A time tracker spreadsheet is a structured tool used to log work hours, manage tasks, and monitor productivity across teams or individual projects. Businesses, freelancers, and professionals utilize it to gain clarity on how time is spent, streamline workflows, and ensure accurate reporting for billing or performance tracking purposes. Traditional Excel sheets, while popular, often come with drawbacks such as manual updates, version conflicts, and difficulty in sharing across teams. For a more efficient solution, modern platforms like Lark offer innovative, free templates for time tracking, complete with automation, dashboards, and real-time collaboration. Here is a quick preview of the templates:
Lark time tracker template: Best all-in-one smart tracking
Smartsheet timesheet templates: Daily, weekly, and monthly tracking
WPS Office free timesheet templates: Excel & Word formats for time management.
ClickUp time tracking spreadsheet: Task-based, customizable sheets.
Vertex42 time sheet template (Excel): Classic Excel format for businesses.
TeamGantt timesheet template: Project and task-based logs.
Microsoft Excel timesheet templates: Official pre-built formats.
Google Sheets timesheet template: Cloud-based, shareable with teams.
Template net free timesheet downloads: Wide variety of daily/weekly/monthly.
Clockify Excel/Google Sheets timesheet: Paired with their app for flexible use.
What is a time tracker spreadsheet?
A time tracker spreadsheet is a tool that helps individuals and teams log hours, track tasks, and efficiently monitor productivity. It can range from simple daily logs to detailed project-based sheets, allowing users to organize work and measure performance. Many professionals rely on Excel templates for time tracking to calculate hours and automate reporting. While traditional spreadsheets can be limited by manual updates and version issues, platforms like Lark offer innovative, collaborative templates with real-time syncing and automation. You can also explore Lark's time tracker templates page to simplify tracking and boost efficiency.
Types of time tracker spreadsheets
Daily time tracking spreadsheet: A daily time tracking spreadsheet Excel free helps individuals and teams log each hour of work, track tasks, and analyze daily productivity. Using platforms like Lark allows you to automate daily entries, set reminders, and visualize work patterns effortlessly.
Weekly or monthly timesheet: A weekly or monthly time tracker spreadsheet template provides you with broader insights into task completion, project hours, and team performance over time. Lark's ready-to-use templates provide shared dashboards and reports, helping managers review trends without manual updates.
Project-based tracker: A project-based tracker focuses on tracking hours spent on individual projects, linking tasks, and monitoring deadlines. By using Lark time tracker templates, teams can combine project logs with automated dashboards for real-time visibility and reporting.
Task or activity tracker: A task or activity tracker is ideal for monitoring progress on specific duties, ensuring accountability and efficiency. Lark templates allow you to categorize tasks, assign owners, and generate summaries that save time compared to static Excel sheets.
Client billing tracker: Freelancers and agencies benefit from a client billing tracker that converts logged hours into invoices and billable reports. With Lark, you can link time entries directly to client projects for accurate, automated billing.
Team or personnel tracker: A team or personnel tracker helps managers view individual contributions, attendance, and workload distribution. Lark's collaborative time tracker spreadsheet templates allow multiple team members to log time simultaneously, with instant syncing and real-time dashboards.
Quick overview of tools providing time tracker templates
Top 10 time tracker spreadsheet templates for 2025
1. Lark time tracker template: Best all-in-one smart tracking
The Lark time tracker spreadsheet template is more than just a simple time tracker; it’s part of a comprehensive digital workspace designed to streamline attendance, task tracking, approvals, and team collaboration within a single, cloud-based platform. Ideal for small businesses, freelancers, and hybrid teams, Lark combines automated time tracking with real-time dashboards, shift scheduling, and GPS-enabled attendance, ensuring accurate, tamper-proof records. Managers can approve timesheets, monitor project hours, and generate detailed reports effortlessly, while teams enjoy instant chat, video meetings, and document sharing. This all-in-one solution replaces static Excel sheets and manual tracking, offering a more innovative, automated, and collaborative approach to time management that saves hours and boosts productivity.
Key features
Customizable time logs: With Lark, you're not limited to rigid spreadsheets. You can design fully customizable time tracker spreadsheet templates to log daily, weekly, or project-based hours. Add fields such as employee names, project titles, task categories, dates, and total hours to match your team's workflow. This flexibility enables more straightforward adaptation of the tracker for client billing, internal reporting, or project monitoring. By replacing a static time management format in Excel, Lark ensures your data collection evolves with your business needs.
