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Hubstaff Review
Reviewed by Carlos Gil · Founder & Editor, The Best Network
Updated 6 min readEditorially reviewed
Quick facts
- Starting price
- Starter $4.99/seat/mo billed yearly ($7 monthly), 2-seat minimum
- Free plan
- Yes
- Best for
- Remote and distributed teams that pay people by the hour and want tracked time to flow into payroll and client invoices
- Platforms
- Windows, macOS and Linux apps, iOS and Android apps, Chrome extension, Firefox add-on, web app, REST API
BestStacked Score
Weighted average of 5 categories. Methodology below.
Quick answer
Which Hubstaff plan should a team buy?
If you want Hubstaff to pay people, the answer is usually Team: $10 per seat a month billed yearly, or $12 monthly. It's the first plan with payroll and payments, scheduling and attendance, timesheet approvals, time off, unlimited integrations and API access. Starter ($4.99 yearly, $7 monthly) and Grow ($7.50, $9) cover time tracking, screenshots, activity levels and invoices, but Starter has no integrations and Grow allows one. Every paid plan bills at least 2 seats, and owners and managers count as seats.
- Trial
- 14 days with no credit card. Refunds are limited to 30 days on your first paid organization.
- Monitoring
- Screenshots, app and URL tracking and activity levels are on every plan; screenshots can be turned off or blurred on paid plans.
- Add-ons
- GPS and geofencing (Locations) cost extra on Team and aren't sold on Starter or Grow. Insights costs extra below Team.
- Skip it if
- You only need a simple shared timer, or your team objects to screenshots and activity tracking.
The Verdict
Hubstaff is a sensible pick for remote teams that pay people by the hour and want one tool to track time, check activity and pay the hours. Its entry price is low, at $4.99 per seat a month billed yearly, and its apps cover Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android and the major browsers. The plan you'll probably need is Team at $10 billed yearly, because payroll, scheduling, approvals, time off and more than one integration all start there, and GPS tracking is a further add-on. Support is email-only with a 2-day response target on Starter, and Hubstaff's own pages disagree about whether there's a free plan and what VIP support costs. We score it 8.4/10.
Best for
Agencies, outsourcing firms and remote teams with hourly contractors who want tracked time to become payroll and invoices.
Skip if
You want a plain timer without monitoring, need phone support, or have one person to track and don't want to pay the 2-seat minimum.
AlternativesBuddy Punch, Toggl Track, Clockify
The Background
What Is Hubstaff?
Hubstaff is time tracking and workforce analytics software. Employees and contractors start a timer in a desktop, mobile or browser app, and Hubstaff records the hours against projects and to-dos. On desktop it can also record activity levels from keyboard and mouse use, the apps and URLs in use, and periodic screenshots, all of which an admin can switch off or limit. Tracked time feeds timesheets, budgets, client invoices and, on the Team plan and above, payroll through payment providers such as PayPal, Wise, Payoneer, Deel and Gusto. Optional add-ons cover GPS and geofencing for field teams (Locations), productivity analytics (Insights), a silent app for company-owned devices and extended data retention.
The Product
Hubstaff Features: What You Actually Get
Time tracking across devices
Hubstaff has desktop apps for Windows, macOS and Linux, mobile apps for iOS and Android, a Chrome extension, a Firefox add-on and a browser app. Its FAQ says time and activity are stored locally when a device is offline and sync later. Idle timeout and work breaks start on Grow.
A design agency's contractors track hours against client projects on their laptops, and the agency reviews timesheets each Friday.
Screenshots, activity and app tracking
Every plan records activity levels and screenshots, with monthly caps: 100 screenshots on Free, 500 per seat on Starter, 1,500 on Grow and unlimited from Team. App and URL tracking follows the same caps. Hubstaff's help center says screenshots can be set to none for the whole organization or per user, and blurred on the device, on paid plans.
An outsourcing firm keeps screenshots on for billable client work and blurs them for staff who handle sensitive data.
