Master Time Tracking with ClickUp

ClickUp makes it easy to turn scattered work into accurate timesheets, organized projects, and clear reports your whole team can rely on. This how-to guide walks you through setting up time tracking, building timesheets, and managing billable hours so you can work smarter, not longer.

Why Use ClickUp for Time Tracking?

Before diving into setup, it helps to understand how a modern time tracking workflow saves you hours every week and protects revenue.

• Capture every billable minute with integrated timers.
• Replace manual spreadsheets with automated reports.
• See where time really goes across projects and clients.
• Help teams plan realistic workloads and deadlines.

Unlike basic timesheet apps, ClickUp combines time tracking with tasks, documents, whiteboards, goals, and reporting so your data stays connected to real work.

Step 1: Prepare Your Workspace in ClickUp

A clear structure in ClickUp gives you clean timesheets later. Start with a simple hierarchy that matches how you work.

Set Up Spaces, Folders, and Lists in ClickUp

1. Create a Space for each major area, such as Clients, Internal Projects, or Departments.

2. Inside each Space, add Folders for specific clients, products, or teams.

3. Create Lists inside each Folder to group related work, such as Sprints, Campaigns, or Features.

Every task you track time on will live in one of these Lists, so keep the structure logical and easy to search.

Create Time-Friendly Task Templates in ClickUp

Consistent tasks make time entries easier to analyze later.

1. Open any List and click to add a new task.

2. Include a clear title, description, and assignee.

3. Add fields you often report on, such as Priority, Client, or Phase.

4. Save it as a Task Template so your team can reuse the same format.

When you pair these templates with tracked time, your reporting becomes far more accurate.

Step 2: Enable and Use Time Tracking in ClickUp

Once your workspace is structured, you can start tracking time directly from tasks in ClickUp.

Turn On Time Tracking Features

1. Open your Workspace Settings.

2. Locate the Time Tracking options.

3. Enable native time tracking so members can log time on tasks.

4. Optionally connect an external time tracker if your team already uses tools like Harvest or Toggl.

With this enabled, timers and manual logging options appear on your tasks.

Track Time on Tasks in ClickUp

There are two primary ways to track time on tasks: using a live timer or adding time manually.

Method 1: Use the Built-In Timer

1. Open the task you are working on.

2. Click the Time Tracking icon or timer button.

3. Start the timer when you begin work and stop it when finished.

4. Review or edit the entry to confirm duration, description, and billable status if needed.

Method 2: Add Time Entries Manually

1. Open the same Time Tracking area on the task.

2. Select the option to Add time manually.

3. Enter start and end times or total duration.

4. Add notes, select billable or non-billable, and save.

Both methods create entries that feed into your timesheets and reports throughout ClickUp.

Step 3: Build and Use Timesheets in ClickUp

Once you have time entries, you can convert them into clear, shareable timesheets that support payroll, billing, and performance analysis.

View Timesheets for Individuals and Teams

1. Navigate to the Time view or time reporting area in ClickUp.

2. Filter by User to see timesheets for a specific teammate.

3. Filter by Date Range to review a day, week, month, or custom period.

4. Group results by task, List, or Folder to see where time is going.

This gives you a timesheet-style overview without leaving your project management workspace.

Organize Billable vs Non-Billable Time in ClickUp

Clean billing depends on separating internal work from billable client tasks.

1. Use a billable toggle or custom field on each time entry.

2. Standardize when entries should be marked billable (for example, client-facing work only).

3. In reports, filter by Billable to prepare invoices or revenue summaries.

Because these entries live inside ClickUp tasks, you can always trace a billed hour back to concrete work, notes, and documents.

Step 4: Report on Time in ClickUp

Time data is only useful if you can quickly interpret it. Use reporting and dashboards to turn raw hours into decisions.

Create Dashboards with ClickUp Time Widgets

1. Open the Dashboards area.

2. Create a new dashboard for time tracking and timesheets.

3. Add widgets such as:

   • Total time by user.
   • Total time by client or project.
   • Billable vs non-billable hours.
   • Time tracked by status (for example, In Progress or In Review).

4. Filter each widget by Space, Folder, List, or tag to focus on key workstreams.

These views help leaders spot bottlenecks and understand workload distribution at a glance.

Export Time Data from ClickUp

Sometimes you need timesheets outside your workspace for finance, HR, or client-facing reports.

1. Open the time tracking or time reporting area.

2. Apply filters for user, client, or date range as needed.

3. Choose the export option (often CSV or similar formats).

4. Share or import the exported file into your accounting or payroll system.

Because the data originates in ClickUp, you avoid double entry and reduce risk of human error.

Step 5: Improve Your Workflow with ClickUp

After the basics are in place, refine your time tracking practices so timesheets stay accurate with less effort.

Standardize Time Tracking Rules in ClickUp

Define clear guidelines so everyone logs time in the same way.

• Decide when team members should start and stop timers.
• Set expectations for daily or weekly logging deadlines.
• Clarify what counts as billable work for each client.
• Use shared task templates and custom fields to keep entries aligned.

Document these rules in a ClickUp Doc and pin it inside relevant Spaces or Lists.

Use Automations to Support Time Tracking

You can reduce admin work with automated workflows.

• Trigger reminders when tasks stay In Progress too long without logged time.
• Automatically update statuses when work completes and time is logged.
• Notify managers when weekly hour thresholds are reached.

These small automations in ClickUp help teams maintain consistent, reliable timesheets.

Learn More and Compare Timesheet Approaches

If you want to explore how different timesheet tools stack up, review the detailed comparison in the original guide on top timesheet apps. Use those insights to refine how you set up time tracking and reporting inside your workspace.

For teams that need additional implementation help, optimization services from specialists such as Consultevo can support advanced reporting, automations, and integrations around your ClickUp setup.

By following the steps in this guide, you can transform your workspace into a reliable time tracking and timesheet system that keeps projects profitable and teams focused on meaningful work.

Need Help With ClickUp?

If you want expert help building, automating, or scaling your ClickUp workspace, work with ConsultEvo — trusted ClickUp Solution Partners.

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