Does managing switching priorities, invoicing customers, and moving here and there between multiple tasks and projects sound like clockwork? You are a consultant, not a mover and packer person. So, to help you work conveniently in a relaxed environment, we recommend using the best time tracking software for consultants. Moreover, wait. There are multiple consulting time tracker solutions:    

Comparing the Top 10 Time Tracking Software for Consultants in 2026

In a hurry? No issues. We have compiled the pricing plans, key functionalities, user ratings, and ideal usage for our top 10 picks for time tracking software for consultants below.

Software Best For Pricing Key Features User Rating
DeskTrack Consultants requiring all-in-one time tracking and real-time employee monitoring 
  • DeskLite: $5.99/user/month
  • Stealth: $8.99/user/month
  • Tagger: $9.99/user/month 
Working and idle time tracking, online/offline tracking, cost analysis report, file name and path tracking, and URL tracking 4.9/5
Forecast  Mid-sized consultancies and agencies 
  • Quote on contact
Automated hours tracking, risk prediction alerts, and real-time project dashboards  4.6/5
Accelo  Project-level cost and time tracking
  • Quote on contact
Resource management, financial management, and BI via actionable insights  4.4/5
Projectworks  Maximizing billable utilization
  • Build: $17/user/month
  • Scale: $24.30/user/month
  • Unleash: $40.50/user/month
Resource planning tools, automated invoicing, and real-time project reporting  4.5/5
Insightful  Automatic time mapping
  • Productivity Management: $6.40/user/month
  • Time Tracking: $8/user/month
  • Process Improvement: $12/user/month
  • Enterprise Solution: Quote on contact
Productivity monitoring, workload management, and capacity analysis 4.8/5
Productive  Agency management 
  • Essential: $9/month
  • Professional: $24/month
  • Ultimate: $32/month
Directly generate invoices from tracked time and project data, and  detailed insights and analytics  4.7/5
actiTIME Simple time management
  • actiTIME Online: $6/user/month
  • actiTIME Self-Hosted: $120/user
Customizable billing rates, task management, and time off management 4.4/5
Timely  Automatic time tracking
  • Starter: $9/user/month
  • Premium: $16/user/month
  • Unlimited: $22/user/month
  • Enterprise: Quote on contact
Project dashboards, invoicing, and detailed reporting 4.8/5
Clockify  Unlimited users 
  • Free: $0/user/month
  • Basic: $3.99/user/month
  • Standard: $5.49/user/month
  • Pro: $7.99/user/month
  • Enterprise: $11.99/user/month
  • cake.com | Bundle: $12.99/user/month
Pomodoro, dashboard, and invoicing 4.5/5
Harvest  Expense tracking
  • Free: $0/user/month
  • Pro: $11/user/month
  • Premium: $14/user/month 
Directly generate invoices from tracked time and expenses data, project budgeting, and time logs review and approvals 4.3/5

Read Also: How Timesheet Management Software Improves Work-Life Balance

What Should Consultants Search for in Time Tracking Software?

While searching for the ace time tracking software for your consultancy, begin by looking for these things.

  • Detailed Work-Hour Logging: When it’s about error-free billing, every minute is critical. agencies should look for time tracking software that provides insightful work-hour records. They accrue billing for every second between clock-in and clock-out.   
  • Project-Based Tracking: Another functionality for your consultant time tracking software is project-based monitoring. Since consultants and agencies juggle multiple tasks, they require precise tracking of the hours on each task to pinpoint time-consuming ones.  
  • Reporting & Analytics: These insights from the consultant time tracking app show the task-time ratio in configurable reports. 
  • Integration & Invoicing: If the billing is also automated, then it will simply save you a lot of non-recoverable hours. Additionally, an ideal time tracking software for consultants must also be integrable with other applications, like accounting tools.  
  • Mobile App: Having time tracking software with a mobile app makes it simple to manage hours from anywhere. 

