Clockify vs OtiumWork

the freemium time tracker from CAKE

OtiumWork is built for Consulting firms Agencies In-house ops teams Multi-entity holding cos B2B SaaS finance teams Engineering shops
TL;DR: Clockify is excellent at the one thing it does — free time tracking. If you also need finance, HR, and Legal in the same workspace — whether you're a consulting firm, an agency, an in-house ops team, or a multi-entity holding company — you'll outgrow Clockify on day one.

What is Clockify?

Clockify is a freemium time tracker built by Croatian software company CAKE.com (the same team behind Plaky and Pumble). It launched in 2017 with one differentiator that's still its biggest pull: unlimited free users on the basic plan. Most teams adopt it for that reason alone. The paid tiers add approval workflows, custom fields, project budgets, and a few admin features.

Where Clockify wins

  • Free for unlimited users — the only major time tracker that doesn't seat-cap the free plan
  • Cross-platform clients (web, Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, Android, browser extensions)
  • Decent integrations marketplace (80+ tools)
  • Project + task hierarchy with hourly rate billing on paid tiers

Where OtiumWork wins

  • AI-native by design: every module — timesheets, finance inbox, R&D classification, weekly digest, ask-anything assistant — is built on Claude AI, not a bolt-on add-on
  • Efficiency optimization engine: AI continuously analyzes your team's captured activity and surfaces concrete time-savings — meetings that could be async, repeated workflows ripe for automation, low-value tasks absorbing too much team time. Most platforms track work; OtiumWork helps you do less of it.
  • Multi-entity rollups: unlimited legal entities (any country, any base currency) consolidated in one workspace, with per-month FX rates
  • Live AR / AP dashboard with aging buckets (current / 30 / 60 / 90+) per entity AND consolidated
  • Built-in sales + CRM pipeline with tiered commission plans and per-payment accruals — no external CRM subscription required
  • US §41 R&D tax credit report with per-employee qualified-wages calculation + 65% contractor rule
  • AI mailbox scanner: extracts vendor bills + customer invoices from your finance@ inbox automatically
  • Embedded HR module: per-employee documents, key dates, certifications with expiry alerts, performance reviews, goals, 1:1 logs, salary history, disciplinary log, org chart, onboarding/offboarding checklists
  • Embedded Legal module: contracts, IP, insurance, compliance, litigation, GDPR/DSR — with 90-day expiry alerts
  • Accounting software sync per entity (QuickBooks Online live; Xero + Sage Intacct on roadmap)
  • Office suite integration: Microsoft 365 calendar + mailbox AI extraction (Google Workspace on roadmap)
  • CRM integration: built-in sales pipeline + deals; Salesforce / HubSpot bi-directional sync on roadmap
  • AI-assisted timesheet drafting from captured activity + meeting context
  • Per-employee module-access flags (Finance / HR / Legal independent of role)
  • Opt-in employee-reviewable activity capture: app + window title only, no screenshots, no keystrokes, no clipboard

Feature comparison

FeatureClockifyOtiumWork
Time tracking (manual + timer)
Free plan Unlimited users Free during beta — unlimited users
Per-employee hourly cost + billing rate Pro tier
Approvals workflow Standard tier
Multi-entity finance rollups ×
Live AR / AP aging dashboard ×
Sales pipeline + tiered commissions ×
R&D tax credit (US §41) report ×
AI mailbox scanner for vendor bills ×
Embedded HR module ×
Embedded Legal module ×
QuickBooks per-entity sync Generic export
Microsoft 365 calendar AI integration ×
Per-employee module-access flags ×

Price comparison

ClockifyOtiumWork
Per active employee $0 (basic) – $11.99/mo (enterprise) Free during beta, then $1.99/mo
Setup fee None None
Annual commitment Optional discount None — monthly only
Trial card required No No

Which one's right for you?

If you're: Solo freelancer or 2-person team that just needs a stopwatch
→ Stay on Clockify free — no compelling reason to switch.
If you're: 5–50 person team (consulting firm, agency, in-house ops, holding co) needing time + finance + HR in one place
→ Switch to OtiumWork — Clockify can't model your finance + HR + Legal needs.
If you're: Multi-entity firm (US + EU + India offices)
→ Switch to OtiumWork — Clockify is single-workspace; consolidated multi-entity reporting requires four separate tools without us.
If you're: Agency that needs project margin tracking
→ Either works for time, but only OtiumWork ties hours to per-project profitability + per-department margin.

Frequently asked

Can I import my Clockify history into OtiumWork?

Yes — we have a Clockify CSV importer. Export from Clockify (Reports → Detailed → Export CSV), then upload at Admin → Import. Time entries, projects, clients, and users all map across.

Will my team have to install anything new?

Optional. The OtiumWork desktop client is opt-in for automatic capture; web timesheets work fine without it.

Is OtiumWork really cheaper than Clockify?

Versus Clockify free: no — both are free for the basic case. Versus Clockify Pro ($9.99) or Enterprise ($11.99): yes, by 5-6×, AND you get finance + HR + Legal in the bundle.

Does OtiumWork track keystrokes or take screenshots?

No. The desktop client captures only the active app name and window title bar text. No screenshots, no keystrokes, no clipboard, no camera. Employees can review and correct any captured event.

Multi-entity — what does that actually mean?

Each business entity (US LLC, UK Ltd, India Pvt) is a first-class object. Employees, projects, sales, contracts all carry an entity_id. Finance reports filter per-entity OR roll up consolidated using monthly FX rates you maintain.

Try OtiumWork free during beta

OtiumWork is in public beta — that means free for unlimited users until you decide to subscribe. No credit card required to start. Once you subscribe, it's $1.99 per active employee seat per month, billed via Stripe. Cancel anytime from your billing page; you can export everything via /api/me/export. Beta users get direct access to the team — your feature requests genuinely shape the roadmap. Start your free workspace →

Start your free workspace →

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