Time billing, the Xero way
Guides on turning tracked time into Xero invoices, billing retainers, and the numbers that decide whether the work was worth it.
Written by Jonathan Bird, a freelance developer in Brisbane who bills his own client hours this way.
Client Request Management for Agencies: Turning Email Into Billable Work
Unlogged client email is a common source of lost margin. How to run client requests as a shared queue, and how to make sure the hours around the work reach an invoice.
Agency Profitability: 2026 Benchmarks and How to Improve It
Agency profitability benchmarks for 2026, the levers that move the margin, and why client and retainer-level profit matters more than project averages.
Retainer Billing Explained: How Agencies Bill Retainer Clients
How retainer billing works, drawdown versus logged hours, over and under-servicing, and how to invoice a retainer period straight through Xero.
How to Set Consulting Rates That Actually Cover Your Costs
A utilization-adjusted method for setting consulting and agency rates that cover your real costs, plus why a good rate still fails if the hours never get invoiced.
Billable Utilization Rate: Formula and Benchmarks
The billable utilization formula, realistic benchmarks by role, and why high utilization still leaks money if the hours never reach a Xero invoice.
Billable vs Non-Billable Hours, Explained
What counts as billable, what does not, and why the most expensive category is billable time that never makes it onto a Xero invoice.
How to Increase Billable Hours (Without Working More)
Most firms do not need longer days to bill more. They need to capture the billable time they already work and get it onto a Xero invoice.