Clockoli vs SaaS and open-source time trackers

Clockoli is not unique because it is free or open source. Kimai and solidtime already offer open-source time tracking, and self-hosting either gives you control of the database. Both also sell managed cloud services [28][16].

Clockoli’s distinction is narrower: your canonical time records live as plain files in a GitHub repository you control, without a separate time-tracking application server or database to operate. GitHub is the backend, not just an integration next to the timer.

That is useful if your team already works on GitHub. It is not a reason to pretend Clockoli has the most complete feature set.

Three models, three trade-offs

SaaS: someone else operates the tracker

Toggl Track, Clockify, Harvest, and Tempo Timesheets Cloud offer a managed application. You get convenience and established workflows; your working records are stored in the provider’s service. Tempo Cloud uses its own infrastructure alongside Jira, rather than simply putting everything in Atlassian’s database [38].

Vendor-hosted does not mean you surrender legal ownership, cannot export, or expose every hourly rate to every colleague. These are different questions. For example, Toggl, Clockify, and Harvest publish APIs [42][43][37]. Clockify also documents controls over who can see rates [29].

Tempo also has a Jira Data Center deployment option [45]. It belongs on the self-managed side of the operational trade-off, not in a claim that every Tempo deployment is SaaS.

Self-hosted open source: your application, your database

Kimai and solidtime give you control of the database and application. This is real data ownership, not a lock-in trap. Kimai supports CSV, Excel, PDF, and HTML exports plus an API; solidtime offers report exports and a REST API [2][6][30].

The trade-off is operating software. Kimai needs a PHP application, web server, and MariaDB/MySQL database. solidtime’s documented Docker setup includes its backend, a database, and configuration for email and a reverse proxy. You must arrange upgrades, backups, security, and recovery—even if some infrastructure is managed for you [3][7].

Both offer hosted plans if you want to hand that work back to a provider. Choosing those plans changes who operates the backend; it does not make the self-hosted edition less open [1][4].

Repo-native: GitHub is the storage/backend

Clockoli’s browser extension writes monthly JSONL time files directly to your GitHub time repositories. Reports read those records across repositories and team members. There is no separate Clockoli time-tracking backend to deploy, patch, or back up.

This combines repository ownership with SaaS-like convenience in operations, not complete SaaS feature parity or onboarding polish. Chrome installs from the Chrome Web Store and updates automatically. Firefox and Safari builds are still in testing. GitHub accounts, repository permissions, API limits, and outages remain part of the system.

It is also not a claim that GitHub is self-hosting. If you need the entire system on infrastructure you operate, choose a self-hosted tracker. You can clone Clockoli’s files for local analysis or move the records elsewhere, but the current extension still needs GitHub; moving files does not add support for another Git host.

The comparison

The homepage leaves Tempo out to keep the table shorter; this version includes it. Kimai and solidtime entries refer to self-hosting unless marked Cloud. A free core does not include free infrastructure or every paid plugin. “Not verified” means the reviewed documentation did not establish the feature, not that the feature is impossible.

Checked September 10, 2026. Kimai and solidtime columns describe self-hosting unless marked Cloud; Tempo describes Timesheets Cloud. Free core software does not make hosting or paid add-ons free. Sources and details.

When you should choose Kimai

Choose Kimai when you need a mature business time-management system, especially complex rates, invoicing, audit trails, expenses, and workforce administration. Its rate rules work at user, customer, project, and activity levels, with internal and external prices stored on time entries [14].

Core invoicing includes billing documents rather than just a printable time report. Its ecosystem adds audit trails, expenses that can flow into invoices, advanced e-invoicing, working-hour accounts, overtime, holidays, vacation, and sickness management [2][13].

Be precise about cost: the self-hosted core is free and AGPL-3.0; Audit Trail, expenses, and working-hours functionality are paid extensions, not a promise that every workforce feature ships free. Kimai Cloud bundles features by plan [28][13][1].

Kimai is currently stronger than Clockoli at running this broader business workflow. It also has a responsive web interface and a marketplace of third-party mobile and desktop clients. A marketplace Chrome bridge documents linking time to GitHub issues; check its compatibility and installation requirements rather than assuming it is a current, built-in GitHub integration [17][44].

Choose Clockoli instead when Git-backed records and avoiding another application/database matter more than those business features. Choosing Kimai does not mean giving up your data: self-hosted users control the database, and exports and API access are documented [2].

When you should choose solidtime

Choose solidtime when you want a modern open-source traditional time tracker: projects, tasks, clients, teams, and reporting in a dedicated app, with a choice of cloud hosting or your own backend [16][32].

Its first-party desktop app supports macOS, Windows, and Linux, with automatic activity tracking and idle detection. Activity stays on the machine until you log it as time. Its Chrome/Chromium and Firefox extension documents integrations with Linear, Jira, and Plane; GitHub is not listed there [24][25].

Migration is a practical strength: solidtime documents imports from Toggl, Clockify, Harvest, its own exports, and generic CSV. Roles distinguish owners, admins, managers, and employees, and placeholder users preserve imported or former teammates’ time without giving them active access [31][32].

These clients, imports, activity capture, and team administration make solidtime more feature-complete than Clockoli in several everyday areas. Its invoicing now supports invoice states, taxes, discounts, and PDFs. Invoicing is a paid Cloud or on-premise Business feature—not part of the free self-hosted core. Cloud Solo is free for one user; team support, shared/PDF reports, and access-management features are on the paid Cloud plan [5][12][4].

Choose Clockoli instead when you would rather keep canonical time files in GitHub than run solidtime’s application and database. Choose solidtime when its richer dedicated tracking environment is worth that operational responsibility—or when you prefer its managed Cloud service [7][4].

