Tired of time trackers you stop using after a week?
Timer based tools such as Toggl depend on you pressing start when you switch tasks and stop when you finish. Passive tools such as RescueTime or Rize record which apps and sites you used, which is not the same as what you actually got done.
Hourly takes a different route: it comes to you. Once every hour of real activity it asks one question, and you answer in one sentence. The result is a short log in your own words.
| A typical time tracker | Hourly | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting it | You remember to press start | It asks you, on its own schedule |
| What it captures | Timers, app and window names, categories | One sentence in your own words |
| Where the log lives | In the tool's own dashboard | A file on your computer, and your notes folder if you choose one |
| Time away | Often counted unless you stop the timer | A locked screen and sleep pause the clock |
| Setup | Projects, tags or categories | Nothing to configure |
| Getting your data out | Depends on the tool | Export as Markdown, text or JSON, with an optional prompt for an AI assistant |
Who it is not for
Hourly is not a billing or reporting suite. It has no projects, clients or invoices. If you need time sheets for clients, a timer based tool is the right choice. Hourly is for people who have dropped two or three trackers already and just want an honest record of where the day went.
What it costs
The hourly check-in is free and needs no account. It runs on Windows 10 and 11, and the source code is public.