You may not find some of these functions you need in one consultant software for tracking time. DeskTrack integrates all of the requirements in a compact, user-friendly platform.     

Best 10 Time Tracking Software for Consultants in 2026

Here are the top 10 time tracking software for consultants in 2026.

  • DeskTrack
  • Forecast 
  • Accelo 
  • Projectworks 
  • Insightful 
  • Productive 
  • actiTIME
  • Timely 
  • Clockify 
  • Harvest 

1. DeskTrack – Best for Consultants Needing All-in-One Time Tracking & Real-Time Employee Monitoring

DeskTrack - Best Overall

DeskTrack not only provides real-time work and idle time monitoring, but it also provides you with an intuitive interface to convert essential idle time. The employee monitoring software provides a package of the most practical and advanced interfaces to ensure that not even a second of work goes unrecorded:   

1. Working & Idle Hours Tracking

DeskTrack monitors worker hours across all computers and codes them into idle and working. This ensures that you can concentrate on more crucial work.   

2. Online/Offline Tracking

The time tracking software for consultants not only keeps a check on the online and offline tasks, but it also works offline. The data will synchronize once you are back online. So, there won’t be any reports with missing insights. 

3. Cost Analysis Report

DeskTrack lets you know the time your human resources spent working and the amount that it costs you from a single, detailed cost analysis report. Plus, you can pinpoint a particular user with filters. 

4. File Name & Path Tracking

This feature tracks the file name and path that the employees use in real-time. These reports help prevent insider threats. For example, if someone tries to access an unauthorized file, you will immediately know with this report.  

5. URL Tracking

This functionality of the tool is ideal for identifying whether your employees are working or using an online AI tool to make funny videos. This feature also helps streamline workflows by helping you identify the most time-consuming activities. 

Pros:

  • Automated timesheets save time
  • Accrue payroll processing with integration
  • The tracking goes on even without the internet
  • Real-time login/logout deviation reports with biometric attendance system integration to prevent unauthorized overtime and unnecessary project delays. 
  • Idle time converter

Cons:

  • Takes a little time to learn all the features, then it’s smooth sailing.

live-demo

2. Forecast – Best for Mid-Sized Consultancies & Agencies

Forecast - Best for Mid-Sized Consultancies & Agencies

Forecast is an all-in-one AI-powered software solution for project management, time tracking, and finance tracking. It claims to improve billing accuracy by automatically capturing system hours, reducing the need for manual input.

Pros:

  • Strong resource planning tools
  • Predictive risk management
  • Accurate AI time tracking 

Cons:

  • Steep learning curve
  • Limited reporting

3. Accelo – Best for Project-Level Cost & Time Tracking

Accelo - Best for Project-Level Cost & Time Tracking

Accelo’s consultant time tracking, with other features, claims to skyrocket business efficiency and profitability. Features such as project and client management, and time tracking help you ensure that project durations match the estimated timelines.

Pros: 

  • Comprehensive client and project management
  • Suitable for multi-client and project management
  • Effective scheduling, data analytics, and project management  

Cons:

  • Needs separate contacts for each email address 
  • Steep learning curve

4. Projectworks – Best for Maximizing Billable Utilization

Projectworks - Best for Maximizing Billable Utilization

Projectworks is a cloud-based PSA and software for time tracking for consultants. The tool provides you with a plethora of features, such as time tracking, expense tracking, resource planning, and financial reporting.

Pros:

  • Automated invoicing
  • Strong utilization insights 
  • Accurate real-time tracking

Cons:

  • Time-consuming initial setup
  • Limited reporting customization

5. Insightful – Best for Automatic Time Mapping

Insightful - Best for Automatic Time Mapping

Insightful’s time tracking and productivity tool works like a charm for all those who need accurate data without manual entries. Insightful works on 3 principles: Time tracking, productivity monitoring, and reporting.

