> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.timetracker.in/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Billable hours

> Mark time as billable or non-billable in TimeTracker, change it later in bulk, and see how billable hours become value on a project and lines on an invoice.

Every time entry is either billable or non-billable. Billable hours can reach an
invoice. Non-billable hours cannot – but they are still tracked, still count on
your timesheet, and still cost the business money.

## Billable versus non-billable

|                                | Billable | Non-billable |
| ------------------------------ | -------- | ------------ |
| Counts on your timesheet       | Yes      | Yes          |
| Counts toward a project budget | Yes      | Yes          |
| Has a billable value           | Yes      | No           |
| Has a cost                     | Yes      | Yes          |
| Can appear on an invoice       | Yes      | No           |

The full concept, including how it interacts with expenses and invoicing, is on
[Billable vs non-billable](/concepts/billable-vs-non-billable).

## Setting billable on an entry

The **Billable** switch appears in three places.

| Where                                   | Behaviour                                               |
| --------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------- |
| The timer panel                         | Off until you pick a project. Picking one turns it on.  |
| The **Add entry** / **Edit entry** form | On by default for a new manual entry.                   |
| A row in **List view**                  | Flip it with **Mark billable** / **Mark non-billable**. |

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the Time page">
    Click **Time** in the sidebar and go to the period.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Find the row">
    In **List view** each entry shows a **Billable** column with a green
    **Billable** badge or a grey **Non-billable** badge.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Open the row menu">
    Click the three dots at the end of the row.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Flip the flag">
    Choose **Mark non-billable** or **Mark billable**. You get a toast confirming
    which.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Note>
  The flag can only be flipped while the entry is a draft. Once the period is
  submitted, approved or locked, the row menu greys out.
</Note>

## What billable hours are worth

A billable entry carries a **billable rate**, frozen when the entry was saved.
Its value is:

```
billable value = billable hours × billable rate
```

If your workspace rounds billable time, the **rounded** duration is what bills.

The matching cost figure is:

```
cost = hours × cost rate
```

Margin is the gap between the two. See
[Profitability and margin](/budgets/profitability-and-margin).

## Example

Sarah Lin works a 7-hour day on **Bluebird Coffee – Website Redesign**:

| Entry                  | Hours | Billable | Value at \$100/hr |
| ---------------------- | ----- | -------- | ----------------- |
| Homepage wireframes    | 3:00  | Yes      | \$300             |
| Client call            | 1:00  | Yes      | \$100             |
| Internal design review | 1:30  | No       | \$0               |
| Mobile wireframes      | 1:30  | Yes      | \$150             |

* Tracked: **7 hours**
* Billable: **5 hours 30 minutes**, worth **\$550**
* Non-billable: **1 hour 30 minutes**
* Cost at $45/hour: **$315\*\* for all 7 hours

Her billable rate covers 5.5 hours, but Northwind pays her for all 7. That gap is
exactly why non-billable time is still tracked.

## What happens next

Billable hours only reach an invoice once they are **approved** or **locked**.
The invoice builder offers approved and locked billable entries that are not
already invoiced.

The chain is:

Track → Submit → Approve → Invoice → Payment

See [Invoice from tracked time](/invoicing/invoice-from-tracked-time).

## Options and settings

| Setting            | Where                                               | Effect on billable hours                                          |
| ------------------ | --------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Rounding increment | **Settings → Time policies**                        | Rounds the billable duration to the nearest 6, 15 or 30 minutes.  |
| Billable rates     | **Settings → Rates**, a client, a project or a task | Decides what a billable hour is worth.                            |
| Cost rates         | **Settings → Rates**                                | Decides what an hour costs. Setting a cost rate is a Pro feature. |

## Permissions

| You need                          | To                                    |
| --------------------------------- | ------------------------------------- |
| `time.track`                      | Set billable when you create an entry |
| `time.edit`                       | Change billable on an existing entry  |
| `rate.viewBilling`                | See billable rates                    |
| `time.viewCost` / `rate.viewCost` | See cost figures                      |

Owner, Admin and Project Manager can see billable rates. Only Owner and Admin can
see cost. Contractors and Members see neither.

## Common questions

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Should internal work be billable?">
    No. Team meetings, admin, training and internal reviews should be
    non-billable, so a client is never charged for them and your utilisation
    numbers stay truthful.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I make a whole project non-billable?">
    Billable is set per entry. For work you never charge for, mark the entries
    non-billable as you log them, or use the row menu to flip them in one click.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Why does a billable entry show no value?">
    No billable rate resolved for that person, project or client on that date.
    Set a rate – see [Billable rates](/rates/billable-rates).
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do non-billable hours use up a budget?">
    Yes. Tracked hours count toward an hours budget whether or not they are
    billable. A money budget is consumed by billable value.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can I flip billable after approval?">
    No. Approved time is frozen. An approver posts an adjustment instead.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Related guides

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Billable vs non-billable" icon="scale-balanced" href="/concepts/billable-vs-non-billable">
    The full concept, across time and expenses.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Billable rates" icon="dollar-sign" href="/rates/billable-rates">
    What you charge a client per hour.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Invoice from tracked time" icon="file-invoice" href="/invoicing/invoice-from-tracked-time">
    Turn approved hours into invoice lines.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Time policies" icon="shield" href="/time-tracking/time-policies">
    Rounding and what it does to billed hours.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>