TLDR (Summary)
The best time tracking software for social media managers is Plutio ($19/month).
Social media managers need time tracking that captures content creation, client communication, and campaign management hours per client. Plutio tracks time connected to retainer budgets so you see margin in real time, not weeks after the work is done. Time entries convert directly to invoice line items without copying between apps.
According to research, freelancers spend instead of billable activities. Time tracking that connects to invoicing recovers those hours by eliminating manual data transfer.
For additional strategies, read our freelance time tracking guide.
What is time tracking software for social media managers?
Time tracking software for social media managers is software that captures hours spent on content creation, client communication, and campaign management with visibility into how time breaks down across clients and activities.
The distinction matters: basic timers run a clock but don't connect to client records or billing. Social media manager-focused time tracking connects hours to specific clients, campaigns, and retainer budgets so you understand not just how many hours you worked, but whether those hours stayed within budget.
What social media manager time tracking actually does
Core functions include starting and stopping timers for active work, logging time manually when you forget to start the timer, categorizing entries by client and activity type, viewing time totals per client per period, comparing tracked hours against retainer budgets, generating reports that show where time goes, and converting tracked time to invoice line items. Advanced platforms add automatic reminders when you haven't logged time, alerts when retainer budgets approach limits, and margin calculations that show effective hourly rate per client.
Standalone timers vs integrated time tracking
Standalone apps like Toggl or Clockify run a timer and categorize entries. You see how many hours you worked, but connecting those hours to invoicing requires manual export and import. You track 25 hours for Client A, then open invoicing tool, create an invoice, and manually enter "25 hours × $75 = $1,875" without any automatic verification that you billed what you tracked.
Integrated platforms like Plutio connect time tracking to client records, retainer agreements, and invoicing. When you track time for Client A, it appears in their client record alongside their retainer budget. At month-end, select their tracked time and generate an invoice, descriptions, hours, and rates pull automatically. No manual data transfer, no risk of billing errors from copying numbers between apps.
What makes social media manager time tracking different
Social media managers face unique time tracking challenges. Work spans multiple activities, content creation, caption writing, graphic design, client calls, revision rounds, reporting, that may warrant different rates or separate billing. Retainer clients expect consistent monthly delivery, so tracking against budget matters more than tracking hours in isolation. Extra work happens gradually ("can you also handle Stories this month?") and erodes margins unless tracked.
Without time tracking that shows hours against retainer budget, extra work accumulates invisibly. You quote a 20-hour retainer, gradually take on more tasks, and discover at year-end that After delivering 30 hours monthly, 50% more work than quoted, without adjusting pricing.
When time tracking connects to retainer budgets and invoicing, margin becomes visible in real time. It's easy to see by mid-month if a client's work is trending over budget, giving you time to adjust scope or discuss pricing before the overrun compounds.
Why social media managers need time tracking software
Social media managers who work with multiple retainer clients face a compounding visibility problem: without tracking, there's no way to know which clients are profitable, which retainers are underpriced, or where your hours actually go.
Retainer pricing depends on accurate time estimates. If you quoted 20 hours monthly based on a guess, you won't know whether that guess was accurate until you track actual hours. Without data, you reprice retainers based on feelings rather than facts, and those feelings tend to underestimate actual work.
The invisible extra work problem
According to research, freelancers spend instead of billable activities. For social media managers specifically, extra work adds hours that feel small individually but compound over months: "Can you also reply to comments?", "Could you handle Pinterest too?", "What if we added one more post per week?"
Each request adds 2-3 hours monthly. By Q4, a 20-hour retainer requires 35 hours of actual work. Without time tracking, you discover this only when burnout hits or when you finally calculate your effective hourly rate and realize you're earning $45 per hour on a client you thought paid $75.
The reconstruction problem
Most social media managers don't track time consistently because stopping to start a timer interrupts creative flow. Instead, they reconstruct hours at month-end or invoice time. But memory is unreliable. Research shows people underestimate task duration by 20-30% on average.
If you bill $5,000 monthly across clients and underestimate by 25%, you're losing $1,250 per month, $15,000 annually, in unbilled time. Not because clients aren't paying, but because you're not billing for work you actually did.
The margin blindness problem
Without time tracking, It's easy to see which clients pay the most but not which are most profitable. Client A pays $3,000 monthly and requires 35 hours. Client B pays $1,500 monthly and requires 12 hours. By revenue, Client A seems more valuable. By margin, Client B pays $125 per hour while Client A pays $86 per hour. Without time data, you might chase more clients like A when clients like B are more valuable.
