10 HubStaff Alternatives  (Free & Paid) in 2026

HubStaff is limited in terms of project management features, and while Paymo is not a heavyweight project platform, it certainly offers more.

In-app team collaboration keeps everyone up to date in real time, and handy Kanban boards and Gantt charts let you plan out timelines and tasks.

Get a clear view of task priority by assigning statuses and uploading relevant files to tasks to keep everything organized.

For time tracking, you have several options. Automatic tracking works in the background, recording time spent on apps. Alternatively, you can use manual entry, a stopwatch, or a Pomodoro timer.

Staff scheduling and time off planning are included, plus you can track billable hours and expenses and invoice clients directly. Paymo also integrates with payment processors to facilitate smooth transactions.

We don’t like that plans have limits on the number of clients and projects you can have. For instance, if you want more than five projects, you’re forced to upgrade to the most expensive plan.

However, for an all-in-one platform, it covers all the basics and a bit more.

Both Replicon and HubStaff target enterprise customers, but Replicon is specifically designed for multinational organizations with complex compliance requirements.

The platform's extensive compliance rules engine can be customized to follow the labor and regulatory rules of any country. Plus, it supports over 28 languages and multiple currencies, making it ideal for global teams.

The platform also features staff management, time off, and resource planning tools at a global scale. 

We like Replicon’s AI time tracking. It can analyze work activity and even calendar bookings and text conversations, and transform them into time logs. 

It’s also a solid pick for teams that work offsite, since it supports geofencing, GPS tracking, and facial recognition for clocking in/out.

You can also track billable hours, which gives you flexibility around setting up project rates.

The trade-off is that Replicon isn’t exactly plug-and-play. It requires in-depth setup, and new users may face a steep learning curve. This is somewhat similar to HubStaff; however, we prefer Replicon’s dashboards for usability.

If you have a large team and all you need is straightforward time tracking, Clockify is worth a look.

Its free plan is generous: unlimited users, multiple ways to log hours (automatic, real-time, or manual), a calendar and timesheet interface, a kiosk mode, and basic dashboard analytics.

A nice bonus is that you can still track billable vs. non-billable work without paying a cent.

Features like invoicing, team scheduling, and more advanced reports are locked behind the paid plans. With upgrading, you also get GPS tracking, timesheet approvals, project costing and profitability, and more.

By comparison, HubStaff doesn’t have a free plan, and its pricing can rack up quickly, especially if you want the advanced features.

Like HubStaff, Clockify has employee monitoring tools, which include screenshotting and idle time detection. However, they’re definitely less invasive than HubStaff’s, and you can turn them off as needed.

Ultimately, Clockify is hard to beat for free usage, and its user-friendly platform is simple to master. If you’re on a tight budget, it’s a solid choice.

Toggl Track’s big appeal is its ease of use. The interface is clean, uncluttered, and quick to navigate, so you can get to what you need without digging around. 

As far as time-tracking tools go, the learning curve is gentle, and its visual interface is a good option if you’re facing resistance to time tracking.

You can log hours in real time, manually, or offline, and the system syncs smoothly across every device. Tracking billable vs. non-billable work is straightforward, and the mobile app is fully featured, giving you access to reporting and other tools.

The timeline view is very handy for seeing exactly how days are split by tasks, while the calendar layout helps with planning and keeping workloads balanced.

Integration-wise, Toggl stands out. With connections to 100+ apps, it fits easily into existing tech setups. In contrast, HubStaff only has 30 integrations, which can be limiting for teams that rely on multiple software tools.

The trade-off is that some of Toggl’s broader features feel a bit lightweight. Reporting doesn’t go very deep, and tools like project costing or timesheet approvals feel quite basic. The lack of staff scheduling may also put off some users.

DeskTime is built for teams that want detailed insight into how work hours are actually being spent. 

Its strength lies in automatic time tracking: once it’s running, it logs apps, URLs, and documents without requiring users to start and stop timers. That makes it appealing for teams that struggle with manual entries or frequently forget to track their time.

The platform also includes productivity categorization, letting you tag tools and websites as productive, unproductive, or neutral. Over time, this creates a clear picture of how focused the team really is during the day. 

