Project Billing Rates and Time Tracking

SWELL's project management tools include a default billing rate field and a built-in time tracking system to help you monitor profitability and keep your team's hours organized.

Setting a Default Billing Rate

Each project has an optional Default Billing Rate field, found in the project create and edit form. This represents the hourly rate used when logging billable time on that project.

• Enter a dollar amount (e.g., $150.00)
• The rate appears in the project header as "$X.XX/hr" when set
• This field is optional. If left blank, the project simply has no default rate

The billing rate serves as a reference point for your team so everyone knows the agreed-upon hourly rate for the engagement.

Time Tracking

Starting the Timer

The timer widget lives in your sidebar. To track time:

1. Click the timer icon in the sidebar
2. Select a project from the dropdown
3. Optionally select a specific task within that project
4. Toggle Billable or Non-billable
5. Add a description of what you are working on
6. Click Start

Only one timer can run per user at a time. The minimum logged duration is one minute.

Manual Time Adjustment

You can double-click the running timer clock to manually edit the elapsed time if you forgot to start the timer or need to adjust.

Stopping the Timer

When you stop the timer, the time entry is saved with all associated metadata (project, task, billable status, description). You can also discard an entry if you started the timer by mistake.

Timesheets Dashboard

The Timesheets dashboard gives you a comprehensive view of all tracked time across your team. Features include:

• Filtering by project, team member, billable status, and date range
• Grouping by date, project, person, or billable status
• Summary stats showing total tracked hours, billable hours, non-billable hours, and payment status (paid vs. unpaid)
• CSV export for reporting and payroll

Billing and Invoicing

Time entries include a billable/non-billable toggle. Billable entries can be linked to invoices through the Products system. When a time entry is associated with an invoice, the timesheets dashboard marks it as "paid."

To calculate billable amounts, link a Product to your time entries. The product's price is used as the hourly rate for calculating the total billable amount on exports and reports.

Tips

• Set the Default Billing Rate on each project so your team always knows the client's agreed rate.
• Use the billable toggle consistently so your timesheets dashboard accurately reflects revenue-generating work.
• Export timesheets as CSV for client invoicing or internal payroll processing.
• Review the timesheets dashboard weekly to catch any unbilled or unlogged time.

Updated on: 01/07/2026