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Sarah Chen
Editor-in-Chief
Sarah Chen, Editor-in-Chief
We rate Harvest 4.2/5. Best invoicing from tracked time workflow, making it especially useful for solopreneurs and agencies. The main tradeoff: no free plan (only trial).
About Harvest
Harvest has been the time tracking tool of choice for agencies, consultancies, and freelancers since 2006. Its strength is the seamless flow from tracking time to creating invoices to collecting payments.
Harvest Pro ($10.80/seat/month) includes all features: time tracking, invoicing, expenses, project budgets, reporting, and team management. Free trial available for 30 days.
The workflow is natural: track time against projects and tasks, then create invoices directly from tracked time with one click. Send invoices to clients and accept payments via Stripe or PayPal. Track which invoices are outstanding and send reminders.
Project budgets show real-time progress: hours tracked vs. budget, cost vs. revenue, and projected overruns. Capacity reports show team utilization — who's overbooked and who has availability.
Integrations with project management tools (Asana, Trello, Basecamp, Jira) let you track time in context without switching apps. The browser extension tracks time from within other web apps.
For freelancers and agencies that bill by the hour, Harvest's time-to-invoice flow is the most polished available. The trade-off is fewer features than Toggl (no auto-tracking, no Pomodoro) and higher cost than Clockify (free).
Limitations: no free plan, limited to time tracking and invoicing (not a project management tool), the per-seat model is expensive for larger teams, and reporting is good but not as deep as Toggl's.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- +Best invoicing from tracked time workflow
- +Clean, professional interface
- +15+ years of reliability
- +Built-in payment processing
Cons
- -No free plan (only trial)
- -Fewer features than competitors
- -Per-seat pricing adds up
- -Limited project management features
Best For
- ▶Agency client billing
- ▶Freelance invoicing
- ▶Project budget tracking
- ▶Team utilization analysis
- ▶Expense management
Key Features
Alternatives to Harvest
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How We Evaluate Tools
Our editorial team tests and reviews each tool based on features, pricing, ease of use, integration ecosystem, and real user feedback. Ratings reflect our independent assessment and are not influenced by affiliate partnerships. Learn more about our process.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Harvest free?
Harvest is a paid tool. A free trial may be available. Pro: $10.80/seat/month. All features included. 30-day free trial. No free plan.
What are the best alternatives to Harvest?
The best alternatives to Harvest include Toggl Track, Clockify. Each offers similar functionality with different strengths in features, pricing, and ease of use. Visit our alternatives page for detailed comparisons.
What is Harvest used for?
Time tracking and invoicing for client businesses Common use cases include: Agency client billing, Freelance invoicing, Project budget tracking, Team utilization analysis, Expense management.