Hours guide
How to make a timesheet: track billable hours, with an example
A timesheet is a log of the time you spend on each job. For every block of work, write down the date, the start and end time, the client and project, what you did and whether it's billable. Record it as you go rather than from memory, total it by client each week, convert minutes to decimal hours, and multiply by your rate to get the amount to invoice.
What a timesheet includes
A timesheet can be a notebook, a spreadsheet or an app. The format matters less than the columns. One row per block of work, with:
| Column | What to write |
|---|---|
| Date | The day you did the work |
| Start and end | Clock times, such as 09:10 to 11:40 |
| Duration | Hours and minutes, or decimal hours |
| Client | Who the work is for |
| Project | Which job, if a client has more than one |
| Description | A few words: "Homepage wireframes", "Call about launch date" |
| Billable | Yes or no |
| Rate and amount | Your hourly rate, and duration × rate |
If you're an employee or contractor filling in a timesheet for someone else, use their template, but the same information still applies: when you worked, on what, and for how long. Many add breaks as a separate column.
Recording time as you go
The most accurate timesheet is filled in while you work. Writing it up on Friday from memory always loses time, usually the short calls and quick fixes that add up.
- Start a timer when you start a task. Pick the client and project, and type a few words about the task.
- Stop it when you stop, including for lunch or when you switch clients. Each switch is a new row.
- Add anything you missed the same day: a call on your walk, or a timer you forgot to start.
- Check the week on Friday. Look for gaps, overlaps and entries with no client.
- Send or invoice weekly or monthly, whatever you've agreed with your client.
Converting minutes to decimal hours
Invoices multiply hours by a rate, so you need decimal hours, not hours and minutes. Divide the minutes by 60:
| Minutes | Decimal hours |
|---|---|
| 6 | 0.1 |
| 15 | 0.25 |
| 20 | 0.33 |
| 30 | 0.5 |
| 40 | 0.67 |
| 45 | 0.75 |
So 2 hours 45 minutes is 2.75 hours, and at £40 an hour that's £110. A common slip is to write 2 hours 45 minutes as 2.45 hours, which undercharges you by 18 minutes.
Billable and non-billable hours
Billable hours are the ones your client pays for. What counts depends on your agreement, but a common split is:
- Usually billable: the work itself, revisions, meetings and calls about the project, research for it, and travel if agreed.
- Usually non-billable: invoicing, bookkeeping, pitching for new work, learning, and fixing your own mistakes.
Track both. Non-billable time shows where your week really goes, and helps you set a rate that covers it. If you work 40 hours but only 25 are billable, your hourly rate needs to pay for all 40.
A worked week
Worked example
Monday: Harbour Coffee, website, 09:00 to 12:15 (3.25 h). Admin, 13:00 to 13:30 (0.5 h, non-billable).
Tuesday: Harbour Coffee, website, 09:30 to 13:00 (3.5 h). Northfield Books, catalogue, 14:00 to 16:45 (2.75 h).
Wednesday: Northfield Books, call and edits, 10:00 to 11:20 (1.33 h).
Totals: Harbour Coffee 6.75 h at £45 = £303.75. Northfield Books 4.08 h at £40 = £163.33. Billable 10.83 h, plus 0.5 h of admin.
Each client gets their own invoice line, or one line per project, with the hours and the rate. Keep the timesheet itself in case a client asks how the hours were spent.
Keeping a timesheet on a phone
Hours is a free timesheet app that runs in your browser. Every timer becomes a row with the columns above:
- Add a client with an hourly rate and currency. Projects can have their own rate.
- Tap to start the timer and say what you're working on. It keeps running if you close the tab. Forgot to start it? Started earlier? moves the start time back.
- Add time for anything you did away from the timer.
- The Week tab shows your total hours, the billable amount, days worked and a chart by day and client. You choose whether weeks start on Monday.
- Export CSV for the week, a client or everything: date, start, end, minutes, hours, client, project, description, rate, amount, currency and whether it's billed.
- Send to Invoice opens Invoice with the unbilled hours as invoice lines at the client's rate, and marks them billed once the invoice is made.
If you use Pomodoro, Hours can offer finished focus sessions as billable time once you allow it. The timer, manual entries, weekly totals, three clients and five projects, CSV export and sending to Invoice are free. Hours Pro ($2.99 once) adds unlimited clients and projects, and reports by client, project and week.
Tips for a timesheet you'll actually keep
- Make starting a timer the first thing you do. Before opening your email, start the clock.
- Write descriptions for your client, not for you. "Fixed checkout bug" is clearer on an invoice than "misc".
- Review daily for a minute. Spotting a missed hour on the same day is easy; on Friday it's guesswork.
- Separate projects with different rates, so each line on the invoice is correct without maths.
Common timesheet mistakes
- Filling it in at the end of the week from memory. Short tasks disappear.
- Writing 1 hour 30 minutes as 1.30. It's 1.5 hours.
- Leaving the timer running over lunch or overnight. Check for very long entries before you invoice.
- Not tracking calls and emails. Ten minutes a day is almost an hour a week.
- Billing the same hours twice. Mark hours as billed once they're on an invoice.
Questions
What should a timesheet include?
For each block of work: the date, start and end time (or the duration), the client, the project, a short description of what you did, and whether it's billable. Add your rate if you'll invoice from it.
How do I convert minutes to decimal hours?
Divide the minutes by 60. 15 minutes is 0.25 hours, 30 minutes is 0.5, 45 minutes is 0.75, and 1 hour 20 minutes is about 1.33 hours. Multiply decimal hours by your hourly rate to get the amount.
Should I round my time?
Many freelancers round each entry to the nearest 6 or 15 minutes. That's fine as long as you agree it with your client and round both ways fairly. Recording exact time and rounding the total is the most transparent.
Daily or weekly timesheet: which is better?
Record time daily, as you go, because memory fades fast. Review and send it weekly or monthly, whenever you invoice. A running timer makes daily recording almost effortless.
What counts as billable time?
Work your client has agreed to pay for, usually the work itself plus meetings and calls about it. Admin, invoicing and pitching for new work are usually non-billable, but it's still worth tracking them.
Can I export a timesheet for my client or accountant?
Yes. A CSV opens in any spreadsheet. In Hours, Export CSV gives the date, start, end, minutes, hours, client, project, description, rate, amount, currency and whether each entry is billed.