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A planned block is an intention. A time entry is a record. They live in different places, they are created differently, and only one of them can ever reach an invoice. Getting this straight prevents the two most common mistakes in the product: assuming a plan logged itself, and assuming a plan will be billed.

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Side by side

Planning eight hours does not log eight hours. If nobody tracks the time, the timesheet shows zero, the budget is untouched, and there is nothing to invoice.

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Why both exist

They answer different questions.
  • The Planner answers “can we do this?” – before the week starts.
  • Tracked time answers “what did it actually cost?” – after it happened.
The gap between them is the useful bit. Planning 20 hours of Homepage wireframes and logging 34 is exactly the signal a project manager needs, and neither number alone shows it.

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Where they meet

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The capacity strip

The Planner’s capacity strip shows both figures in one line:
Capacity – Planned 28h of 40h – Logged 12h – Healthy
Planned is the sum of the blocks. Logged is the sum of the real time entries in the same window. Comparing them is the fastest read of whether the plan is being followed. See /planner/capacity-and-workload.

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Blocks and time entries can be linked

Time can be logged against a block, so the block knows what really happened inside it. That link is why:
  • Deleting a block keeps any time logged inside it. The entries stay on the timesheet; they just stop pointing at a block.
  • A block whose participants have logged time cannot be handed to someone else.
  • A participant who has logged time inside a block cannot leave it until that time is moved or removed.

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The same schedule sits behind both

Capacity in the Planner comes from the person’s work schedule. Expected hours on a timesheet come from that same schedule. So Planned 40h of 40h in the Planner and Expected 40h on the timesheet are the same 40 hours. See /timesheets/expected-vs-tracked-hours.

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A full example

Sarah Lin, week of 21 July, Bluebird Coffee – Website Redesign.
1

Monday: Priya plans the week

She creates blocks totalling 20h on Homepage wireframes. The strip reads Planned 20h of 40h – Light. Nothing has been logged.
2

Sarah works, and tracks it

Sarah runs the timer as she works. By Friday she has logged 24h on the task – four more than planned.
3

The strip tells the story

Planned 20h of 40h – Logged 24h. The plan was optimistic.
4

Only the tracked time has money attached

24 hours at Sarah’s 100/hourbillablerateis∗∗100/hour billable rate is **2,400** of value to the project. At her 45/hourcostrateitcostsNorthwind∗∗45/hour cost rate it costs Northwind **1,080**, leaving $1,320 of margin. The 20 planned hours are worth nothing – they were never worked.
5

The budget moves, once

The 40,000Bluebirdbudgetdropsby40,000 Bluebird budget drops by 2,400, from the tracked time only. The plan never touched it.
6

The timesheet is what gets approved

Sarah submits the week. Priya approves 24 hours. The blocks are not part of that – they were never a submission.
Check the arithmetic: 24 × 100=100 = 2,400. 24 × 45=45 = 1,080. 2,400−2,400 − 1,080 = $1,320.

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What this means for reporting

Reports are built on time entries, not on blocks. See /reports/report-sources.

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Common questions

Not automatically. Blocks and time entries are separate on purpose – a plan that logs itself would put hours on a timesheet nobody worked, and a timesheet is a system of record.
No. It records the intent. Billability is decided on the time entry. See /time-tracking/billable-hours.
No. Only tracked time does.
No. The confirmation says so plainly: any time already logged inside it is kept, it just stops being tied to a block.
No. Aim for around 80% – Healthy rather than Full. The rest of the week fills itself with things nobody planned.
No. The client portal shows what was delivered and billed, not internal plans.

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Troubleshooting

Capacity and workload

Planned against logged, in one line.

How to track time

Turning a plan into a record.

Expected vs tracked hours

The other comparison, on the timesheet.

Budget vs estimate

Two more numbers people mix up.

Plan work blocks

Building the plan side.

Billable hours

What actually reaches an invoice.