The pricing confidence problem
When a prospective client asks for a retainer quote, social media managers without time data guess based on what feels right. Those without data tend to underquote because they fear losing the deal. Those with time data know exactly how long similar clients take and can quote confidently, justify the price with specifics, and adjust scope to fit budget rather than underpricing to win.
The scaling tipping point
Social media managers hit a threshold around 5-8 active retainers where guessing breaks down. Below this threshold, mental tracking sort of works, you have a rough sense of time per client. Above this threshold, clients blur together. You can't remember whether the carousel took 2 hours or 4, whether the strategy call was 30 minutes or 75, whether this month's content was faster or slower than last month.
Time tracking software creates the data foundation for pricing decisions, scope management, and margin visibility. The investment of 2-3 minutes daily in tracking pays back through confident pricing, caught extra work, and eliminated underbilling.
Time tracking features social media managers need
The essential time tracking features for social media managers connect hours logged to client records, retainer budgets, and invoicing while handling the varied activities that social media work involves.
Core time tracking features
- Timer with one-click start: Start tracking immediately without setup. Click, work, stop. Minimal friction encourages consistent tracking. Timer should be accessible from anywhere in the platform, dashboard, project view, client record.
- Manual time entry: Add entries after the fact when you forget to start the timer. Enter start time, end time, or duration directly. Round to nearest increment (15 minutes is standard) or track exact minutes.
- Client and project assignment: Every time entry connects to a specific client and optionally to a specific project or campaign. Client assignment connection enables per-client reporting and retainer budget tracking.
- Activity categorization: Tag entries by activity type, content creation, client communication, strategy, reporting, revisions. Category breakdowns show where time concentrates and inform pricing decisions.
- Budget tracking: Set time budgets per client or project. See consumed vs remaining hours in real time. Get alerts when approaching or exceeding budgets.
- Reporting: Generate reports by client, project, date range, or category. Export for client review or internal analysis. Compare periods to identify trends.
Social media manager-specific features
- Retainer budget visibility: Set monthly hour budgets per retainer client. See hours tracked against budget throughout the month. Industry research shows 12% of on projects that exceed budget without visibility.
- Billable vs non-billable distinction: Mark entries as billable (content creation, client calls) or non-billable (admin, internal meetings). Distinguish between work clients should pay for and overhead that affects your margins.
- Effective rate calculation: Divide retainer fee by hours tracked to see your actual hourly rate per client. A $3,000 retainer with 40 hours tracked shows $75 effective rate. Identify underpriced clients that need scope adjustment.
- Time-to-invoice conversion: Select tracked entries and convert to invoice line items with one click. Descriptions, durations, and rates pull automatically. No manual copying between apps.
Platform features that multiply value
- Mobile tracking: iOS and Android apps for tracking on the go. Start timer during client call, stop when it ends. Track time wherever work happens, not just at your desk.
- Offline capability: Track time without internet connection. Entries sync when connection restores. Essential for social media managers who work from various locations.
- Idle detection: Detect when After inactive and prompt to stop timer or discard idle time. Prevents accidentally running timers for hours while away.
- Calendar integration: Sync with Google Calendar or Outlook to suggest time entries from meetings. Client call on calendar? Platform suggests creating a time entry for that duration.
- Automations: Create rules that automate common tracking scenarios. Auto-start timer when opening certain projects. Send yourself daily reminders to log time. Alert when retainer budget reaches 80%.
The deciding factor for social media managers is integration depth. Time tracking that connects to client records, retainer budgets, and invoicing eliminates manual data transfer and provides margin visibility that standalone timers can't offer.
Time tracking software pricing for social media managers
Time tracking software for social media managers typically costs $0-18 per user per month for standalone tools, with integrated platforms providing complete functionality at higher price points.
What social media managers typically pay for time tracking
- Toggl Track: Free for basic, $9-18/user/month for team features
- Clockify: Free for basic, $4-12/user/month for advanced features
- Harvest: Free for 1 project, $12/user/month for unlimited
- Time Doctor: $7-20/user/month depending on monitoring features
Standalone time tracking requires separate tools for invoicing ($15-30/month), project management ($10-25/user/month), and client portals (varies). Total software stack often reaches $40-70 monthly when combining tools, plus the coordination overhead of syncing data between platforms.
Plutio pricing (February 2026)
- Core: $19/month: Time tracking plus proposals, contracts, projects, invoicing, and client portals for up to 9 active clients.
- Pro: $49/month: Unlimited clients, 30 contributors, advanced permissions, workflow automations.
- Max: $199/month: Unlimited team, full white-label, single sign-on for agency operations.
The ROI calculation for social media managers
- Recovered underbilling: If you currently underestimate hours by 20% on $5,000 monthly billing, tracking recovers $1,000 monthly in previously unbilled work.
