How to track billable hours per project
To track billable hours per project, you need the contracted hours and the logged hours side by side on the same record. In Jestor, a ready made template shows the remaining hour balance directly on the project card, calculated as contracted hours minus hours worked.
Why service businesses lose margin silently
When a company sells hours, margin is consumed in small increments: an extra call, a revision nobody scoped, a meeting that ran long. None of it looks alarming on its own.
Without a running balance, the overrun is only discovered when the project is delivered and the profit is gone.
What hour tracking prevents:
- Working more hours than the client contracted
- Scope creep with no visible cost
- Invoicing that does not match the effort spent
- No evidence when renegotiating a contract
- Team overloaded on a project already in deficit
What the project card should show
| Field | What it holds | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Project name | Identification of the engagement | Finding it quickly |
| Client | Who contracted the work | One client can hold several projects |
| Contracted hours | What was sold | The ceiling of the engagement |
| Hours worked | What has been logged | Actual effort spent |
| Remaining balance | Contracted minus worked | The number that signals risk |
| Usage percentage | Share of hours consumed | Visual warning before the limit |
Step by step to run it
- Install the billable hours template and adjust the stages to your delivery flow.
- Register the client, since several projects can sit under the same account.
- Create the project with its description and the number of contracted hours.
- Log hours as work happens, not at the end of the month.
- Watch the remaining balance on the card as the project advances.
- Move the project across stages: proposal, execution, delivered or cancelled.
Why the balance belongs on the card
A report you have to open is a report nobody reads during the work. Putting the balance on the card means the person doing the work sees the constraint while there is still time to act.
- Balance calculated automatically: contracted hours minus logged hours
- Usage chart on the record: the percentage consumed, visible at a glance
- Stages on a Kanban: proposal, execution, delivered and cancelled
- Fully customizable: the example uses consulting, but any service model fits
Frequently Asked Questions
How is the remaining hour balance calculated?
Contracted hours minus the hours logged and tracked on the project. See jestor.com.
Can one client have several projects?
Yes. Projects are linked to the client record, which can hold many engagements.
Is this template only for consulting firms?
No. Consulting is the example used, but it fits any service billed by the hour.
Video Tutorial: Step by Step
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