Time tracking-only contractors—not employees

Hello there, @Linnny.

Let me share some information about time tracking in QuickBooks Online. 

The QuickBooks Online Time Tracking feature allows your employees to fill out their time worked.

All you need to do is enabled this feature in the Company settings. Then, assign a time entry only user access rights to your employees. 

Turning on the time tracking preference:

1. Go to the Gear icon, then select Account and Settings.
2. On the left-hand menu, click Advanced. 
3. Click the pencil to the right of Time Tracking 
4. Check the Add Service field to timesheets or Add Customer field to timesheets. When either of these is checked, employees and contractors who fill out timesheets can specify if activities should be billed to a customer.
5. (Optional) Check the Show billing rate to users entering time.
6. To select the first day of the workweek, use the drop-down and select the day to begin each workweek. Setting the first day of your workweek affects how employees and contractors view Weekly Time Sheets.
7. Click Save.
8. Click Done on the bottom right.

To add a Time Tracking user only:

1. Click on the Gear, then select Manage Users.
2. Choose New then select Time Tracking only.
3. Select which vendor or employee you wish to add as a Time Tracking Only user.  

Here's an article for more information:

Turn on and set up time tracking

If you have questions about the process, don't hesitate to leave me a comment below. I'll be here to answer them for you. 

I'm in the same boat as @linny.  The response from LollyNino_C does not address 'the no button for Contractor only Employee" on the Time Entries screen.  I was on the phone for at least an hour with Support.  They couldn't figure it out either. But clearly the documentation says we should be able to use this for contractors. (See attached document excerpts)  I turned on Time Tracking.  I set up the Contractor as time tracking only user.  But time entries wants me to set up employee.  I am on QuickBooks Online Plus.  

I want to use the Contractor time tracking so the contract bookkeeper can track time, provide a description of time, and we can allocate time between two locations. 

It would even be helpful to know that we can't do this. Maybe the documentation needs to be corrected. 

I'm here to ensure you're able to add your contractor for time tracking, VFB.

Having your contractor track and manage time on QuickBooks Online (QBO) is possible. To further investigate why the button is missing, I'd recommend attaching a screenshot of the Time Entries. This will help us determine the main cause.

In the meantime, I'd recommend accessing your QBO account via a private window. Doing so helps us check if this is a browser-related issue.

Here are the keyboard shortcuts: 

• Safari: Command + Shift + N 
• Google Chrome: CTRL + Shift + N
• Mozilla Firefox or Microsoft Edge: CTRL + Shift + P 

Once logged in, go back to the Time Entries page. If the Contractor button shows, let's clear your browser's cache. This will improve the performance of the program.

You can also log in to your account using other supported browsers. They'll provide you the best and most secure experience with QuickBooks.

In case you'll need to file 1099 in QuickBooks Online, I've included these articles that'll help you learn more about the process. This ensures your record is accurate.

• Which Contractors Need 1099s?
• Create and File 1099s using QuickBooks Online
• Fix Missing Contractors or Wrong Amounts on 1099s

Feel free to comment down below if you have any other concerns or questions about managing timesheets. I'm always glad to help in any way I can.

Thanks for posting here, tfelds. 

I can share some insights about billable time tracking in QuickBooks Online. Regarding your first question, yes, your vendors can enter their time using the Timesheet feature in QBO. This means that you need to add them as Time Tracking users in the company file.

Here's how you can add a time tracking a user in QuickBooks Online:

1. Go to Settings ⚙ and select Manage Users.
2. Click on Add user, then scroll down and choose Time tracking only. 
3. Select Next.
4. Find the employee or supplier you want to add, select Next, then enter their contact info.
5. Press Save.

Once added, the user can now enter hours in a timesheet. I'll be adding some related links to help you further with this:

• How to turn on and set up time tracking
• User roles and access rights in QuickBooks Online

Please let me know the result after trying out the steps. I want to make sure this time tracking user issue is resolved and I'll be right here if you need further help. 

I'm am on my 3rd call to qb online and have spent 6 hours trying to get this exact question answered. Every agent just transfers me to another .  The answer  provided to your original  question is NOT an answer. 

