A client calls about a notice. A bookkeeping question interrupts a tax return. An advisory email turns into a spreadsheet review. By Friday, the work is finished, but the time record still needs attention.
Accounting firms have several ways to solve that problem. Practice management platforms attach time to client work. Accounting systems connect hours to invoices or payroll. Desktop capture tools start with the activity happening on a computer and help reconstruct an entry for review.
Those approaches overlap, but they serve different needs. A reliable payroll timesheet does not automatically provide a useful description of an advisory engagement. A detailed time entry does not replace a client portal, workflow board, or billing system.
This guide compares eight options: Timekeepr, Karbon, TaxDome, Canopy, Financial Cents, QuickBooks Time, Xero Projects, and BigTime. We selected products with published timekeeping features relevant to accounting firms, plus Timekeepr's accounting early-access offering. This is a comparison of public product information, not a hands-on accuracy benchmark or a market-share ranking.
Disclosure: A&C Labs makes Timekeepr. Our recommendation reflects the workflows described below, and we include the limitations that matter when choosing it. Vendor materials were reviewed on October 26, 2026; confirm current features, plans, and compatibility before buying.
Start with the problem your firm needs to solve
Before comparing tools, decide what a good time record must do for your firm:
- Hourly advisory work: Does the entry identify the client, engagement, duration, and work performed clearly enough to review and bill?
- Fixed-fee bookkeeping or tax work: Can you compare the effort involved with the engagement fee, even when the hours do not appear on the invoice?
- Payroll: Do you need attendance, timesheet approval, and payroll connections?
- Practice management: Do you also need recurring jobs, client requests, deadlines, and team communication?
Then identify the missing step. If staff record time consistently but billing takes too long, better billing tools may help. If the work never becomes a time entry, examine the capture and review process first.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Timekeeping approach | Where to start your evaluation |
|---|---|---|
| Timekeepr by A&C Labs | Desktop activity becomes draft time entries for review | Accounting firms interested in shaping an early-access capture workflow on Mac or Windows |
| Karbon | Time and budgets within practice management, with suggested entries | Firms that want time records connected to client work and team workflows |
| TaxDome | Live timers or retrospective entries connected to billing | Tax and accounting firms evaluating a shared client-work and billing platform |
| Canopy | Timers and manual entries linked to tasks, WIP, and invoicing | Firms that want time, billing, and profitability reporting in their practice platform |
| Financial Cents | Start/stop timers and manual entries within accounting workflows | Firms that want client/project time records, budgets, and invoicing together |
| QuickBooks Time | Team timesheets connected to the QuickBooks ecosystem | Firms whose main requirement includes payroll and team hours |
| Xero Projects | Project/task time entries connected to costs and invoices | Firms using Xero for their own engagement accounting |
| BigTime | Engagement time and expenses connected to project finances | Firms evaluating timekeeping alongside staffing, WIP, and billing |
1. Timekeepr by A&C Labs
Our pick for accounting firms that want to help shape a workflow built around desktop capture and personal review.
Timekeepr notes on-screen text from work happening on a computer and drafts time entries for a person to review, edit, and approve. It supports Mac and Windows, never saves or sends screenshots, and does not record call audio. The accounting offering is currently early access: Timekeepr was built first for law firms, and A&C Labs is inviting accounting and CPA firms to help shape how it fits their work.
Pros
- Starts with the work happening on the computer rather than requiring a new timer for every interruption.
- Keeps approval with the professional reviewing the entry.
- Supports firms working across Mac and Windows.
- Offers personal onboarding and a chance to shape accounting-specific requirements.
Cons and fit checks
- Accounting early access should be evaluated directly with A&C Labs; it is not a promise that every accounting workflow is already supported.
- The integration details and transfer method for each system have not been confirmed for this article. A&C Labs lists its current integrations at /integrations; systems not listed, including custom in-house systems, are set up during onboarding. Accounting and CPA firms remain in early access; discuss workflow fit with A&C Labs.
- Timekeepr costs $47 per user per month, with every feature, all integrations and their setup included. There is no user minimum, you can cancel anytime, and the two-week free trial requires no credit card. Confirm the scope of accounting early access during your conversation.
Best for: A firm whose first concern is reconstructing fragmented client work, and that is comfortable evaluating early access. Ask us to demonstrate capture, engagement assignment, review, and the path into your billing process using your actual setup. See Timekeepr for accounting and CPA firms and our data-handling details.
2. Karbon
Karbon combines practice management with time and budget tools. Its product materials describe tracking against clients or jobs, notes that summarize activity, and suggestions when someone has not recorded time. Billing is part of its wider platform.
Pros
- Places time information alongside client work rather than in a separate timesheet system.
- Combines estimates, recorded time, and capacity information.
- Offers suggested entries; it should not be described as a purely manual timer.
Cons and fit checks
- Adopting a broader practice platform is a larger workflow decision than adding time capture alone.
- Demonstrate which activities produce suggestions and which work still needs an entry; do not assume every desktop application is covered.
- Check the required plan, billing cycle, and number of users in your quote.
Best for: Firms that want timekeeping connected to a shared practice workflow. See Karbon Time & Budgets, what Karbon includes, and current plans.
3. TaxDome
TaxDome supports starting a live timer or recording time retrospectively. Its billing tools let firms turn recorded time into invoices and apply rates by employee or service.
Pros
- Provides both live and retrospective ways to record work.
