Toggl Track is the better timer, and it is not close. If your team tracks time by starting and stopping a clock, Toggl does that as well as anything on the market and this page will not talk you out of it.
The comparison only becomes interesting for consultancies that need a formal sign-off step before billing, because of where Toggl puts that feature.
Where approvals sit in each product
On Toggl Track, timesheet approvals first appear on the Premium plan at $14 per user per month billed annually, which the pricing page states "renews at $18/month after first year". Billable rates and PDF invoicing appear earlier, on Starter at $9 per user per month (toggl.com/track/pricing, checked 31 August 2026).
On TimeSubmit, approvals are on every plan, including the 60-day trial. There is no tier where a timesheet cannot be approved, because approving timesheets is what the product is for.
That single placement decision is most of the price difference between the two.
What each costs where approvals are needed
| Team size | Toggl Premium (year 1) | Toggl Premium (renewal) | TimeSubmit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 people | $70 | $90 | $39 (Practice) |
| 10 people | $140 | $180 | $140 (Core) |
| 25 people | $350 | $450 | $350 (Core) |
| 50 people | $700 | $900 | $700 (Core) |
TimeSubmit Core is $42 a month covering three members, then $14 for each additional, or $33 a month billed annually. Practice is $39 for up to five members after a 60-day trial and is capped there. Figures in USD, verified against both pricing pages on 31 August 2026.
Two things are worth reading off that table honestly. In year one, at ten seats and above, the two are the same price. This is not a value argument, it is a parity argument. The gap opens at renewal, and at five people, where Practice at $39 is meaningfully below Premium at $70.
The difference that is not about price
TimeSubmit has a dedicated approver role, and an approver never sees billing rates or invoice totals.
In Toggl, approvals are performed by admins and project leads. Billable rates are a workspace capability from Starter upward, so the people doing the approving are generally people who can see what time is charged at. There is no role that approves hours while being blind to money.
This matters when the approver is client-side, a project sponsor confirming the hours your team worked on their engagement. They need to agree the time. Showing them your rate card in order to get that agreement is a commercial problem, not a permissions setting. If your approvers are internal partners who should see rates anyway, the distinction is worth nothing to you.
After approval
In TimeSubmit an approved timesheet becomes an invoice directly, or several approved timesheets combine into one, producing a PDF with your logo, payment terms, tax details and bank details across seven currencies. Nothing can be invoiced that has not been approved first.
Toggl Starter and above generate PDF invoices too. The difference is sequence rather than capability: Toggl will invoice tracked time whether or not anyone signed it off, because it is not built around a sign-off gate.
Where Toggl Track is genuinely better
- The timer. Toggl's timer, browser extension, idle detection and background tracking are the reason it is the default recommendation in this category. TimeSubmit has no timer at all.
- Cheaper if you do not need approvals. Starter at $9 per user includes billable rates and invoicing. That is less than TimeSubmit at most team sizes.
- A free plan for a small number of users.
- Reporting. Toggl's reports, insights and profitability views are far deeper than anything here.
- Integrations, mobile and desktop apps. Years of surface area TimeSubmit does not have.
- Scale. Toggl runs comfortably at sizes this product has not been tested at.
Where TimeSubmit fits instead
- Approvals are needed on every plan, not as a premium upgrade.
- The approver must not see rates.
- Nothing should be invoiceable until it has been approved.
- You want structured weekly or monthly timesheets across several projects in one submission rather than a timer.
What TimeSubmit does not do
No timer. No accounting integration: invoices come out as PDFs and are entered into your accounting package separately. No expense tracking, no mobile app, no resource scheduling or capacity planning.
Frequently asked questions
Does Toggl Track have timesheet approvals?
Yes, on the Premium plan at $14 per user per month billed annually, which the pricing page notes renews at $18 after the first year. They are not available on Free or Starter.
Can a Toggl approver be stopped from seeing billable rates?
Not as a role. Approvals are carried out by admins and project leads, and billable rates are a workspace capability from Starter upward. TimeSubmit's approver role exists to separate approving hours from seeing money.
Is TimeSubmit cheaper than Toggl Track?
At five people, yes: $39 against $70. At ten, twenty-five and fifty people the year-one cost is identical, and TimeSubmit is cheaper from Toggl's renewal onward. If you do not need approvals, Toggl Starter at $9 per user is cheaper than TimeSubmit at every size.
Does TimeSubmit have a timer?
No. It uses structured weekly or monthly timesheets. If your team works from a running timer, Toggl is the better fit and switching would be a downgrade.
Can I move from Toggl Track to TimeSubmit?
Toggl exports time entries as CSV. There is no automated importer, so projects, clients and approvers are set up by hand, usually an afternoon for a firm under twenty-five people.
Trying it
The question that decides this one is not price, because at most team sizes there is barely any. It is whether approvals belong on your top-but-one tier or on all of them, and whether the person approving your hours should be able to see what you charge for them.
See how approvals work, pricing in full, or the Clockify comparison if cost is the deciding factor.