Payroll and payments
Team and Enterprise can pay team members from approved hours through payroll and payments integrations, including PayPal, Wise, Payoneer, Deel, Gusto and Bitwage. Starter and Grow list only limited payments. Team also adds timesheet approvals, overtime and time off.
A company with contractors in five countries approves weekly timesheets and pays each person through Wise or Payoneer.
Invoices, budgets and expenses
Client invoices start on Starter, project budgets and expenses on Grow, and client budgets and team invoices on Team. The Free plan includes limited invoices for up to 3 clients.
A freelance developer collective sets a 40-hour budget per client project and invoices from tracked time.
Scheduling, attendance and GPS
Scheduling and attendance start on Team. GPS tracking and geofenced job sites come only with the Locations add-on, which costs $3.33 per seat a month billed yearly ($4 monthly) on Team and is included on Enterprise. It isn't available on Starter or Grow.
A cleaning company schedules shifts and has crews clock in automatically when they arrive at a geofenced site.
Insights add-on
Insights adds productivity analytics, unusual activity detection and smart notifications. It costs $2.50 per seat a month billed yearly ($3 monthly) on Starter and Grow and is included on Enterprise. Hubstaff's Team plan card lists it as included, but its comparison tables say Team gets a 3-month trial.
An operations lead uses Insights to spot unusual activity patterns before payroll runs.
API, webhooks and MCP
Hubstaff's developer docs describe a REST API (v2) with OAuth 2.0 or access tokens, webhooks, a command-line tool and an MCP server, with a default limit of 120 requests a minute per token. The pricing page lists no API on Starter or Grow, limited API on Team and higher limits on Enterprise.
A staffing agency pulls approved hours into its billing system each night through the API.
Feature recap
- Desktop (Windows, macOS, Linux), mobile and browser time tracking
- Activity levels, app and URL tracking and optional screenshots
- Payroll through PayPal, Wise, Payoneer, Deel and Gusto from Team
- Client invoices from Starter; budgets and expenses from Grow
- Scheduling, attendance, approvals and time off from Team
- GPS and geofencing as a paid add-on on Team
- REST API, webhooks and MCP server (limited on Team)
- SOC 2 Type II, HIPAA and SSO on Enterprise
The Numbers
Hubstaff Pricing: Every Plan Explained
Hubstaff charges per seat per month, and every paid plan bills at least 2 seats. Owners and managers count as paid seats; only the Project Viewer role is free. Prices below are from Hubstaff's pricing page and help center, monthly and annual. There's a 14-day trial with no card. Prices checked on October 10, 2026.
| Plan | Monthly | Annual | Included Features | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | 1 seat (owner only): time tracking, timesheets, activity levels, 100 screenshots a month, limited reports and invoices, 3 clients | One person trying the tracker |
| Starter | $7/seat | $4.99/seat/mo | 500 screenshots and app/URL records per seat a month, 5 clients, client invoices, limited payments, no integrations, email support (2-day SLA) | Small teams that only need tracking and invoices |
| Grow | $9/seat | $7.50/seat/mo | 1,500 screenshots and app/URL records, 1 integration, project budgets, idle timeout, breaks, expenses, Tasks included, 1-day SLA | Teams that track against budgets |
| TeamBest value | $12/seat | $10/seat/mo | Unlimited screenshots and integrations, payroll and payments, scheduling and attendance, approvals, overtime, time off, client budgets, audit logs, limited API, chat support (1-day SLA) | Most teams that pay by the hour |
| Enterprise | $25/seat | $25/seat/mo | SSO, SCIM, HIPAA, SOC 2 Type II, higher API limits, account rep, concierge setup, 2-hour SLA; Locations, Insights, Silent app and Tasks included | Larger or regulated organizations |
Hubstaff's $4.99 headline is the annual Starter price per seat, and with the 2-seat minimum the smallest paid bill is about $10 a month. The real decision is between Grow and Team. Grow adds budgets and expenses but allows only one integration and no API, so a team that wants to pay people from tracked hours, schedule shifts or approve timesheets needs Team at $10 a seat billed yearly ($12 monthly). Add-ons stack on top: Locations (GPS) at $3.33 to $4 per seat on Team, Insights at $2.50 to $3 on Starter and Grow, extra data retention, a silent app and VIP support at $29 or more per organization a month. Hubstaff's help center also lists a Small Business Essentials plan at $144 a year for 3 paid seats plus the owner, for new organizations on annual billing only. The refund policy covers 30 days on your first paid organization and gives no refunds for removed seats.