Multi-view tracking: Instead of being confined to a single spreadsheet layout, Lark allows you to view your time data in multiple formats. Switch between grid, kanban, and calendar views to analyze time entries in the context that makes the most sense for you. For example, project managers can visualize timelines in calendar mode, while HR teams may prefer a grid for payroll purposes. These dynamic views surpass traditional Excel trackers, providing faster and more precise insights. By offering different perspectives, Lark transforms raw data into actionable information.
Automation & reminders: Manual follow-ups are one of the most significant drawbacks of static spreadsheets. With Lark, you can set up automation rules that trigger reminders for missing timesheets, overdue logs, or weekly summary updates. This ensures that employees stay accountable without managers constantly chasing updates. Automated workflows also streamline approvals, reducing delays in payroll or project billing. By combining automation with real-time notifications, Lark eliminates the errors and inefficiencies of manual time tracking.
Dashboards & reporting: Spreadsheets can record data, but analyzing it is another story. Lark solves this by providing built-in dashboards that turn your time logs into clear, visual reports. Managers can instantly generate charts that highlight productivity trends, project hours, or billable utilization. These reports update in real time, so you never need to refresh or manually recalculate totals. The result is a decision-ready view of how your team is spending time, all without the complexity of creating pivot tables or formulas in Excel.
Linked records for context: A time entry alone doesn't always tell the whole story. With Lark, every log can be connected to related projects, tasks, or client accounts, creating a complete 360° view of workloads. This connection provides context, helping managers see not just how much time was logged but also why and on what. For freelancers and agencies, linking hours to clients simplifies billing accuracy. For businesses, it ensures project budgets and schedules are tracked with precision. This integrated approach makes Lark far more potent than a standalone timesheet.
Collaboration in real-time: Traditional spreadsheets often suffer from version conflicts when multiple people attempt to update them. Lark solves this by allowing multiple users to log and edit time simultaneously with instant syncing across devices. Whether your team is in the office, working remotely, or spread across time zones, everyone stays on the same page. Real-time updates also ensure that managers always see the most current data without needing to request manual submissions. This collaborative model ensures that workflows remain smooth, transparent, and efficient.
AI-powered insights: Lark doesn’t just capture time, it interprets it. Using AI-powered insights, the platform offers intelligent recommendations that help identify trends, forecast resource requirements, and optimize scheduling. For example, managers can identify underutilized staff, recurring overtime patterns, or project bottlenecks at a glance. These insights allow you to make proactive decisions rather than reactive corrections. By combining automation with predictive analysis, Lark enables businesses to unlock the full value of their time-tracking data.
Starter plan: Free forever plan that includes 11 powerful tools for up to 20 users. It also comes with 100GB of storage, 1000 automation runs, AI translations, and more.
Pro plan: $12/user/month (billed annually) for up to 500 users. It includes everything in Starter plus group calling for up to 500 attendees, 15TB of storage, 50,000 automation runs, and more.
Enterprise plan: Contact sales for custom pricing. Supports unlimited users and includes even more automation runs and advanced security, compliance, and management features.
2. Smartsheet timesheet templates: Daily, weekly, and monthly tracking
Smartsheet offers versatile time tracker spreadsheet templates that simplify daily, weekly, and monthly time logging for teams and businesses. These templates go beyond traditional Excel formats by combining structured layouts with built-in collaboration, ensuring that data is always accurate and accessible. With Smartsheet, managers can track hours, monitor workloads, and integrate timesheets directly with project management tools. Automated calculations remove the hassle of manual updates, while cloud storage ensures seamless access from anywhere. It’s a strong choice for companies that want both reliable tracking and flexible workflow management.
Key features:
Pre-built daily, weekly, and monthly timesheet templates designed for different business needs.
Real-time collaboration that allows managers and employees to update timesheets together.
Automated formulas that calculate totals, overtime, and billable hours instantly.
Integration with Smartsheet's project and resource management ecosystem for complete oversight.
Secure cloud-based access, allowing teams to log and review time from any device.
