vs Paymo
Looking for a Paymo alternative?
Paymo is a capable all-in-one work-management tool — projects, tasks, time tracking, invoicing, resource planning. Hoursmith is narrower on purpose: a time-and-billing tool for people who get paid by the hour. The fit depends on what you actually use Paymo for.
Free for solo freelancers · No credit card required
Paymo is good for
- · Teams that need full project management — Gantt charts, resource scheduling, leave management — in the same tool as time and billing.
- · Agencies that want a single tool for plan-task-track-bill rather than a focused billing tool plus a separate PM tool.
- · Customers who already have a workflow built around Paymo's features and don't want to switch.
Per-seat pricing across paid tiers. See paymo.biz/pricing for current rates; both tools' prices can change.
Hoursmith is good for
- · Per-seat pricing is becoming uncomfortable as your team grows (the math reverses around 5+ members).
- · You want online payments to land in your own Stripe account, not be routed through a third party.
- · You want invoices to send from your own domain via SMTP / SES / Resend, with credentials encrypted at rest.
- · You actually only use Paymo for time and invoicing and would rather pay for a focused tool than for unused PM features.
Flat-fee pricing. Free for solo, Studio $15/mo annual up to 10, Agency $31/mo annual up to 25.
At a glance
Compared on 2026-05-27. Both tools change fast — if you spot something out of date, email hi@hoursmith.app and we'll fix it within 48 hours.
| Feature | Paymo | Hoursmith |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per-seat across paid tiers | Flat fee per workspace (Studio $15/mo annual up to 10; Agency $31/mo annual up to 25) |
| Time tracking (timer + manual) | Yes | Yes — all plans, including Free |
| Invoicing from tracked time | Yes | Yes — all plans |
| Online payments destination | Via Stripe / PayPal, configured in Paymo | Stripe Connect direct charges — funds land in your own Stripe account; Hoursmith never holds them |
| Bring-your-own email (send from your domain) | Custom from-email available on higher tiers; verify current docs | Studio+: SMTP / Amazon SES / Resend; credentials encrypted at rest |
| Project management (Gantt, resource planning) | Yes — a core strength | No — Hoursmith is intentionally not a PM tool |
| Importer from prior tool | Paymo is the prior tool here | One-click Paymo importer (clients, projects, tasks, time entries, historical invoices) + CSV/Excel; 24-hour undo |
| Client portal | Yes | Yes — passwordless magic-link portal on Studio+ |
| Free tier | Free tier available; check current limits | Free forever: up to 3 members, unlimited clients/projects, 5 invoices/mo |
Choose Paymo if…
- · Your team uses Paymo for project management (Gantt, resource scheduling, leave) — switching gives that up.
- · You're locked into a workflow built around Paymo's tasks, milestones, and time approvals.
- · You need built-in proposals or a dedicated CRM (Paymo offers more breadth here).
Choose Hoursmith if…
- · Per-seat pricing is becoming uncomfortable as your team grows (the math reverses around 5+ members).
- · You want online payments to land in your own Stripe account, not be routed through a third party.
- · You want invoices to send from your own domain via SMTP / SES / Resend, with credentials encrypted at rest.
- · You actually only use Paymo for time and invoicing and would rather pay for a focused tool than for unused PM features.
Switching questions
Can I import my data from Paymo?
Yes. Hoursmith ships a one-click Paymo importer that brings over clients, projects, tasks, time entries, and historical invoices. The import is resumable (you can close the tab and pick up later), idempotent on re-run, and has a 24-hour undo. Your Paymo API key is never persisted past the run.
Will my historical invoice numbers stay the same?
Yes. The importer preserves invoice numbers and snapshot data — bill-to, line rates, currency — exactly as they were issued, so your books match across the cutover.
Does Hoursmith have Gantt charts or resource planning?
No. Hoursmith is a time-and-billing tool by design. If you rely on Paymo's PM features, switching means giving those up — that's a real trade-off, not a feature gap we're hiding.
Can I run Hoursmith and Paymo side-by-side while I evaluate?
Yes. Most teams import a copy of their data into Hoursmith (Free tier is enough to test the full loop), run a parallel billing cycle, reconcile, and only cut over when they're confident.
Related
Try it free for 14 days.
No card up front. Import your data from Paymo, CSV, or Excel in a few clicks. Cancel any time — we prorate.
Free for solo freelancers · No credit card · Cancel any time