Time Allocations & Billing Rates — Keeping Track of Project Budgets and Actual Costs

What are time limits and billing rates?

With the time limit, you set an hourly budget for each project and can see right on the project page how much of it has already been used. Using billing rates, Proyex also calculates the recorded time in euros: the actual costs of the project are derived from the hours and rates. This lets you see early on whether a project is still within profitable parameters—before the budget is exceeded.

In the new project view, Proyex takes it one step further: If you enter the customer value there—that is, what you charge the customer—Proyex calculates your margin and a forecast for the end of the project based on that.

Here’s how it works

1. Set billing rates: Open the Team Settings and scroll to the “Billing Rates” section (visible only to team owners). First, create a team default rate with a “Valid From” date. Optionally, you can set custom rates for individual members—these take precedence over the default rate.
2. Set a time limit: Open a project’s settings and enter the hourly budget in the “Time Limit (Hours)” field—for example, 40. To remove it, simply clear the field.
3. Track progress: On the project page, you’ll now see “X of Y h” in the Time section, along with a percentage and a progress bar. If the tracked time exceeds the limit, the bar turns red. The project details page in the new beta app also displays the time limit.
4. Check Actual Costs: The actual costs in euros appear directly below the time target—visible only to users with controlling permissions.
5. Enter customer value: Open the project in the new view. Directly below the project name, you’ll see “Customer Value”—click on it, enter the agreed-upon amount, and confirm by pressing Enter. From now on, you’ll see your margin and the forecast in the “Budget & Profitability” section.
6. Set client value for multiple projects at once: In the project list of the new view, you’ll find the “Bulk Actions” menu at the top of the toolbar. Select “Set Client Value by Tags” to open a dialog that lists all your project tags along with the number of projects associated with each. Enter a customer value for each tag—all projects with that tag will adopt the value. Use the “Overwrite Existing” toggle to decide whether only projects without a customer value will be populated (default) or whether existing values will also be replaced.

Here’s how actual costs are calculated

For each hour logged, the rate valid on the day the time entry was made applies: first the member’s personal rate, otherwise the team’s standard rate. You can create rate changes as new entries with a “Effective From” date—they only apply to time entered on or after that date, ensuring your cost history remains accurate. Running timers are not included in usage and costs until they are stopped. Hours for which no rate is specified remain unvalued and do not appear in the actual costs.

Customer Value, Margin, and Forecast

Customer value is the amount you charge the customer for the project. Proyex compares this to the actual costs and shows you two key metrics based on this:

• Margin (Actual): What remains of your customer value after accounting for costs incurred so far—as both an amount and a percentage.
• Forecast: What is expected to remain at the end of the project. To calculate this, Proyex uses your average rate to date and extrapolates it over the time frame. If you’ve already exceeded the time frame, the forecast is based on actual effort—so it’s never more favorable than reality.

Both values are color-coded based on your target margin: green if you’re on target, yellow if you’re below it, and red as soon as costs exceed the client value. You set the target margin as the default in the team settings (default 20%) and can override it for individual projects by clicking directly on the target value.

If you want to understand how a number is calculated, click the question mark next to it: “Proyex” shows you the complete calculation process using your actual project numbers.

On-Time Performance (SPI)

On-schedule status compares how many tasks have already been completed with the portion of the project duration that has already elapsed. The duration is defined as the time from the project start to the latest task due date—this timeframe is also displayed at the top next to the project name. A value above 1 means you’re ahead of schedule; a value below 1 means you’re behind schedule. If start dates, tasks, or due dates are missing, on-schedule status cannot be calculated—Proyex will then tell you what’s missing.

Set Currency

In the team settings, under “Currency & Target Margin,” you can specify the currency in which costs and customer values are displayed (euros, U.S. dollars, Swiss francs, or British pounds). This is purely a display setting: Proyex does not convert amounts but displays them in the selected currency. Only the team owner can change this setting.

Permissions

Only the team owner can view and manage billing rates. Any team member with access to project settings can set the time target; the progress “X of Y hours” is visible to the entire team. Actual costs are visible only to users with Controlling permissions. The same applies to customer value, margin, and forecast: They are visible only to users with Controlling permissions and can be edited only by them. The on-time performance metric does not include any amounts and is therefore visible to all project participants. Your customers in the guest portal cannot see the time target, rates, costs, or customer values.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I correct a rate retroactively?

Yes. Simply create a rate with a “Valid from” date in the past—it will then take effect from that date. An entry with the same effective date will overwrite the existing value.

Why don’t I see actual costs?

Either you lack the controlling permissions, or no billing rates have yet been entered that apply to the recorded times.

Does a timer that’s currently running count toward the total?

No—recorded time is only included in usage and costs after the timer is stopped.

Why don’t I see a forecast?

The projection requires three pieces of information: a client value, a time target, and at least one hour that has already been valued. If any of these are missing, Proyex hides the row instead of estimating a number.

Can I set the client value for multiple projects at once?

Yes. In the project list, open the “Bulk Actions” menu and select “Set Client Value by Tags.” In the dialog, assign a value for each project tag, which all projects with that tag will adopt. By default, only projects without a client value are populated; if desired, you can use the “Overwrite existing values” toggle to replace values that have already been set. Like the individual client value, this bulk action is only available with Controlling permissions.

How do I factor in overhead costs such as advertising budgets or rent?

The easiest way is to use allocation rates: Use a full-cost rate that includes your share of overhead costs in addition to pure personnel costs. To do this, divide your monthly fixed costs by the number of hours you actually bill each month, and add the result to the labor cost rate. If your fixed costs change permanently, create a new rate with an effective date—past data will remain correctly calculated.

Is the margin accurate if hours without a rate are included?

Not entirely—unvalued hours are missing from the costs. That’s why “Proyex” shows you, under the margin, how many hours still don’t have a billing rate.

What happens to hours worked by former team members?

They are retained and valued at the team’s standard rate that was valid on the respective day.

Tips & Notes

First, set up the team standard rate—it serves as a safety net for all hours without a personal rate. When prices change, always create a new entry with an effective date instead of deleting existing rates: This ensures that costs for completed periods remain accurate. It’s best to enter the client value right at the start of the project—that way, the forecast is accurate from the beginning, and you can spot any imbalances while you still have time to take corrective action. Related articles: “Time Tracking—Recording and Analyzing Work Hours” and “Understanding Project Settings.”