When SaaS is the better fit

Toggl Track suits teams that want web, desktop, and mobile tracking without requiring GitHub accounts [41]. It has basic free tracking/reporting, with team and advanced features on paid plans [8]. PDF invoice creation also works on Free, with Toggl branding; audit logs are available on Premium and Enterprise [22][23].

Clockify is worth considering for conventional time tracking with reports, apps, and integrations. Its current pricing FAQ says you can invite up to four other people for free—not unlimited free seats. Reports are included in Free; invoicing starts at Standard and the change audit log is an Enterprise feature [9].

Harvest is a stronger fit when invoicing, expenses, payments, and client billing are central. Free includes one seat and two projects; paid plans add team and advanced features, with usage qualifications in the pricing page. Its Enterprise plan includes an activity log. It offers iOS/Android and Mac/Windows apps [10][26].

Tempo fits Jira-centered organizations that need worklog reports and approvals. Its Chrome tracker works outside Jira too, but assigns time to Jira work items [33]. Tempo Cloud has its own iOS/Android app and an administrator audit log with 180 days visible in the UI [34][11]. Timesheets prepares billable-hour reports for invoicing; do not confuse that with every financial feature in the wider Tempo product family [39]. Timesheet exports and API access are also available [18][45].

GitHub timer buttons are not exclusive to Clockoli. Toggl, Clockify, and Harvest all document GitHub integrations. The distinction is where the resulting record lives, not whether a timer can appear beside an issue [40][20][21].

Ownership, exports, and rate privacy

For self-hosted Kimai and solidtime, the database is yours to administer, back up, and query. Export and API options make integration and migration practical. Clockoli’s narrower advantage is that the canonical records are already plain files in Git, without a database dump or report export step [2][6][30].

A clone is a copy you create and maintain, not an automatic guarantee that all of your data is already on disk. Back up the relevant branches as well as the files. Git history makes corrections inspectable, but administrators can rewrite history: it is not an immutable compliance audit log.

Rate confidentiality deserves its own check. Server-stored rates do not automatically leak to employees; permissions and report sharing determine exposure. Kimai explicitly warns that shared export templates containing rate columns can reveal rates even when normal view permissions hide them. Clockoli avoids putting rates into shared time files, but browser access and financial exports still need protection [2] [29].

Where Clockoli is the wrong choice today

• You need mobile or a full desktop tracker. Clockoli has neither. Chrome installs from the Chrome Web Store; Firefox and Safari builds are still in testing.
• You need mature invoicing or workforce administration. Clockoli invoices from a filtered report, but not recurring invoices, dunning, payment gateways, expenses, leave, or approval workflows.
• You need fully self-hosted storage. GitHub is still a provider dependency. Kimai or solidtime is the more direct fit.
• You need fine-grained privacy inside one shared time repository. Anyone with repository read access can read its recorded URLs, titles, descriptions, and timestamps. Keep unrelated work in separate repositories.
• You need Firefox or Safari today. Chrome Web Store installs update automatically; Firefox and Safari builds are still in testing.

When you should choose Clockoli

Choose Clockoli if you already use GitHub, want personal or shared team tracking, and value owning readable time records without taking on a second application and database. Choose Kimai for a mature business system; choose solidtime for a richer open-source tracking app; choose SaaS when managed workflows matter more than repository-native storage.

The useful distinction is not “open source versus locked in.” It is which backend you want to depend on, who operates it, and what form your records take.

To try it, install Clockoli and connect a private time repository. There is no separate time-tracking service to provision. GitHub does that job.

Sources

Official documentation and pricing reviewed September 10, 2026. Plan availability and integrations can change. Clockoli capabilities were checked against the current product README and feature/privacy documentation, rather than inferred from competitor marketing.

[1] Official source: kimai.org — pricing

[2] Official source: kimai.org — export

[3] Official source: kimai.org — installation

[4] Official source: solidtime.io — pricing

[5] Official source: solidtime.io — invoicing

[6] Official source: solidtime.io — reporting

[7] Official source: docs.solidtime.io — docker

[8] Official source: support.toggl.com — payment plans at toggl track

[9] Official source: clockify.me — pricing

[10] Official source: getharvest.com — pricing

[11] Official source: help.tempo.io — audit log

[12] Official source: solidtime.io — on premise

[13] Official source: kimai.org — store

[14] Official source: kimai.org — rates

[16] Official source: solidtime.io — overview

[17] Official source: kimai.org — integrations

[18] Official source: help.tempo.io — exporting timesheets

[20] Official source: clockify.me — github time tracking

[21] Official source: getharvest.com — github

[22] Official source: support.toggl.com — creating invoices in toggl track

[23] Official source: support.toggl.com — audit log

[24] Official source: solidtime.io — desktop app

[25] Official source: github.com — browser extension

[26] Official source: getharvest.com — apps

[28] Official source: kimai.org — overview

[29] Official source: clockify.me — rates

[30] Official source: docs.solidtime.io — access api

[31] Official source: docs.solidtime.io — import

[32] Official source: docs.solidtime.io — roles

[33] Official source: help.tempo.io — time tracker by tempo for chrome

[34] Official source: help.tempo.io — tempo mobile

[37] Official source: help.getharvest.com — api v2

[38] Official source: help.tempo.io — data residency

[39] Official source: help.tempo.io — track billable hours for invoicing

[40] Official source: support.toggl.com — toggl track browser extension

[41] Official source: support.toggl.com — toggl track apps

[42] Official source: developers.track.toggl.com — overview

[43] Official source: docs.clockify.me — overview

[44] Official source: kimai.org — neontribe chrome plugin

[45] Official source: marketplace.atlassian.com — timesheets by tempo jira time tracking