Notion Time Tracking: 3 Best Ways to Monior Your Time
As a creative entrepreneur who finally solved the major issue of scattered information by incorporating it in a cool content hub (Notion), I found myself facing another challenge: Am I efficient now? At a simple Google (or AI 😁) search, you find out that Efficiency = 100% × (Standard Output / Actual Output).
In other terms, I needed to measure my time spent on work vs my output (deliverables) within my most used tool: Notion. So, I started looking for ways to monitor Notion time tracking.
Little did I know that Notion does not have built-in time-tracking features, so I started experimenting with other methods, and I’ll share with you everything I learned!
Key takeaways
I tested building my own Notion time tracker template and then moved to Notion premade templates until I found my final solution, a time tracking app integration.
📃 Notion time tracking methods – my verdicts as a writer:
- DIY time tracking database in Notion: Overall, the most frustrating, time-consuming, and rigid way to track your time in Notion. Though I was super excited to build this template, it annoyed me the most as I forgot to always start the timer, and it did not have advanced features to grow alongside my business.
- Pre-built templates from the current Notion workspace: These come with ready-made dashboards that save you time, but you’ll fundamentally waste time with manual time tracking, as well as template maintenance.
- EARLY integration: I’ve been using this integration for two years now, as it’s the most efficient. It helped me increase billable hours by 30% and predict project deadlines with accuracy. This time-tracker creates a seamless workflow that automatically captures my work in Notion without disrupting my day-to-day work, so I can get more out of Notion.
Try EARLY, which provides frictionless time tracking and seamlessly integrates with Notion
Notion time tracking: 3 possible ways
Just as I did, in order for you to find the method that works for you and helps you get the most out of Notion while understanding your resource allocation or whether your workflows are effective or they waste your time, you need to test out some of them.
Or simply learn from my trials and experience and take the short and efficient route. Here are the methods I’ve tested:
1. Create your basic database tracking in Notion ⏱️
I’ll introduce you briefly to the steps of building your simple time-tracking system inside Notion, which implies making a dedicated database with properties for start and end times, duration calculations, and project tagging.
The system uses Notion’s built-in date properties with time options and formula calculations to track how long you spend on tasks. Here’s how you can do it too:
- Create your database: New Notion page → Table database → Name it “Time tracker,” or however you prefer.
- Don’t forget to add these essential properties:
- Task name (Title – default)
- Project (Select)
- Start time (Date with time enabled)
- End time (Date with time enabled)
- Duration (Formula: date between(prop(“End Time”), prop(“Start Time”), “minutes”) / 60)
- Create the views you need: Add filtered views for Today, This week, This month
- Track time spent on work: New entry → Fill task → Type “now” for start → Set “In Progress” status → Update end time when done
💡 Pro Tip: Pin your time tracker to Favorites in your sidebar for instant access when inspiration strikes! This way, you eliminate time wasters while frantically looking for your Notion page, among other open tabs.
✅ What worked well with Notion databases
In order for me to manage projects efficiently and really understand my efficiency, I developed this method and started tracking every time entry with granularity and attention.
You’ll see that I added more indicators with the Notion formula property, so here are some of them:
- Project categorization: I created specific categories for different writing projects (blog posts, emails, research) and this helped identify which types of content were most time-consuming.
- Client property: I added a client field that surfaces which clients’ projects required more time than the money yield I got out of these. This property helped me the most understand which prices I needed to adjust.
- Energy level property: I added a 1-5 scale that showed me when I worked most effectively (I discovered my sweet spot was 10-11:30 am!)
💡 Pro Tip: Are you looking to protect your energy, too? You can track this Notion task by adding a new property with a scale (e.g., 1-5) and rating your energy levels during different times of the day.
🚫 What didn’t work with Notion databases
I have to be honest – this is the method I put the most effort into, but ended up frustrating me the most.
I built this Notion template from scratch and molded it in a way that helped me boost productivity and truly benefit my workflow – or so I thought. Here’s what went wrong with it:
- Manual time tracking frustration: I constantly forgot to start/stop the timers as it disrupted my creative flow and led to incomplete time reports.