- Pricing accuracy: Time data enables confident retainer pricing. Quote based on actual hours from similar clients rather than guessing and undercharging.
- Scope awareness: Catch creep early. When retainer budget hits 80% by mid-month, it's easy to know when to discuss scope or pricing before month-end.
- Margin visibility: Identify which clients deliver best effective rates. Focus growth efforts on attracting more clients like your most profitable ones.
Time tracking ROI comes through pricing accuracy and recovered underbilling. Software pays for itself when tracking prevents even one hour of underbilling monthly at your hourly rate.
Why Plutio is the best time tracking for social media managers
Plutio handles time tracking as part of a complete platform where client records, retainer budgets, and invoicing work together rather than as separate tools that need manual connection.
Time connected to client context
Every time entry connects to a specific client. Open a client record and see their complete time history: hours tracked this month, hours tracked last month, trend over time, breakdown by activity category. Client context matters because time data in isolation ("I worked 180 hours this month") is less useful than time data with client context ("Client A consumed 45 hours, Client B consumed 22 hours").
Retainer budget tracking
Set monthly hour budgets per client that match your retainer agreements. Track consumed vs remaining hours throughout the month. Dashboard shows all clients' budget status at a glance: Client A at 85% budget with 10 days remaining (trending over), Client B at 40% budget with 10 days remaining (on track). Real-time budget visibility prevents the month-end discovery that a retainer ran 50% over budget.
One-click time-to-invoice conversion
Month ends. Open Client A's record. Click "Generate Invoice". All tracked time for that period converts to invoice line items automatically. Descriptions pull from time entry notes ("Content creation - Instagram carousel", "Client call - strategy review"). Durations and rates apply based on their agreement. Review for accuracy, adjust if needed, send. No manual copying, no risk of transcription errors, no hunting through time logs to build invoice details.
Margin visibility per client
Client record shows effective hourly rate: retainer fee divided by hours tracked. Client A pays $3,000 and consumed 38 hours this month, effective rate $79. Client B pays $1,800 and consumed 28 hours, effective rate $64. At a glance, It's easy to see Client A is more profitable per hour. Rate visibility informs decisions: which clients to prioritize for retention, which need scope discussions, which pricing model works best for different client types.
White-label everything
Use your own domain (clients.youragency.com). Upload your logo, set your brand colors and typography. If you share time reports with clients through their portal, they see your brand, not third-party software. Professional presentation matters for social media managers because brand perception affects perceived value.
Activity categorization for analysis
Create custom categories that match your work: Content Creation, Strategy, Client Communication, Reporting, Revisions, Admin. Tag each time entry. Run reports that show where time concentrates. If 30% of hours go to revisions, that's a signal to improve initial content approval or build revision estimates into retainer pricing.
Unified inbox and client communication
When a client messages about their retainer, the conversation appears in the same platform where you track their time. Reply directly without opening email. Communication history stays attached to their record for permanent context. No more hunting through email threads to find what was discussed.
No-code automations
Create rules that trigger actions without manual intervention. Common social media manager automations: send yourself a reminder at 5 PM daily if no time logged today, alert when client budget reaches 80%, notify you when a client hasn't been billed in 30 days despite tracked time. Set up once during initial configuration, runs continuously without attention.
Native integrations
Connect Stripe and PayPal for payment processing. Sync Google Calendar or Outlook for meeting-based time suggestions. Push financial data to QuickBooks or Xero for accounting. Use Zapier to connect 3,000+ additional apps. Plutio handles the core workflow while integrating with specialized tools where deeper functionality is needed.
Everything runs from one platform with your branding and your workflow logic. Instead of switching between time tracker, invoicing software, and client portal, three logins to manage one client's billing, you operate from a single platform designed to connect time tracking to the complete client relationship.
How to set up time tracking in Plutio
Setting up time tracking in Plutio takes 30-60 minutes for initial configuration, then tracking becomes a consistent habit over the first 2-3 weeks of use.
Step 1: Configure default settings (15 mins)
Set your default hourly rate (for margin calculations and billable time conversion), preferred rounding increment (15-minute intervals are standard), and default categories for common activities. Choose whether to track in hours and minutes or decimal hours based on how you think about time.
Step 2: Create activity categories (15 mins)
Build 5-8 categories that match your work. For social media managers, recommended categories include:
- Content Creation: Writing captions, designing graphics, creating videos
- Strategy: Planning, calendar development, competitive research
- Client Communication: Calls, emails, Slack messages, feedback discussions
- Reporting: Analytics review, performance reports, monthly summaries
- Revisions: Content changes based on client feedback
- Admin: Scheduling, uploading, internal coordination
Step 3: Set up client budgets (20 mins)
For each retainer client, add their monthly hour budget based on your agreement. If you quoted "approximately 20 hours monthly" in the proposal, set 20-hour budget. The budget creates the comparison point for tracking actual hours against expected hours.
