Best Open-Source Time Tracking Apps in 2026

The best open-source time tracking apps in 2026 are Super Productivity, Kimai, ActivityWatch, Timewarrior, TimeTagger, and Traggo. The right choice depends on what you mean by “time tracking”: task timers, billable timesheets, automatic activity tracking, command-line logs, or self-hosted team reporting.

If you are a developer comparing open-source and commercial options together, also read our broader Time Tracking for Developers: 10 Tools Compared. If your broader priority is offline task ownership, pair this with Best Local-First To-Do Apps in 2026. If you want the product page for Super Productivity’s built-in tracker, see the open-source time tracker use case.

How we evaluated open-source time trackers

Time tracking tools look similar until you ask how the data is captured and who controls it.

We evaluated each tool on:

• Tracking model: task timer, automatic activity watcher, CLI tracker, or timesheet.
• Data control: local-first, self-hosted, or hosted SaaS option.
• Reporting: CSV/PDF exports, invoices, charts, client reports, or developer analytics.
• Workflow fit: solo deep work, freelance billing, team timesheets, or developer scripting.
• Maintenance and extensibility: active releases, APIs, plugins, or scriptability.

Open source does not automatically mean private. A self-hosted web app still needs secure hosting, backups, HTTPS, updates, and access control.

Quick comparison

1. Super Productivity

Best for: developers, freelancers, students, and makers who want time tracking connected to actual tasks.

Super Productivity is an open-source task manager with built-in time tracking, Pomodoro, estimates, work logs, and reports. Unlike standalone trackers, it starts from the work item: a task, subtask, Jira issue, GitHub issue, GitLab issue, calendar item, or personal project.

Where it stands out:

• Start timers directly from tasks and subtasks.
• Compare estimates with actual time.
• Use Pomodoro and break reminders without a separate app.
• Track time against Jira, GitHub, GitLab, Gitea, OpenProject, and other integrations.
• Export work summaries for invoices or reports.
• Keep data local by default with optional sync.
• Extend workflows through a REST API, plugins, automations, and MCP plugins.

Choose Super Productivity if you want time tracking to answer: “What did I actually work on?” instead of only “Which app was open?”

The catch: it is intentionally individual-focused. If you need manager approvals, payroll workflows, and team-wide permission layers, look at Kimai.

2. Kimai

Best for: self-hosted team timesheets, agencies, consultants, and businesses that need reporting and invoicing.

Kimai is a mature open-source time tracking platform for project-driven teams. It supports customers, projects, activities, reports, invoices, exports, teams, permissions, LDAP/SAML, 2FA, plugins, and a JSON API.

Where it stands out:

• Strong reporting and invoicing.
• Multi-user, multi-project, and customer-based tracking.
• Self-hosted and hosted SaaS options.
• API, plugins, permissions, rates, budgets, and exports.
• Good fit for organizations that need centralized records.

Choose Kimai if your time tracker is part of business operations: clients, invoices, approvals, and team reports.

The catch: it is a web app. Running it privately means maintaining a server, database, backups, and updates.

3. ActivityWatch

Best for: automatic local activity tracking and understanding where screen time goes.

ActivityWatch is a free, open-source, privacy-first automatic time tracker. It records active applications, window titles, browser activity through extensions, AFK time, and editor activity through watchers. The data stays on your device.

Where it stands out:

• Automatic tracking with local storage.
• Windows, macOS, Linux, and work-in-progress Android support.
• Browser and editor watchers.
• Good for discovering patterns you would not manually log.
• Strong privacy posture compared with cloud activity trackers.

Choose ActivityWatch if you want passive evidence of how you spend time across apps and websites.

The catch: automatic activity tracking does not know your intention. “VS Code” might mean deep work, idle browsing through code, or waiting for tests. For task-level accountability, pair it with a task-based tracker like Super Productivity.

4. Timewarrior

Best for: command-line users who want a fast, scriptable time log.

Timewarrior is a terminal-based time tracker from the Taskwarrior ecosystem. It tracks intervals with tags, supports corrections, produces summaries, and can integrate with Taskwarrior.

Where it stands out:

• Extremely fast start/stop tracking from the shell.
• Tags, summaries, charts, exports, and correction commands.
• Scriptable and lightweight.
• Works well with Taskwarrior, shell aliases, and custom reports.

Choose Timewarrior if you already live in the terminal and want time tracking as another command-line primitive.

