefore, you’re less likely to forget about the timing element, making for more accurate records. If you do realize too late, just go back and edit the time manually.

It’s also possible to customize your time-tracking settings. Common applications include setting work schedules and clock-in and clock-out times, all easily adapting to different time zones. Remote and traveling teams can update their timesheets from their mobile too, allowing you to monitor progress on the go. 

Bitrix24’s time trackers feed straight into wider analytical tools to track employee performance. The platform’s project management software will create automatic reports, displaying actual time taken versus expected time. This means you can quickly address any recurrent problems or make more realistic estimations of how long tasks should last.

Finally, Bitrix24 creates a direct link between your timer and invoicing software to give you one source of truth to automatically produce quotes and invoices. By automating processes related to your time-tracking software, you save significant amounts of time every month that can be better invested elsewhere. 

2. Clockify — A low-cost Harvest alternative 

Clockify is especially appealing to solopreneurs who are running a business on a low budget. A free Harvest alternative, it gives you time tracking for unlimited users and even simple reporting and project monitoring. More than enough for budding entrepreneurs, it adds an element of discipline and data-driven analysis to their workflows.

As you rise to the lower-than-market-price Basic, Standard, Pro, and Enterprise tiers, you get more extensive features, such as integrations, project templates, timesheets, invoicing, and expense tracking. With these extras, Clockify still rubs shoulders with the more expensive options on this list. 

Compared with other Harvest alternatives, Clockify is far from the most advanced tool on the market. However, with billable and non-billable hours, GPS tracking, and paid time off (PTO) management, it is a valid option for small businesses that want to keep tabs on how they spend their time. 

3. Timely — Automatic time tracking with AI insights

At the more techy end of the Harvest alternatives spectrum, Timely is all about using automation and AI to use your time more wisely. The calendar view allows you to plan out your day and assign each time entry to a specific task. 

Timely will automatically track the time spent with certain popular apps simply by monitoring your window. The memory feature is great for people who frequently forget to log their time. Using AI, it remembers everything you’ve worked on down to the second, and all you need to do is drag and drop those time slots to the right project. This cuts down on the frustration employees feel at having yet another thing to remember, while still giving accurate reports to managers. 

In terms of reporting, Timely will automate timesheets with optional billable time rate management so you can reduce end-of-month admin to a minimum. With no free plan available, Timely is aimed at more established companies, but it certainly won’t break the bank. 

4. TrackingTime — The team-orientated time tracker

TrackingTime is first and foremost a time tracker. However, it competently reaches out to project management, attendance tracking, and invoicing. Timing all of your tasks throughout a project allows you to accurately measure the profitability of your operations, and identify blockages in your workflows. 

In contrast to other Harvest alternatives, TrackingTime incorporates time blocking into your employee’s daily schedule. This is ideal for departments that need a certain number of people at their desks at any one time, such as customer service. The time-tracking software will alert people to take their breaks and managers can concentrate on more valuable work. 

Although TrackingTime doesn’t automate the timing element when you’re in certain windows, it does write up timesheets to save employees a bit of admin every month. Alternatively, you can customize time reports to include extra details that are important to your HR team and save them as a template for faster use in the future. 

5. Hubstaff — Time-tracking software for close staff monitoring

Hubstaff is potentially the bad guy on this list as it takes a rather invasive approach to monitor remote, hybrid, and in-office teams. Based on the psychology that a watchful eye makes everybody more aware of how they’re spending their time, Hubstaff uses a series of tracking features to improve efficiency.

Managers and HR teams can combine the same tech offered by top time-tracking tools with periodic screenshots, activity tracking, URL, app tracking, and GPS monitoring. Hubstaff insists that there is no keystroke logging, email monitoring, or access to cameras, but this way of working can still be overbearing for teams. 

However, the extensive feature list can lead to efficiencies in many areas of your company. It synchronizes well with a range of integrations and can streamline your HR and payroll teams by providing automated timesheets for your workforce and freelancers. Therefore, if you can get your team behind the idea of close monitoring, Hubstaff quickly pays for itself and makes extra savings in the future. 

6. Toggl — Popular, intuitive time tracking

Toggl is one of the most popular Harvest alternatives on the market with a free version that is more than enough if you’re only looking to track your time. It’s simple to use: Assign projects, set the timer running through the browser, desktop, or mobile app, and manually change any errors. The free version also gives you basic reporting functions and a Pomodoro timer to plan your day in manageable chunks. 

Compared with Harvest, Toggl clearly works hard on its number of integrations, providing seamless synchronization with your workflow management. Despite the complexity of these integrations, it is among the easiest time-tracking tools on this list, allowing you to start the timer from an in-built calendar and sending you reminders to start or stop tracking when Toggl detects idle time.

