For Accounting Firms

Time Tracking Software for Accountants That Runs Itself

Q: What is the best time tracking software for accountants?

The best time tracking software for accountants captures billable hours automatically without timers or manual entry. Rize runs in the background on macOS and Windows, categorizing time by client, engagement type, and team member. Your team reviews pre-filled timesheets instead of building them from memory at end of day.

Q: How does automatic time tracking work for accounting firms?

Rize installs on each team member's computer and reads which applications, documents, and websites are in focus. It uses category rules you define to assign time to the correct client and engagement type — tax prep, audit, advisory, or admin. Accountants review and approve entries instead of reconstructing them.

Q: Can Rize track time across multiple client engagements?

Yes. You set up category rules that map tax software, client folders, and documents to specific engagements. When someone opens a client file or switches to a different engagement, Rize tags the time automatically. You can track dozens of active clients simultaneously without any manual switching.

Q: How does Rize help during tax season?

Tax season means 60-80 hour weeks and timesheets are the first thing that breaks. Rize keeps tracking in the background even when your team is too busy to think about it. Partners can see real-time utilization across the firm and redistribute work before deadlines slip or people burn out.

Q: What is the best time and billing software for accountants?

For time capture specifically, Rize is the most accurate option because it tracks automatically — no timers, no manual entry. It pairs with your existing billing system. Export detailed time records grouped by client and engagement type, then feed them into your invoicing workflow.

Tax season hits and timesheets are the first thing that falls apart. Rize captures billable hours across client files, tax prep, and advisory work automatically — no timers, no end-of-day guesswork.

See who on your team is at capacity and who has room. Know the real cost of every client engagement so you can price next year based on data, not last year's guess.

10-30%

Billable time typically missed with manual tracking

60-80hr

Weeks during tax season — timesheets fall apart first

<2 min

Daily review instead of 30 min reconstruction

THE PROBLEM

You're billing based on last year's guess

Most accounting firms know their time tracking is broken. Timesheets are late, estimates are wrong, and nobody has real data on what each engagement actually costs.

Tax season hits and timesheets are the first casualty

60-80 hour weeks across dozens of client files. Nobody has time to log time when they barely have time to do the work. Billable hours vanish because the tracking process can't keep up.

Is that client profitable? You're guessing.

Without real time data per engagement, partners can't tell which clients make money and which drain the firm. Pricing stays based on last year's estimate, not this year's actual cost.

Who's overloaded? You won't know until it's too late.

Tax prep, audit, advisory, admin — your team juggles all of it. But without utilization data, staffing happens by gut feel. Burnout and missed deadlines follow.

30 minutes a day on timesheets. Every day.

Associates reconstruct what they did from memory. Partners review entries they know are wrong. The whole process is a tax on the productive work your firm actually bills for.

Here's how it works

Install on your team's machines

Sign up for a free trial and install Rize on each team member's Mac or Windows computer. Setup takes under 5 minutes per person.

Map clients and engagement types

Set up category rules that connect tax software, client folders, and document names to specific client engagements. Rize starts categorizing time immediately.

Your team works, Rize tracks

CPAs and associates work normally across tax prep, advisory, audit, and admin. Rize captures every minute and assigns it to the right client and engagement type.

Review, approve, bill

Team members review auto-generated time entries, make adjustments, and approve. Export accurate records for client billing or feed directly into your practice management system.

Your team does client work. Rize tracks the hours.

It runs in the background on every team member's machine. No timers, no browser extensions, no behavior change. Timesheets fill themselves.

Automatic Time Capture Across Client Files

Rize detects which client engagement you are working on based on the tax software, spreadsheets, and documents open on your screen. Time is tagged to the correct client automatically.

Partner & Associate Utilization Dashboard

See real-time utilization rates for every team member. Spot who is overloaded during tax season, who has capacity for advisory work, and where to rebalance before deadlines hit.

Tax Prep, Audit & Advisory Tracked Separately

Break down time by engagement type so you know the true cost of each service line. Price future engagements based on actual data, not estimates from two seasons ago.

One-Click Billing Export

Export detailed time records grouped by client, engagement type, and team member. Feed directly into your billing system without manual reconciliation or end-of-month scrambles.

Frequently Asked Questions