The catch: there is no polished GUI by default. Reporting is powerful, but technical.

5. TimeTagger

Best for: individuals and freelancers who like an interactive timeline and tag-based reporting.

TimeTagger is an open-source time tracker built around an interactive timeline. It supports tags, CSV/PDF reports, targets, an experimental Pomodoro workflow, a web API, a CLI, and self-hosting through Docker.

Where it stands out:

• Timeline-first interface.
• Tags instead of rigid projects.
• PDF and CSV reports for billing.
• Self-hosted option plus hosted paid service.
• API and CLI options for custom workflows.

Choose TimeTagger if you want a visual timeline and flexible tags without adopting a heavier team platform.

The catch: tags are flexible, but they can become inconsistent without discipline. Teams that need strict customer/project/activity structures may prefer Kimai.

6. Traggo

Best for: self-hosted tag-based tracking with a simple web UI.

Traggo is a self-hosted, tag-based time tracking tool. It has no tasks, only tagged time spans. You decide whether tags represent projects, clients, work types, energy levels, or anything else.

Where it stands out:

• Simple self-hosted deployment.
• Flexible tag model.
• Custom dashboards with diagrams.
• List and calendar views.
• Basic user management.

Choose Traggo if you want to self-host a lightweight web time tracker and like tags more than structured project hierarchies.

The catch: like any self-hosted web app, you own uptime, updates, authentication, and backups.

Which one should you choose?

Choose Super Productivity if you are an individual developer, freelancer, or maker who wants task-based time tracking, focus sessions, estimates, and privacy without running a server.

Choose Kimai if you need self-hosted business time tracking with teams, customers, invoices, permissions, and exports.

Choose ActivityWatch if you want automatic local activity data and are comfortable interpreting it later.

Choose Timewarrior if you live in the terminal and want a scriptable time log.

Choose TimeTagger or Traggo if you prefer tag-based tracking over project/task hierarchies.

Tools to verify before adopting

Two projects often appear in “open-source time tracker” searches but need extra license or maintenance review before they belong in a primary recommendation list:

• Pendulums: the official site describes it as open source and says code is available on GitHub, but the public product pages do not make the project license clear enough for a license comparison table. Verify the repository license before relying on it commercially.
• Anuko Time Tracker: the project publishes source and calls itself open source, but its current license page references the Server Side Public License (SSPL), which is not OSI-approved. Treat it as source-available unless your organization has reviewed the license.

Open-source time tracking vs commercial SaaS

Commercial tools like Toggl Track, Clockify, Harvest, Timely, and Hubstaff can be excellent when convenience matters more than data ownership. The open-source options above are stronger when you care about:

• Keeping client/project data local or self-hosted.
• Auditing how the app works.
• Avoiding per-seat pricing.
• Running offline.
• Building custom workflows around APIs, exports, scripts, or plugins.

The trade-off is responsibility. If you self-host, you are now responsible for deployment quality. If you choose a local-first tracker, you are responsible for backups and sync discipline.

FAQ

What is the best open-source time tracker?

For individual deep work, Super Productivity is the best open-source time tracker because it connects timers directly to tasks, estimates, Pomodoro, and issue trackers. For team timesheets and invoicing, Kimai is the stronger fit.

What is the best open-source automatic time tracker?

ActivityWatch is the strongest open-source automatic activity tracker. It records app, window, browser, and editor activity locally, which makes it useful for personal analytics and screen-time awareness.

What is the best self-hosted time tracker?

Kimai is the most complete self-hosted time tracker for businesses. TimeTagger and Traggo are lighter self-hosted options for individuals or tag-based workflows.

Is open-source time tracking better for privacy?

It can be, but only if the deployment model matches your privacy goal. Local-first tools like Super Productivity, ActivityWatch, and Timewarrior reduce server exposure. Self-hosted tools like Kimai and Traggo give control, but they still need secure hosting.

Which open-source time tracker is best for developers?

Super Productivity if you want Jira, GitHub, GitLab, Pomodoro, and task-based work logs. Timewarrior if you want terminal-first tracking. ActivityWatch if you want passive evidence of app and editor usage.

Next steps

• Compare open-source and commercial developer trackers in Time Tracking for Developers: 10 Tools Compared.
• Learn how to build a habit around logs in Time Tracking & Work Analytics.
• Try Super Productivity if you want an open-source tracker that starts from your actual task list.
• Want the bigger picture on building an open-source workflow? See our Open-Source Productivity guide.