README

Self-hosted time tracker built with Laravel 12 and Hotwire. Single-user, no bloat, MIT licensed.

What it is

A time tracker for freelancers and consultants who need to track billable hours. Built for one person, not teams. Your data stays on your server.

Good fit if you:

• Bill by the hour and need simple time tracking
• Want to self-host and own your data
• Like clean Laravel codebases
• Don't need project management features or team collaboration

Not for you if you need multi-user support or enterprise features

Features

Timer

One-click start/stop, keyboard shortcuts (Ctrl+Shift+S/T/Space), survives page refreshes. Only one timer runs at a time.

Clients & Projects

Create clients/projects inline while starting a timer. Set hourly rates at client or project level (56 currencies). Project rates override client rates.

Reports

Filter by date range, client, or project. Export to CSV. Multi-currency totals.

Preferences

Choose date format (US/UK/EU) and time format (12/24-hour). Applies everywhere in the app.

Tech Stack

Backend: Laravel 12, PHP 8.4, SQLite/MySQL/PostgreSQL Frontend: Hotwire Turbo, Stimulus, Tailwind + DaisyUI, Importmap Testing/QA: PHPUnit, Pint, Larastan, Rector

Hotwire means SPA-like UX without heavy JS. Importmap means no build step for JavaScript.

Installation

Requires PHP 8.4+

git clone <repository-url>
cd simple
./install.sh
php artisan app:create-user
php artisan serve

Manual install steps in install.sh if you prefer to do it yourself

Common Commands

# User management
php artisan app:create-user
php artisan user:reset-password user@email.com

# Development
php artisan serve
php artisan migrate
php artisan optimize:clear  # Clear all caches when things break

Single User Setup

App is designed for one user. Registration is disabled after first user is created.

Create account after install:

php artisan app:create-user

Reset password if needed:

php artisan user:reset-password your-email@example.com

Need a second user for testing? Use php artisan app:create-user --force

Usage

Start timer from dashboard - pick client/project, hit play or Ctrl+Shift+S. Create clients inline while starting a timer.

Reports page lets you filter and export to CSV. Set your preferred date/time formats in Settings.

Configuration

Main settings in .env:

DB_CONNECTION=sqlite
APP_TIMEZONE=UTC  # Set to your timezone

User preferences (date/time formats, hourly rates) configurable in Settings page.

Contributing

PRs welcome. Standard fork → branch → PR workflow.

If you're good with UI/UX and want to help make it more minimal/clean, that'd be great.

License

MIT licensed - do what you want with it.

Support

Open an issue if something breaks. Common fixes:

• Forgot password: php artisan user:reset-password your-email@example.com
• App errors: php artisan optimize:clear

Future Plans

Core stays free and open source. Might add optional paid features later to support development, but the base app will always be MIT licensed.