Time tracking · New

Track the hours. Bilio writes the invoice.

Start a timer when you begin, or type the time when you’re done. Every hour sits with its client and project, billable or not. At the end of the month, pick the client and Bilio turns their unbilled hours into a draft invoice. No separate timer app, no copying hours across, and it’s free.

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Free plan, no card · In English, Dutch, German, Spanish and Bulgarian · Data stored in the EU

The short answer

What’s the easiest way to track hours as a freelancer?

Track time in the same app you invoice from. Log each block of work against a client and project as you go, mark it billable or not, and at the end of the month turn the unbilled hours into an invoice. Logging your non-billable hours too, like admin and finding clients, gives you a record if the Belastingdienst asks about the 1,225-hour criterion.

Checked by Stefka Ivanova, founder of Bilio and a freelancer in Amsterdam, on .

Ways to log
A timer, or time typed as 1:30, 1,5 or 90m
Per entry
Client, project, description, billable or not
To invoice
One line per project, or per day and task
Hourly rate
Per client, or your default
Price
Free on every plan
How Bilio helps

What changes when Bilio does the admin.

You bill by the hour, or need a record of your hours for the urencriterium.

  • 01

    A timer, or type it afterwards

    Start the timer when you begin and stop it when you’re done. Forgot? Add the time afterwards as 1:30, 1,5 or 90m, whichever you think in.

  • 02

    Per client and project

    Every entry has a client, a project and a line about what you did, so the invoice explains itself and you can see where your week went.

  • 03

    Billable or not

    Log the admin, the sales calls and the course too, marked not billable. They stay off your invoices, and you have a record of all the hours you put into your business.

  • 04

    Hours into an invoice in one click

    Pick a client and Bilio makes a draft invoice from their unbilled hours: one line per project, or one per day and task, at their hourly rate or your default. Delete the invoice and the hours are free to bill again.

  • 05

    Your week at a glance

    This week, last week, next: what you logged per day, what’s billable and what’s not invoiced yet.

  • 06

    Or just tell your assistant

    “Log 3 hours for Brightfold on the website today.” “Invoice Kestrel & Pine’s unbilled hours.” Claude or ChatGPT does it through Bilio’s connector (Pro).

Natively AI

Ask about your own numbers, in plain English.

Bilio’s AI financial advisor answers from your invoices and expenses (Pro). Or connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor to Bilio and ask there (Pro and Business); nothing is sent or changed without your OK.

AI does

Read receipts, suggest categories, add up the quarter, explain the btw boxes and the income tax lines, draft invoices.

You do

Check the figures and file them. Bilio doesn’t file for you and doesn’t give tax advice; for a complex situation, see an adviser.

Connect your assistant
  1. Log 3 hours for Brightfold on the website today.
  2. How many hours did I work for Kestrel & Pine this month?
  3. Which hours aren’t invoiced yet?
  4. Invoice Kestrel & Pine’s unbilled hours, one line per project.
  5. Log 2 hours of admin this morning, not billable.
The Dutch tax year

Four btw returns and one income tax return.

The btw return is due by the last day of the month after each quarter; the income tax return by 1 May the year after. The hours criterion is 1,225 hours a year, and admin, finding clients and training count as well as billable work. Bilio doesn’t decide whether you meet it, but your log is the record you’d show.

  • €1,200zelfstandigenaftrek 2026, with 1,225 hours
  • €2,123startersaftrek, up to 3 times in your first 5 years
  • 12.7%MKB-winstvrijstelling on profit after deductions
  • €20,000turnover limit for the KOR

Figures for 2026 from the Belastingdienst and business.gov.nl. Check them before you file.

Dutch tax terms

The tax office’s Dutch, in plain English.

Urencriterium
The hours criterion: at least 1,225 hours a year on your business, and more than half your working time (that second test does not apply in your first five years). Admin and finding clients count.
Zelfstandigenaftrek
The self-employed deduction: €1,200 off your profit in 2026, if you meet the hours criterion (urencriterium).
Startersaftrek
An extra €2,123 deduction for starters, on top of the zelfstandigenaftrek, up to three times in your first five years. Also needs the hours criterion.
MKB-winstvrijstelling
The SME profit exemption: 12.7% of your profit after the self-employed deductions is tax-free in 2026. No hours criterion needed.
Questions

Common questions.

Is time tracking in Bilio free?
Yes, on every plan, including the free Starter plan, with no limit on clients, projects or hours.
Can I turn hours into an invoice?
Yes. Pick a client and Bilio makes a draft invoice from their billable hours that aren’t invoiced yet: one line per project, or one per day and task, at the client’s hourly rate or your default. You check it and send it. If you delete that invoice, the hours can be billed again.
Do I need to track hours for the urencriterium?
The law doesn’t say how you keep the record, but if the Belastingdienst asks, you need to make 1,225 hours a year plausible. A log of your hours, billable and not, kept as you go, is the simplest evidence. Indirect hours like admin, sales and training count.
Can I set a different rate per client?
Yes. Set an hourly rate in each client’s details, and a default for everyone else in Settings › Invoices & emails.
Does it work on my phone?
Yes. Bilio runs in your phone’s browser, so you can start and stop the timer wherever you are.

Guides

Bilio is also for

Get started

Your first invoice takes four minutes.

Create an account with your email and follow the five-step setup: business details, VAT and KvK, IBAN, first client, first invoice. No card, no setup fee, no downloads. Cancel any time and take your data with you.

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