# Contractor time tracking that keeps your margins private.

Source: https://www.tracktimer.app/for/agencies-with-contractors

Most agencies run on a mix of employees and contractors, each with a different rate, often on the same project. TrackTimer records every contractor’s hours against the right client, prices them at the contractor’s own pay rate, and shows contractors their earnings without showing them what the client pays.

## At a glance

- Every hour carries two independent rates: what the client is billed and what the contractor is paid.
- Rates can differ by client or project, and each entry keeps the rates in effect when its timer started.
- Contractors see only their own hours, pay rate, and earnings on assigned projects, never billing rates, other people, or agency financials.
- Owners and admins can filter hours and pay by person and date range to check a contractor’s invoice.
- Corrections need a reason and keep an audit history of the before and after.
- Contractors can track from the web, iPhone, Raycast, or their own AI assistant.

## Where agencies with contractors lose time and margin

### Contractor invoices you cannot check

A contractor sends an invoice for 46 hours. The project records are a mix of calendar entries and a spreadsheet, so the agency either pays without checking or spends an afternoon reconciling.

### The margin between two rates

An agency earns the difference between the rate it bills and the rate it pays. When rates vary by client, by project, and by person, a spreadsheet formula breaks quietly and the margin is misstated.

### Too much visibility, or too little

Shared tools can expose client rates and agency margins to contractors. Tools that hide everything leave contractors unable to check their own totals before they invoice.

### Rate changes in the middle of a project

A contractor raises their rate in March. If the change is applied retroactively, January and February look less profitable than they were, and past invoices no longer reconcile.

## How TrackTimer works for agencies with contractors

### Invite contractors with their terms

Send an invitation with the contractor role, their default billing and pay rates, and the projects they will work on. The invitation applies those settings when it is accepted. Contractors can track time only on projects they are assigned to.

### Two rates on every hour

Billing and pay rates resolve independently: a project-specific rate for that person first, then a client-specific rate, then their default. Either can be zero. Both are saved with each entry when its timer starts, so a rate change applies to new work and leaves past totals intact.

### Contractors see their pay, never your margin

A contractor’s view shows their own time, pay rate, and earnings for the month, grouped by project. Billing rates, billable value, gross profit, other members, and unassigned projects are excluded from what contractors receive.

### Check invoices against tracked time

Owners and admins filter analytics by member and date range to see that contractor’s hours and pay for the period, then compare them with the invoice. The same view shows billable value and gross profit for the work.

### Corrections with a reason

Contractors can correct their own completed entries, and owners and admins can correct or delete any entry. Every correction needs a reason and records the before and after, which gives both sides a clear trail if an invoice is questioned.

### Contractors can use their own tools

Contractors track from the web, iPhone, Raycast, or a connected AI assistant. A contractor with their own Mac can use AI Auto Track; their activity timeline stays private to them, and the agency sees only the entries they create.

## Example: one project, three contractors, six rates

An agency staffs a website project entirely with contractors. The client pays $150 an hour for design and development and $120 for copywriting; each contractor has their own pay rate. At the end of the month:

| Contractor | Tracked | Billing rate | Pay rate | Gross profit |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Developer | 40h | $150/h | $85/h | $2,600 |
| Designer | 25h | $150/h | $70/h | $2,000 |
| Copywriter | 12h | $120/h | $60/h | $720 |
| Total | 77h |  |  | $5,320 |

| Figure | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Billable value | $11,190 |
| Tracked time | 77h |
| Contractor pay | $5,870 |
| Gross profit | $5,320 · 48% |

Illustrative example with hypothetical people, hours, and rates. Each contractor sees only their own line: the developer sees 40 hours and $3,400 of pay, not the $6,000 billed for that time. Gross profit here is billable value less contractor pay.

## Set up your first week

1. **Set workspace defaults.** Create your workspace with default billing and pay rates. Either can be zero.
2. **Add clients and projects.** Create the client and a project for the engagement, with its billing mode.
3. **Invite contractors with their rates.** Send each invitation with the contractor role, their rates, and their project assignments.
4. **Let contractors track.** Contractors record time on assigned projects from the web, iPhone, Raycast, or an AI assistant, and correct their own mistakes with a reason.
5. **Reconcile at month end.** Filter analytics by each contractor for the invoice period and compare their hours and pay with the invoice they send.

## Frequently asked questions

### Can contractors see what we bill our clients?

No. Contractors see their own hours, pay rate, and earnings on assigned projects. Billing rates, billable value, gross profit, and other people’s time are never included in what they receive.

### Can a contractor have different rates on different projects?

Yes. Set a default pay rate and override it for a client or a single project. The billing rate is set independently, so a contractor can cost the same on two projects that bill at different rates.

### What happens to past hours when a contractor’s rate changes?

Nothing. Rates are saved with each entry when its timer starts, so a new rate applies to new work. Moving an entry to a different project takes that project’s current rates, and the change is recorded in the audit history.

### How do we check a contractor’s invoice?

Filter analytics by that contractor and the invoice period. You see their tracked hours and pay at saved rates, next to the billable value and gross profit of the same work.

### Can one contractor work for several agencies in TrackTimer?

Yes. One account can belong to several workspaces with a different role in each. A person has one running timer across all of them, so starting work for one agency stops the timer for another.

### Can contractors see each other’s time?

No. Contractors see only their own time. Owners and admins see everyone’s time and the financial totals.

## Guides and tools

- [A practical time tracking workflow for small agencies](https://www.tracktimer.app/blog/agency-time-tracking-workflow)
- [Project profitability: a worked example](https://www.tracktimer.app/blog/project-profitability-basics)
- [TrackTimer vs Clockify](https://www.tracktimer.app/compare/clockify)
- [TrackTimer vs Harvest](https://www.tracktimer.app/compare/harvest)
- [Move from Toggl Track](https://www.tracktimer.app/docs/migrate-from-toggl)

Reviewed 2026-09-25 by TrackTimer. Examples are illustrative. [Start tracking free](https://www.tracktimer.app/login) · [Pricing](https://www.tracktimer.app/#pricing) · [Who TrackTimer is for](https://www.tracktimer.app/for)