Image source: smartsheet.com
👉Try Smartsheet timesheet templates
3. WPS Office free timesheet templates: Excel & Word formats for time management
WPS Office offers free time tracker spreadsheet templates in both Excel and Word formats, making it a convenient option for individuals and small businesses seeking simple time-logging tools. These templates are easy to download, customize, and use, requiring no advanced technical skills or software knowledge. Whether you need a daily sheet to log hours or a monthly format for payroll, WPS offers ready-made designs that save time. The flexibility of choosing between Excel and Word formats allows users to adapt templates for reports, billing, or basic project tracking. For those seeking a cost-effective solution, WPS Office delivers practical options.
Key features:
Free downloadable timesheet templates in Excel and Word formats for quick setup.
Customizable fields for employee details, dates, hours worked, and project notes.
Templates designed for daily, weekly, and monthly time management needs.
Compatible with multiple devices and platforms, ensuring accessibility across various platforms.
Lightweight, easy-to-use solution for freelancers, students, or small businesses.
Image source: wps.com
👉Try WPS Office free timesheet templates
4. ClickUp time tracking spreadsheet: Task-based, customizable sheets
ClickUp offers flexible time tracker spreadsheet templates that focus on task-based tracking, making it easier for teams to connect logged hours directly with assigned work. Unlike static Excel sheets, ClickUp integrates task management with time tracking, enabling you to monitor productivity on a single platform. These spreadsheets can be customized to include fields for task names, assignees, deadlines, and hours spent, ensuring complete visibility into project progress. Cloud-based access enables multiple team members to update logs in real-time, keeping everyone aligned. For businesses seeking detailed accountability and transparent reporting, ClickUp offers an efficient and modern solution.
Key features:
Task-based time tracker spreadsheet template linked directly to project activities.
Fully customizable layouts with fields for names, tasks, dates, and hours.
Real-time collaboration for teams to update and monitor progress together.
Cloud storage for instant access across devices and locations.
Integration with ClickUp’s project management tools for deeper insights.
Image source: clickup.com
👉Try ClickUp time tracking spreadsheet
5. Vertex42 time sheet template (Excel): Classic Excel format for businesses
Vertex42 is a trusted source for professional time tracker spreadsheet templates, offering classic Excel-based timesheets that many businesses still rely on today. These templates are designed with simplicity in mind, making them easy to download, customize, and use without complex setup. Ideal for companies that prefer the familiarity of Excel, Vertex42's timesheets cover daily, weekly, and monthly tracking formats. Users can easily log employee hours, calculate totals, and prepare data for payroll. For businesses that want a no-frills, traditional option, Vertex42 delivers a proven and widely used solution.
Key features:
Provides free downloadable Excel time tracking templates in daily, weekly, and monthly formats for flexible use.
Includes pre-built formulas to automatically calculate total hours, regular time, and overtime with accuracy.
Allows for complete customization of fields, including employee names, project details, and task descriptions.
Works seamlessly with all Microsoft Excel versions, offering a familiar and user-friendly interface.
Trusted by small and mid-sized businesses for payroll preparation and attendance tracking.
Image source: vertex42.com
👉Try Vertex42 time sheet template
6. TeamGantt timesheet template: Project and task-based logs
TeamGantt offers intuitive time tracker spreadsheets tailored for project-focused teams that require clear visibility into tasks, deadlines, and workloads. Its timesheet templates are built to align closely with Gantt chart planning, allowing users to log hours directly against projects and specific tasks. This makes it easy to track not only employee time but also how that time contributes to overall project progress. By integrating timesheets with project management tools, TeamGantt helps businesses streamline scheduling, resource allocation, and billing within a single platform. It's particularly well-suited for teams managing multiple projects simultaneously.
Key features:
Offers task-based time tracking sheets that connect directly to project milestones and timelines.
Supports collaborative logging, allowing multiple team members to update hours in real-time.
Integrates timesheets with Gantt charts for a unified view of project progress and resource allocation.
Provides reporting tools to analyze time spent on projects, clients, or employees.
Enables exporting timesheet data into shareable formats for payroll, invoicing, or performance review.
