Reports & Billing

Productivity Categorization for Time Tracking

Q: How does automatic categorization work?

ManicTime sends the application name, process name, operating system, and website domain to a classification service that returns a productivity category. No other data is transmitted.

Q: Can I use my own categories instead of automatic ones?

Yes. You can disable automatic categorization and create custom categories in the Administration section. You then assign applications and websites to your categories manually.

Q: Can different teams have different productivity assignments?

Yes. You can create separate assignments per team, so the same application or website can be categorized differently depending on the team's role.

Q: What happens to applications that are not categorized?

Uncategorized applications and websites appear in the Unassigned tab. You can assign them to a category or mark them as Ignore if they are not relevant.

Q: Does this require anything extra on the client?

No. Productivity categorization uses the application and website data ManicTime already tracks. Configuration is done on ManicTime Server or Cloud.

Assign productivity categories to applications and websites — automatically or manually — so you can see at a glance how your time breaks down between productive work, personal browsing, and everything in between.

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Why productivity categorization matters

Understand how time is actually spent

By grouping applications and websites into categories, you get a clear picture of how much time goes to productive work versus other activities — based on real data, not guesswork.

Automatic or manual categorization

ManicTime can automatically categorize applications and websites using a classification service, or you can disable automatic categorization and assign your own custom categories.

Different categories for different teams

The same application can be productive for one team and unproductive for another. You can create different category assignments per team — for example, social media as productive for Marketing but not for Engineering.

Works with data you already track

Productivity categorization uses the application and website data ManicTime already captures. There is nothing extra to install or configure on the client side.

How this feature works

in 3 simple steps

Install and connect

Install ManicTime and connect your workspace in minutes, without complicated setup.

Automatic activity capture

ManicTime records apps, websites, documents, and activity timelines automatically in the background.

Review, assign, and report

Review captured work, assign time to projects, and generate reports or invoices with confidence.

Automatic Categorization

When enabled, ManicTime automatically assigns productivity categories to applications and websites using a classification service. The service uses the application name, process name, operating system, and website domain to determine the category. No other data is sent. This is the default on ManicTime Cloud and gives you a starting point without any manual setup.

Custom Categories

You can create your own productivity categories and assign applications and websites to them manually. This is useful when automatic categorization does not fit your workflow or when you need categories tailored to your specific role or industry. Unassigned applications and websites appear in a dedicated tab so you can quickly categorize them. Items you do not want to categorize can be marked as Ignore.

Per-Team Assignments

In team environments, you can define different productivity assignments for different teams. A website that is essential for one team's work may be a distraction for another. Per-team assignments let you reflect these differences accurately, so productivity reports are meaningful for each group. When a conflict exists, the primary team assignment takes precedence.

Productivity Reports

Once applications and websites are categorized, ManicTime generates productivity reports showing how time is distributed across categories. Reports can be viewed for individuals, specific teams, or the entire organization, helping you identify patterns and make informed decisions about how time is spent.

Related features

Time Tracking Reports

Create overtime, productivity, application usage, attendance, timesheet, and invoice reports from tracked data.

Learn more ->

Automatic Time Tracking

Automatically records apps, websites, and documents without manual timers.

Learn more ->

Work Time and Overtime Tracking

Track required presence, overtime, and attendance signals using configurable work-time calculation rules.

Learn more ->

Who benefits from this feature?

The biggest impact usually appears across these user groups.

Managers

Get reliable time data for resource planning, project profitability, and team workload reviews.

View solution ->

Remote Teams

Give distributed teams shared visibility into work patterns without constant check-ins or status meetings.

View solution ->

IT services & MSPs

Track billable time across multiple client accounts with consistent tagging and shared reporting.

View solution ->

FAQ

Our customer

opinions

Katie

This software automatically tracks the time you spend on your computer. When you step away from your computer for a certain length of time (set by user), it will prompt you to tag that time. For example, if I'm getting coffee and have a 20 minute chat about the weekend, I tag it as personal. But if I have a chat about an upcoming or existing project, I tag it about that project. For the tasks you do on the computer, it can save screenshots every X seconds (again, set by user), so that you can have a reminder when you go to do your billing what each task was for.

Richard

There is a lot to love about Manic Time. It was easy to use and did way more than I was expecting from it. The reporting was informative. The editing was awesome. Tagging and managing the time tracked is robust, yet simple. It is great at taking the tracking out of time tracking. It just does 90% for you. The last 10% is tagging and validating. It really does an amazing job at showing how much time is wasted on mundane tasks or mindless browsing. I handed in my time to a project manager. He asked how I knew I worked 3.28 hours on a specific task. "Manic Time" was my answer.

Dr Steve Day (podcast)

Time tracking and its importance in business operations are discussed in this episode. Dr. Steve Day shares update on their time tracking policies, including the use of new apps and tools such as ManicTime, particularly focusing on the implementation of screenshot tracking.

Listen now

Brenda

I do contract work and manage multiple projects where I bounce between projects on an almost by the minute basis. Once tagging is setup I can easily tag all my activities as I do them and my time accumulates in each project bucket. At the end of the day my timesheet is a breeze. This is the best tool I have found so far for a work style that involves heavy duty multi-tasking. I don't know what I would do without ManicTime. Well designed and thought out product.

Mary

I like this application because with manic time we can verify who does their right job. And we also have better control because we can choose the best workers to increase production works very well and without errors.

Gary

Just renewed my licence for another year Just thought I'd let you know that this is one of the best pieces of software I've ever installed on my computer, free or paid for. I run my own business which principally relies on writing technical reports. ManicTime has made it so much easier to track my time over the various projects and therefore manage my fees and costs. (And your support has been excellent when I have had the odd problem).

Oliver

Just wanted to let you know that I think your software has helped me capture $1000's of dollars in revenue that I just wasn't billing before, as I wasn't doing a very good job of tracking my time. With ManicTime I get it all, and if I were ever to be audited by a client, I could give them every detail. Thanks so much!

Judy

The interface is very intuitive and easy to use. The ability to tag and color-code my work allows me to see at a glance how my day has been going. I can organize and structure things as much or as little as I like. What a great product!

Joshua

ManicTime’s ease of use is unmatched, thanks to its intuitive interface and flexible granularity in time-tracking. The power to dive as deep as you need into data with comprehensive tagging and reporting systems is a significant upside. Its vast number of features like document, application, and activity trackers streamline the process of managing and analyzing time efficiently. Moreover, ManicTime’s advanced search capabilities, coupled with the functionality to annotate tagged time, make it a vital tool for enhancing productivity and recalling information during discussions.

Adam

I like that it tracks inactive time on the computer so that you can remember when you started working and when you stopped, and when you took breaks. Very easy to use, I don't have to remember to log in and the app does everything for me without me even doing anything except installing the program. It shows exactly what page and project you were working on and for how long and when.

Amanda

It provides with useful reports which track and monitor the computer usage of employees, as well as the time spent on each computer program or application. Also the presence of an automatic screenshot feature resulted in an increase in my employees’ productivity. It runs automatically on my computer, great.