When searching for the best time-tracking software, it is important to not only consider what it offers and how much it costs but also look at the features that set it apart from others. All time trackers may not be created equal. It’s crucial to compare and decide which of the competitors is worth a shot.
We must not forget to consider our personal feelings. The final decision you make will affect your personal feelings and impact the productivity of your team.
Time Doctor is one of the most popular apps in today’s productivity market. It has both teams and single users in a stupor for its task- and time-monitoring capabilities. But has it caught us the same way? Read this comprehensive review to find out.
For those of you who prefer a more visual experience, here is a video review from Frank on his YouTube channel Franklin Rivera. You can still read our article to get a complete overview of Time Doctor.
A Closer Look at Time Doctor Jira Time Tracking Best Practices
Time Doctor is a time tracking and project-monitoring tool that’s best suited to small and large businesses, freelancers, remote teams, and freelance workers. The tool’s range of features and tools is designed to assist teammates and individuals in improving their productivity by 22% on average.
Launched in 2012, around a decade earlier already, Time Doctor has slowly gained a large following, becoming a popular time management tool among companies everywhere, whether they’re established or just starting in the industry. It has also become a hit among freelancers who often work for multiple clients thanks to its convenient client portal feature.
Time Doctor has amassed a user base of over 250,000 businesses throughout its history. Apple, Ericsson and the Better Business Bureau (BBB), Verizon and Boost Media are just a few of the many companies that have used Time Doctor for employee and time management issues.
Time Doctor is well-known for its time and activity tracking functions, as well as advanced capabilities such setting reminders to remind you when the timer should be started and stopped. These features alone may be enough for the platform to position itself way ahead of other time management apps. However, it is unable to do so because of its lack of consistency in user useability.
We believe Time Doctor can be a great addition to any team or individual looking to increase their productivity. Keep reading to know more about what else this one-of-a-kind platform has to offer and how well each of them works! Jira Time Tracking Best Practices
> > Click Here to Try Time Doctor Now < <
The pros
- Time Doctor is most well-known for its easy-to-use, time- and activity management tools and functions.
- It includes standout features such as pinpoint-accurate reporting, idle alerts, and automatic reminders.
- The user-friendly and extensive client portal makes it easy for freelancers to interact with clients.
- It allows for a large and seamless integration with third-party platforms.
The Cons
- Its messy user interface makes navigating through the platform quite different for most users, especially first-timers. Jira Time Tracking Best Practices
- Its mobile apps are not as flexible as its web and desktop counterparts, despite their potential.
- It does not allow for smooth switching between web-based client apps and desktop apps, particularly if you are both the administrator or the user.
- Only the web extension or desktop app can access the time tracking function.
Pricing and plans
Before we move on to everything else, let’s talk about the plans and how much they cost first. Time Doctor currently offers three paid subscription tiers, each with a distinctive set of features and tools that become more advanced and packed as the cost increases.
The pricing will also increase according to the number of users added to one team. Let’s check out the following three available plans in the Time Doctor platform.
- Basic – $70/user annually or $7/user monthly
Time Doctor’s Basic tier includes access to the platform’s core features, such as time and activity tracking, task and project management, and unlimited screenshots. However, you can only use them if you download the desktop application or web extension. Plus, you’re limited to one month’s worth of data storage.
- Standard – $100/user per year or $10/user per month
The Standard plan unlocks the opportunity to access a few advanced features, such as tracking the apps and website URLs used by any of your teammates, the payroll tool, reporting, and an additional 60 integrations with third-party apps. The Standard plan also has a new time limit for its customer support hotline, which is now limited to three days instead of 24 hours.
- Premium – $200/user annually or $20/user monthly Jira Time Tracking Best Practices
The Premium tier is the most complete yet out of the three. Subscribers to the Premium tier have access to all the Time Doctor features. They can explore the client portal and take screen recordings.
Those who choose to pay yearly will receive a free charge for the first two months. Unfortunately, Time Doctor does not offer a free plan; however, each of the three plans has a limited 14-day free trial for those who want to test the waters and see if it’s the perfect tool.
> > Click Here to Try Time Doctor Now < <
The User Interface
Despite being filled to the brim with robust time and activity management tools, Time Doctor may be highly notorious for its clunky and poorly-designed take on the user interface and experience. It can be a pain to navigate the platform. This is especially true if you are just starting to explore the dashboard and other features.