Image source: teamgantt.com
👉Try TeamGantt timesheet template
7. Microsoft Excel timesheet templates: Official pre-built formats
Microsoft Excel offers a wide range of official pre-built time tracker spreadsheet templates that businesses, freelancers, and individuals widely use. These templates are easy to download and customize, making them ideal for recording daily hours, managing overtime, and preparing payroll. Since Excel is one of the most widely used tools worldwide, users benefit from both its flexibility and familiarity. While they lack automation and real-time collaboration, they remain a reliable choice for straightforward time management tasks that do not require additional software.
Key features:
Provides official pre-designed timesheet templates in daily, weekly, and monthly formats.
Allows users to customize fields such as employee name, task, project, and total logged hours.
Supports built-in formulas for calculating overtime, billable hours, and total wages.
Easily exportable into shareable formats like PDF or CSV for reporting and payroll.
Free to access with Microsoft Excel, making it a cost-effective solution for time tracking.
Image source: microsoft.com
👉Try Microsoft Excel timesheet templates
8. Google Sheets timesheet template: Cloud-based, shareable with teams
Google Sheets offers simple yet powerful time tracker spreadsheet templates that work seamlessly in the cloud, making them perfect for teams that need real-time collaboration. These templates are highly customizable and can be shared instantly with multiple users, ensuring transparency in logging hours, tasks, and projects. With automatic saving, formula support, and integration with other Google Workspace tools, they streamline time tracking without requiring specialized software. Ideal for remote or distributed teams, Google Sheets ensures flexibility, accessibility, and live updates across devices.
Key features:
Provides cloud-based timesheet templates that can be accessed anytime, anywhere, by multiple team members.
Enables real-time collaboration, allowing employees and managers to update or review logs simultaneously.
Supports built-in formulas for calculating weekly totals, overtime, or project hours automatically.
Integrates seamlessly with Google Workspace apps for connected workflows and reporting.
Free to use with a Google account, making it one of the most accessible and cost-effective time tracking solutions.
Image source: google.com
👉Try Google Sheets timesheet template
9. Template net free timesheet downloads: A Wide variety of daily/weekly/monthly
Template.net offers an extensive collection of time tracker spreadsheet templates that cater to nearly every use case, ranging from simple daily logs to comprehensive weekly and monthly timesheets. These downloads are available in multiple formats, including Excel, Word, PDF, and Google Sheets, making them highly versatile for businesses, freelancers, and individuals alike. With both free and premium options, Template.net ensures that users can quickly access pre-designed layouts, customize fields, and start tracking time without having to build sheets from scratch.
Key features:
Offers a wide range of timesheet templates, including daily, weekly, monthly, project-based, and client billing formats.
Provides free downloads in multiple file types, including Excel, Word, PDF, and Google Sheets, for easy customization and editing.
Saves time by giving ready-made layouts that can be adapted to suit any industry or workflow.
Includes both free and premium templates, catering to startups, freelancers, and established businesses.
Ensures professional formatting and design consistency, making records neat and presentable for reporting.
Image source: template.net
👉Try Google Sheets timesheet template
10. Clockify Excel/Google Sheets timesheet: Paired with their app for flexible use
Clockify, a leading time tracking app, also provides a free Excel template for time tracking and Google Sheets timesheets that pair seamlessly with its software. These templates allow individuals and teams to log hours manually while maintaining compatibility with Clockify's automated tracking features. Businesses can start with the spreadsheets for simple logging and later sync with the app for more advanced reporting, billing, and project management. This flexibility makes Clockify a strong option for users who want both traditional spreadsheets and modern app-based solutions.
Key features:
Provides free Excel and Google Sheets timesheet templates for logging daily, weekly, or monthly hours.
Integrates with the Clockify app for seamless transition from manual to automated time tracking.
Supports project-based tracking, client billing, and overtime calculation within the app ecosystem.
Offers customizable fields in templates, ensuring they adapt to the unique workflows of individual teams or individuals.
Free forever plan makes it accessible to freelancers, startups, and growing businesses looking for flexible time tracking.
Image source: clockify.me
Common mistakes in using time tracker spreadsheets (and how to avoid them)
Forgetting to standardize formats (date/time entries): When employees use different formats for dates or time logs, it creates inconsistencies that make reports messy and unreliable. Lark eliminates this issue with pre-set templates and uniform formats that keep all records clean and standardized.