If you’re looking for a mid-priced app that gives you budgeting, payroll, and invoice creation without much of a learning curve, Toggl is a safe bet.

7. Memtime — Memory-based time tracking

Memtime is an alternative to Harvest that claims all other apps have two glaring faults: 

1. Time-tracking software is inaccurate

2. The start/stop process wastes time. 

Their thinking is that estimates made in hindsight add little value to serious reporting efforts, so Memtime will do the tracking for you.

In practice, Memtime monitors your time spent across all programs and displays throughout the working day without you manually setting a timer. Then, you can drag and drop your recorded time into a specific project for accurate timesheets that don’t interrupt your daily tasks. As opposed to other tools that recognize only the most popular apps, Memtime will track every document, email, browser tab, and more. 

These premium features come with a high price tag. Therefore, companies need to be sure before they invest in Memtime. However, the time and confusion saved through automated monitoring could quickly provide a strong return on investment. 

8. Timeular — An interactive time tracker with a physical device

Timeular is unique among our Harvest alternatives as it offers a physical time-tracking gadget for teams who prefer a more hands-on experience. As a visible reminder, it makes employees less likely to forget to record their time and offers a fun motivator as they check off items from their to-do lists.

On the more digital side, Timeular has adopted AI technology to track the time you spend on certain apps and automatically assign a time slot to an activity. This stops you from needing to set a timer for small, frequent tasks such as checking emails or organizing your to-do list. 

Timeular makes a concerted effort to treat all of this data securely. While all the Harvest time-tracking alternatives on this list have comprehensive digital security, Timeular opts for locally stored data, giving you exclusive access to your data. A level of specialism like this doesn’t come with a free version, but there is a 30-day trial to see if Timeular is right for you. 

9. RescueTime — Automated time tracking for increased focus

RescueTime is less about micromanagement and more about helping teams improve performance and eliminate distractions. You don’t need to set your timer going manually, RescueTime will automatically track your time spent on certain applications, websites, and tasks so you can focus on getting the work done.

Users invest in their own success by setting productivity goals. For example, if you want to dedicate those early morning hours to deep work, RescueTime will prevent you from reaching out to websites where you procrastinate and send you notifications and alters to keep you on track. 

At the end of the day, you get a productivity score based on how well you’ve spent your time, alerting you to sites and apps that most negatively impact your focus. This gamification element makes RescueTime stand out from other Harvest alternatives, giving a frank, honest picture of your performance and encouraging you to do better. 

10. Hive — Timers integrated into project management systems

Hive is among the top time-tracking tools that natively integrate with project management software. A clean interface and an all-in-one platform allow you to schedule, plan, and communicate your projects to your team. Time management features cover both time tracking and time estimations, while bosses can access timesheets to check that their work remains on budget without overstretching the workforce. 

Hive’s reporting covers individual and team breakdowns to help you manage workloads and reassign tasks to those with more flexibility. At the click of a button, you can compare estimated vs tracked time, which tells you how well your team is performing and highlights areas to make efficiencies. 

To avoid assigning work during holidays and paid time off, Hive integrates with your calendar of outages, PTO requests, company, and national holidays. This is an excellent efficiency tool as it reduces the chance of human error to keep your projects running smoothly.

How to choose between Harvest time-tracking alternatives

There are plenty of reasons why a business would want to invest in time-tracking software:

• Streamlined payroll and invoicing processes

• Better control over your return on investment

• Smart and accurate project planning

• Close monitoring of your team

• More focused team members

While some services on this list excel in one or two of these areas, Bitrix24 ticks all the boxes.

With fully integrated project management, reporting, invoicing, and calendars, it comes with everything you need to get the most out of your time-tracking software. 

So whether you want to make life easy for your HR team, find time efficiencies in your workflows, or more closely monitor how profitable your business is, sign up for Bitrix24 and start tracking time like a pro. 

FAQs

What are the best free harvest alternatives for time management?

The best free Harvest alternatives are: 

• Bitrix24 

• Clockify

• TrackingTime 

• Toggl 

• Hive

They all offer robust time tracking, project management, and reporting features so you can manage time without the cost.

What are the necessary core features for a Harvest alternative?

A good Harvest alternative should include core features such as: 

• Time logging

• Native or integrated project and task management

• Detailed reporting

• Billing and invoicing 

• Integration capabilities with other leading apps

How does time-tracking software improve productivity?

Time-tracking software enhances productivity by: 

• Providing clear insights into time usage

• Streamlining task and project planning

• Enabling faster, more accurate billing

• Fostering better team collaboration 

What is the benefit of integrating time-tracking tools with other software?

The benefits of integrating time-tracking tools with software like project management and CRM systems include: 

• Creating seamless workflows 

• Reducing manual data entry

• Providing insights across platforms 

• Enhancing data efficiency and accuracy