Many users of Time Doctor, for instance, have had difficulty accessing the various functions. They’ve complained about the lack of in-app centralization, which would have saved a lot of time and effort. Until now, users can only access the time tracking feature through the desktop app or web extension. Project management, reporting, and other admin features are exclusive to the website version. This is why switching between the portals is easier – it’s not possible to do this with other time management platforms.
Another obstacle Time Doctor users need help with is the general look and design. The website-based dashboard lacks key features that would make it easier to use, except for the desktop app. It also needs the diversity of data graphs used for reporting – sure, and the bar graphs are great and all, but what about the circle graphs? Pie graphs, as well? Line graphs, perhaps?
Time Doctor’s interface and design are already a problem. We’ll be reviewing that in a moment! However, despite their combined lackluster appeal, they’re not strong enough to fully soil the experience of tracking work activity, which the platform was designed for in the first place. Some users aren’t bothered by the UI problems, while others adjust to it quickly. Jira Time Tracking Best Practices
There is still hope that Time Doctor’s UX and UI issues could be fixed in the near future. But for now, those new to the platform will have to go through a rather steep learning curve before getting used to its inner workings.
Time Doctor: Key Features
Let’s now dive into the tools and features you might want to explore when you log in to Time Doctor.
Project and Data Management
With Time Doctor’s project management capabilities, individuals or administrators within a team can create tasks and group them into groups with just a few clicks. Administrators can also use this feature to assign tasks to their employees to reduce workload and increase productivity. You can create tasks as standalone tasks. However, you can group them together if necessary into larger projects. This is a great option for large companies whose stability depends on many departments below them.
Time Doctor knows that a clear workboard is a great way to get things done. With that in mind, admins may opt to limit access to select tasks or projects by assigning them to only a specific employee or group of employees within the team. Do you want to check out who’s working on the task or project now? You may monitor their progress through the dashboard by checking how long they’ve been working, among other things.
Unlike the few other time management platforms out there, Time Doctor allows users to create permanent trackable tasks that can be easily adjusted, edited, or even deleted without having to worry about adding one day by day. Those who work around repetitive tasks will no longer need to face this burden every time – all they need to do is change them to permanent status! Jira Time Tracking Best Practices
> > Click Here to Try Time Doctor Now < <
Time Tracking and Alerts
As already established, Time Doctor’s signature time-tracking tool can only be accessed through either its desktop application or Chrome web extension. Despite not being available in the web dashboard, its capabilities are surprisingly well-versed enough to make it stand independently. It’s easy to use – simply add the task to which you are assigned and then click the start button to track your progress. It’s simple as that!
As the timer plays out throughout your task, all your actions and activity will be recorded in the background. These actions and activities will be recorded and saved to the dashboard. Administrators can then access the dashboard to monitor their employees’ progress. If you’re working solo, you may go through it in the same manner.
One unique trait of Time Doctor’s time-tracking tool that we can’t help but appreciate is allowing users to customize their set-up according to their liking until they’re content enough to work well. The software also has a reminders function that reminds you when it is time to start and stop work. Another is the “idle time” function, in which users can convert the duration in which they haven’t been working and reassign it to work hours.
The timer will stop the tracking if there is no user activity after a few minutes. If you ever spot something like this and you’ve gone to attend to other things beforehand, you may manually click the play button to resume tracking. You can also pause the timer if you need to take a break from work. Time Doctor allows you to create time intervals between daily tasks if you feel you need some space.
While Time Doctor can track your progress and work hours online, did you know it could also do this offline? Like some time monitoring apps such as Hubstaff, which have this function, Time Doctor can record your activity and the hours you spend on your task even without the presence of an internet connection. Jira Time Tracking Best Practices
Monitoring Website and App Usage
Time Doctor monitors more than just hours spent on a desktop. It also tracks websites visited and keystrokes made while you work. If the platform sees that the mouse cursor or keyboard hasn’t moved for longer, it will pause instantly and stay that way until you do something with it.
Often, it’s hard to tell whether someone seems productive until you find out what they’ve been doing. It’s an easy relief to hear if they are focusing on their tasks. If they’ve been procrastinating by going to other platforms that divert from what they’re supposed to do, that’s a completely different story. No matter if you’re strict or relaxed with it, Time Doctor allows users to check which kinds of websites or applications their fellow teammates have used during work hours and how long they’ve glued their eyes to them.
Among Time Doctor’s set of robust monitoring capabilities, there is a feature in which admins can easily spot if their employees have either been wasting time or attending to a task by the website URL or application name and the status given to it. This feature is available to managers and administrators to adjust the platform’s productivity rating to any one of the three ranks.