Manual errors in formulas: Spreadsheets often rely on custom formulas for calculating totals, overtime, or billable hours, but one small mistake can throw off entire reports. With Lark’s automated time tracking and real-time calculations, businesses can avoid these costly errors altogether.
Not linking time data to tasks or outcomes: Many spreadsheets record hours but fail to connect them to actual tasks, projects, or client deliverables, reducing their usefulness. Lark enables you to link time logs directly to tasks and projects, offering a 360° view of productivity and workloads.
Lack of team-wide visibility: Static spreadsheets stored locally limit collaboration, making it hard for teams and managers to stay updated on time entries. Lark solves this with real-time sync, cloud access, and instant visibility for everyone, ensuring transparency and accountability.
Best practices for designing your own time tracker spreadsheet
Use formulas to auto-calculate totals: Manually adding hours across rows often leads to errors and inefficiency, so it’s best to set formulas that automatically calculate daily, weekly, or monthly totals. Lark already includes automation features that calculate time data in real time without the need for manual formulas.
Add drop-downs for projects or task categories: Drop-down menus help standardize entries, reduce typing mistakes, and make it easy to filter work by project or task type. Lark provides customizable fields and innovative forms, allowing teams to categorize hours seamlessly without needing to build dropdowns from scratch.
Apply conditional formatting for overdue work: Highlighting overdue tasks or missed time entries ensures teams address problems promptly, rather than waiting until they are too late. Lark's templates come with built-in notifications and reminders, automatically flagging missing logs or overdue approvals.
Keep dashboards simple and visual: Complex spreadsheets with too many charts or tables can overwhelm rather than inform, so keeping dashboards clean is key. Lark delivers real-time dashboards and reports with simple, visual layouts already optimized for clarity and collaboration.
Conclusion
A time tracker spreadsheet remains one of the most valuable tools for logging work hours, managing projects, and ensuring accurate client billing. Whether for individuals, freelancers, or teams, these templates simplify time management and provide clarity on productivity. However, static Excel files often present challenges such as manual updates, version control issues, and limited collaboration. This is where modern platforms such as Lark step in, offering more innovative alternatives with automation, customizable templates, and real-time team collaboration. By moving beyond traditional spreadsheets, businesses can gain accuracy, efficiency, and insights that truly support long-term growth.
FAQs
How do I choose between weekly, monthly, or project-based timesheets?
The choice depends on how your work is structured; weekly or monthly timesheets are excellent for routine tracking, while project-based logs are more suitable for task-driven teams. Freelancers often prefer weekly billing, whereas businesses may use monthly billing for payroll cycles. With Lark, you can switch between daily, weekly, or project-based formats instantly, making it easy to adapt templates to your workflow.
Can I use Excel formulas to automate calculations in a timesheet?
Yes, formulas like SUM or IF can help you calculate total hours and overtime automatically within Excel. While worthwhile, these formulas often require manual setup and careful error-checking. Lark eliminates this by offering pre-built automation that calculates totals, approvals, and reports in real time without the need for formulas.
Can a time tracker spreadsheet be shared with multiple team members?
Traditional Excel sheets can be emailed or uploaded to cloud storage, but this often causes version conflicts and confusion. Real-time collaboration requires a solution that syncs changes instantly across users. Lark allows teams to log and edit hours simultaneously, ensuring a single source of truth with no duplicate files.
What are the best templates for freelancers to log billable hours?
Freelancers benefit most from templates that enable clear tracking of clients, tasks, and rates for accurate invoicing. Excel or Google Sheets can provide this, but managing multiple clients manually becomes tedious. With Lark, freelancers can connect time logs directly to projects or clients and generate reports that simplify billing.
How can managers use timesheets to track productivity and resource allocation?
Managers typically analyze timesheets to understand employee efficiency, project costs, and the distribution of workload. Standard spreadsheets provide this data, but only in a static, after-the-fact view. Lark provides live dashboards and AI-powered insights, enabling managers to forecast resource needs and enhance team productivity with actionable data.
Is it better to use a time tracker spreadsheet template or dedicated time tracking software?
Spreadsheets are simple, free, and familiar, making them a good start for individuals or small teams. However, as organizations grow, the lack of automation, scalability, and collaboration becomes a challenge. Lark bridges the gap by combining ready-to-use templates with advanced features of time tracking software, giving you the best of both worlds.
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