Harvest vs Kimai
Harvest is time tracking and invoicing tool designed for professional services teams, while Kimai is open-source time tracking application that you can self-host. The biggest difference up front: Kimai is free, while Harvest starts at $10.80/user/mo. Harvest is built for agencies and consultancies that need time tracking + invoicing in one tool, whereas Kimai targets teams that want full control over their time tracking data via self-hosting.
At a glance
| Harvest | Kimai | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Agencies and consultancies that need time tracking + invoicing in one tool | Teams that want full control over their time tracking data via self-hosting |
| Starting price | $10.80/user/mo | Free (self-hosted) |
| Free tier | ✓ | ✓ |
| Open source | — | ✓ |
| Free tier available | ✓ | ✓ |
| Open source | — | ✓ |
| API | — | ✓ |
| Expense tracking | ✓ | — |
| Invoicing | ✓ | — |
| Multi-user | — | ✓ |
| Project budgets | ✓ | — |
| Reporting | — | ✓ |
| Self-hosting | — | ✓ |
| Time tracking | ✓ | ✓ |
Harvest
Strengths
- Built-in invoicing saves you from needing a separate tool
- Mature, battle-tested product used by agencies for 18+ years
- Excellent project budgeting and cost forecasting
- Clean QuickBooks and Xero integrations
Weaknesses
- Expensive compared to Clockify and Toggl
- Free plan is very limited (1 user, 2 projects)
- Interface feels dated compared to newer competitors
- Limited customization for reports
Kimai
Strengths
- Completely free and open source — no per-user fees
- Self-hosted means you own your data entirely
- Supports multi-user with roles and permissions
- Active development community with regular updates
Weaknesses
- Requires self-hosting — not a cloud SaaS you can just sign up for
- Setup requires technical knowledge (PHP, MySQL)
- Mobile experience is web-based, no native app
- Fewer integrations than commercial alternatives
The bottom line
Pricing: Kimai is completely free (Free, open source, self-hosted), which makes it the obvious pick if budget is the top concern. Harvest starts at $10.80/user/mo, but Free for 1 user, 2 projects. That cost buys you a more polished or feature-rich experience, so it comes down to whether the extras justify the spend.
Feature gaps: Harvest offers Expense tracking, Invoicing and Project budgets that Kimai lacks. Kimai brings API, Multi-user and Reporting that Harvest does not have. Both share Time tracking.
Open source: Kimai is open source, meaning you can self-host, audit the code, and avoid vendor lock-in. Harvest is proprietary — you are trusting the vendor with your data and uptime.
Where each tool shines: Harvest's biggest strengths are: built-in invoicing saves you from needing a separate tool. mature, battle-tested product used by agencies for 18+ years. Kimai's biggest strengths are: completely free and open source — no per-user fees. self-hosted means you own your data entirely.
Watch out for: With Harvest, users commonly note that expensive compared to clockify and toggl. With Kimai, the main complaint is that requires self-hosting — not a cloud saas you can just sign up for.
Choose Harvest if...
- Your profile matches its sweet spot: agencies and consultancies that need time tracking + invoicing in one tool
- You specifically need Expense tracking and Invoicing
- You care about mature, battle-tested product used by agencies for 18+ years
- The free tier works for you: free for 1 user, 2 projects
Choose Kimai if...
- Your profile matches its sweet spot: teams that want full control over their time tracking data via self-hosting
- Budget is a hard constraint — Kimai is free, Harvest is not
- You need self-hosting, data sovereignty, or the ability to audit source code
- You specifically need API and Multi-user
- You care about self-hosted means you own your data entirely
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