ActivityWatch vs DeskTime vs TMetric

ActivityWatch

Free (open source) · From Free

Best for: Privacy-conscious individuals and developers who want free, local-only automatic time tracking with no cloud sync or premium tiers.

DeskTime

Freemium · From Free

Best for: Teams and managers who want fully automatic tracking with built-in productivity scoring and minimal manual configuration.

TMetric

freemium · From Free (up to 2 seats); paid plans from $7/user/month

Best for: Freelancers and agencies who need budgeting, client invoicing, and a timer embedded inside their existing web apps.

ActivityWatch

No individual plan breakdown documented yet.

DeskTime

TMetric

ActivityWatch

Pros

• Completely free with no premium tiers, usage limits, or ads
• Strong privacy model — data never leaves the user's device
• Open source (MPL-2.0) and extensible
• Cross-platform: Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android

Cons

• No official iOS app
• Cross-device data synchronization is still in development
• As a volunteer-maintained project, support and integrations depend on community contribution rather than a commercial team

DeskTime

Pros

• Fully automatic tracking removes the need for employees to manually start and stop timers.
• Built-in productivity scoring works out of the box with minimal configuration.
• Free plan available for single users, making it accessible for freelancers.
• Combines time tracking, scheduling, and invoicing in a single product.

Cons

• Screenshot capture and scheduling tools are gated behind the higher Premium tier.
• Employee monitoring features like screenshots can raise privacy concerns among tracked staff.
• Free tier is limited to a single user, so teams must move to a paid plan almost immediately.
• Enterprise pricing is not publicly listed and requires contacting sales.

TMetric

Pros

• Generous free plan with unlimited projects and clients for up to two seats
• Affordable per-seat pricing compared to many competing time trackers
• Timer can be embedded inside dozens of other web apps for frictionless tracking
• Strong budgeting and invoicing tools for freelancers and agencies
• Backed by Devart, an established developer tools company with decades of experience

Cons

• Interface and reporting feel more utilitarian than modern competitors like Toggl Track
• Screenshot and activity monitoring are gated behind the higher Business tier
• Fewer built-in integrations than larger time tracking platforms
• Mobile app functionality is more limited than the desktop and web experience
• Enterprise pricing is not published and requires contacting sales

ActivityWatch

• Personal productivity tracking — Understand where your time actually goes across apps and websites.
• Developer time tracking — Track time spent coding directly from your editor via plugins.
• Digital wellbeing awareness — Build awareness of screen time and app usage habits.
• Privacy-conscious time tracking — Track time without sending any data to a third-party server.

DeskTime

• Remote team productivity monitoring — Distributed teams use DeskTime to automatically track work hours and understand productivity patterns without manual timesheets.
• Freelance client billing — Freelancers use DeskTime's automatic tracking and invoicing to accurately bill clients for hours worked on specific projects.
• Outsourced team verification — Companies working with outsourced or contractor teams use DeskTime's screenshot capture and productivity reports to verify billed work.

TMetric

• Freelance Time and Billing Tracking — Freelancers track billable hours across multiple clients, set project budgets, and generate invoices directly from logged time.
• Agency Team Time Management — Agencies use screenshots, activity monitoring, and team timesheets to track how staff time is spent across client projects.
• Embedded Tracking Inside Existing Tools — Teams that already use Jira, ClickUp, or Redmine add TMetric's timer directly inside those apps to log time without switching tools.