- Rigid templates: The more I grew my business and took on more clients, the more it frustrated me, as it often included unnecessary properties that cluttered my system, but not the ones I would need.
- Missing notifications: No reminders to stop timers meant I sometimes had 12-hour writing sessions (which definitely didn’t happen!)
- Lost mobile tracking: When inspiration struck away from my computer, I couldn’t easily track time on my mobile.
2. Use pre-built Notion time tracking templates 📊
After my failed attempt at building my custom time-tracking system, I tried Notion’s prebuilt templates without reinventing the wheel again.
If you’re using Notion already, you know that you’ll find thousands of templates in Notion’s gallery already. From their own templates to community-created templates offering promising solutions that seemed like they would save me hours of setup time.
These pre-designed systems come with more sophisticated properties, views, and sometimes even automation already configured.
Here are the steps you should follow:
- Find the right template for you: Notion Gallery → Search “time tracking” → Browse templates → Choose one that matches your workflow and that helps you add tasks easily and stay focused on work rather than constantly monitoring it.
- Duplicate it to your workspace: Click “Duplicate” → Select destination → Edit pages and customize with your own projects and categories.
- Learn how the template works: Review documentation → Test with sample entries → Understand unique formulas and relations.
- Make it yours: Delete sample data → Adjust properties → Customize views → Add your branding and everything else you need to your Notion account.
💡 Pro Tip: Before committing to a template, spend 15 minutes exploring its structure. The best templates include well-done documentation where you’ll learn how to use their unique features and customization options!
✅ What worked well with pre-built templates
When I found the right template, it was like discovering a productivity goldmine compared to my basic database. The following properties saved me significant setup time:
- Ready-made dashboards: Many templates included visual time analytics that instantly showed me where my hours were going each week – I discovered I was spending 30% of my time on client calls rather than actually writing!
- Relation properties: Unlike my basic database, templates often linked projects to clients, goals, and invoices – creating an ecosystem rather than isolated tracking.
- Kanban views: Some templates offered me task + time tracking combinations that helped me visualize my workflow while capturing time data.
💡 Pro Tip: Look for templates that include widgets for quick daily entry. One template I found had a “Start Timer” button that populated the current time with one click, reducing friction significantly!
🚫 What didn’t work with pre-built templates
Despite their sophisticated features, I stumbled upon some challenges with pre-built templates, too:
- Syncing inconsistencies: Templates that promised mobile functionality often broke on different devices, leaving gaps in my tracking data.
- Template maintenance: When Notion updated its features, some templates required manual adjustments to keep working properly. Honestly, I didn’t have time for that, and I didn’t want to do this, as it consumed time from my work.
- Still manual entry: Even the most sophisticated templates couldn’t solve the fundamental issue – I had to remember to start and stop timers manually.
While these prebuilt templates came with definite enhancement over my basic database, I still found myself missing entries, guessing at times, and feeling the friction of creating manual timesheets.
This led me to explore a third option that would ultimately transform my time-tracking practices entirely…
3. Use third-party apps: integration with EARLY ⚡
After struggling with manual time-tracking methods for months, I discovered what would become my productivity game-changer: EARLY (formerly Timeular).
For almost two years now, integrating Notion with EARLY has removed all the frustrations that I had with the other methods. I’m now organizing most of my work in Notion without ever needing to start the timer button inside a specific Notion page and doing it all over again the entire day. 🌟
This way, I’m combining the best of both worlds: automatic time tracking while enjoying my uninterrupted writing flow and to-do lists in Notion.
Here’s how to set up the EARLY-Notion integration:
- Create a free EARLY account and log into Zapier (you don’t have to pay for a subscription, as you can use it for free for up to 100 integrations).
- Connect EARLY with Zapier: To do this, all you need is an API key and a secret API. You can find these in EARLY > Settings > My Account > API > Create a new API key.
- Create a Zap to track your time in Notion with EARLY.