Step 4: Configure reminders and alerts (10 mins)
Set up automations that support consistent tracking: daily reminder at end of day if no time logged, weekly summary email showing hours by client, alert when any client reaches 80% of monthly budget. These prompts help build tracking habits and catch budget overruns early.
Step 5: Build the tracking habit (ongoing)
Consistent tracking matters more than perfect tracking. Start with the method that feels most natural:
- Real-time: Start timer when beginning work, stop when finishing. Most accurate but requires consistent discipline.
- Batch entry: Add entries at end of day based on what you remember. Less interruption during work, but relies on memory.
- Hybrid: Timer for focused work sessions, manual entry for small tasks and communication.
Most social media managers find hybrid approach sustainable: timer for content creation blocks, manual entry for calls and quick tasks.
Common setup mistakes to avoid
- Too many categories: Start with 5-8 broad categories. You can always add more later. Too many options create decision fatigue and slow down tracking.
- Not setting budgets: Time tracking without budgets shows hours worked but not whether those hours match expectations. Set budgets even if approximate, you can refine based on actual data.
- Expecting perfection immediately: Building a tracking habit takes 2-3 weeks. Don't abandon the practice because you forgot to track for a day. Consistency improves over time.
Focus on building the habit before improving Plutio. Track consistently for a month, then review what data would be useful and adjust categories, budgets, and reports accordingly. Overcomplicating setup before you have real data leads to unused features.
Activity categories for social media managers
Organizing time by activity category reveals where hours actually go and enables data-driven decisions about pricing, scope, and efficiency.
Recommended activity categories for social media managers
- Content Creation: The core deliverable work, writing captions, designing graphics, creating videos, building carousels. Content Creation should be your largest category by hours. If it's not, investigate where time goes instead.
- Strategy & Planning: Content calendar development, competitive research, trend analysis, campaign planning. Strategic work that shapes content direction. Typically 10-15% of retainer hours.
- Client Communication: Calls, emails, Slack messages, feedback discussions, status updates. Track this separately to understand communication overhead per client. High-communication clients may need different pricing.
- Reporting & Analytics: Reviewing performance metrics, building monthly reports, preparing performance data. Some clients want detailed reports (track this time); others want brief summaries (less time).
- Revisions: Changes based on client feedback. Track separately to understand revision patterns. If revisions consistently exceed 20% of content creation time, consider adjusting initial approval processes or pricing.
- Admin & Coordination: Scheduling posts, uploading content, internal coordination, tool management. Non-creative overhead that still consumes time. Should stay below 15% of total hours.
Using category data for pricing decisions
After tracking for 3-6 months, review category breakdowns per client. Patterns inform pricing:
- High communication clients: If Client A requires 8 hours monthly of calls and emails while Client B requires 2 hours, build communication expectations into retainer scope and pricing.
- High revision clients: If revisions consistently exceed budget for certain clients, either improve initial alignment (more detailed briefs, concept approval before execution) or price for the actual revision pattern.
- Efficient content types: If Instagram carousels take 3 hours but LinkedIn articles take 6 hours for similar value, consider pricing differently by content type or focusing on more efficient formats.
Proven methods for category usage
- Assign one category per time entry. If an activity spans multiple categories (call that included strategy discussion and revision review), either split into separate entries or assign to the dominant activity.
- Review category distributions monthly. Shifts in distribution often signal extra work (more communication) or efficiency changes (faster content creation).
- Keep categories consistent across clients so you can compare patterns. Different category structures per client make combine analysis difficult.
- Don't overthink categorization during tracking. Assign fast based on the primary activity. Perfect categorization matters less than consistent tracking.
Category data transforms vague feelings ("this client takes a lot of time") into specific data ("this client requires 40% more communication time than average"). Specific data enables specific actions, adjusting scope, pricing, or processes based on data rather than hunches.
Client portals for social media managers: time transparency
Client portals can include optional time visibility, giving clients transparency into hours worked while you maintain control over what information they see.
When to share time with clients
Not every client relationship benefits from time transparency. Consider sharing when:
- Hourly billing: Clients paying by the hour naturally want to see hours logged. Time visibility builds trust and prevents billing disputes.
- Retainer plus overage: If retainer covers 20 hours and you bill overage at hourly rate, showing hours helps clients understand when they're approaching or exceeding included time.