- Connects time entries to invoicing within the same platform.
- Supports rate structures that reflect different staff members and services.
Cons and fit checks
- A running timer still depends on starting it at the right point; retrospective entry depends on having enough information to reconstruct the work.
- Test how staff handle switching clients and how managers review corrections.
- Compare the wider platform with your existing setup before making a migration decision.
Best for: Firms seeking timekeeping and billing within their TaxDome workflow. See TaxDome time and billing and its live and retrospective tracking instructions.
4. Canopy
Canopy's time and billing tools include live timers, manual entries, task-based tracking, invoicing, and reporting on matters such as utilization, realization, and work in progress. Its time and expense tools also support task and subtask budgets.
Pros
- Connects time records with the work and billing process.
- Supports several ways for staff to enter their time.
- Offers reporting useful when reviewing engagement economics.
Cons and fit checks
- Reporting quality still depends on correct client, task, rate, and time records.
- Confirm the features and payment services included in the proposed package.
- If your main problem is forgotten activity, test that scenario specifically instead of evaluating only the billing screens.
Best for: Firms that want time, billing, and reporting within Canopy. See Canopy Time & Billing and time and expense management.
5. Financial Cents
Financial Cents offers a start/stop timer and manual time entries within its workflow software. Entries can be associated with clients or projects, marked billable or non-billable, and used with budgets, rates, invoicing, and profitability reports.
Pros
- Keeps time tracking close to client work.
- Handles billable and non-billable activity.
- Combines tracking with budgets and invoicing rather than stopping at an hours report.
Cons and fit checks
- Staff must use a timer or enter the time; confirm how that fits a day of frequent interruptions.
- Consistent client and project assignments matter when comparing results.
- Check the plan and accounting connection needed for your exact billing workflow.
Best for: Firms that want a direct path from workflow tasks to time records and invoices. See Financial Cents time tracking and current plans.
6. QuickBooks Time
QuickBooks Time focuses on team hours and timesheets within the QuickBooks ecosystem. Intuit's U.S. product page says a QuickBooks Online account is required, and lists base subscription charges plus per-user charges. Some payroll packages include time tracking, so existing subscriptions matter when evaluating cost.
Pros
- Relevant when payroll and team hours are central requirements.
- Offers browser and mobile access for recording time.
- May fit an existing QuickBooks setup without adding an unrelated accounting platform.
Cons and fit checks
- Compare the full subscription cost, including the required account and user charges.
- Country, payroll package, and plan affect what is available.
- Demonstrate the descriptions and engagement detail you need; an approved attendance record is not automatically a useful client billing narrative.
Best for: Firms prioritizing timesheets and payroll connections. See QuickBooks Time plans and requirements and Intuit's U.S. payroll setup guide.
7. Xero Projects
Xero Projects records time and costs against projects and tasks, then connects that information to project finances and invoicing. Users can run a timer or enter time manually. Its mobile app can also suggest entries using configured locations; that feature should not be confused with reading the content of desktop work.
Pros
- Keeps project hours close to costs and invoices in Xero.
- Supports task-level time records and project reporting.
- Gives existing Xero users a native option to evaluate first.
Cons and fit checks
- Xero Projects is a product within Xero; confirm the plan and regional availability for your firm's organization.
- A location-based suggestion will not by itself distinguish several client engagements performed at the same desk.
- Using Xero for a client's books does not establish that it is the right system for your own firm's engagement billing.
Best for: Firms considering project timekeeping within their own Xero setup. See Xero time tracking and its project timer instructions.
8. BigTime
BigTime's accounting-firm offering connects time and expenses with engagement budgets, staffing, billing, and reporting. Its accounting product page describes connections to tools including QuickBooks, Sage Intacct, and Lacerte.
Pros
- Useful when a firm wants to assess the engagement lifecycle as well as time entry.
- Brings staffing, billing, and financial reporting into the same evaluation.
- Lists accounting and tax-software connections relevant to CPA firms.
Cons and fit checks
- A broader services platform may require more setup decisions than a standalone capture tool.
- Confirm the exact integration, data direction, and plan rather than relying on a software logo.
- Demonstrate how staff create and correct entries; time-and-expense functionality alone does not establish how much activity is captured automatically.
Best for: Firms evaluating timekeeping as part of a larger engagement and financial management process. See BigTime for accounting firms and time and expense tracking.
Our recommendation
If your accounting firm wants to help shape a desktop capture workflow that produces entries for your review, start with a Timekeepr early-access conversation. That is the fit we recommend: less reconstruction from memory, Mac and Windows support, and control over the final entry.
If you need an established practice platform, payroll connection, or a specific live billing integration immediately, begin with products that already document that requirement. A tool your firm already owns may cover more of the job than you expect. Check its timekeeping workflow before introducing another system.
For any shortlist, run the same realistic exercise: switch between two client engagements, answer a short advisory question, pause for internal work, and then review the resulting records. Check the duration, description, engagement assignment, edits, and destination. The best choice is the one that handles your firm's actual work reliably.
Tell us which accounting tools your firm uses, and we can discuss Timekeepr’s accounting early access and demonstrate the available integrations. For a closer look at one practice platform, read Timekeepr vs. Karbon.
Sources and review date
Links beside each product lead to that vendor's own product or support materials. Feature descriptions are vendor statements, not independent verification. This guide does not claim measured time recovery, accuracy, or a guaranteed financial result. Reviewed October 26, 2026.