For professional services firms, billable time and reimbursable expenses directly impact profitability. Without the right time expense software, teams often rely on disconnected systems and manual processes that lead to inaccurate time tracking, delayed invoicing, and missed revenue. The result? Frustrated staff, poor visibility into project financials, and reduced cash flow. That’s where the best time expense software makes a difference.
These platforms streamline how teams track hours and log expenses across projects, ensuring centralized data, consistent approvals, and accurate billing. Whether you’re in consulting, accounting, engineering, or IT services, choosing the right software can significantly improve your firm’s operational efficiency and bottom line.
In this guide, we’ll review the best time expense software for 2025, comparing features, integrations, and scalability, and explain why BigTime is the top choice for firms that need more than just a basic timer and spreadsheet.
What Is Time Expense Software?
Time expense software is designed to help firms track both time worked and costs incurred across client projects. These time and expense tracking tools ensure every billable hour and reimbursable expense is captured, approved, and invoiced efficiently. For project-based businesses, this type of software offers transparency, supports profitability, and simplifies administrative tasks by centralizing financial data within a single workflow.
Key Features in Leading Time Expense Tools
The best time expense platforms share several essential features. Here’s what to look for and why it matters.
Unified Time and Expense Capture
Rather than juggling separate apps, leading tools let users log time and expenses in one interface. This centralization enhances data accuracy and ensures that nothing gets lost in the process.
Mobile Access for On-the-Go Entry
Consultants and field professionals can log hours or scan receipts using their phones. Mobile support is vital for real-time entry and faster reimbursement.
Multi-Step Approvals for Accuracy
Approval workflows help prevent errors and unauthorized submissions. With multiple levels of review, firms can protect against overbilling and maintain client trust.
Custom Billing Rates
Tools that support rate customization by employee, project, or client enable firms to price services accurately and profitably. This is especially important for firms with tiered pricing structures.
Budget Tracking and Alerts
Real-time visibility into project budgets helps teams stay on course. Alerts notify managers when hours or expenses near or exceed budget thresholds.
Integration with Accounting Software
Seamless integrations with QuickBooks invoicing, Xero, and other systems reduce manual data entry. They also accelerate invoicing and improve financial reporting accuracy.
Customizable Reports and Audit Trails
Detailed records provide transparency and support compliance. Advanced reporting enables firms to analyze their profitability, utilization, and performance over time.
The Best Time Expense Software for 2025 Reviewed
To help you find the right fit for your firm, we’ve evaluated the leading time expense software platforms, comparing their features, strengths, and limitations to show how they stack up in real-world professional services environments.
BigTime
BigTime is a leading PSA platform built specifically for professional services firms. It is a comprehensive solution that merges time tracking, expense management and billing automation into a unified, user-friendly system. BigTime’s time expense software delivers real-time financial visibility, improves accuracy, and eliminates the pain points of managing disparate tools—all while providing management support for the entire project portfolio.
How BigTime Time Expense Software Stands Out
BigTime is one of the best time tracking tools because it is designed with the unique workflows of professional services in mind. Whether you’re an engineering firm needing project-based time tracking or a consulting group looking to automate invoices, BigTime offers deep configurability without complexity. Its combination of stellar project management features, mobile access, real-time analytics, and accounting integration makes it the smartest long-term choice for growing firms.
Mobile App for Time and Expense Capture
BigTime’s mobile app empowers employees to track work hours, upload expenses, and stay updated on project progress from any location. This on-the-go accessibility ensures more accurate time and expense entries, a feature particularly valuable for remote teams and field-based professionals. It eliminates bottlenecks and keeps projects running smoothly for unlimited users without waiting on back-office processes.
Real-Time Budget Tracking
Track project budgets dynamically by comparing real-time actuals against initial forecasts. This continuous insight enables teams to adjust quickly, preventing overspending and keeping projects on track. Enhanced visibility supports better financial control and strengthens client confidence.
An example of project budget in BigTime
Custom Invoice Templates
Design polished, client-specific invoices that align with your brand and service offerings. Customizable templates allow for itemized details, flexible fields, and adaptive layouts. This ensures every invoice is professional in appearance and tailored to client needs.
Approval Workflows
BigTime’s approval workflows are highly configurable, allowing firms to enforce structured review processes for both time and expense entries. These workflows can be tailored by project, role, or department, ensuring project managers have complete control over workflows and that the right stakeholders review submissions before being finalized or billed.
Deep Integrations with QuickBooks Online, Sage Intacct, and More
BigTime’s built-in, bidirectional integrations enable smooth, automatic syncing between time tracking and financial systems. This streamlined data flow minimizes errors, eliminates the need for manual re-entry, and accelerates reconciliation processes. As a result, firms can maintain consistent alignment across invoices, expenses, and budgets with confidence.
Real-time Reporting
Gain instant access to detailed, real-time reports covering time, expenses, budgets, and beyond. These insights help uncover trends, evaluate project performance and financial health, facilitate team reporting, and catch potential issues early. For firms focused on sustainable growth, this level of visibility is essential.