- Productive if it serves the purpose of a project/team as a key driver for its tasks.
- If it serves no purpose and is therefore inefficient, it will be a time-waster
- If it is neither productive nor unproductive, it will be considered neutral.
These statuses can be assigned to any app or website and can be set to be restricted to a single user, group/team or company. The ability to track website activity and customize productivity statuses per user makes it highly convenient for teams who work in jobs requiring a strong focus on specific tasks, like content writing, for instance. For what it’s worth, Time Doctor may be lucky this time to have this crucial function included, unlike other time-tracking software. Jira Time Tracking Best Practices
Activity Screenshots and Screen Recording
We told you earlier about Time Doctor’s ability to track your activity and time in the background, while posting it to the web dashboard for administrators to view. Its built-in screenshot capabilities are there for this reason.
Administrators can specify a time period for screen capture across their project/team. It could be set to 10 minutes, 30 or even 30 minutes. If they please, they may also opt to select any of their teammates who should be allowed access to this feature.
Each image is equipped with additional information on the level of keystroke and mouse cursor activity as a way to determine user productivity. While those subscribed to Time Doctor’s Basic and Standard plans have access to unlimited screenshots, Premium users get the upper hand with the inclusion of video screen recording. The platform captures three minutes of actual work activity, instead of just taking photos of the monitor.
There may be rare instances in which someone from a project/team may be at risk of a breach of privacy caused by serious circumstances. If this happens, they may be allowed to delete screenshots or screen recordings within the Time Doctor platform for their safety. This will likely lead to the deducting of the work hours on the recording date.
> > Click Here to Try Time Doctor Now < <
Productivity Reporting & Analysis
Time Doctor lets users view, edit and save pre-built reports. Each contains data and insights collected by the software during their tracked work hours, all presented in the form of decent visuals and summaries. Users can request reports to determine which time management and productivity practices are working well and which ones need to be improved.
Time Doctor’s report collection has so many options for you to explore. The Web and App Usage report lets you see how much time you have spent on websites and apps that are considered productive. The Poor Time Use report shows how long you have sat on sites that have been flagged inappropriate for work. However, issues have arisen, especially from multi-screen work set-ups where one could jam to their favorite playlist on one screen while they get to their task on another. Poor Time Use also includes being able to set pop-up windows on off-limits websites, so whenever someone decides to go to YouTube, for example, they’ll be instantly met with a reminder if they want to continue or go back to focus on their assigned task.
The Timeline report displays all of your hours tracked in chronological order. It is divided into two colors: yellow for manual time recording and blue for automatic. The Project and Tasks report shows hours spent on tasks and/or projects. Finally, the Activity Summary allows you and your admin to view your total work hours and all percentages from all reports. Jira Time Tracking Best Practices
Time Doctor’s reporting tools are impressive, but some users don’t like the process of creating them. First, most reports are formatted in a clunky way, which can impact how they’re exported. Second, Time Doctor only offers XSL or CSV. Some may be okay with this, while others will not like the lack of options for export files diversity.
Client Access and White-labeling
If there’s one thing about Time Doctor that dedicated freelancers or solopreneurs can’t get enough of, it’s the ability to share the progress of their tasks with their clients, even if they are not exactly their teammates or don’t share a Time Doctor account.
You may find it helpful to know that the Client Portal feature of the platform allows you to accept commissions from many clients.
Simply send the link to the portal directly to your clients. Once they have access to it, they can see how long you’ve been working, how many tasks you completed, and even the archive of screenshots and reports. The great thing about the Client Portal is that you have full control over whatever you want your client base to see, resulting in smooth and tastefully curated interactions across the board.
If you own and manage a well-established business – and have enough money to pull it off – you may also take advantage of Time Doctor’s white-labeling feature by integrating its tools with your own branding.
Payroll
Planning to pay your employees based on how much they’ve dedicated their time to their respective tasks? You can do this within the Time Doctor platform using its built-in payroll function. Turn on payroll deep in the settings of the web dashboard, and your team’s timeline will automatically be billed. Your teammates may be paid based on their hours worked or on a fixed rate.
Time Doctor’s payroll software supports all currencies. You can ask employees to send their salaries through PayPal, Payoneer or TransferWise. For batch payments, you can export your payroll information to a CSV file if you work for a larger company. Multiple payments are sent at once.
