Hour Cap vs Xero Projects
Xero Projects is built into Xero. Hour Cap is a standalone time tracker that pushes invoices to Xero. If you need more than basic project tracking, here's why that matters.
Side-by-side comparison
Xero Projects lives inside Xero. Hour Cap is a dedicated time tracking tool that integrates with Xero. Here's where the dedicated approach wins.
| Feature | Hour Cap | Xero Projects |
|---|---|---|
| Invoice line item grouping | 4 modes | Per task only |
| Billable rate cascade | Project → Member → Org | Per task only |
| Per-member rates | ||
| Timesheet approvals | Full workflow | |
| Retainer management | Dedicated retainers | |
| Duration input | 1h30m, 1:30, 8h, 30m | HH:MM only |
| Timer across midnight | Auto-splits by day | No documented handling |
| Activity log | ||
| Role-based permissions | 4-level hierarchy | Standard or Limited |
| Free plan | Requires Established plan |
Rates that work the way your team bills
Xero Projects only lets you set charge-out rates per task. If your senior developer and junior developer both do "Development" work, they bill at the same rate. Users have been requesting per-staff rates since the feature launched, with no timeline for a fix.
Hour Cap cascades rates automatically. Set a rate on a project, a member, or at the org level. The most specific rate wins. Different people can bill at different rates on the same project without creating fake tasks.
Even worse, changing a staff cost rate in Xero Projects retroactively changes all historical data for that staff member, which distorts your past profitability reports when wages change each year.
Invoices your clients can actually read
Xero Projects creates invoice line items grouped by task. You get one line that says "Development: 9.5h" with no breakdown of what was done on which day. Time entry descriptions are not carried through to the invoice.
Hour Cap gives you four grouping modes. Group by entry for maximum detail, by date for a daily summary, by project for a high-level view, or by team member. Every mode preserves the descriptions your team wrote.
Approval workflows and role-based access
Xero Projects has no timesheet approval workflow. Standard users can see all projects and all tracked time. Limited users can only see their own entries but have limited functionality. There's no manager role and no way to restrict which projects a user can see.
Hour Cap has a four-level role hierarchy (Owner, Administrator, Manager, Employee) with a full approval workflow. Assign specific approvers per team member. Only approved entries flow through to invoicing.
Retainer tracking that Xero doesn't offer
Xero Projects has fixed project budgets (time or money) and project estimates. But there's no retainer concept, no recurring budget periods, no alert thresholds, and no way to invoice a specific billing period.
Hour Cap has dedicated retainer management with automatic billing period resets, real-time progress bars, configurable alerts, and a one-click invoice flow for the current period.
When Xero Projects might be a better fit
We believe in being transparent. Xero Projects has advantages in certain situations.
Already in Xero
If you're on the Established plan, Projects is already included. No separate subscription, no OAuth setup, no data syncing. Time entries and invoices live in the same app.
Expense tracking
Xero Projects tracks project expenses alongside time. You can add costs to projects and include them on invoices. Hour Cap is focused on time-based billing.
Simple requirements
If you have a small team with flat rates per task and don't need approval workflows, retainers, or detailed invoice line items, Xero Projects covers the basics.
Pricing at a glance
Hour Cap
Dedicated time trackingPrices in USD. Annual billing saves 17%. On top of your Xero subscription.
Xero Projects
Prices in USD. Projects requires the Established plan ($80/mo).
Getting Projects in Xero means upgrading to the Established plan at $80/mo, even if you're currently on Growing at $47/mo.
Hour Cap Team at $10/mo adds dedicated time tracking with Xero integration to any Xero plan, with per-member rates, retainers, and 4 invoice grouping modes.
More than Xero Projects, for less
Get per-member rates, approval workflows, retainers, and detailed invoicing without upgrading to the Xero Established plan.