Time tracking

Automatic Time TrackingRecords apps, websites and documents — no timers to start. Time Tracking with ScreenshotsScreenshots on your timeline as visual proof of work. Idle and Away Time TrackingDetects time away and lets you classify what happened. Specialized Automatic TrackingCaptures Git branches, file paths, window titles and URLs. Workplace TrackingDetects office or remote work automatically by IP rules.

Project & Task Management

Assign Time to Project or TaskAssign recorded activity to the right client, project or task. Auto-Tagging RulesRules sort tracked activity into projects and tags. Powerful SearchFind any activity, period or tag across your timeline. Standardized Allowed TagsA team-wide tag structure for clean, comparable reports.

Reports & Billing

Time Tracking ReportsOvertime, attendance, productivity and usage reports. Automated Email Time ReportsDaily, weekly or monthly reports delivered to inboxes. Invoice from TimesheetTurn approved timesheets into invoices, no re-entry. Productivity CategorizationRate apps and websites by productivity, per team. Timesheet ReportingBillable-ready timesheets with rounding and templates.

Attendance & Leave

Attendance and Vacation TrackingAttendance from real activity, leave quotas and approvals. Work Time and Overtime TrackingTrack presence, overtime and late arrivals with rules.

Deployment, Privacy & Integrations

Integrations and Time Tracking APIJira, GitHub, Asana, REST API and direct database access. Cloud or On-PremiseFast cloud setup or full data control on your servers. Privacy ControlDecide what is recorded, when, and what is shared. MCP Server for AI Time TrackingAsk Claude and other AI tools about your tracked time. Self-Hosted Time Tracking DeploymentRun ManicTime Server on Docker or Azure, under your control.

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Stopwatch Time Tracking vs Automatic Time Tracking: A Better Way to Log Real Work

Time tracking software for designers

ManicTime tracks which design files you have open and for how long — automatically. So when a client asks how long their project took, you have an accurate answer backed by real activity, not a rough estimate from memory.

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Time tracking problems designers run into

Track design work at the file level, attribute time accurately across client projects, and generate invoices without the manual reconstruction.

Switching between projects makes time hard to reconstruct

Designers often work on several client files in a single day, switching between Figma, Photoshop, Illustrator, and other tools. Without automatic tracking, hours spent on each project get blurry by Friday.

Revision rounds eat time that never gets billed

A logo that went through six rounds of feedback took three times as long as the original estimate. Without a record, that extra time disappears — and gets absorbed rather than discussed with the client.

Manual timers interrupt creative flow

Starting and stopping timers every time you switch tasks is disruptive. Designers who forget to hit stop — or stop tracking entirely — end up with incomplete records at billing time.

'Figma' is not a billable description

Standard time trackers record which application is open. That is not enough for designers who run the same tool for three different clients on the same day.

Putting together invoices takes too long

Without clean project-level time records, contractors spend time at the end of each month manually estimating, adjusting, and questioning whether numbers are fair to themselves and the client.

How ManicTime helps designers

ManicTime captures document names and file paths automatically alongside application data. That means time spent on a specific Figma file, Photoshop document, or InDesign layout is recorded without any timers — and can be attributed to the right project and client.

Track time at the design file level, not just the app

ManicTime records the name and path of the document you have open, so each design file gets its own time record automatically. You can see how long you spent on each client's files across the day.

Attribute file time to client projects

Once tracked, time can be reviewed and tagged to the appropriate project or client. Auto-tagging rules can do this automatically if your files follow a consistent naming or folder structure.

Bill clients accurately, including revision rounds

Because every hour of file activity is recorded, invoices reflect actual work — including the revision rounds and feedback iterations that manual timers tend to miss.

Generate invoices directly from timesheet data

Once time is reviewed and attributed to projects, ManicTime can generate a client-ready invoice from that data — no re-entry, no spreadsheet, no guessing.

No timer discipline required

ManicTime runs in the background and captures activity automatically. Designers can stay in the flow of their work without stopping to manage a clock.

What design work ManicTime tracks automatically

ManicTime captures the full range of design activity across tools:

  • Figma — file name and project context
  • Adobe Photoshop — document name and path
  • Adobe Illustrator — document name and path
  • Adobe InDesign — document name and path
  • Adobe XD — file context
  • Sketch — file name and path
  • Browser-based design and reference work
  • Client communication and feedback review
  • Asset export and file delivery
  • Internal meetings and briefing calls

Document-level tracking means time is captured at the file, not just the application — making it far easier to split hours across clients and projects accurately.

Benefits

Why designers use ManicTime

Automatic time tracking at the file level

ManicTime records document names and paths alongside app activity — so time on a specific client file is captured without timers, notes, or interrupting your work.

Invoices that reflect real work, not estimates

For contractors and freelancers, accurate time records mean invoices that hold up to scrutiny — and capture revision rounds, late changes, and feedback cycles that often go unbilled.

Auto-tag time to projects based on file names

If your files follow a naming convention or folder structure, auto-tagging rules can automatically attribute time to the right client or project — reducing manual review time at the end of the week.

Faster invoicing at the end of each month

Going from tracked and reviewed time to a client-ready invoice takes one step in ManicTime. No re-entry, no spreadsheet, no arithmetic from memory.

Clear split across multiple clients

Designers working on several clients in a day can see exactly how time was distributed across projects — which is especially useful for fixed-price projects where scope creep is hard to see in real time.

Features

Features that matter for designers

Document and file tracking

ManicTime captures document names and file paths automatically so time is recorded at the file level, not just the application.