Pricing scenarios
What Hubstaff costs for three team sizes
These are our calculations from Hubstaff's published prices on October 10, 2026, not quotes. Taxes are not included.
Calculation 1, a 2-person freelance team on Starter. 2 seats × $4.99 = $9.98 a month billed yearly ($119.76 a year), or 2 × $7 = $14 billed monthly. That covers tracking, screenshots and invoices but no integrations.
Calculation 2, a 10-person remote team on Team. 10 × $10 = $100 a month billed yearly ($1,200 a year), or 10 × $12 = $120 billed monthly. Payroll through PayPal, Wise or Payoneer is included; the payment provider's own fees are not.
Calculation 3, a 15-person field crew on Team with GPS. 15 × ($10 + $3.33 Locations) = $199.95 a month billed yearly, or 15 × ($12 + $4) = $240 billed monthly.
Before you roll it out
Monitoring and privacy controls
Hubstaff records more than hours. On desktop it can capture activity levels, apps and URLs, and screenshots, and the Insights add-on flags unusual activity. Employees will notice, so decide what you'll record before you invite anyone.
Hubstaff's help center says paid plans can turn screenshots off for everyone or per person, and blur them on the device before upload, which can't be undone. Monitoring laws vary by country and state, so check local rules and tell your team what's recorded and why.
The Tradeoffs
Hubstaff Pros and Cons
What we love
- Low entry price: $4.99 per seat a month billed yearly
- Apps for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, Chrome and Firefox
- Pays people from approved hours through PayPal, Wise, Payoneer, Deel or Gusto on Team
- Screenshots can be turned off or blurred on paid plans
- 14-day trial with no credit card
- Documented REST API, webhooks and an MCP server
What could be better
- Payroll, scheduling, approvals and unlimited integrations need Team ($10/seat/mo billed yearly)
- Every paid plan bills at least 2 seats, and managers count as seats
- GPS tracking is an add-on and isn't sold on Starter or Grow
- Email-only support with a 2-day response target on Starter
- Hubstaff's pages disagree on the free plan, VIP support price and Insights on Team
- Refunds only for 30 days on your first paid organization
The Audience
Who Should Use Hubstaff?
Best for: agencies and outsourcing firms with hourly contractors
Team links tracked hours, approvals, client invoices and payouts through Wise, PayPal or Payoneer, so one tool covers billing and paying.
Best for: field teams that need GPS clock-ins
The Locations add-on on Team adds GPS and geofenced job sites alongside scheduling and attendance.
Skip if: you only need a simple timer
Tools such as Toggl Track or Clockify are lighter for logging hours without activity tracking or screenshots.
The Methodology
How We Reviewed Hubstaff
This is an editorial review, not a documented hands-on test. We didn't use a Hubstaff account or install its apps. It's based on Hubstaff's pricing page, help center articles on plans, seats, screenshots and blur, its FAQ, download, integrations, security and refund pages, and its developer documentation, all checked on October 10, 2026. Prices were read from the pricing page's plan data and cross-checked against the help center. The cost scenarios are our calculations from published prices. Where Hubstaff's pages conflict, as on the free plan, VIP support and Insights on Team, we report both statements.
Our editorial evaluation considers product information, official documentation, pricing, features and professional experience. It is not a claim of documented hands-on testing.
Our review methodology →What changed
- : First published. Editorial review based on Hubstaff's pricing page, help center, FAQ, download, integrations, security and refund pages, and developer docs, checked on October 10, 2026.
