Kimai vs Timebutler (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Kimai grades higher than Timebutler: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 6, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Kimai grades higher on value for money and the free plan. Timebutler grades higher on platforms. They get the same grade on features and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Kimai
Open-source time tracking with invoicing, self-hosted or cloud
Timebutler
German time tracking and leave planning with a flat team price
Which one is for you
Pick Kimai if
- Fits if you want your time tracking data on a server you control
- Works for freelancers and agencies who invoice clients straight from timesheets
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want an official phone or desktop app, because Kimai itself only runs in the browser
- Not for you if you want a free hosted plan, as the cloud gives a 30-day trial and nothing after
- Tight if you self-host and need expenses, custom fields or kiosk mode, since they're paid plugins, expenses at €99
- Watch out: cloud prices are in euros before tax, and on Professional kiosk mode and SAML show only with annual billing
- Too light for automatic tracking, since nothing records by itself
Pick Timebutler if
- Fits if you run a German team and need leave and overtime balances
- Makes sense if you want a flat price for the whole team
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you need English prices, since the pricing page is German
- Not for you if you work outside German law, as time rules are built around it
- Tight if you grow past 200 people, which means an individual quote
- Watch out: after a term ends unrenewed the account is frozen, viewable but not editable, and prices exclude VAT
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAKimaiFair | 2.2GPATimebutlerFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BCloud Standard is €2.99 a user a month billed annually, or €3.99 monthly, and invoicing, exports and the API are already in it. That puts it in the cheaper quarter of the category. Professional is €3.99. Prices are in euros and exclude taxes. | C€29.95 a month for the whole team of up to 5, about €6 a head, excluding VAT. €59.95 up to 35 people. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree only if you host it. The open-source edition costs nothing on your own server, with unlimited users, customers and projects, and one person can stay on it. Extras like expenses are paid plugins, and Kimai Cloud has no free plan, just a 30-day trial. | C6 weeks free for the whole team with no card, then it ends. No free plan. |
| Features | CTime goes against customers, projects and activities, with budgets, reports, exports and invoices from your own templates, plus teams, roles and SAML login. But nothing tracks by itself, and on the self-hosted edition expenses, custom fields and kiosk mode are plugins you buy, expenses at €99. | CTime clock, leave, overtime, shifts, personnel files and a DATEV file export. Aimed at German rules, and DATEV is a file, not a sync. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. On the cloud it's a web app you sign in to, but it's one where you build the thing: customers, projects, activities and invoice templates before any of it reports. Hosting it yourself needs SSH access to a server. | CNo store rating on record. The pricing page is in German, and rules and calendars need setting up. |
| Platforms and integrations | CA browser, and that's it from Kimai itself. There's a JSON API and a short list of links, GrandTotal, Bexio and VS Code, but every phone and desktop app on its integrations page is made by somebody else, and some of them cost money. | BWeb, iOS and Android, with an API and DATEV export. No desktop app. |
| Best for | open-source time tracking with invoices | German-law time tracking and leave planning |
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: Kimai and Timebutler. How we grade
Price against what you get
Kimai starts at about $3.34 a month for each person and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Timebutler starts at about $33.46 a month for each person and scores 2.3.
Timebutler scores higher, and starts $30.12 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other time tracking apps on the chart, 8 score higher than Kimai for less, and 41 score higher than Timebutler 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
- Kimai is open source and self-hostable, according to its own site.
- Kimai also covers invoicing.
- Timebutler also covers shift scheduling, time clock, employee records and time off.
At a glance
| Kimai | Timebutler | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | €2.99 per user / month, billed annually (€3.99 billed monthly) | €29.95 per month for the whole team of up to 5 people, excl. VAT |
| Free plan | Self-hosted Kimai is free and open source (AGPL 3) with unlimited users, customers and projects. Extras such as expenses, custom fields and kiosk mode are paid plugins. The Kimai Cloud pricing page lists no free plan. | None |
| Free trial | 30-day free trial of Kimai Cloud | 6 weeks free for the whole team, no card needed; ends by itself |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Kevin Papst | Timebutler GmbH |
| Price read from | kimai.org | timebutler.de |
| Checked | Oct 6, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Kimai
- Cloud prices are in euros and exclude taxes; the pricing page lists no free cloud plan, only a 30-day trial.
