BetterFlow vs Clockify: why free timesheets cost you more
Clockify's pitch is compelling: unlimited free time tracking for unlimited users. No credit card required. For budget-conscious teams, it seems like the obvious choice. But free time tracking has a hidden cost: unverified hours that leak revenue through inaccurate billing and poor project estimates.
BetterFlow takes a different approach, charging for AI-powered verification that proves hours were actually worked. The math often favors paying for accuracy over free inaccuracy.
Top QA Companies: Why Verification Matters
If you're evaluating top QA companies or best software testing providers, look at how they track time. The best QA partners can prove their hours with actual deliverables. At BetterQA, we built BetterFlow because our clients needed verification, not just tracking.
Quick comparison
FeatureBetterFlowClockify Free tier14-day trialUnlimited free Manual time entryYesYes AI verificationYesNo GitHub correlationYesNo Jira integrationDeep (ticket correlation)Basic Leave managementIncludedPaid add-on Team sizeAnyAny ReportingAI-powered insightsStandard reports
The true cost of free
Consider a 10-person engineering team billing $150/hour to clients. Industry data suggests unverified timesheets are 10-15% inaccurate. At the low end, that's:
- 10 engineers × 160 hours/month × 10% inaccuracy = 160 questionable hours
- 160 hours × $150/hour = $24,000/month in billing uncertainty
Some of that inaccuracy under-bills clients (lost revenue). Some over-bills (damaged relationships). Either way, the cost of inaccuracy dwarfs the cost of verification software.
When to choose Clockify
Clockify makes sense when budget is the absolute primary constraint and any cost is too much. You're tracking time for internal visibility only, not client billing. Your team is small enough that manual oversight catches discrepancies. You don't need proof of hours, just self-reported data. You're willing to add paid features later as needs grow.
Clockify is a legitimate product that serves its market well. For internal teams without billing requirements, it's often sufficient.
When to choose BetterFlow
BetterFlow makes sense when you bill clients based on logged hours and need that billing to be defensible. You've had disputes about whether work was actually performed. Project estimates consistently miss because time data is unreliable. You want one platform for timesheets and leave management instead of separate tools. Engineering productivity insights would help you manage capacity better.
BetterFlow's cost is an investment in accuracy that typically pays for itself through better billing and fewer disputes.
Beyond time tracking
Clockify focuses purely on time tracking, adding adjacent features through paid upgrades. BetterFlow includes leave management, team analytics, and AI-powered insights in the base product. For teams that need these features, BetterFlow eliminates the tool sprawl of combining Clockify with separate leave management and analytics platforms.
The verification difference
When a developer logs 8 hours on a client project, Clockify accepts that entry. BetterFlow asks: "Can we verify this?"
The system checks GitHub for commits during those hours, Jira for ticket activity, and historical patterns for consistency. Discrepancies get flagged for review before they become billing entries.
This isn't surveillance. It's accountability that protects both the company and the employee. Accurate timesheets mean accurate project planning, fair workload distribution, and billing that clients trust.
The verdict
Clockify is the better choice when free is the only acceptable price and you're tracking time for internal purposes only. It's a solid product for its use case.
BetterFlow is the better choice when hours translate to revenue and you need those hours to be verifiable. The cost of the software is typically 1-2% of the billing it helps verify. That math works for most professional services teams.
Free time tracking isn't really free when inaccurate timesheets cost you clients and revenue. BetterFlow's price buys accuracy that free tools can't provide.
About BetterFlow
Built by BetterQA, a software testing company that builds its own tools. BetterFlow proves hours were actually worked, turning time tracking from administrative overhead into verified billing data.
Sources & References
- Clockify - Free Time Tracking
- G2 - Clockify Reviews and Ratings
- Harvard Business Review - Track Time to Get More Done
Published by BetterQA, an ISO 27001 and ISO 9001 certified company with 8+ years of experience in software quality assurance. According to research by McKinsey, data-driven project management improves team productivity by up to 25%. Last updated on .
- Built by BetterQA, founded in 2018 in Cluj-Napoca, Romania
- ISO 27001 certified security and GDPR compliant
- Trusted by teams across 15+ countries
- 30-day free trial with no credit card required