Integrations with Third-Party Services
Time Doctor currently houses a decent yet heavy range of integrations with various third-party platforms, focusing on business, work, and productivity. With an approximate estimate of over 60 integrations, Time Doctor makes it easy for you to manage your team’s combined work in one interconnected ecosystem.
These include connections to project management platforms such as Trello and Asana, payment services such PayPal, work messaging apps such Slack and CRM platforms like Salesforce. On top of all this, a public API tool is made available for integrations with other apps beyond the given list – you may utilize this if you or your teammate know a thing or two about coding.
The Time Doctor Mobile App
Time Doctor’s desktop program is available to download and install on Windows PCs, Mac OS devices, and Linux OS computers. The latest web extension, however, is only available on Google Chrome. However, the time-tracking software also offers its users unlimited access through their smartphones: Time Doctor currently offers not one but two mobile app versions, both of which you can download on the Apple App Store and Google Play.
No matter how you look, you may be able to track your work hours and progress even if you’re out of the office. On one side, the classic version of the app lets you overview the tasks within a project that need to be done, as well as track where your teammates are through GPS – both on top of the basic time-tracking tools and limited dashboard settings.
The latest version – Time Doctor 2 – has more or less the same functionalities as the previous iteration. The only differences that set the two apart are that 1) TD2 is only compatible with Android devices, and 2) you won’t get to explore other features aside from time tracking – a noteworthy downgrade from TD Classic.
> > Click Here to Try Time Doctor Now < <
How Safe and Secure is Time Doctor?
At this point, you’re questioning whether or not Time Doctor is worth trusting as a time management service. It is possible that its surveillance tools may keep track of your activities, even if you temporarily pause your timer to take a break. Although the aspect of a 1984-esque work scenario may seem intimidating, we’re glad to tell you that your activities as the timer stops will not be tracked and saved to Time Doctor’s cloud-based database. You’re safe because it’s not spyware-like.
We want to remind you that screenshots and recordings can be used to track your work activity. Project managers may also use the webcam shot feature to see their coworkers right in front of them.
Ok, that might be a concern for some admins, especially if they are concerned about their privacy. But don’t worry, admins can disable screengrabs and webcam shots depending on how they feel.
As Time Doctor promises that all your activity and likeness will not be force-shared in vain, the same sentiment can be applied to the payment information typed into the platform by you or your teammates, which will then be automatically deleted after a short while for the sake of privacy.
Time Doctor further takes up drastic security measures to ensure that every user’s account isn’t easily breached. This includes strong password policies and 2FA protection. All data stored within the platform is protected by strong SSL encryption with maximum security. Time Doctor is cloud-based so you can expect your data to be regularly backed up. You may be able to have your data restored quickly in the event of an internet or power outage. This will ensure that you don’t lose any progress.
The bottom line: Do you use Time Doctor?
Time Doctor is a time management tool that can be used by freelancers and professional teams. It offers both the simplicity of a task management system and the sophistication of an advanced time tracker. This creates a harmonious balance between them.
While its line-up of dynamic features has admittedly left us in awe, the experience would have been significantly better if it weren’t for the disorienting UI and UX, lack of functionality and cohesiveness in the mobile apps, and, to an extent, undersupply of report graphics options. These problems may have hindered other users as well as us from enjoying the experience to its fullest. Others don’t mind, though, because it does exactly what it was designed to do: track time.
Overall, we ultimately believe that Time Doctor has what it takes to stand on its feet, despite not offering the same easy accessibility as other apps do. Besides, every time management platform shines uniquely, right?
FAQ Jira Time Tracking Best Practices
How do I contact Time Doctor’s customer support team?
Time Doctor’s customer service hotline can be approached either through e-mail or live chat. At this time, there is no telephone support. If you have a pressing matter that you need to resolve, and you feel the best way to do this is by calling the hotline. A member of the hotline will notify this and reach you any day.
Where else can I look for tutorials and tips on how to use Time Doctor?
YouTube videos and how to articles by independent creators can be found. However, Time Doctor offers its users an alternative via its dedicated help center. Here, most of the information is provided by the team behind Time Doctor.
To apply for a Time Doctor paid plan, do I need credit card information?
No, you won’t need to use your credit card to sign up for a limited 14-day trial. If you are done with the trial period, you can bring it up again to purchase a Time Doctor subscription.
Is Time Doctor HIPAA-compliant?
Yes. Time Doctor follows the rules and standards of the US Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. Even though it can technically be used for a vast range of niches, industries, and professions, the platform can be a solid addition to healthcare teams.