What Are the Best AI Time Tracking Tools & How Do They Work?

Artificial intelligence has taken the project management world by storm. Project managers are now leveraging generative AI to help make their lives easier, from smart resource allocation to predictive scheduling. 

But resource management isn’t the only way AI is helping to take the admin load off project managers and teams. 

Did you know that your teams can use AI to automatically track their time?

No more wasting time filling out timesheets. No more guessing games as to what time was spent where when the project has already been delivered. 

Find out how AI time tracking tools work, how they specifically benefit project management, and the top 5 tools we took for a spin that you can onboard today.

The historical problem of time tracking on projects

Tracking time to the minute is imperative for profitable projects, but often, a significant amount of money is left on the table due to common time tracking sins. Consultants, especially, can fall into the traps of manual time tracking and overall indifference. 

Even with all the time tracking tools out there, creatives are still filling out manual timesheets. And for service businesses that use a billable hours model, this is a big no-no. 

IT service providers still frequently lose billable hours as well on service tickets. For example, team members can find themselves spending time on these tickets that go over what’s allotted in the service agreement, but failing to recognize the billability of this time. 

For creative agencies, inaccurate time tracking can often lead to inaccurate budgets and timelines. If everyone isn’t on the same page with a streamlined, integrated solution, hours aren’t accounted for when they should be which can leave clients with unwelcome budget surprises in the end. 

The solution? Time management as part of the team culture and a streamlined time tracking tool that everyone uses and is connected to all the project data it should be, like invoicing, budgets, and contracts. 

And time tracking should also be as automated as possible: That’s where AI time tracking tools come in. 

What are the benefits of AI time tracking tools?

Reluctant to onboard an AI time tracking tool for your team? Here’s how they make project management easier:

• Reduced manual effort
• Improved accuracy
• Seamless integration with your project management tools
• Enhanced productivity insights
• Better resource allocation
• More accurate budgets
• Data-driven decision making
• Increased focus and productivity
• Real-time progress monitoring
• Actionable reports and analytics

How do AI time tracking tools work?

AI-powered time tracking tools integrated into project management software use machine learning algorithms to automate and streamline the process of recording work hours. In short, when leveraged properly, they make life easier for both the team and the project manager.

These tools reduce manual effort, improve accuracy, and provide deeper insights into team productivity and project timelines, things we can all benefit from, regardless of industry. 

One common method of accomplishing this is analyzing user activity within the project management platform and other connected applications. 

For example, AI can detect when a user starts working on a specific task within the project management software, based on their interactions like opening a task, commenting, or changing its status. 

It can also monitor activity in integrated tools such as code editors, design software, or communication platforms like Slack or Microsoft Teams. After recognizing patterns associated with particular projects or tasks, AI can then intelligently suggest time entries to the user.

These suggestions often include the project, task, and an estimated duration based on the period of active work. The user then has the opportunity to review, edit, or approve these automatically generated time logs. 

Some AI time tracking tools also learn from user feedback, becoming more accurate over time in predicting and categorizing work activities. 

So, if a user consistently edits a suggested time entry to a different task, the AI will eventually learn to associate that type of application usage with the correct task.  

Another advanced approach involves natural language processing (NLP). Some AI time trackers can analyze meeting transcripts, email correspondence, or even code commit messages to infer the amount of time spent on specific projects or tasks. 

For instance, if a meeting agenda revolves primarily around a particular project, the AI might suggest allocating the meeting time to that project for the attendees. 

Similarly, analyzing a series of code commits with specific issue or task identifiers can help the AI estimate the time spent on those development tasks.  

Some advanced AI time trackers can even learn individual user work patterns. They might identify recurring periods of focused work or recognize breaks in activity. 

This allows them to provide more contextually relevant suggestions and potentially automate start and stop times for certain types of tasks based on observed behavior.  

It’s all about integration.

If an AI time tracker is not built-in to project management software, it must at least be integrated with it in order to work its magic. 

Integration with project management software is crucial as it provides AI time tracking tools with the necessary context about projects, tasks, team members, and deadlines.

Context from project data is specifically what enables AI to make more informed suggestions and accurately categorize work. The tracked time data is then seamlessly integrated back into the project management platform, providing valuable insights for resource allocation, project costing, progress monitoring, and identifying potential bottlenecks. 

Remember the goal of these tools is to make time tracking less of an administrative burden and more of a valuable source of data for improving project efficiency and team productivity. Aka all good things. 

Top 5 AI time tracking tools for project teams

Here are the best AI time tracking tools we tried for project teams in terms of functionality, user experience, and value:

1. PSOhub 

PSOhub ranks #1 because their AI-powered time tracking provides the most seamless experience. PSOhub is an all-in-one project management tool that has a two-way integration with the world’s leading CRMs. Because all your project data already lives in one place, AI can better learn from patterns and offer way better analytics. In fact, its self-driving time tracking feature was built-in to the software since day one. 

Learn more about PSOhub’s AI time tracking tool 

2. Jibble

Jibble uses AI to automate time tracking for project teams by detecting work activity across apps and suggesting accurate time entries. It integrates seamlessly with project management software, providing real-time insights into task progress and team productivity. Jibble simplifies timesheets, improves accuracy, and offers valuable analytics for better resource allocation and project management. 

Learn more about Jibble’s AI time tracking tool

3. Rize

Rize leverages artificial intelligence as a productivity coach, automatically tracking computer activity to provide insights on focus and work habits for project teams. It offers features like automatic project tagging, focus score analysis, and break notifications. By understanding how time is spent across applications, Rize helps teams identify distractions and optimize their workflow for improved focus and efficiency.

Learn more about Rize’s AI time tracking tool

4. Timely

Timely AI automates time tracking for project teams by intelligently drafting timesheets based on calendar events, location data, and application usage. It learns work patterns, suggests accurate entries, and integrates seamlessly with project management tools. Timely gives project managers a clear overview of project time, enhances reporting accuracy, and reduces administrative overhead, allowing teams to focus on their tasks.

Learn more about Timely’s AI time tracking tool 

5. Replicon

Replicon's AI-powered ZeroTime™ automates time capture across 100+ work apps, creating review-ready timesheets for project teams. It integrates with project management tools, offering real-time visibility into project time and costs. Replicon enhances accuracy, streamlines workflows, and provides comprehensive analytics for improved resource allocation and project profitability, ultimately reducing manual effort.

Learn more about Replicon’s AI time tracking tool 

AI = The future of project time tracking

The historical challenge of accurate time tracking in project management is being met head-on by the transformative power of artificial intelligence. 

Gone are the days of relying solely on manual timesheets, prone to error and often neglected, leading to lost billable hours and skewed project insights. 

AI time tracking tools, especially when either built-into or deeply integrated with project management software, offer a sophisticated solution that automates much of this crucial process. 

By intelligently monitoring user activity across various applications and learning individual work patterns, these tools can suggest and even automatically record time against specific projects and tasks.

Automation like this not only reduces administrative burden on team members, allowing them to focus on their core responsibilities, but also significantly improves the accuracy of time data. 

And integration with project management platforms means that this precise information flows directly into project workflows, providing PMs with invaluable real-time visibility into team productivity, resource allocation, and project costs. 

At the end of the day, this is a more data-driven approach that empowers better decision-making, helps identify potential roadblocks, and ultimately contributes to more efficient project delivery and enhanced profitability. 

Want to try AI time tracking on your next project for FREE? Give PSOhub’s all-in-one platform a spin for the most user-friendly, most seamless experience ever!