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Opportunity brief · Brief 001 · Free sample

Time tracking for small teams after Harvest and Paymo changed their plans

Harvest moved teams to a seat price plus usage fees. Paymo's free plan now allows one user. Here is who is hit, and what they say.

See the full briefRead the free part
  • Every number and quote links to its source. We read all pages on October 12, 2026.
  • Prices are list prices in US dollars per user per month, billed yearly, unless a line says otherwise.
  • Lines marked "our reading" are our own view, not facts.

Researched

What changed?

Harvest

  • Before: the Pro plan cost $11 per seat a month, with unlimited projects.

    Source: Saved copy, Oct 11, 2025

  • After: the Teams plan starts from $9 per seat a month. Extra invoices, projects, clients and tasks are billed by use.

    Sources: Saved copy, Mar 6, 2026 · Harvest pricing

  • Harvest's own help page shows a bill going from "a seats-only $44 to $404 once usage is added". We found no public price per item.

    Source: Harvest help: pricing plans

  • The press reports renewals up about 1,500% for some customers. One UK firm went from about $130 to $2,110 a month.

    Source: Subscription Insider

Our page on Harvest

Who is hit?

Harvest says over 70,000 companies use it. Not all of them are hit the same way. Below: the old bill and the new quote, as each person wrote it. Sources: Harvest · Subscription Insider

Consultancies, 50 to 75 people

  • 75-person consulting firm, since 2007 $900 → $3,454 a month Oct 9, 2026
  • 75 licenses $880 → $10k a month Oct 12, 2026

Agencies, 5 to 20 people

Freelancers and 2-person shops

Our reading

  • They use Harvest for one job: track hours, then bill clients. Many send invoices on to Xero or QuickBooks.
  • They have 10 to 20 years of history in Harvest. Moving it safely matters more than new features.
  • The new bill grows with the number of clients, projects, tasks and invoices. Agencies with many small clients are hit hardest.

What do they say?

“Xero is the deal breaker for me”

2-person business · Reddit, Sep 3, 2026

“with 19 years of agency data at stake, I didn’t want to take any chances.”

5-person agency, since 2007 · Reddit, Sep 12, 2026

“It's only three rows in their database.”

Solo, 15 years of data, after one new client tripled the bill · Reddit, Sep 3, 2026

Where do the other tools fall short?

10 tools compared. None of the importers we checked brings over full Harvest history with invoices.

We read the Harvest import guides of the tools that have one. Sources: Toggl · Clockify · Timely · Productive

The full brief includes

  • All 15 quotes, grouped by the 5 needs people name most.
  • The full table: 10 tools by free plan, price, invoices, budgets, usage fees and Harvest import.
  • The price gap: what 2 and 5 people pay on each tool, and where a new tool could sit (our estimate).
  • Where these users talk, with sizes where they are public, and where not to post.
  • A small first version: 8 features people ask for, and what to leave out.
  • Harvest import notes: what the Harvest API and export give you, and their limits.
  • Risks for a builder: win-back discounts, strong free plans and a crowded field.

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