Hubstaff vs timeghost (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Hubstaff if

• Fits if you manage a remote team and want screenshots and activity data as proof of work
• Works for companies that pay contractors from their tracked hours

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want a free plan, as free use ends with the 14-day trial
• Pricey if you need integrations, app and URL tracking or payroll, because those mean Team at $10 a seat
• Not for you if you work alone, since the plans have a 2-seat minimum
• Watch out: Insights, Tasks, Locations and the silent app cost $1.67 to $3.33 a seat extra on lower plans
• Tight if you're on Starter, with 500 screenshots a seat a month, limited reports and no integrations

Pick timeghost if

• Fits if your company already lives in Microsoft Teams
• Makes sense if you want working-hours checks against legal rest limits

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you don't use Microsoft 365, since sign-in goes through it
• Pricey if you want dollars: prices are in euros per user and exclude VAT
• Tight if you are staying free, because there's no free plan after the 14 days
• Too light for invoicing, as it covers hours and budgets but not billing

Hubstaff

• No free plan: Hubstaff's FAQ says free use is limited to the 14-day trial.
• Starter, Grow and Team have a 2-seat minimum, and Enterprise is listed as billed annually.
• Starter includes no integrations and Grow includes 1; unlimited integrations need Team.
• Insights, Tasks, Locations and the silent app cost extra on lower plans: $1.67 to $3.33 per seat a month on annual billing.

timeghost

• Prices are in euros, per user and exclude VAT; no dollar price is listed.
• It is built around Microsoft 365 and Teams, so it suits companies outside that ecosystem less well.
• There is no free plan; after the 14-day trial both plans are paid per user.
• Sign-in is through Microsoft 365 single sign-on, so users need a Microsoft account.

Hubstaff

Timer and timesheets

A timer on desktop, web and mobile produces timesheets on every plan. Timesheet approvals, scheduling and attendance, time off and overtime start on Team.

Screenshots and activity levels

Captures screenshots, activity levels and the apps and URLs used during tracked time. Starter allows 500 screenshots per seat a month, Grow 1,500, and Team is unlimited.

Insights

A workforce analytics add-on from $2.50 per seat a month that classifies work time, reports focus and meeting time and flags unusual activity. Included with Enterprise.

Payments and payroll

Team members can be paid from their tracked hours. Payments are limited on Starter and Grow and open up on Team, with integrations such as PayPal, Wise, Deel and Gusto.

Clients, invoices and budgets

Client invoices are part of every plan, with Starter capped at 5 clients. Project budgets and expense tracking start on Grow.

Locations

Mobile location tracking with geofenced job sites and work orders. It is a $3.33 per seat a month add-on for Team, included with Enterprise and not offered on Starter or Grow.

timeghost

Check-in, break and check-out

Records working hours with one click in Teams and checks maximum work hours and rest periods against legal limits.

Project time and budgets

Books time to projects and tasks, with budgets and hourly rates per project for cost and profitability views.

Time suggestions from Microsoft 365

Turns Teams calls, Outlook appointments and Planner tasks into suggested entries that the user confirms.

Teams group sync and sign-in

Teams groups sync automatically, and new or departing employees are added or deactivated with single sign-on through Microsoft 365.

Reports and export

Reports for work time and project time, exportable to Excel, CSV or PDF with configurable columns.

Mobile app

Tracks work and project time on iOS and Android, aimed at mobile teams and field workers.

Hubstaff

• Starter$4.99

  per seat / month, billed annually ($7 billed monthly); 2-seat minimum

  Time tracking, timesheets, activity levels, clients and invoices, limited reports and payments, and 500 screenshots per seat a month.

• Grow$7.50

  per seat / month, billed annually ($9 billed monthly); 2-seat minimum

  Adds full reports, 1 integration, idle timeout, project budgets, expenses and the Tasks add-on, with 1,500 screenshots per seat a month.

• Team$10

  per seat / month, billed annually ($12 billed monthly); 2-seat minimum

  Adds unlimited screenshots and app and URL tracking, teams, payments and payroll, unlimited integrations and a 3-month Insights trial.

• Enterprise$25

  per seat / month, billed annually

  Adds the silent app, Locations and Insights, higher public API limits, ACH payment, HIPAA and SOC 2 Type II compliance, and SCIM provisioning.

timeghost

• Annual Plan€7.90

  per user / month, billed annually (€8.90 billed monthly)

  Work and project time tracking, reports, mobile app, Microsoft 365 activity capture and unlimited projects and clients. Prices exclude VAT.

• Monthly Plan€8.90

  per user / month, billed monthly

  The same features as the annual plan, cancellable monthly. Prices exclude VAT.

Hubstaff

• Annual discount

  2 months free with annual billing

  The pricing page labels annual billing "2 months free": Team is $10 per seat a month annually against $12 monthly, and Starter is $4.99 against $7.

• Other savings

  Small Business Essentials flat-fee plan

  Hubstaff's support site describes a special-offer plan for new organizations at $144 a year, billed annually, with 3 paid seats plus a free owner seat and no add-ons.

timeghost

• Annual discount

  Save over 10% with the annual plan

  The vendor lists the annual plan at 7.90 euros per user a month, against 8.90 euros on monthly billing.