An example of utilization report in BigTime’s time expense software
Project Audit Trail
Keep a comprehensive record of project activity, including time entries, billing modifications, and status updates. These audit trails are essential for ensuring compliance, resolving disputes, and upholding internal accountability. They offer peace of mind for your team and clients.
Pre-Filled Timesheets and Flexible Billing Models
Streamline time entry with intelligent suggestions drawn from prior logs and assigned tasks. Pre-populated timesheets make it easier for users to accurately record hours, reducing the risk of missed or incorrect entries. This feature promotes more consistent and reliable time tracking across your team.
Why BigTime is the Time Expense Software Professional Services Firms Choose
BigTime functions as an all-in-one management software solution that streamlines time tracking, expense capture, and billing. As a cloud-based web app, it offers accessibility from any device, making it easy for teams to stay connected. With features like automated time tracking, users can reduce manual entry and improve accuracy by logging work hours through timers, calendar integrations, or pre-filled timesheets.
The platform supports a range of billing models, including fixed fee projects and recurring invoices, allowing firms to adapt to client needs while maintaining profitability. Through real-time tracking, managers can monitor budget spend, resource allocation, and utilization metrics as they evolve. BigTime also enhances time management by helping teams prioritize tasks and stay on schedule, while delivering detailed reports that provide deep insights into financial performance, project health, and productivity. Overall, BigTime’s project management features simplify keeping track of time and expenses across projects, clients, and teams, all in one intuitive platform.
Harvest
Harvest is a simple, user-friendly time tracking tool known for ease of use and clean design. It includes basic expense tracking features suitable for small teams.
Key Features Of Harvest
Project-Based Time Tracking
Users can track time by project or client using manual timers or timesheets. The simple time-tracking app interface is intuitive, making it easy to switch between tasks and clients.
Simple Expense Logging
Expenses can be added manually with uploaded receipts. However, there are no customizable categories or approval workflows.
Invoicing and Reporting
Generate invoices directly from tracked time and expenses. Basic reporting is available but lacks depth for more complex billing scenarios.
Integrations with Popular Tools
Harvest integrates with tools like Trello, Basecamp, and QuickBooks Online. These integrations simplify workflows but may not offer deep data syncing.
Summary
Harvest is best suited for freelancers and small teams that require basic time tracking tools with minimal setup. However, it lacks advanced expense approval workflows, deeper reporting, and robust integrations for scaling firms.
Clockify
Clockify offers a generous free tier and unlimited tracking features, making it popular among startups and budget-conscious teams.
Key Features of Clockify
Unlimited Time Tracking
Teams can track time across unlimited users and projects, even on the free plan. This is good for startups or large internal teams.
Manual and Timer-Based Entry
Users can enter time manually or use a live timer. It also supports time tracking by tags and projects for better organization.
Basic Expense Entry
Users can attach receipts and categorize expenses, but customization options are minimal. There are no approval chains or billing rule settings.
Integration with PM Tools
Clockify integrates with tools like Asana, Jira, and Trello. These connections support task-based workflows, but financial reporting remains limited.
Summary
Clockify is a good fit for small teams starting out. While it excels in time tracking, its expense functionality and billing features are limited, making it less suitable for growing service firms.
Toggl Track
Toggl Track is known for its sleek UI and intuitive time tracking capabilities. It’s a favorite among designers, marketers, and freelancers.
Key Features of Toggl Track
Intuitive Timer-Based Tracking
The user-friendly interface allows for easy time capture with just a few clicks. Time entries can be tagged by project or task for better organization.
Visual Budget Tracking
Users can set project budgets and receive visual alerts as they approach limits. This helps monitor client expectations and manage scope creep.
Insightful Time Reports
Generate reports filtered by project, team member, or client. While visually appealing, reports lack depth for financial forecasting.
Summary
Toggl Track is a time tracking software that excels in user experience and simplicity. However, its lack of native expense features and billing integration limits its appeal for full-service project firms.
Paymo
Paymo combines time tracking, expense logging, and project management in a single platform. It’s targeted at small to mid-sized teams.
Key Features of Paymo
Integrated Task and Time Tracking
Users can track time directly within tasks, supporting a smooth workflow. Built-in scheduling tools also allow for resource planning.
Manual Expense Capture
Users can upload receipts and log expenses, categorized by project. However, there are limited customization and approval settings.
Invoicing and Payment Integration
Generate invoices from time and expenses, and accept payments online. This is particularly useful for small teams that manage the full client lifecycle in a single tool.
Project Templates and Workload View
Project templates reduce setup time, while workload views help balance team responsibilities. These PM features support repeatable workflows.
Summary
Paymo is a solid choice for teams seeking an all-in-one project management solution. Still, its expense approval capabilities and deep customization fall short for firms with complex billing needs.
Hubstaff
Hubstaff offers robust time tracking with employee monitoring, making it a good fit for distributed or remote teams.
Key Features of Hubstaff
Time Tracking with Employee Monitoring
Track time automatically and record screenshots, app usage, and activity levels. This feature is good for managing remote workers or freelancers.