- High-trust relationships: Long-term clients who value transparency may appreciate seeing effort invested even on fixed-fee retainers. Demonstrates value beyond the work.
Consider limiting visibility when:
- Fixed retainers: If the retainer covers the work regardless of hours, sharing time data may invite unhelpful scrutiny. Clients may question why a carousel took 3 hours instead of 2.
- New relationships: Build trust through deliverable quality first. Time transparency can come later once the working relationship is established.
What clients see when time is shared
Configure exactly what appears in their portal:
- Summary only: Total hours this period without breakdown. Shows effort invested without task-level detail.
- Category breakdown: Hours by activity type (Content Creation: 15 hours, Client Communication: 4 hours, Revisions: 3 hours). Shows where time goes without exposing every entry.
- Full detail: Every time entry with description, duration, and date. Maximum transparency for clients who want to see exactly how time was spent.
Time reports through portals
Generate time reports that clients can view in their portal alongside their invoices and project status. Reports can show current period hours, comparison to budget, trend over recent months, and category distribution. Clients access self-service rather than emailing to ask about hours worked.
Invoices with time detail
When time entries convert to invoice line items, that detail can appear on the invoice itself. Invoice shows "Content Creation - Instagram carousel (2.5 hours)" rather than just "Content Creation (2.5 hours)" or a lump sum. Detail level is configurable based on client preference and your pricing model.
Using portals for scope discussions
When a retainer needs adjustment, time data in the portal supports the conversation. "As you can see in your portal, we've been tracking around 35 hours monthly while the retainer covers 20 hours. I'd like to discuss either adjusting scope to fit the current budget or updating the retainer to reflect actual time invested." Data-backed conversations feel more professional than asking for more money without specifics.
Portal time visibility transforms time tracking from internal tool to client communication asset. You control exactly what clients see, and the data supports honest conversations about scope, pricing, and value delivered.
How to migrate time tracking to Plutio
Migration from another time tracking tool typically takes 1-2 hours of active work, with the best time to switch being at the start of a new month when you're beginning fresh tracking anyway.
Step 1: Export from your current tool
Most time tracking software provides CSV export. Here's what to export from common tools:
- Toggl Track: Export from Reports > Detailed > Export as CSV. Includes project, client, description, duration, and date. Tags export if used.
- Clockify: Export from Reports > Detailed > Export CSV. Similar structure to Toggl with project and task associations.
- Harvest: Export from Reports > Time > Export as CSV. Includes client, project, task, hours, and notes.
Step 2: Decide what to migrate
You have three options for historical time data:
- Start fresh: Begin tracking in Plutio from today forward. Keep old tool data as archive for reference. Simplest approach, no migration effort.
- Migrate recent history: Import last 1-3 months of time data to establish baseline. Useful if you need recent comparison data in the new system.
- Full migration: Import all historical time data. Typically unnecessary, you rarely need detailed time entries from years ago. Consider whether the migration effort justifies the access benefit.
Recommendation for most social media managers: start fresh. Historical time data rarely gets referenced in detail. Keep old tool accessible (most offer read-only access after cancellation) for the rare cases where you need to look something up.
Step 3: Set up Plutio structure (30 mins)
Create clients in Plutio that match your current client list. Set up activity categories that align with (or improve upon) your current categorization. Configure budgets for retainer clients. These structural elements matter more than historical data for ongoing tracking.
Step 4: Connect integrations (20 mins)
Link calendar sync (Google Calendar, Outlook) for meeting-based time suggestions. Connect payment processing if you'll invoice through Plutio. Set up accounting integration if needed. Test each connection with sample data before relying on it.
Step 5: Build new tracking habits
Migration is the perfect time to improve tracking habits. Review what worked and didn't work in your previous tool:
- Did you track consistently? If not, set up more reminders and simpler categories.
- Did you use the data? If not, focus on reports and visibility that actually inform decisions.
- Did categories help? If not, simplify or restructure based on what information you actually need.
Common migration pitfalls to avoid
- Migrating everything: Historical time entries from 2 years ago rarely provide value. Focus on forward-looking tracking, not complete historical archives.
- Switching mid-month: Partial month data in two systems creates reconciliation headaches. Start the new tool at month beginning.
- Keeping two tools running: Some people hedge by running both tools "just in case". Running both doubles tracking effort and delays full adoption. Commit to the switch.
- Not testing the workflow: Track a few entries, generate a test invoice, review reports before relying on Plutio for real client work. Discover friction in test scenarios, not live situations.
Migration is primarily about setting up the new system correctly and building habits, not transferring historical data. Invest time in structure and workflow, not in importing years of old entries you'll never reference.