Pros:

  • Easy to mark unproductive apps
  • Light on system resources
  • Works quietly in the background 

Cons:

  • Needs more integration options
  • Limited screenshots

6. Productive – Best for Agency Management 

Productive - Best for Agency Management 

Productive is a project management and time tracking software for consultants, which is a quite decent tool. The solution provides various functionalities for managing projects, tracking time, and improving everyday processes.

Pros:

  • Accurate time tracking
  • Effective budgeting
  • Seamless agency management tools

Cons:

  • Needs customization for particular requirements
  • Limited offline functionality 

7. actiTIME – Best for Simple Time Management

actiTIME - Best for Simple Time Management

Project management and time tracking for consultants becomes as simple as it can get with actiTIME. However, due to that, most of its users are small and mid-sized businesses.

Pros:

  • Customizable billing rates
  • Easy project setup
  • Simple manual time entries

Cons:

  • Basic user interface
  • Limited advanced features

Read Also: Timesheet Program RoI: How to Calculate & Maximize Your Return

8. Timely – Best for Automatic Time Tracking

Timely - Best for Automatic Time Tracking

Timely offers consultants, SaaS people, and agencies automatic time tracking. What we like about it is its memory tracking and AI-generated timesheet features that somehow boost operational efficiency and improve time management.   

Pros: 

  • Detailed memory tracking
  • AI-generated timesheets
  • Automatic time tracking

Cons:

  • Requires manual adjustments
  • Limited offline capabilities

9. Clockify – Best for Unlimited Users 

Clockify dashboard

Clockify is known for its free forever plan with unlimited users, making it a popular choice among freelancers and small teams. However, what most people don’t know is that its advanced features are hidden under the paid plans.

Pros:

  • Detailed reporting capabilities
  • Scalable
  • The free plan allows unlimited users

Cons:

  • Requires manual adjustments
  • The free version only offers basic features

10. Harvest – Best for Expense Tracking  

harvest dashboard
SMEs and freelancers use Harvest to harvest a productive workforce. This time tracking and expense management software is a good choice for detailed invoicing. However, it’s an expensive investment with limited customization options.

Pros:

  • Timesheet approval process
  • Detailed invoicing
  • Effective expense management

Cons:

  • Expensive
  • Limited customization options

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Why Consultants Around the World Track Time with DeskTrack

DeskTrack stands out among time tracking software for consultants for its scalability, customization, and cost-effectiveness, which no other tool can match. Plus, if there’s something you need that is not in the core bundle, there are affordable add-ons available. For example, if you want to track the time of fieldwork employees, simply use the GPS and geofencing tool. On the other hand, if you want to collect further proof on an insider threat attempt, simply ramp down the screenshot frequency of the screenshot monitoring feature to 5 minutes and on for that particular user and more. It’s that flexible. Try now and realize why it’s the best workforce software for you.  

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Time Tracking For Consultants

What is Time Tracking Software for Consultants?

Ans. Time tracking software automatically tracks, logs, and reports hours, ensuring that consultants can focus on the more important work.

How to Track Time as a Consultant?

Ans. As a consultant, you can use multiple methods to keep track of hours, such as manual pen and paper, spreadsheets, and timesheets. However, the best way is to use time tracking software because it’s automatic, accurate, and efficient.  

How to Manage Time as a Consultant?

Ans. The best way to manage time for consultants is to use your preferred time management technique with your time tracking software. Even better is to automate it by customizing your time tracking software to imitate the actions and behaviors needed in the method.

What Should Consultants Look for in Time Tracking Software?

Ans. While searching for an ideal time tracking software for your consulting business, start by looking for these features and functionalities.

  • Detailed Time Logs  
  • Project-Based Tracking  
  • Reporting & Analytics 
  • Integration & Invoicing  
  • Mobile App
What is the Best Time Tracking Software for Consultants?

Ans. Here are 10 of the best time tracking software solutions for consultants.

  • DeskTrack
  • Forecast 
  • Accelo 
  • Projectworks 
  • Insightful 
  • Productive 
  • actiTIME
  • Timely 
  • Clockify 
  • Harvest