FreshBooks retainer tracking: add a client-visible balance to your FreshBooks workflow.
FreshBooks handles your invoicing, expenses, and time tracking in one place — it’s the accountant-friendly option for consultants who want billing and hours under one roof. But FreshBooks’s client portal is built around invoices, not retainer balance visibility. When a retainer client wants to check how many hours they have left mid-cycle, FreshBooks doesn’t have a self-service answer. HourTab does: export your FreshBooks time entries, paste the CSV into HourTab, and send your client a URL that shows their live balance without touching your FreshBooks account.
Free forever for your first retainer · no credit card.
Why FreshBooks alone doesn’t solve the retainer question
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FreshBooks invoices are month-end documents, not mid-cycle balance tools.
Your retainer client gets an invoice at month end — but they’re asking the hours question mid-cycle, when they’re deciding whether to request more work. A monthly invoice doesn’t answer that question; a live balance URL does. HourTab provides the real-time balance view that FreshBooks’s invoicing model doesn’t cover.
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FreshBooks’s client portal is invoice-centric.
The FreshBooks client portal lets clients view invoices and pay them online. It’s excellent for billing — but it shows invoices, not hours remaining. For a client on a 20 hr/mo retainer who wants to know if they have 6 hours left before adding a new task, an invoice view doesn’t help. HourTab shows the running balance and the work log behind it.
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Exporting from FreshBooks takes 60 seconds.
FreshBooks lets you export time entries by client and date range as CSV. Paste that into HourTab and the client’s balance URL updates. Log time in FreshBooks as always → export CSV when you want to update the balance → paste into HourTab → client sees the new balance automatically. Your FreshBooks workflow doesn’t change.
How it works with FreshBooks
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1
Create the retainer in HourTab. Enter the client name, monthly hour allocation, and the cycle reset date. Two minutes per client.
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2
Export from FreshBooks. Go to Time Tracking → Reports in FreshBooks, filter by client, set the date range to the current retainer cycle, and export as CSV. Paste into HourTab. Each entry appears in the client-visible work log.
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3
Share the balance URL. Each retainer gets a unique public link. Add it to the engagement letter or the onboarding email. Your client checks it whenever they have a question. You stop fielding mid-cycle status emails.
Your FreshBooks billing workflow is unchanged. Invoices go out on schedule. Clients get a live balance URL that answers their question before they have to ask.
“FreshBooks invoices tell clients what they paid. They never tell clients what they have left.”
— Fractional CMO on 4 monthly retainers
HourTab closes the gap — a live balance URL your clients can check mid-cycle, sourced from the same FreshBooks data you already log.
Frequently asked questions
Does FreshBooks have a retainer tracking feature?
FreshBooks tracks time and generates invoices, and you can create recurring invoices for retainer arrangements. But there’s no client-visible balance page showing hours consumed and hours remaining mid-cycle. HourTab provides that layer on top of your FreshBooks time data.
Do I need FreshBooks Premium to export CSV?
No. Time entry export is available on standard FreshBooks plans. Check your plan’s export options in the Reports section.
Will HourTab connect to FreshBooks via API?
API integration is on the roadmap. For v1, the CSV import workflow takes about 60 seconds and gives you full control over when the client-facing balance updates.
Can I use HourTab for dollar-based retainers rather than hour-based?
HourTab is currently hour-based. If your FreshBooks retainer is dollar-based, convert using your billing rate (e.g., a $2,000 retainer at $100/hr = 20 hours) and track in hours.
What about expense entries in FreshBooks?
HourTab currently imports time entries only. If you track expense-type items as time in FreshBooks, those will appear in the work log.