The Field
Hubstaff vs The Competition
Hubstaff competes with time trackers that range from simple timers to monitoring suites. Prices are each vendor's own published entry plan, checked on October 10, 2026.
| Tool | Starting Price | Free plan | Best Feature | BS Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hubstaff | Starter $4.99/seat/mo billed yearly ($7 monthly), 2-seat minimum | Yes | Time tracking across devices | 8.4/10 |
| Toggl Track | Free (up to 3 users per its FAQ); Starter $9/user/mo billed yearly ($12 monthly) | Yes | Simple timer and reports without screenshots | Not yet reviewed |
| Clockify | Free plan; Basic $3.99/seat/mo billed yearly ($4.99 monthly) | Yes | Low per-seat price and a free plan for small teams | Not yet reviewed |
| Harvest | Free (1 seat, 2 projects); Teams $9/seat/mo billed yearly ($11 monthly) | Yes | Time tracking tied to invoicing and project budgets | Not yet reviewed |
| Buddy Punch | $19/mo base + $4.99/user/mo billed yearly ($5.99 monthly) | No | Punch-clock app with kiosk, geofencing and payroll export | 8.4/10 |
| Insightful | Workforce Analytics $8/seat/mo billed yearly | No | Productivity analytics as the main product | Not yet reviewed |
Toggl Track: Toggl Track suits teams that want to log hours for billing and reporting without activity monitoring. It costs more per seat than Hubstaff Starter.
Clockify: Clockify is cheaper per seat and has a free plan for several users. Its pricing page says up to 5 users and its FAQ says 4.
Harvest: Harvest focuses on billable hours, budgets and invoices for agencies and doesn't sell screenshot monitoring.
Buddy Punch: Buddy Punch is a time clock for hourly staff, with kiosk punching, GPS and its own payroll add-on, rather than a desktop activity tracker.Read our Buddy Punch review →See Hubstaff vs Buddy Punch →
Insightful: Insightful centres on workforce analytics and monitoring; Hubstaff sells similar analytics as its Insights add-on.
In The Wild
How People Actually Use Hubstaff
A 10-person remote agency
Run Team so contractors track time to client projects, approve timesheets weekly, invoice clients from tracked hours and pay contractors through Wise or PayPal.
A home-services company with field crews
Use Team with the Locations add-on for scheduled shifts, GPS and geofenced job-site clock-ins on the mobile apps.
A solo consultant
Start with the 1-seat Free plan to log hours and invoice up to 3 clients, then weigh the 2-seat minimum before upgrading.
The Ecosystem
Hubstaff Integrations
Hubstaff's integrations page says both 35+ integrations and over 30. How many you can connect depends on the plan: none on Starter, one on Grow and unlimited from Team.
- →Payroll and payouts: PayPal, Wise, Payoneer, Deel, Gusto, Bitwage (Team and up)
- →Accounting: QuickBooks, FreshBooks
- →Automation: Zapier
- →REST API v2, webhooks, CLI and MCP server (limited on Team, higher limits on Enterprise)
- →SSO and SCIM (Enterprise)
Integration counts per plan come from Hubstaff's pricing page. Payment providers charge their own transfer fees, which aren't part of Hubstaff's price.
Common Questions
Hubstaff FAQ
The Final Word
Should You Use Hubstaff?
Hubstaff gives remote and hourly teams time tracking on every major platform, optional screenshots and activity data, and a path from tracked hours to invoices and payouts. The low $4.99 entry price covers tracking and invoices; most teams that pay people will need Team at $10 per seat billed yearly, and field teams will add Locations for GPS. Weigh the 2-seat minimum, the email-only support on lower plans, the narrow refund policy and the points where Hubstaff's own pages disagree. We score Hubstaff 8.4/10.
Yes, if
You pay contractors or staff by the hour, want tracked time to become payroll and invoices, and are comfortable with optional activity monitoring.
No, if
You only need a basic timer, want phone support, or your team won't accept screenshots or activity tracking.
About the reviewer
Carlos Gil
Founder & Editor, The Best Network
Carlos Gil is the bestselling author of The End of Marketing, a LinkedIn Top Voice, and founder of The Best Network. He brings 15+ years in marketing to practical reviews of AI, SaaS, email marketing, creator, and ecommerce software.
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