Harvest: Best Time Tracking & Invoicing App: A Business Owner’s Review

Last Updated on November 13, 2024

Harvest for Freelancers and Businesses: Our 12-Year Review! Managing time and invoicing efficiently is essential for any business. Here’s how Harvest, a trusted tool used by iFeeltech IT Services for over a decade, simplifies these tasks and keeps us focused on what matters most.

Running a business means balancing client work with the essential but time-consuming tasks of managing time and finances. For iFeeltech, these tasks are simplified by Harvest—a time-tracking and invoicing tool that has been integral to our operations for over a decade. Since signing up in 2012, Harvest has been a reliable assistant for everything from project estimates to tracking billable hours and sending invoices.

Harvest has allowed us to focus on serving our clients, knowing that our time tracking and invoicing are easily handled. For business owners looking for a dependable solution, Harvest is worth considering as a tool to streamline business processes and focus more on productive work.

Setting Up Harvest: Quick and User-Friendly

Harvest makes it easy to get started with time tracking and invoicing, even if you’re new to these tools. The setup process is straightforward, allowing you to create an account, add clients, and set up projects without a steep learning curve. For a business like ours, where time and client transparency are key, having a tool that organizes everything from the start is essential.

Key Features of Harvest Setup

• Simple Onboarding: With an intuitive interface, setting up clients and projects takes only a few minutes. Harvest offers customization options to set hourly, flat, or per-project fees to match each client’s needs.
• Clear Project Layout: Harvest’s project layout provides an organized view of ongoing projects. It allows you to easily track time and billable hours, which is invaluable for managing multiple clients.

Starting with Harvest ensures that essential time tracking and billing processes are in place, helping you focus on delivering quality IT services rather than administrative tasks.

Tracking Time Effectively

Time tracking is at the core of Harvest’s functionality, offering real-time and manual options to fit your workflow. This flexibility is crucial for us in managing different projects and client needs efficiently. Harvest’s time tracking helps us ensure accurate billing and gives clients a clear view of the time invested in their projects.

How Time Tracking Works in Harvest

1. Real-Time Timer: The real-time timer is easy to use—start it when you begin a task and stop it when you’re done. Each time entry is automatically organized by project and task, creating a clear, structured record of time spent.
2. Manual Entry Option: Harvest allows for manual entries if you need to log time after the fact. This flexibility is especially helpful when working offsite or juggling multiple tasks at once.

Using Harvest’s time tracking ensures precise records without much effort, providing transparency and accuracy that clients appreciate.

Creating Client-Engaging Estimates

Estimates are often the first step in a project and set the tone for client relationships. Harvest simplifies this process by enabling us to create clear, professional estimates that clients can review and respond to directly. At iFeeltech, this feature has improved client interactions and streamlined the proposal process.

Benefits of Harvest’s Estimate Feature

• Professional Online Estimates: With Harvest, each estimate is presented as a professional online document. Clients receive a link they can open to review project details, helping them understand costs upfront.
• Client Engagement: One standout feature is the client’s ability to accept or reject an estimate through the same link. This interactive approach adds transparency and speeds up the approval process.
• Real-Time Notifications: Harvest notifies you when a client views the estimate, allowing you to follow up strategically and keep the project moving forward.

For iFeeltech, these features ensure that clients know exactly what to expect, and we can avoid back-and-forth emails to confirm project details.

Invoicing Made Simple

Invoicing can be tedious, especially when managing multiple clients and projects. Harvest simplifies invoicing by linking directly to your tracked time and project expenses, allowing you to create accurate, detailed invoices with minimal effort. This feature alone has saved us time and improved cash flow by making it easier for clients to pay.

Key Invoicing Features

• One-Click Invoicing: With Harvest, creating an invoice from tracked time and expenses takes just one click. This feature eliminates manual calculations, ensuring that each invoice accurately reflects completed work.
• Multiple Payment Options: Harvest’s invoices have online payment options, including PayPal, ACH, and Stripe. These options make it convenient for clients to pay, which has helped us reduce payment delays.
• Automatic Follow-Ups: If an invoice goes unpaid, Harvest can send automatic reminders, gently prompting clients to settle outstanding balances. This automated feature is especially helpful in maintaining consistent cash flow without requiring manual follow-ups.

For iFeeltech, Harvest’s invoicing features bring efficiency and professionalism to our billing process, making it easier to manage finances and focus on client work.

Reporting and Insights: Harvest’s Data at Work

Understanding where time and resources are going is essential for any business's growth. Harvest’s reporting tools provide actionable insights into time usage, project progress, and overall profitability. These reports help us evaluate our services, identify areas for improvement, and make data-informed decisions.

Key Reporting Features

• Time and Expense Breakdown: Harvest’s reports break down time and expenses by project and client, giving you a detailed view of where efforts are concentrated. This level of detail is particularly useful for optimizing processes or redistributing resources as needed.
• Profitability Analysis: By comparing time tracked with revenue generated, Harvest lets you assess the profitability of each project. This insight allows you to prioritize higher-value projects or adjust pricing on less profitable ones.
• Client-Specific Reports: For transparency, Harvest allows you to share reports with clients. This feature provides clients with a clear view of the time invested in their projects, enhancing trust and communication.

These reporting tools have become invaluable for project evaluation and financial planning, helping us refine our approach and maximize the value we deliver to clients.

Pricing and Long-Term Value

For over a decade, Harvest has been a stable, affordable tool that iFeeltech relies on daily. With a pricing structure that suits both solo users and growing teams, Harvest provides flexible options to meet different business needs.

Harvest’s Pricing Plans

• Free Plan: Built for individual freelancers, this plan includes one user (seat) and allows up to two projects. It includes essential features like time tracking, basic reporting, and invoicing, all at no cost.
• Pro Plan: Designed for teams that need to track, analyze, and invoice their time, this plan costs $11 per seat per month (billed annually). It includes unlimited seats and projects, team reporting, accounting and payment integrations, and scheduled phone support.
• Premium Plan: Ideal for larger teams with advanced reporting and administrative needs, this plan is priced at $14 per seat per month (billed annually). In addition to all Pro features, it includes profitability reporting, timesheet approvals, an activity log, custom reports and exports, SAML-based single sign-on (SSO), and custom onboarding support for teams with 50+ seats.

All plans come with a 30-day free trial (no credit card required), allowing new users to experience Harvest’s full capabilities before committing.

For iFeeltech, Harvest’s commitment to stable pricing and valuable features has been essential. Since signing up, we’ve continued to enjoy the same level of service, even as Harvest has introduced new updates and integrations. This reliability and flexible payment options make Harvest a solid choice for businesses of all sizes.

Conclusion

Harvest has proven itself as a dependable tool for time tracking, invoicing, and reporting. Its features simplify daily operations and improve client transparency. We’ve relied on Harvest for over a decade, and it’s helped us streamline our processes and focus more on delivering quality IT services.

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions about Harvest or need help deciding which plan might be right for your business. We’re here to offer insights and guidance to help you make the best choice for your needs.