Comparison

Hubstaff Alternatives: Your Guide to the Top Competitors

December 1, 2023

If you’re on the fence about implementing Hubstaff, or if you’re using it but it isn't meeting your expectations as a project management tool, rest assured that there are plenty of excellent alternatives available today.

Whether you're seeking a tool that can help you streamline your processes, monitor your projects’ progress, or manage administrative tasks, there are numerous choices to consider. And choosing a project management software that is right for your team will vastly depend on your needs and the problems you’re trying to solve.

In this article, we will present you with the top 13 Hubstaff alternatives for 2024, including our all-in-one solution, Rodeo Drive. We'll highlight the benefits of each tool, its key features, and its most significant advantages and disadvantages compared to Hubstaff.

But before we delve into these Hubstaff alternatives, let's explore some of the reasons why you may be seeking a better project management software solution in the first place.

Why should I look for a Hubstaff alternative?

Hubstaff is a popular choice among businesses primarily looking to closely track employee hours and productivity.

While the tool can also be utilized for tracking billable hours, employee monitoring, and calculating payroll, these additional features require extra payment and integration with other Hubstaff products.

Online reviews of Hubstaff highlight the user-friendly nature of the tool. Yet, some organizations have found that it didn’t meet their needs. Here’s why:

The app can be distracting

Hubstaff sends notifications when employees start or stop working, take breaks, or switch tasks.

While these notifications are intended to help employers monitor their team's productivity, they can be distracting for employees who receive them constantly throughout the day.

Hubstaff review on Capterra

^{Source: Capterra}

It can feel intrusive

Hubstaff's activity tracking feature can make team members feel like they're being constantly watched and evaluated. That’s because the feature tracks how employees are spending their time based on mouse and keyboard usage — including which apps and websites are used.

This can create a stressful work environment, which leads to a decrease in productivity since team members are constantly trying to look good on the report, rather than actually getting work done. For example, employees may try to multitask while using Hubstaff, switching between different apps, tasks, or projects in an attempt to appear more productive.

Although this approach may look as if a team member is being productive, the quality of the work produced is questionable. As the below review states, micromanagement is not the way to go.

Hubstaff review Capterra

^{Source: Capterra}

The interface can be difficult to navigate

Hubstaff offers a lot of different features and customization options, which can make it overwhelming for users who are new to the tool. It can take time to learn how to use all the different features and settings.

While the interface is generally intuitive, some users may find it difficult to navigate due to the sheer amount of information presented on the screen. The interface can appear cluttered, which can make it difficult to find the features and settings you need.

Hubstaff review Capterra

^{Source: Capterra}

The top 13 Hubstaff alternatives to consider for project management

We’ve shown you some reasons you might be looking for Hubstaff alternatives, so let’s kick off the list with the 13 best Hubstaff alternatives on the market.

1. Rodeo Drive

We don’t want to toot our own horn, but Rodeo Drive is an all-in-one project management tool that has been specifically designed to support every stage of the project cycle, making it an excellent choice for project-based and creative teams.

In contrast, Hubstaff’s features are not centered on a project lifecycle but focused on a feature, requiring users to create and structure their workflows from scratch.

Rodeo Drive offers a comprehensive set of built-in features, reducing the need for expensive and time-consuming integrations. This enables teams to streamline their tech stack, allowing them to accomplish more with fewer applications. These features are designed to work harmoniously, making Rodeo Drive incredibly intuitive to use.

To better understand this, let's review what each feature can do.

Time-tracking software made easy

Tracking your hours can be tedious and outright annoying, but if you make it as simple as possible, there is nothing to it.

In Rodeo Drive, your team members can track their time in two different ways. They can simply set the timer once starting a task, allowing them to pause when they grab a coffee and start it again until clocking out.

Do you find yourself distracted when working with a timer? Simply record the hours you've worked later using our timecard function.

Tracking time spent on projects is essential for billing clients for the correct number of billable hours worked. Plus, it helps you maintain a healthy profit margin on your projects.

Rodeo Drive's live timer

^{Using Rodeo Drive’s live timer function}

Phase-based budgeting

At Rodeo, we believe that every project starts with a clear budget. Our software offers a phase-based approach to budgeting so you can structure it around the activities and tasks for each phase of your project.

By starting with a budget, you can consider the resources needed to complete the project’s objectives. In Rodeo Drive, you can also reuse the same project and budget framework from previous projects when creating new ones.

Once your project is underway, you'll be able to track your budget spending in real-time, based on the hours logged by your team members.

Creating a project budget in Rodeo Drive

^{Building a project example in Rodeo Drive}

Client-ready invoices

Ah, the fun part. Rodeo Drive makes it easy to invoice clients based on the project phase, estimate, or for the hours logged. Send your invoices straight from the platform or Xero if you're in the UK, or via QuickBooks integration in the US.

Leverage insights with detailed reports

One of the best things about an all-in-one tool is that you get insights into every step of your project lifecycle through powerful reporting capabilities.

Rodeo Drive’s "Reports" tab gives you insights into employee productivity and logged hours, offering a detailed view of closed projects. These insights can be leveraged to create realistic budgets for future projects.

Rodeo Drive's time report

^{Rodeo Drive’s time report}

Additional features

Customizable client-ready estimates
Expense and purchase order tracking
Planning and task management
Client contact management
Integration with QuickBooks (US) and Xero (UK)

Who is this tool for?

Rodeo Drive can be used by any project-based team, although it’s a popular choice among creative agencies and marketing teams. The user interface is designed to make your work life easier and forget about a steep learning curve — the platform is straightforward, so you only have to show it to your team how to use it once.

Don’t just take our word for it. Visual effects company BAIT Studio uses all of Rodeo’s features, and according to their Managing Director, Peter Rogers, "Even things like time tracking feel very unintrusive, so all the artists have no problem sticking to doing it. When they discover they forgot to set the timer, they can just add the time later.”

Pricing

Rodeo Drive’s pricing structure is straightforward. Try out the platform with our Free plan, or upgrade to our Achiever plan for access to more projects and features. The Achiever plan is a flat rate of $14.99 per user/month with no user maximums or minimums.

We get it, you’ll want to test out the platform before committing. Try for free today — no credit card required.

2. Toggl Track

Screenshot of Toggl Track

^{Source: Toggl Track}

Toggl offers a suite of solutions. You can use Toggl Track for the time tracking tool, Toggl Plan for scheduling and planning, and Toggl Hire for staffing and hiring. However, these features are sold as different products, meaning you’ll need all three products to make it a complete project management tool.

Toggl came into the market first as a time-tracking software and integrates with tools such as Asana, Trello, and more. This is at the same time one of the biggest drawbacks, you’ll need — costly! — integrations or other Toggl products to scale and make it an all-in-one solution for your team. Or, if you’re looking for a no-frills time tracker, Toggl Track might be your best bet.

Popular features

Revenue tracking
Project timelines
Client guest users