A completed example
This fictional example shows the level of detail to aim for. It is not a customer's work history.
Billable hours log Name: Priya, freelance designer Date: Monday 6 October 2026 Purpose: My own record for drafting invoices. Not a client-approved timesheet. Entries - Client: Harbor Street Bakery. Task: Homepage layout revisions, round 2. Start: 09:05. End: 10:50. Hours: 1.75. Billable: Yes. - Client: Internal. Task: Inbox, scheduling and sending last week's invoices. Start: 10:50. End: 11:20. Hours: 0.5. Billable: No. - Client: Lindqvist Outdoor Co. Task: Product page wireframes, desktop only. Start: 11:30. End: 13:00. Hours: 1.5. Billable: Yes. - Client: Lindqvist Outdoor Co. Task: Call with their marketing lead about launch dates. Start: 14:00. End: 14:45. Hours: 0.75. Billable: Yes. - Client: Harbor Street Bakery. Task: Re-exported image files after my own export mistake. Start: 15:00. End: 15:30. Hours: 0.5. Billable: No. - Client: Northfield Library Friends. Task: Book sale poster, first draft. Start: 15:45. End: 17:15. Hours: 1.5. Billable: No, agreed as pro bono. Totals Billable hours: 4.0 Non-billable hours: 2.5 Total logged: 6.5 Open items - Lindqvist mobile wireframes not started. Planned for Tuesday morning. - Northfield poster needs a second draft after their Thursday meeting. - Ask Harbor Street whether round 3 revisions are in the original scope before starting them.
Make it yours
Your draft
The example is fictional. Edits stay in this page and disappear when you leave. Copy or download your work to keep it.
How to fill it in
- Write one entry for each continuous block of work, and start a new line whenever the client or the task changes.
- Fill in start and end times as you go, or from your calendar and notes at the end of the day, then convert the gap into decimal hours.
- Mark each entry Billable yes or no based on your agreement with that client, and add a short reason for every No so you remember why later.
- Add up the billable and non-billable hours separately and check that together they match your total logged time.
- List unfinished work and any scope questions under Open items so the next day's log starts from a clear picture.
Start from your actual work
On a Mac, Dayflow can help you remember the work behind the update. It drafts a timeline from screen activity. Export a date range as Markdown from Settings → Export. Review that record alongside your calendar and task tracker, then fill in the template above.
For a guided walkthrough, see exporting your work history or drafting a report with Claude Code. Check the assistant's draft before sending it.
Local AI keeps screenshot analysis on-device. Your own cloud provider or Dayflow Pro processes selected screenshots off-device. An assistant can receive the Dayflow data it retrieves in your conversation. Local storage does not make a cloud assistant conversation local. Read the data-flow guide before choosing a workflow.
Questions about this template
What counts as billable hours versus non-billable hours?
Billable hours are time spent on work your agreement with a client says they pay for, such as design, writing or meetings about their project. Non-billable hours include admin, your own invoicing, fixing your own mistakes and agreed pro bono work. When unsure, log the time anyway, mark it No with a reason, and confirm with the client before invoicing.
Why doesn't this billable hours log include rates or amounts?
This log records time and billable status only. Rates belong in your contract and the amounts belong on your invoice. Keeping money out of the log makes it easier to share with a client or colleague as a plain record of work, and avoids mistakes when different clients or tasks have different rates.
How should I round billable time in my log?
Follow whatever your contract or client specifies. Some agreements bill in fixed increments, others in exact minutes. If nothing is agreed, record real start and end times, convert them to decimal hours consistently, and note your rounding rule at the top of the log so anyone reading it can follow how the totals were reached.
Is a billable hours log the same as a timesheet or an invoice?
No. A billable hours log is your working record of what you did and when. A timesheet is usually a document a manager or client reviews and approves, and an invoice is a payment request with rates and amounts. Use the log as the source you check before preparing either of those documents.
How often should I update a billable hours log?
Update it during the day or at least before you stop working. Entries written from memory days later tend to lose short calls, small fixes and context switches, which are exactly the items clients ask about. A few minutes at the end of each day keeps start and end times accurate and makes weekly totals quick to check.
Can I fill in a billable hours log automatically?
Partly. On a Mac, Dayflow drafts a timeline from your screen activity, which can help you recall start and end times and which project you were in. You still need to check that timeline, decide which entries are billable, and add offline work such as phone calls or site visits yourself before relying on it.
Use the right format for the next step
- Weekly status report for a concise progress update.
- Daily work log for a record you can come back to.
- Daily standup template for yesterday, today, and blockers.
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