Harvest vs Timely
A detailed comparison of Harvest and Timely covering features, pricing, integrations, strengths, and weaknesses to help you choose the right tool.
Quick Overview
Harvest
Time Tracking and Invoicing
Harvest is one of the longest-running dedicated time tracking tools, offering one-click time tracking across web, desktop, and mobile with tightly integrated invoicing, expense tracking, and budget management. It serves over 70,000 companies and is known for its clean, intuitive interface.
Timely
Automatic Time Tracking
Timely by Memory AS is positioned as the world's first automatic time tracker. It uses an AI-powered Memory Tracker that captures activity across apps, websites, documents, emails, and meetings, presenting them on a private timeline for drag-and-drop into timesheets. It emphasizes privacy-first design with no screenshots or mouse tracking.
Feature Comparison
Harvest Features
One-click time tracking across web, desktop, and mobile apps
Invoicing with automated payment reminders
Online payments via Stripe and PayPal
Project budget management with alerts
Expense tracking with receipt photo capture
Visual reports on budgets, time, and team capacity
Timesheet approvals and profitability reporting on Premium
Calendar integration pulling events into timesheets
Timely Features
AI-powered Memory Tracker capturing activity across all apps
Private timeline with drag-and-drop timesheet creation
AI learns patterns and generates draft timesheets
Project and budget management with billable rates
Team capacity planning dashboards
Customizable branded reports
Basic invoicing with QuickBooks integration
Pricing Breakdown
Harvest
Free (solo), $10.80/seat/month
Free plan for solo users. Pro: $10.80/seat/month (annual). Premium: ~$14/seat/month. 30-day free trial. Volume discounts for 50+ seats.
Timely
$9/user/month
Starter: $9/user/month (annual). Premium: $16/user/month. Unlimited: $22/user/month. Enterprise: contact sales. No free plan. 14-day free trial.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Harvest
Strengths
Extremely intuitive and easy to adopt with 4.6/5 ease-of-use rating
Clean lightweight interface that avoids overwhelming users
Strong invoicing workflow tightly integrated with time tracking
50+ native integrations available
Reliable budget tracking and capacity management
18 years in market indicating stability and maturity
Weaknesses
No automatic time tracking, relies entirely on manual start/stop
No idle detection, break tracking, or GPS tracking
Limited project management capabilities
Reporting can feel basic for advanced analytics needs
Mobile app has fewer features than desktop and web
Per-seat pricing becomes expensive at scale
Key features paywalled behind Premium tier
Long-term pricing stability concerns after recent increases
Timely
Strengths
AI automatic tracking eliminates manual timers entirely
Privacy-first approach with no screenshots or mouse tracking
Beautiful and intuitive user interface
Strong reporting and project management features
100+ integrations available
GDPR compliant with European data residency
Weaknesses
No offline tracking capability
No payroll integration
Expensive for small teams with steep tier price jumps
AI auto-tracking sometimes lacks granularity
Limited invoice functionality
No multi-currency rate support
Reports of desktop app being discontinued
Integrations
Harvest (14 integrations)
Timely (14 integrations)
Target Market
Harvest
Freelancers, small to medium businesses, agencies, design studios, consultancies, and professional services firms
Timely
Consultancies, agencies, and SaaS businesses billing by the hour. Freelancers and knowledge workers.
The Verdict
Both Harvest and Timely are solid time tracking tools, but they serve different needs.
Harvest (Time Tracking and Invoicing) is best suited for freelancers, small to medium businesses, agencies, design studios, consultancies, and professional services firms. It starts at Free (solo), $10.80/seat/month and offers 8 key features.
Timely (Automatic Time Tracking) is best suited for consultancies, agencies, and saas businesses billing by the hour. freelancers and knowledge workers.. It starts at $9/user/month and offers 7 key features.
If neither tool quite fits your needs, consider comparing Harvest with TimeSentry or comparing Timely with TimeSentry. TimeSentry offers AI-powered time capture from 20+ integrations, built-in invoicing, multi-company workflows, and dedicated onboarding support.
The TimeSentry Guarantee
Free 7-day trial with full access to every feature. No credit card required.
White-glove onboarding so your team is set up correctly from day one.
AI that learns your patterns and gets more accurate the longer you use it.
Cancel anytime with no contracts, no lock-in, and no hidden fees.
Dedicated support from real humans who respond within hours, not days.
Need something better than both?
TimeSentry combines the best of AI-powered time tracking with built-in invoicing, multi-company workflows, and 20+ integrations. Try it free and see for yourself.