Create your first project

Everything in TimeTracker hangs off a project, so this is the setup that matters most. It takes about five minutes. The order is always the same: client first, then project, then tasks.

1. Add the client

A client is a company you bill. Even if you only have one, create it – projects belong to clients, and the client portal and client-level rates depend on it.

Go to Clients

Choose New client.

Enter the company name

“Bluebird Coffee”.

Add contact and billing details (optional)

Needed when you invoice, not now.

Save

Full detail: create a client.

Working on something internal – your own website, R&D, admin? Create a client called “Internal” and put those projects under it. Then you can report on internal versus client time in one filter.

2. Create the project

A project is one engagement for that client. Bluebird might have a Website Redesign and a Monthly Retainer – two projects, one client.

Go to Projects

Choose New project.

Name it

“Website Redesign”. Name it the way your team says it out loud.

Pick the client

Bluebird Coffee.

Set a budget (optional)

See below.

Add project members (optional)

Who works on it. This also affects who can see it. See project members.

Save

Full detail: create a project.

3. Choose a budget

A budget is optional, but it is what turns TimeTracker from a time log into a profitability tool. Match it to how you sold the work:

You sold	Set
A fixed fee of $40,000	A money budget of $40,000
A block of 600 hours	An hours budget of 600
40 hours a month, ongoing	A monthly hours budget of 40
Time and materials, no cap	No budget

Example. Northwind agreed $40,000 for Bluebird’s redesign, so that is a one-time money budget. Their separate 40-hour-a-month retainer is a monthly hours budget that resets each period. See hours vs money budgets and recurring retainers.

Budgets need a paid plan. On Free, create the project without one and add it when you upgrade – nothing is lost.

4. Set up sections

Sections are the phases or columns a project’s tasks move through. Each project defines its own, so a design project and a build project can work differently. A common set:

To do → In progress → In review → Done

Or by phase:

Discovery → Design → Build → QA → Launch

Full detail: project sections.

5. Add tasks

A task is a unit of work. Someone tracks time against it.

Open the project and go to Tasks

Choose New task.

Name it

“Homepage wireframes”.

Put it in a section

“Discovery”, or whatever fits.

Assign it

To Sarah.

Add an estimate

8 hours. A prediction, not a limit. See task estimates.

How granular should tasks be?

A useful rule: a task should be somewhere between half a day and two weeks of work.

Too small (“reply to email”) and people spend more time logging than working.
Too big (“build the website”) and you cannot tell where the hours went.

You can always break a big task into subtasks later.

6. Check your rates

Hours are priced by whoever tracked them. If nobody has a rate, you will see hours in your reports and no money.

Go to Settings → Rates

Set a billable rate for each person

What you charge for their hour.

Add cost rates if you have Pro

What their hour costs you. This is what produces margin.

If this client pays a single agreed rate regardless of who works, set it at the client or project level instead. See how rates are chosen.

What it looks like when it is done

Northwind Studio after five minutes:

Bluebird Coffee (client)
└── Website Redesign (project, $40,000 money budget)
 ├── Discovery
 │ ├── Discovery workshop 12 h est. → Priya
 │ └── Homepage wireframes 8 h est. → Sarah
 ├── Design
 │ └── Visual design 60 h est. → Sarah
 └── Build
 └── Front-end build 140 h est. → Jonas

Sarah can now start a timer on “Homepage wireframes”, and every hour lands in the right place automatically.

What to do next

Track your first hour

Put the structure to use.

Setup checklist

The rest of the setup.

Permissions

Action	Capability	Roles
Create a client	`client.manage`	Owner, Admin, Project Manager
Create a project	`project.manage`	Owner, Admin, Project Manager
Create a task	`task.create`	Everyone except Client
Set an estimate	`task.reviseEstimate`	Owner, Admin, Project Manager
Set a budget	`budget.manage`	Owner, Admin, Project Manager
Set rates	`rate.manage`	Owner, Admin, Project Manager

Common questions

Do I have to create a client?

Yes – projects belong to clients. If the work is internal, make a client called “Internal”.

Can I track time without any tasks?

You can record time against a project directly. Tasks give you far better reporting, so use them where you can.

Can I add a budget after work has started?

Yes. Burn is calculated from the time already recorded, so the budget is correct immediately.

Can I copy a project structure for the next client?

Set up one project the way you like it and reuse that shape. See create a project for what is available.

What if the client changes the scope?

Change the budget. Burn recalculates against the new figure – nothing already recorded is affected.

Projects overview

Everything a project can do.

Budget vs estimate

Two numbers people mix up.

Track work for a client

The full journey, end to end.

Tasks overview

Boards, lists, filters and bulk edits.

​1. Add the client

​2. Create the project

​3. Choose a budget

​4. Set up sections

​5. Add tasks

​How granular should tasks be?

​6. Check your rates

​What it looks like when it is done

​What to do next

Track your first hour

Setup checklist

​Permissions

​Common questions

​Related guides

Projects overview

Budget vs estimate

Track work for a client

Tasks overview

1. Add the client

2. Create the project

3. Choose a budget

4. Set up sections

5. Add tasks

How granular should tasks be?

6. Check your rates

What it looks like when it is done

What to do next

Permissions

Common questions

Related guides