European alternatives to Hubstaff
Hubstaff is solid for distributed teams tracking time across US-centric workflows. But if you're an EU SME or freelancer, you're paying for features you don't need and routing your team's work data through the US.
Hubstaff's main draw is breadth: activity tracking, project management, invoicing, payroll integration, GPS monitoring. For US-based agencies managing remote workers at scale, that works. Problem is it bundles what EU SMEs actually want (simple time tracking, EU data storage, GDPR certainty) with what they don't: activity surveillance features, US processing, pricing that assumes you're billing large teams on Hubstaff alone.
EU data residency is non-negotiable in Europe now, and Hubstaff processes through the US by default. Yes, you can request EU residency, but it's opt-in friction, not the default. For a freelancer in Berlin or a 5-person agency in Vienna, that's an unnecessary compliance headache. You're also paying for integrations and features built for a different market—US payroll, US tax workflows, heavy activity monitoring that frankly creeps out European teams.
The real issue: Hubstaff works when you want time tracking as part of a larger operations platform. But most EU SMEs don't. They want a clean time tracker that respects EU law and doesn't oversell. Hubstaff's bloat becomes overhead.
Where each alternative is built, owned and hosted
| Product | Built in | Data location | EU-owned | Self-hostable | Open source | Best for | Pricing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ClockodoTeams tracking time across projects and freelancers managing client billing | de | EU | ✓ | – | – | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
| DeskTimeRemote and hybrid team managers who need real-time productivity visibility | lv | Mixed | ✓ | – | – | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
| EARLYTeams and freelancers who need simple, automated time tracking without complexity. | at | EU | ✓ | – | – | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
| KimaiFreelancers, agencies, and teams needing flexible time tracking with full data control options. | at | EU | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
| MemtimeLegal and accounting firms tracking billable hours automatically without privacy compromise | de | EU | ✓ | – | – | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
| PaymoFreelancers and small teams tracking billable hours and managing project profitability | ro | Mixed | ✓ | – | – | SME | Freemium |
| SolidtimeTeams and freelancers seeking privacy-first time tracking with European data residency. | at | EU | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
| Tid· by the founder | se | EU | ✓ | – | – | — | Paid |
| timeBuzzerService-based teams and freelancers who need precise time tracking for billing. | de | EU | ✓ | – | – | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
| TimelyTeams and agencies needing automated time tracking without manual timer interaction | no | EU | ✓ | – | – | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
| TimeStatementTeams needing integrated time tracking, project timesheets, and automatic invoicing | ch | Self-hosted | – | – | – | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
| TimeTacOrganizations managing distributed teams across multiple locations and countries | at | Unknown | ✓ | – | – | SME+Enterprise | Paid |
| TimingFreelancers and remote workers who bill hourly | de | EU | ✓ | – | – | SME | Freemium |
| timrTeams needing simple, mobile-friendly time tracking with GPS and project budgeting | at | EU | ✓ | – | – | SME | Freemium |
| Toggl TrackTeams and agencies tracking project profitability and team time across multiple clients | ee | EU | ✓ | – | – | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
| TymeFreelancers and small teams needing legally-compliant time tracking across Apple devices | de | Unknown | ✓ | – | – | SME | Freemium |
| ZEPGerman teams and freelancers needing GDPR-native, locally-hosted time tracking | de | EU | ✓ | – | – | SME+Enterprise | Freemium |
Clockodo
deGerman-built time tracking and project management for teams and freelancers
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
DeskTime
lvEuropean time tracking platform combining automatic activity monitoring with GDPR-native privacy.
- Data: Mixed
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
EARLY
atTime tracking that doesn't make you want to cry.
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
Kimai
atOpen-source time tracking for teams and freelancers with full data ownership options.
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
- Self-hostable
- Open source
Memtime
dePrivacy-first automatic time tracking where all data stays on your device.
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
Paymo
roCloud-based project management and time tracking platform for creative professionals and small teams
- Data: Mixed
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
Solidtime
atOpen-source time tracking that prioritizes privacy, built in Vienna and hosted in Europe.
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
- Self-hostable
- Open source
Tid
seTime tracking and reporting for Swedish small business.
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
timeBuzzer
deTrack time. Bill everything.
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
Timely
noAI-powered automatic time tracking platform built for privacy-conscious teams and agencies.
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
TimeStatement
chCloud-based time tracking and project invoicing for teams and freelancers
- Data: Self-hosted
TimeTac
atCloud-based time tracking and workforce management for distributed teams
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
Timing
deAutomatic time tracking for Mac users who need accurate billable hours and actionable productivity insights
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
timr
atStraightforward cloud time tracking for teams and freelancers across web, mobile, and kiosks.
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
Toggl Track
eePrivacy-respecting time tracking for teams that values trust over surveillance.
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
Tyme
deApple-native time tracking built for German compliance and team collaboration
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
ZEP
deGerman-engineered time tracking platform built for compliance-conscious teams.
- Data: EU
- GDPR-native
- EU-owned
Our honest take
For EU teams, **Solidtime** or **Toggl Track** beat Hubstaff on data residency and simplicity. Solidtime is open-source, fully self-hostable, and Austrian-owned—zero US involvement. Toggl Track is Freemium, Estonia-based, and has the integrations Hubstaff pushes if you need them, but doesn't force them down your throat. **Timely** works if you want the automation Hubstaff offers but without the surveillance creep or US routing. **awork** is better if you're an agency and need project management baked in alongside time tracking—it's German-owned, ISO 27001, and designed for EU teams.
Where Tid fits: Tid is lighter than all of them, a pure time tracker for EU SMEs and freelancers. No activity monitoring, no project management, no payroll glue—just clean, EU-hosted time tracking. You lose the integration breadth Hubstaff advertises and won't use anyway. You gain speed, clarity, and the certainty that your team's hours stay in Europe. Hubstaff wins only if you actually need its full ops platform and can tolerate US data routing. Most EU SMEs don't and can't.
What we compare
- Where the data is stored
- Who owns the company
- GDPR-native by design
- Self-hosting option
- Open source
- Pricing model