Expense Entry and Tracking
Expenses can be entered manually, but there are no built-in categories or multi-step approval processes. It’s suitable for internal use but not client billing.
Payroll Integration
Hubstaff integrates with payroll tools to automate payments based on tracked hours. This simplifies internal financial operations.
GPS and Location Tracking
For field teams, Hubstaff offers location tracking to log time and expenses based on movement. It’s particularly helpful for logistics or field services.
Summary
Hubstaff excels in team oversight but is less well-suited for professional services workflows. Expense tracking isn’t optimized for project billing or client-specific reporting.
Everhour
Everhour integrates seamlessly into task management tools and offers lightweight time and expense tracking.
Key Features of Everhour
Time Tracking Inside Task Tools
Everhour time tracking software integrates directly with tools like Asana and Trello, allowing time to be tracked where work happens. This increases adoption and accuracy.
Basic Expense Logging
Users can log expenses by category and link them to projects. However, customization and approval flows are minimal.
Quick Invoicing and Reporting
Create client invoices using time and expenses, with basic tax and rate settings. Reporting offers high-level visibility but lacks robust analytics.
Stripe and QuickBooks Online Integrations
Sync with accounting tools to simplify reconciliation and payments. These integrations help bridge the gap between tracking and billing.
Summary
Everhour is a good add-on for teams already using PM platforms. Its limited customization and reporting depth make it less ideal for firms needing robust financial tracking.
Timely
Timely uses AI to automatically log time based on desktop and app usage. It’s a productivity tool with some billing features.
Key Features of Timely
AI-Driven Time Tracking
Automatically capture time spent on apps, websites, and calendar events. Users get a visual timeline to confirm or adjust entries.
Memory Timeline View
Visualize the workday to reduce forgotten or miscategorized time entries. This helps create more accurate and complete records.
Privacy and Team Settings
Timeley offers robust privacy controls, allowing users to manage what is tracked. It balances automation with data transparency for teams.
Summary
Timely is well-suited for personal productivity and solo professionals. However, its lack of native expense management and limited billing workflows make it a poor fit for client-service firms.
Discover How BigTime Streamlines Time and Expense Tracking
Whether your team is in the office or on the move, BigTime gives them the tools to track every billable hour and reimbursable dollar quickly and accurately. From mobile capture to client-specific billing rules and real-time dashboards, BigTime unifies your time and expense workflows like no other platform.
FAQs: Time Expense Software for Professional Services Firms
What is time expense software?
Time expense software is a digital platform that enables businesses to track the hours worked and expenses incurred across various client projects. It centralizes time entries, receipts, approvals, and invoicing in one system to streamline operations and improve billing accuracy.
Why is time and expense tracking important for professional services firms?
Accurate time and expense tracking ensures that billable hours and reimbursable costs are captured, approved, and invoiced promptly. It supports profitability, improves cash flow, and helps project-based firms understand how resources are being used.
How does time expense software improve billing processes?
By linking time and expense data directly to client invoices, time expense software automates billing workflows. This reduces data entry, eliminates errors, and accelerates the billing cycle, enabling firms to receive payment faster.
Can I track both billable and non-billable hours?
Yes, most time tracking software for professional services firms allows users to categorize entries as billable or non-billable. This helps with internal reporting, utilization rates analysis, and overall project profitability tracking.
Does BigTime offer time and expense tracking on mobile devices?
Yes, BigTime’s mobile app supports on-the-go time logging and expense entry. Users can submit entries from their smartphones or tablets, ideal for remote teams or consultants in the field.
Can I create approval workflows for expense reports in BigTime?
Absolutely. BigTime enables firms to establish multi-stage approval workflows, ensuring that expenses are thoroughly reviewed and approved before being billed to clients or reimbursed to employees.
How does time expense software help with project management?
Many time expense platforms integrate with project management tools or include built-in features. They provide visibility into budgets, resource allocation, and project progress—all essential for keeping initiatives on track and within scope.
What accounting platforms does BigTime integrate with?
BigTime integrates with popular software like QuickBooks Online, Sage Intacct, and Xero. These integrations ensure consistent financial data and eliminate the need for duplicate entry.
Can I track project budgets in real time with time expense software?
Yes, as a leading time expense software, BigTime offers real-time budget and project tracking. Managers can monitor actuals versus forecasts and set alerts to prevent cost overruns.
Is there reporting functionality in time expense software?
Yes, most solutions include reporting dashboards to help teams analyze time usage, expense trends, and billing performance. BigTime’s reporting tools are particularly robust, offering customizable dashboards and exportable reports for strategic decision-making.
Is time expense software secure and cloud-based?
Modern time tracking and expense management tools, such as BigTime, are cloud-based and incorporate enterprise-level security protocols. They support user permissions, data encryption, and compliance with industry standards.
What types of businesses benefit most from time expense software?
Time expense software is especially valuable for consulting firms, accounting practices, engineering companies, IT service providers, and other businesses that rely on projects. Any organization that bills for time or reimburses expenses can benefit from this approach.
