TimeTracker vs Hubstaff: Full Comparison
Hubstaff watches how your team works, with screenshots, activity levels, and GPS. TimeTracker tracks time against client projects and bills approved hours.
Free to start. No credit card needed.
Our quick verdict on both tools
Pick Hubstaff if you manage remote or field workers and need screenshots, activity levels, GPS, and payroll payouts in one place. Pick TimeTracker if you bill clients for time and want project budgets, approvals, and invoicing without tracking how your team works minute by minute.
Start tracking freeWhat this comparison covers
TimeTracker and Hubstaff are both time tracking tools, compared here side by side so you can see how they differ.
Anyone deciding between TimeTracker and Hubstaff for time tracking should start with the quick verdict above.
Compare the two products at a glance
Both tools solve time tracking. Here is what each one includes, side by side.
TimeTracker
Every task carries operational and financial context together. Tracked time, budget impact, and invoicing live in one connected system, so you know if a project is still profitable before it becomes a problem.
- Best for
- Agencies and consultancies of 2 to 50 people who bill clients for time and need to see project profit, not just hours.
- Pricing
- Free for up to 3 people, no credit card needed. Pro is $15 per user a month, or $12 per user a month billed yearly, with a 14-day trial.
- One-click task timers
- Timesheet submission and approvals
- Effective-dated billing and cost rates
- Live project budgets and profitability
- Client invoicing and payments
- Client portal with a cost firewall
- Reports and dashboards
- Expense tracking with billable markup
Hubstaff
Pairs time tracking with built-in workforce monitoring (screenshots, activity levels, GPS geofencing) and automated payroll payouts.
- Best for
- Distributed teams, agencies, and field service businesses that need proof-of-work tracking tied to payroll.
- Pricing
- No free plan, 14-day trial only. Billed annually: Starter $4.99, Grow $7.50, Team $10 per seat a month, all with a 2 seat minimum, and Enterprise $25. So the real floor is $9.98 a month, not $4.99.
- Start/stop timers with idle detection
- Optional screenshots with blur option
- Activity levels from keyboard/mouse use
- GPS and geofencing, a paid Team-plan add-on
- Automated payroll payouts
- App and URL usage tracking
See how they stack up
Pricing, best fit, and top strengths for both tools, side by side.
Pricing checked 2026-07-31. Confirm current pricing on each vendor's site.
Which one fits your team
Choose TimeTracker when…
You bill clients by the hour and want invoices to match tracked time exactly.
Approved hours flow straight into an invoice, so what you bill always matches what was tracked.See how
You need to see if a project is still profitable while it is still running.
Live budgets compare cost to price as the team logs hours, so a losing project shows up early, not at invoice time.See how
You do not want to monitor your team with screenshots or activity scores.
TimeTracker tracks time against tasks and clients, not keystrokes or screen captures, so it fits teams that run on trust.See how
Your rates change by client or by person and old invoices need to stay correct.
Rate changes are effective dated, so past invoices keep the rate that was active at the time.See how
You want a manager to approve hours before they turn into a bill.
Timesheets lock after approval, so nobody bills a client for hours no one signed off on.See how
Choose Hubstaff when…
You manage remote or field workers and need proof they were working.
Screenshots, activity levels, and app and URL tracking give you evidence of work done, which TimeTracker does not offer by design.See how
Your team works from job sites and you need to confirm they clocked in there.
GPS tracking and geofenced job sites confirm a worker was on location when they clocked in, which suits field service teams.See how
You want to pay your team straight from tracked hours, without a separate payroll tool.
Hubstaff's automated payroll payouts turn tracked hours directly into a payment, which TimeTracker does not do natively.
You manage a mix of office staff and field workers on one platform.
Hubstaff covers both desk-based monitoring and GPS-based field tracking in a single tool.
Popular features
Employee time tracking your team will actually use
One click starts a timer, or people type hours in by hand. Every entry ties to a client, project, and task, so the record stays clean.
Explore Time Tracking→Bill for every hour you earn
Mark each entry billable or non-billable while you work. Approved hours roll straight into reports you can bill from.
Explore Billing→See where the time really goes
Break hours down by client, project, and team member. Find the work that pays off and the projects that run over.
Explore Reports & Dashboards→Use cases this solves
Compare other tools
Frequently asked questions
- Is TimeTracker cheaper than Hubstaff?
- Hubstaff starts at about $4.99 a user a month for its entry Starter plan, with Enterprise pricing from $25 a user a month. TimeTracker starts at $15 a user a month, or $12 if you pay yearly, and includes project budgets and invoicing that Hubstaff's entry plan does not. See the full breakdown on the billing page.
- Does TimeTracker take screenshots like Hubstaff does?
- No. TimeTracker has no screenshots, keystroke logging, or activity scoring, by design. It tracks time against clients, projects, and tasks instead, using one-click timers. Hubstaff offers optional screenshots and activity levels as part of its monitoring features.
- Which tool shows project profitability better?
- TimeTracker shows cost against price live as hours are logged, so you can see project profit before the project ends. Hubstaff focuses on activity and attendance data rather than live project margin.
- Does Hubstaff pay my team automatically?
- Yes. Hubstaff has automated payroll payouts built on top of tracked hours, which TimeTracker does not do natively. TimeTracker exports approved hours for an external payroll tool instead, after timesheet approvals lock the week.
- Can both tools send invoices to clients?
- TimeTracker turns approved hours straight into an invoice, see how invoicing from tracked time works. Hubstaff supports invoicing on its higher plans but is built more around monitoring and payroll than client billing.
- Is Hubstaff a good fit for a field service team?
- Yes. Hubstaff's GPS tracking and geofenced job sites confirm a worker clocked in at the right location, which is useful for field service teams. TimeTracker's time tracking does not offer GPS or geofencing.
- Do I have to approve timesheets in TimeTracker?
- Approvals are built in but not required. A manager can lock a week's hours before they are billed, see how timesheet approvals work.
- Can I set different rates for different clients in TimeTracker?
- Yes. Rates can be set per client and per person, and old rates stay attached to invoices you already sent. See rate management for the full picture.
- What exactly does Hubstaff record while the timer runs?
- Screenshots, an activity level worked out from mouse and keyboard movement, and a log of which apps and websites were open. GPS is a paid Locations add-on. Which of those you get depends on the plan, and we set it all out in our guide to what Hubstaff is.
- Will my team feel watched with Hubstaff?
- Some teams find screenshots and activity scoring invasive, since Hubstaff's monitoring is built for proof of work. If you would rather track time against clients and projects without watching individual activity, TimeTracker skips monitoring entirely.
- Which one should an agency billing clients by the hour pick?
- An agency billing by the hour usually gets more from TimeTracker, since tracked time, budgets, and invoices live in one place without monitoring overhead. If you are still comparing options, see all Hubstaff alternatives for a broader look.
Ready to bill clients accurately, without monitoring your team?
Set up your first client and project in minutes. Track hours, approve timesheets, and turn tracked time into an invoice, with no screenshots or activity scores.
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