I understand the importance of resolving this issue, jkidd.

We always strive to ensure every customer is satisfied with our service. I am here to lend a hand to help you with adding contractor in timesheet. 

Your contractors can use the Timesheet feature in QuickBooks. However, you need to add them as users with Time Tracking access. If you have multiple contractors, I suggest finding a third-party app that you can use to enter their time. You can try finding an app in the Apps center. You may find one that offers a trial version.

Here are some articles about Timesheet and maximum number of users in QuickBooks:  

• Fill in a weekly timesheet
• Let Someone Fill In a Timesheet
• How to pay a subcontractor from time sheet entries 

I'm just one post away if you need a hand with your timesheet or any QuickBooks related. I'll be here to answer them. Have a great day ahead.

Has this been resolved.  It is Q4 2022 and I have the SAME contract employee time tracker need.  

I understand the importance of this feature's functionality for your company and you, @1blessedmind.

I can share some insights about time tracking in QuickBooks Online (QBO). Your contractor can manage time. We'll just have to add them as Time Tracking users in the company file.

Here's how:

1. Go to the Gear icon.
2. Under Your Company, select Manage users.
3. Click on Add user, then scroll down and choose Time tracking only.
4. Select Next.
5. Find the employee or contractor you want to add, select Next, then enter their contact info.
6. Hit Save.

Once added, the user can now enter hours on a timesheet.

I'll be adding some related links to help you further with this:

• How to turn on and set up time tracking
• User roles and access rights in QuickBooks Online

You can also consider checking out a third-party app that handles this type of data entry. Visit our application website here: https://apps.intuit.com/app/apps/home.

Please let me know the result after trying out the steps. I want to make sure this time tracking user issue is resolved. I'll be right here if you need further help.

When you do this:

Here's how:

1. Go to the Gear icon.
2. Under Your Company, select Manage users.
3. Click on Add user, then scroll down and choose Time tracking only.
4. Select Next.
5. Find the employee or contractor you want to add, select Next, then enter their contact info.
6. Hit Save

Does this count toward your number of users for QBO. (ie: What if you have 10 or 15 contractors you want to work with. Do they all have to be QBO users to enter their time?)  I'm hoping not or else you would have to have QBO Advanced. 

Thoughts?

@tempoent 

I appreciate you joining this thread and voicing out time tracking queries, @tempoent. I’m here to address them one by one and ensure you can add contractors in QuickBooks Online.

Regarding your first question, adding time tracker users won't count toward the subscription's stated number of users. This means you can have an unlimited number of users for Time Tracking. 

Second, your contractors will receive an email once you invite them as a time tracking user to your account. They need to select the link in the email to create a new Intuit account. From there, they can login to enter their time or hours in a timesheet.

Here are some articles you can read to help you further with setting up time tracking and adding users:

• Turn on and set up time tracking in QuickBooks Online
• Add and manage users in QuickBooks Online

Please reach out if there's anything else I can do to help, I'm determined to be your number one resource here in the Community. Have a wonderful weekend!

Replying to this in November 2022 - I am having the same exact problem. I just want to track our contractors time on each project so we can see our overall level of effort (employees + contractors + interns) on each project all in one. It is counter productive to use 2 different applications (QB Time for employees and a separate one for contractors and interns). If I completely switch applications right now, it is going to be bad for our employees who just got used to using QB Time. When I go to add a user for time tracking only, it wants me to link the new user to an employee or vendor. When I try to link to a vendor (contractor) it gives the error "Select different employee or vendor: Vendors with 1099 tracking turned on can't be added as time tracking users at this time." All the post responses indicate that we can track contractors time. 

Is there a difference between Time Tracking and Quickbooks time?

Same thing going on with us. We've followed all of these and it won't let us add contractors/1099 users to track time. WHY???? And can we track a different way?

Here to report we're seeing the same. I have contractors in QBO that I need to log time. It doesn't make any sense as to why they can't have an official account in QBO Time (mapped to their user in QBO) and everything cooperate in harmony. Please QBO fix this. I need a seamless solution between the two products.

quickbooks keeps posting the same solution, but there is not "time tracking" (step 3)

I'll be happy to clear some confusion for you, @richdon.

