How do consultants track billable hours?
Asked by: Mr. Sylvester Nader | Last update: August 5, 2025Score: 4.1/5 (13 votes)
Many consultants often use legal time tracking software to log their activities precisely. High-quality legal software distinguishes between billable hours vs. actual hours, ensuring every minute spent on client-related work is billed correctly and not overlooked.
How are billable hours tracked?
You can either manually log the start and end times for each task or use time-tracking software that does it automatically. To calculate total billable hours, sum the time spent on all tasks for a client or project and multiply by your hourly rate to determine the total amount due.
How do you keep track of your hours as a contractor?
Go Mobile. If you travel a lot for work, your smartphone can be a great tool for logging billable hours or client-related expenses. Time tracking apps such as HoursTracker or Toggl can help you quickly and easily keep track of your day and many come at little to no cost.
Do consulting firms have billable hours?
The consulting firm will track billable hours as a percentage of the total working hours the consultant could have billed out. For example, a consultant can have 77% billable hours, 88% billable hours, or even over 100% billable hours.
How do consultants calculate billable hours?
Legal consultants typically log their time as they work on tasks, using timers or manual entry systems. These methods allow them to track how much time they spend on each activity, providing a clear record of their billable hours.
The Problem With Hourly Billing For Consultants
How many billable hours is normal?
In Philadelphia, Orange County, CA, San Diego, and the San Jose area, most offices required either 1,900 or 1,950 hours; in Miami, most firms required either 1,900 or 2,000 hours.
How to track hours as a consultant?
You can track time using an online timer or you can manually enter your work hours into Clockify's timesheet. Then, use it to maximize your revenue and bill clients for every work minute by making sure you log every call, e-mail, and meeting.
What is the best app for tracking contractor hours?
- Connecteam — Best all-in-one time tracking app for contractors. ...
- Timecamp — Good for automatically tracking billable hours. ...
- QuickBooks Time — Good for businesses using Quickbooks for payroll. ...
- Harvest — Good for time-tracking reports.
How to bill hours as a contractor?
- Set an hourly rate. First, establish how much you plan to charge clients for the hours you work. ...
- Schedule your invoices and payments. ...
- Track your hours. ...
- Add up your billable hours. ...
- Create an invoice for the client.
Is there a free Excel template for billable hours?
Free Download
ClickTime's billable hours template will help you track, manage, and plan how you and your team bill for their time. The template can be printed or simply viewed in Excel or Google Sheets.
Does QuickBooks track billable hours?
In QuickBooks Online Plus and Essentials, you can track billable time by job by setting up jobs as sub-customers. Then you can track and invoice your billable time, and keep all your billable expenses organized.
What is the best timesheet software?
- Toggl Track for overall utility.
- Jibble for unlimited users.
- Connecteam for small teams.
- busybusy for field teams.
- Clockify for integrations.
- OfficeTimer for check-in/check-out.
- TMetric for client billing.
- Traqq for activity monitoring.
What is the tool for tracking billable hours?
Which is the best software to track billable hours? Connecteam is the best all-in-one solution for tracking billable hours for in-house employees and deskless and remote workers. It includes automatic time tracking, comprehensive reporting features, and project and team management tools.
Is 1700 billable hours a lot?
Most law firms set a yearly billable hour target for their associates. This figure typically ranges between 1,700 and 2,300 hours, forming the average billable hour requirement.
How do lawyers count billable hours?
Lawyers can track billable hours with a billable hours chart, which will save them the time, effort, and frustration of calculating the hours manually. Most lawyers bill in standard increments, with 1/10 of an hour (six minutes) as a common increment.
How do freelancers track hours?
Clockify is the most popular free time tracking app that lets freelancers and contractors track billable hours and hourly rates. Start tracking time — It's Free!
What is the simple way to track work hours?
Employees and employers can keep accurate records of hours on the job. The DOL-Timesheet App helps track regular work hours, break time, and overtime hours. The new version of the app also enhances the comments capability, offers multiple pay frequency options, and additional pay calculations.
How do small businesses keep track of employee hours?
Small businesses keep track of employee hours using a combination of digital tools and established processes. Time tracking software provides automated logging, while manual methods like spreadsheets or physical time cards can supplement these systems for added accuracy.
How do companies track billable hours?
If you are just starting to track your billable hours, an excel spreadsheet can be an easy manual way to track your time. For more accurate timestamps and automatic invoicing, a time tracking software is the easiest way to make sure you get paid for your billables.
Is Clockify legit?
Many time-tracking apps on Capterra frequently receive average ratings of 4.8 or higher. Clockify is well-regarded, it may not be the top choice for all users. This may be due to its mobile issues, as Capterra reviewer Manik S.
What do 1800 billable hours look like?
To achieve 1,800 billable hours, an associate would work “regular” hours plus an extra 20 minutes Monday through Friday, or work one Saturday each month from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. The first option would give an attorney 1,832 billable hours, with a total of 2,430 hours spent “at work” (AKA: including performing ...
Is 1850 billable hours a lot?
It's not a complicated equation – the more hours you bill, the more revenue for the firm. Firms “average,” “target” or “minimum” stated billables typically range between 1700 and 2300, although informal networks often quote much higher numbers.
Are billable hours stressful?
The pressure to meet billing targets while juggling numerous responsibilities can lead to stress, inefficiency, and burnout. However, with the right strategies and mindset, you can win the billable hour battle and boost your productivity.