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Project and client time attribution

Review tracked activity and assign time to the right project or client — or use auto-tagging rules to do it automatically.

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Invoice from timesheet

Generate client-ready invoices directly from approved timesheet data — no re-entry, fewer errors, faster billing cycles.

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Built for designers who bill by the hour and work across multiple clients

ManicTime has been tracking creative and professional work since 2008. Over 1 million downloads, 13,000+ customers, and 200,000+ licenses — including designers, illustrators, and creative studios who need invoices that reflect real project time.

Most time trackers tell you which app was open. ManicTime goes deeper — capturing the actual file name and path so time on a Photoshop document for Client A is separate from time on a document for Client B, even if both were open in the same application on the same day.

For designers working as contractors or freelancers, this level of detail makes a real difference at billing time. Revision rounds get recorded. Late-stage changes get captured. The invoice reflects what actually happened, not what you remember happened.

Questions & answers

FAQ

Does ManicTime track which design file I have open?
Yes. ManicTime records document names and file paths automatically alongside application data. So if you have multiple Photoshop or Illustrator files open across the day, each one gets its own time record.
Does it work with Figma, Adobe tools, and Sketch?
ManicTime captures document-level context for desktop applications including Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign. For browser-based tools like Figma, it tracks active browser time with URL-level detail.
Can I automatically tag time to client projects based on file names?
Yes. Auto-tagging rules let you define patterns — such as file names containing a client name or files in a specific folder — that automatically assign time to the right project or client tag.
Can I generate an invoice from my tracked design time?
Yes. Once time is reviewed and attributed to projects, ManicTime can generate an invoice from that data in one step — no need to re-enter hours into a separate billing tool.
What if I work on multiple client projects in the same day?
ManicTime records the full timeline of your activity including which files were active and for how long. You can review it at the end of the day or week and attribute each block to the correct client project.
Do I need to start and stop timers?
No. ManicTime runs in the background and captures activity automatically. You review what was tracked and assign it to projects — there are no timers to manage during your workday.
Customers

Our customer opinions

This software automatically tracks the time you spend on your computer. When you step away from your computer for a certain length of time (set by user), it will prompt you to tag that time. For example, if I'm getting coffee and have a 20 minute chat about the weekend, I tag it as personal. But if I have a chat about an upcoming or existing project, I tag it about that project. For the tasks you do on the computer, it can save screenshots every X seconds (again, set by user), so that you can have a reminder when you go to do your billing what each task was for.
Katie
I like this application because with manic time we can verify who does their right job. And we also have better control because we can choose the best workers to increase production works very well and without errors.
Mary
Just wanted to let you know that I think your software has helped me capture $1000's of dollars in revenue that I just wasn't billing before, as I wasn't doing a very good job of tracking my time. With ManicTime I get it all, and if I were ever to be audited by a client, I could give them every detail. Thanks so much!
Oliver
I like that it tracks inactive time on the computer so that you can remember when you started working and when you stopped, and when you took breaks. Very easy to use, I don't have to remember to log in and the app does everything for me without me even doing anything except installing the program. It shows exactly what page and project you were working on and for how long and when.
Adam
There is a lot to love about Manic Time. It was easy to use and did way more than I was expecting from it. The reporting was informative. The editing was awesome. Tagging and managing the time tracked is robust, yet simple. It is great at taking the tracking out of time tracking. It just does 90% for you. The last 10% is tagging and validating. It really does an amazing job at showing how much time is wasted on mundane tasks or mindless browsing. I handed in my time to a project manager. He asked how I knew I worked 3.28 hours on a specific task. "Manic Time" was my answer.
Richard
Just renewed my licence for another year Just thought I'd let you know that this is one of the best pieces of software I've ever installed on my computer, free or paid for. I run my own business which principally relies on writing technical reports. ManicTime has made it so much easier to track my time over the various projects and therefore manage my fees and costs. (And your support has been excellent when I have had the odd problem).
Gary
ManicTime’s ease of use is unmatched, thanks to its intuitive interface and flexible granularity in time-tracking. The power to dive as deep as you need into data with comprehensive tagging and reporting systems is a significant upside. Its vast number of features like document, application, and activity trackers streamline the process of managing and analyzing time efficiently. Moreover, ManicTime’s advanced search capabilities, coupled with the functionality to annotate tagged time, make it a vital tool for enhancing productivity and recalling information during discussions.
Joshua

Dr Steve Day (podcast)

Time tracking and its importance in business operations are discussed in this episode. Dr. Steve Day shares update on their time tracking policies, including the use of new apps and tools such as ManicTime, particularly focusing on the implementation of screenshot tracking.

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I do contract work and manage multiple projects where I bounce between projects on an almost by the minute basis. Once tagging is setup I can easily tag all my activities as I do them and my time accumulates in each project bucket. At the end of the day my timesheet is a breeze. This is the best tool I have found so far for a work style that involves heavy duty multi-tasking. I don't know what I would do without ManicTime. Well designed and thought out product.
Brenda
The interface is very intuitive and easy to use. The ability to tag and color-code my work allows me to see at a glance how my day has been going. I can organize and structure things as much or as little as I like. What a great product!
Judy
It provides with useful reports which track and monitor the computer usage of employees, as well as the time spent on each computer program or application. Also the presence of an automatic screenshot feature resulted in an increase in my employees’ productivity. It runs automatically on my computer, great.
Amanda

Track design time accurately — without timers or manual logs

ManicTime records which files you work on and for how long, so your invoices reflect actual project time rather than end-of-week estimates.

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