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Professional Services · head to head

Harvest vs Productive

Harvest logo

Harvest

Professional Services

Time tracking software for teams that care about where their time goes

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Productive logo

Productive

Professional Services

Run projects, budgets and resources in one place

From
$10/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Harvest has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Harvest the free plan is one seat and two projects, so it suits a solo freelancer and nothing larger; Productive essential plan is capped at 5 account-level custom fields and 1 CRM pipeline versus 15 fields and 3 pipelines on Professional
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Harvest and Productive actually diverge.

Attributes where Harvest and Productive differ
AttributeHarvestProductive
Starting priceFree$10/month
Pricing modelfreemiumsubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, macOS, Windows, iOS, AndroidWeb
Founded2006Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Professional Services).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Harvest

  • Time tracking
  • Expense tracking
  • Invoicing
  • Project budgets
  • Team capacity
  • Detailed reports
  • Mobile apps
  • Browser extension

Only in Productive

Nothing recorded that Harvest does not also cover.

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Harvest

  • Time tracking against projects and clientsnot Productive
  • Turning tracked time into invoicesnot Productive
  • Expense capture alongside billable hoursnot Productive
  • Team capacity and utilisation reporting on the paid plansnot Productive
  • Feeding billed time into QuickBooks or Xeronot Productive

Productive

  • Team resource planningnot Harvest
  • Project and expense managementnot Harvest
  • Time tracking and invoicingnot Harvest

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Harvest

  • The free plan is one seat and two projects, so it suits a solo freelancer and nothing larger
  • Team reporting and unlimited projects require the Teams plan at $9 per seat per month
  • Profitability reporting, timesheet approvals and custom reports need Enterprise at $14 per seat per month
  • SAML single sign-on is Enterprise only
  • QuickBooks, Xero and Stripe integrations are withheld from the free plan

Productive

  • Essential plan is capped at 5 account-level custom fields and 1 CRM pipeline versus 15 fields and 3 pipelines on Professional
  • Ultimate tier for complex organizations is quote-only, listed as Let's talk with no published price

Pricing, plan by plan

Harvest

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1 seat
    • Time tracking
    • Invoicing
  • Teams$9/month
    • Unlimited seats
    • Team reporting
    • Accounting integrations (Stripe, QuickBooks, Xero, Deel)
  • Enterprise$14/month
    • Unlimited seats
    • Unlimited custom reports
    • Profitability reporting

Productive

$10/month
  • Essential$10/month
    • Budgeting
    • Resource planning
    • Project and task management
  • Essential Annual$12/month
    • All Essential features (billed annually at 20% discount)
  • Professional$25/month
    • All Essential features
    • HRIS and Invoicing integrations
    • Recurring budgets
  • Ultimate$null/month
    • All Professional features
    • Revenue forecasting
    • Scenario Builder

Which should you pick?

Choose Harvest if

  • You need time tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android.
  • You also want expense tracking.
Harvest review

Choose Productive if

Nothing in the data separates Productive from Harvest on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

Productive review

Questions people ask

Is Harvest or Productive better?
Neither clearly leads. Harvest starts at Free and Productive at $10/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Harvest or Productive?
Harvest has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Harvest and $10/month for Productive.
Does Harvest or Productive run on more platforms?
Harvest runs on Web, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android. Productive runs on Web.
Can I use Harvest for free?
Yes. Harvest has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Productive starts at $10/month.
What is Harvest best used for?
Harvest is most often used for time tracking against projects and clients, turning tracked time into invoices, expense capture alongside billable hours, team capacity and utilisation reporting on the paid plans. Of those, time tracking against projects and clients and turning tracked time into invoices are not what Productive is typically brought in for.
What can Harvest do that Productive cannot?
Harvest covers Time tracking, Expense tracking, Invoicing, Project budgets.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Harvest: How much does Harvest cost?

Harvest offers a free plan for 1 user and Teams plan starting at $9/seat/month (billed annually at $108/seat for 20% savings). Enterprise plan starts at $14/seat/month.

Source
Productive: How much does Productive cost per month?

The Essential plan starts at $10/user/month (or $12/user/month billed annually). The Professional plan costs $25/user/month. Pricing is per user, so multiply by team size.

Source
Harvest: Is there a free version of Harvest?

Yes, Harvest's free plan includes 1 seat with time tracking, invoicing, expense tracking, and 2 projects.

Source
Productive: Does Productive offer a free trial?

Free trial information is not displayed on the pricing page. Contact their sales team via the website for trial availability and custom Ultimate plan pricing.

Source
Harvest: What is included in the Enterprise plan?

The Enterprise plan includes unlimited custom reports, profitability reporting, timesheet approvals, activity logs, and SAML-based SSO at $14/seat/month.

Source
Productive: What features does the Essential plan include?

The Essential plan includes budgeting, resource planning, project and task management, time tracking, expense management, reporting, time off management, and API access with 5 custom fields.

Source
Harvest: Does Harvest offer a discount for annual billing?

Yes, annual billing provides 20% discount, reducing the Teams plan to $108/seat/year and Enterprise plan to $168/seat/year.

Source
Productive: What is the difference between Professional and Ultimate plans?

The Professional plan includes HRIS integrations, advanced reports, and team collaboration tools at $25/user/month. Ultimate adds revenue forecasting, scenario builder, multiple subsidiaries, and custom integrations at custom pricing.

Source
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