ClickTime vs Costlocker (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Costlocker grades higher than ClickTime: 2.0 against 1.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Costlocker grades higher on the free plan. They get the same grade on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
ClickTime
Timesheets and labor cost tracking for finance and project teams
Costlocker
Time and cost tracking that shows profit per project for agencies
Which one is for you
Pick ClickTime if
- Fits if you run a services firm that needs approvals on timesheets
- Makes sense if you are happy to book a demo before seeing any price
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to try before talking to sales, as there is no free plan or trial
- Pricey if you are a small team, as the $12 starting price is in the dearest tenth
- Watch out: expense tracking is a $4 per user a month add-on and many integrations cost extra
- Watch out: approvals, cost rates and time off need Team, and budgeting needs Premier, neither with a published price
Pick Costlocker if
- Fits if you run an agency and want project profit next to the hours
- Makes sense if you only pay for the people who actually log time
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you pay monthly, at $20 against $12 on a yearly plan
- Skip it if you are a freelancer, as one plan means no cheaper tier for light use
- Not for you if you need ready-made integrations, as only the API and Make.com are listed
- Watch out: it is aimed at agencies and may carry more than a small team needs
How we grade them
| 1.6GPAClickTimeWeak | 2.0GPACostlockerFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DListed from $12 per user a month with the billing basis not shown, where the dearest tenth of time tracking starts at $12; other plans show no price. | D$12 per active user a month billed yearly, or $20 monthly. The dearest tenth of time tracking starts at $12. |
| Free plan and trial | FThe page offers no free plan and no free trial; every plan is bought through a demo request. | C30-day free trial with no card needed, and no free plan. |
| Features | CTimesheets, reporting and AI chat, but approvals, cost rates and time off need Team, and budgeting and resource management need Premier. | CTime, costs, expenses and budgets in one plan, but integrations are limited to the API and Make.com, per the listing. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. Plans are set up through a sales demo, with approvals and cost rules to configure. | CNo store rating on record. Projects, clients and budgets have to be built before the profit view is any use. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android with 8 integrations on record, and no desktop app. | BWeb, Mac, Windows and iPhone apps with an API; no Android app on record and only the API and Make.com for integrations. |
| Best for | timesheets with approvals for service firms | agency profitability with time tracking |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: ClickTime and Costlocker. How we grade
Price against what you get
ClickTime starts at $12 a month for each person and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Costlocker starts at $12 a month for each person and scores 2.3.
On this chart the two sit in the same place: the same score for the same starting price. Of the other time tracking apps on the chart, 31 score higher than ClickTime for less, and 31 score higher than Costlocker for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- ClickTime also covers expense tracking, time off and dashboards.
At a glance
| ClickTime | Costlocker | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free trial |
| Starts at | $12 per user / month (starting price; billing basis not shown) | $12 per active user / month, billed yearly ($20 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 30-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | ClickTime | Costlocker |
| Price read from | clicktime.com | costlocker.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
ClickTime
- Per-plan prices are not displayed on the pricing page, and every plan is bought through a demo request.
- Expense tracking is a $4 per user a month add-on, and many integrations are add-ons rather than included.
- Approvals, cost rates and time off need the Team plan; budgeting and resource management need Premier.
- The page offers no free plan or free trial.
Costlocker
- There is a single plan, so no free tier and no cheaper tier for light users.
- The $12 price needs yearly billing; monthly billing is $20 per active user.
- Integrations are limited to the API and Make.com; no native apps by name are listed.
- Aimed at agencies, so it may carry more than a freelancer needs.
Key features
ClickTime
- Web and mobile timesheets
- Daily, weekly or biweekly timesheets on web, iPhone and Android with a timer, notes, copy-forward entry and required-field rules.
- Automated time capture
- Team and above can pull time from calendars, Jira, GitHub, Zoom, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, with AI matching entries to projects.
- Cost structure at entry
- Billing and cost rates by person, project and date, plus custom fields for cost codes, CapEx and OpEx, grants and R&D.
- Approvals and audit trail
- Approval workflows, timesheet locking, overtime rules and a full change history; DCAA-compliant timesheets are listed in the plan table.
- Reporting and Ellie AI chat
- 70+ pre-built reports and dashboards, plus an AI chat that answers labor-cost questions and builds reports, limited on the Team plan.
- Budgeting and capacity
- Premier adds project budgets, resource allocation and capacity planning that use approved hours.
Costlocker
- Profitability insights
- Compares projects, clients and teams on revenue against cost, so unprofitable work shows up and high-value clients stand out.
- Time tracking
- Logs billable and non-billable hours per project, with apps for Mac, Windows and iOS alongside the web app.
- Cost and expense tracking
- Records labor costs, subcontractors, overhead and other expenses next to the hours, not only time.
- Budget control
- Sets a budget per project and compares it with actual cost as work is logged, to catch overruns early.
- Active-user billing
- Only active users are billed. A deactivated user keeps their data, and unused prepaid time becomes credit on the next invoice.
- API and Make.com
- Connects to other tools through its developer API and through Make.com.
Plans
ClickTime
Starter$12
per user / month; billing basis not shown
Web and mobile timesheets, 70+ reports, email reminders. Page data lists $15 per user a month for up to 25 users. Sold via demo request.
TeamCustom
Adds automated time capture and AI mapping, approvals, cost rates, Work Types and time off. Page data lists $19 per user a month, up to 200 users.
PremierCustom
Adds project budgeting, resource management, custom reports and dashboards. Page data lists $31 per user a month, up to 200 users.
EnterpriseCustom
Everything in Premier, plus custom integrations, advanced security and onboarding with a dedicated expert, for 1,000+ employee organizations.
Costlocker
All-Inclusive Plan$12
per active user / month, billed yearly ($20 billed monthly)
One plan with unlimited projects and clients, desktop apps, API access and chat and email support.
Ways to pay less
ClickTime
- Nonprofit
Nonprofit pricing
The pricing page asks "Are you a nonprofit?" and links to separate nonprofit pricing; the figures are not on the page itself.
Costlocker
- Annual discount
40% off with yearly billing
The pricing page states a 40% discount on the yearly plan compared with monthly billing.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, ClickTime or Costlocker?
As of Nov 12, 2026, they start at the same price. ClickTime starts at $12 per user / month (starting price; billing basis not shown), and Costlocker starts at $12 per active user / month, billed yearly ($20 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, ClickTime or Costlocker?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither ClickTime nor Costlocker has a free plan. Costlocker has a free trial.
Which platforms do ClickTime and Costlocker run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only ClickTime lists an Android app and only Costlocker lists macOS and Windows apps. Both list a web app and an iOS app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.