The real-time dashboard is especially handy for managers who want a quick snapshot of who’s active, who’s offline, and what’s getting done.

DeskTime also includes shift scheduling, an absence calendar, and a time off planner.

Like HubStaff, DeskTime does include (optional) employee monitoring tools. However, we really appreciate the break time reminders and the ability to take private time for off-the-clock device usage.

This app is not for tracking costs, though. There are no project billing or cost features, nor can you track labor or billable rates. To do this, you’ll need to integrate with a third-party tool.

Harvest is a respected time tracking tool that gives you a clear calendar view to understand team workloads and capacity.

Track time using the start/stop timer or add time logs manually, and record billable hours as needed. Customized alerts help users avoid overtime and late timesheet submissions.

Harvest is not built for staff management, so you won’t find any scheduling or resource planning tools. Instead, it stands out for its invoicing features.

Create customized invoices that show clients exactly what they're paying for with detailed line items. You can email invoices directly to clients and set up automated payment reminder emails to reduce late payments.

The dashboard keeps track of everything that’s due or overdue, making it easy to follow up on outstanding payments. Harvest also connects with payment processors so clients can pay their invoices directly through the system.

Add expenses to time logs, which then get included on the invoice. You also have a few project costing tools, but keep in mind that there are no budget trackers.

You may also find the lack of live support an issue. You can schedule phone support, which is great, but there’s no line of contact if you need help in real-time.

ZoomShift is built primarily for scheduling hourly staff and keeping tabs on attendance, making it a strong fit for retail, restaurants, and other businesses that rely on shift work.

Its drag-and-drop scheduler is a standout feature; simply drop shifts onto daily, weekly, or monthly calendars, and you’re set. The platform also supports shift swaps and replacement requests, so you’re not scrambling when someone can’t make it into work.

Employees can record their time by clocking in and out or using the start/stop timer, and the mobile app makes it easy to track hours from anywhere.

You also get automatic overtime and break tracking, which helps you comply with labor laws, especially since you can customize the rules around both. For instance, anything tracked beyond assigned hours will be flagged as overtime, and labor cost increases accordingly.

ZoomShift can also manage PTO balances and provides built-in workflows for requesting and approving time off.

While it offers a clear picture of labor costs, it’s not built for teams that need project-based billing and cost management. Yet it’s a frontrunner for managing hourly staff.

QuickBooks Time’s biggest strength is its tight integration with the broader QuickBooks ecosystem. 

Because it’s already tied into your accounting and payroll tools, you avoid complex integrations that many other time-tracking platforms require.

It’s also well-suited for teams working in the field thanks to geofencing and kiosk-based clock-ins. Otherwise, users can track using the start/stop timer.

Scheduling, shift management, and time-off tracking are all baked in, so you can manage your workforce and plan resources accordingly.

Upgrade to the higher plan, and you’ll unlock project tracking, task-progress oversight, and a full approval workflow for timesheets.

Unlike HubStaff, QuickBooks Time skips the surveillance, so it’s a friendlier, less intrusive option. And, of course, QuickBooks is an established payroll and accounting tool, so you get more functionality than you do with HubStaff.

The flip side is the price; there’s a monthly base fee plus a per-seat charge, which makes it more of an enterprise-friendly option than a budget pick.

But if you’re already running your financials through QuickBooks, adding the time module is by far the simplest way to bring time tracking into your setup.

HiveDesk gives you straightforward tools to see who’s working, when they’re working, and what they’re working on. 

Its automatic time tracking keeps logs accurate without relying on manual inputs. Meanwhile, built-in task management lets you assign work, track progress, and keep projects on schedule.

Activity reports also break down app usage and productivity trends, making it easier to spot inefficiencies or workload issues before they become real problems.

You get lots of tools for staff management, including attendance and vacation tracking, shift scheduling, and overtime management. You can add custom policies and rates to comply with labor laws and internal requirements.

HiveDesk includes project-level tracking, too, so you can see exactly how much time each task or client is consuming. This makes it useful for service-based teams that need to keep an eye on billable hours or compare estimated time vs. the actuals. 

Compared to HubStaff, HiveDesk is less complex and generally more budget-friendly. However, it’s still heavy on the employee monitoring features, which we’re far less keen on.