The Time tracking feature of QuickBooks Online allows employees to track and bill the number of hours consumed when they work. However, the option to track time for contractors is not possible in QBO.

On the other hand, QuickBooks Time is a web time-tracking solution that allows owners and managers to track employees in real time from their web or mobile apps. 

It offers mobile time tracking for employees who work remotely or frequently switch locations or jobs. Also, time tracking for contractors is possible in QB-Time.

You can utilize these articles to know more about the details:

• Get started with QuickBooks Time.
• Turn on and set up time tracking in QuickBooks Online.

Please see this article if you need to keep track of the total number of hours worked by your employees in QuickBooks Online: Enter a weekly timesheet.

If you have any further concerns about tracking time, don't hesitate to post them here. Have a great day!

I am having the same issue. 

1) I have a customer set up and my contractors are enrolled in QBO

2) I added QB Time and sent invites to users to track time

3) My contractors entered timesheets for time worked

4) I approved timesheets

5) I go to QBO to invoice clients and the hours submitted by contractors, that are marked as billable, are not available for me to add to the invoice

I have spent three hours trying to figure this out today. I have read the thread and I do not see an answer. The only hours available are the hours I manually entered on the Customer in QBO. Help!

I appreciate all the efforts that you've exhausted just to get this working, PCA_Consulting_GA. Let me guide you in resolving this problem. 

The billable time you've approved in QB Time should automatically pop up once you issue an invoice to your customers. I've tried performing the steps that you've listed above and was able to add or apply the hours. 

It could be that the accumulated cache in the browser is preventing the time entry to sync properly in the program. To rule this out, let's perform some basic troubleshooting procedures. First, access your QuickBooks company through a private window using these shortcut keys:

• Mozilla Firefox: Ctrl + Shift + P
• Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge: Ctrl + Shift + N
• Safari: Command + Option + P

Once you're in, create an invoice. If the billable hours are now showing, head back to your main browser and then clear the temporary internet files to start over fresh. Switching to other supported web browsers can also help fix the issue.

For more tips in managing the expenses you incur on your customer’s behalf, feel free to browse this article: Enter billable time by job.

If you need more help in handling your vendor and customer transactions, just leave a comment below and tag my name. I'll make sure to get back and take care of them.

responding to this from last year, has there been a solution?  when I try adding anyone through manage users I get this response: great news! you have a QuickBooks Time subscription. Invite your team from Time so they can start tracking their time"  when when I try to add a contractor it just brings be back to the contractor page with no mention of inviting them to Time.  Any solutions out there?  Just trying to add a contractor to track their time. 

We understand the importance of seamlessly managing your team and contractors within the platform, @Cristinab437.

Rest assured, I'm here to help add your contractors and ensure you can start tracking their time effectively.

But before anything else, can you share a screenshot of the page where the issue is happening? Any additional information you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Typically, you should be able to add and send invitations to contractors. Since there isn't any option to invite your contractors, we can perform some troubleshooting steps to fix this. 

There are instances when the browser is full of commonly used page resources, which results in errors or odd behavior. Let's use a different or private browser to view your account. You can use any of these shortcut keys to access one:

• Google Chrome: Ctrl + Shift + N
• Mozilla Firefox: Ctrl + Shift + P
• Microsoft Edge: Ctrl + Shift + N
• Safari: Command + Shift + N.

Next, add your contractor again. Once it's successful, go back to your usual browser and clear its cache. This is done to speed up the process the next time you do a transaction in QuickBooks. Also, an alternative way is to use other compatible browsers.

You can also review these articles to help manage your contractors and track their time. These resources can provide valuable insights and best practices for optimizing your contractor management processes and ensuring accurate time tracking:

• Flexible time tracking for freelancers and contractors
• Add and manage team members for QuickBooks Time.

Keep me posted if you have further concerns in setting up your contractors in QuickBooks Time. I'll be around to help you successfully manage your contractors. Stay safe!