- Set up a new Zap. The trigger might create a new item on the board, and the action will need to be set to start tracking time on EARLY.
💡 The result? Check this picture 👇. You’ll see inside your time-tracking app automatic time captures of the work you did in different apps, such as Gmail, Asana, or Figma. You’ll get the same time entries with Notion!
✅ What worked well with the EARLY integration
EARLY’s integration with Notion allowed me to make use of my time more efficiently, and I managed to reduce overtime hours, which were affecting my work-life balance. Here are the things that worked well:
- Automatic time capture: EARLY automatically tracks app and tool usage as well as my website visits, which helps me stay focused on startegizing and writing for my clients. Indirectly, this feature contributed to increasing billable hours, without me stressing over tracking every billable minute.
- AI-generated time entries: This app works as an AI time tracker, which intelligently suggests time entries in my timesheets based on my calendar events and past entries. One-click, and my time entry is saved. This feature is priceless for an entrepreneur!
- Done for me reports: Due to its customizable time reporting system, which generates automated and detailed reports, I never had to worry about creating any automation between different databases like in Notion.
- EARLY has an intuitive interface: I barely have to use the app, as it does its job silently in the background for me, but whenever I need to check it, I absolutely love how clean and easy to navigate its interface is, as opposed to moving from one database to another.
- One-click billable hours capture, which helped me track all billable time with precision and then export reports for my clients, and rest assured I am compensated accordingly for my work.
- Automatic overtime tracking and simpleleave management which helped me see when my productivity was slipping through the cracks and I started doing too much overtime, as well as managing time off for my team when I grew my team.
- Seamless integration with multiple apps: If Notion is not the only app you’re tracking time in, EARLY integrates effortlessly with 3000+ apps, so there shouldn’t be any that’s missing. I use it with my entire tool suite without a problem. Check some of EARLY’s integrations:
💡 Pro Tip: Schedule a weekly 15-minute time audit session where you analyze your EARLY project reports in Notion. I’ve found Friday afternoons perfect for this – it helps me celebrate productive weeks and make adjustments for the coming week!
Try EARLY, which provides frictionless time tracking and seamlessly integrates with Notion
🌟 Real results from using EARLY with Notion
After almost two years of using this Notion integrated with this specialized time-tracking app, the impact on my business has been substantial:
- 30% increase in billable hours captured simply because I’m no longer missing time entries.
- Accurate project estimates – I can now predict with 90% accuracy how long similar projects will take, while in the past, I overpromised, and deadlines loomed on me and my team.
- Better client boundaries – data showed me which clients were consuming disproportionate time, allowing me to adjust pricing or processes.
- Optimized my creative schedule – tracking time automatically revealed my peak creative hours (10-11:30 am and 3-4:30 pm), so I now schedule deep writing work during these windows.
My favorite thing about the EARLY integration is that it manually eliminated the cognitive burden of manually tracking time. As a writer, keeping a creative flow is vital, and now I can immerse myself in my work, knowing that every minute is being captured accurately without my intervention.
Try EARLY, which provides frictionless time tracking and seamlessly integrates with Notion
The bottom line: Which method should you choose? 🤔
Here’s my honest and final assessment of all these methods and I have to admit, I am biased, but I’ve tested all these methods:
- Basic Notion database: It’s good for occasional time tracking or if you’re just starting out, but the manual entry becomes a burden once your workload increases and your team grows.
- Pre-built templates: These offer more features than basic databases but still prevent you from evolving and growing your team to unlimited users by their manual tracking limitations.
- EARLY integration: The clear winner for professionals who need accurate time data without workflow disruption and are looking to maximize billable hours.
Your time is your most valuable asset as a professional, especially if you’re an entrepreneur or you’re billing your services. Hence, invest in a robust time-tracking setup, and you’ll gain insights that transform not just your productivity but your entire business.
It’s the solution I wish I’d discovered months before I did – it would have saved me countless hours of frustration and captured thousands of dollars in billable time that slipped through the cracks.