- On Cloud Professional, kiosk mode, SAML single sign-on, a custom domain and IP access restriction are shown only with annual billing.
- Kimai runs in the browser; the mobile and desktop apps on its integrations page are made by third parties, and some are paid.
- Self-hosting needs SSH access to a server, and plugins such as expenses (99 €) are bought separately.
Timebutler
- Pricing is in euros, excludes VAT, and the pricing page is in German; the free period is a 6-week trial, not a free plan.
- Prices cover the whole team by user count, and teams over 200 people get an individual quote.
- Time rules are built around German working-time law, and direct debit is offered only in Germany.
- After the term ends without renewal the account is frozen: data stays viewable and downloadable but cannot be changed.
Key features
Kimai
- Project time tracking
- Time is recorded against customers, projects and activities, with budgets and order numbers on projects. Every installation supports unlimited users with roles.
- Invoicing
- Invoices are created from timesheets with configurable templates and invoice numbers, grouping options for entries, and output formats such as PDF and DOCX.
- Reports and exports
- Recorded time is analyzed by user, customer, project, activity, tag and period. Timesheets export as XLSX, PDF, CSV or HTML, and exported records can be locked.
- Teams and permissions
- Teams group users into units such as departments. Assigning customers and projects to a team limits who can see and record time on them.
- Login and security
- Supports LDAP and SAML login through providers such as Google Workspace, Azure AD or Authentik, plus optional two-factor authentication with TOTP tokens.
- JSON API and plugins
- A JSON API reads and writes data for external apps. Plugins add functions such as expenses, task planning and a kiosk mode with barcode or RFID scanning.
Timebutler
- Time recording
- Staff clock in with a virtual time clock in the browser, enter hours by hand or punch in at a shared tablet or terminal.
- Vacation and absence planning
- A color-coded team calendar shows who is away, with leave limits, request approval and sick-note handling.
- Overtime accounts
- Tracks each person's overtime balance, with Excel export and an API to sync the data to other systems.
- Shift planning
- A weekly calendar shows who works when and which shifts still have gaps.
- Digital personnel file
- Stores employee records and uploaded documents, with custom fields you define yourself.
- DATEV export
- Exports hours and absences as a DATEV ASCII file for import, for example into DATEV LODAS. It is a file export, not a live sync.
Plans
Kimai
Self-hostedFree
The open-source edition on your own server, installed with Docker or over SSH. Community support; some features are paid plugins.
Cloud Standard€2.99
per user / month, billed annually (€3.99 billed monthly)
Hosted time tracking with billable hours, invoicing, data export, audit logs, the JSON API, 5 invoice templates and weekly backups.
Cloud Professional€3.99
per user / month, billed annually (€4.99 billed monthly)
Adds working hour accounts, vacation and sick leave, expenses, custom fields, task management, a customer portal and daily backups.
Timebutler
Up to 5 people€29.95
per month for up to 5 people, excl. VAT
One price for the whole team, with every feature included.
6 to 35 people€59.95
per month for up to 35 people, excl. VAT
One price for the whole team, with every feature included.
36 to 200 people€59.95
per month, plus €1.39 per person above 35, excl. VAT
Base price for 35 people plus €1.39 a month for each additional person; 50 people costs €80.80.
Over 200 peopleCustom
Individual quote for teams larger than 200; sold through sales.
Ways to pay less
Kimai
- Annual discount
20 to 25% off Kimai Cloud with annual billing
Kimai's discount page says paid cloud plans cost 20 to 25% less when paid annually: Standard is €2.99 against €3.99 a month, and Professional €3.99 against €4.99.
- Nonprofit
Discounted annual cloud plan for nonprofits
Nonprofits, schools and clubs that register with an official email address and message support get a reduced annual cloud plan after a manual review.
Timebutler
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Kimai or Timebutler?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Kimai is cheaper to start with: about $3.34 a month for each person, against about $33.46 a month for each person for Timebutler. Kimai starts at €2.99 per user / month, billed annually (€3.99 billed monthly), and Timebutler starts at €29.95 per month for the whole team of up to 5 people, excl. VAT.
Which has a free plan, Kimai or Timebutler?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Kimai has a free plan. Timebutler does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Kimai and Timebutler run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Timebutler lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web 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.