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Archly01
The editor vs the whole day
WakaTime measures time inside editors. Timecard measures every app and website, so coding, review, Slack and YouTube sit on one timeline.
ComparisonWakaTime alternative for AI coding · Checked October 2026
Timecard vs WakaTime
WakaTime tracks coding time through editor plugins, including AI adoption and spend for tools like Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot and Codex, and keeps it on its servers. Timecard reads the history AI tools already keep on your Mac, with no plugins and no account, and puts it next to everything else in your day.
Timecard
WakaTime
- $5 once
- Price
- Free; paid from $8.25/month billed yearly
- Not needed
- Account
- Required
- Mac
- Runs on
- Plugins for most editors, on any OS
01
The short answer
Choose WakaTime if
Best for: coding stats across many editors
- You want per-language and per-project coding stats across many editors.
- Your team wants shared coding dashboards.
- You code on Windows or Linux as well.
Choose Timecard if
Best for: seeing, and limiting, where your Mac day goes
- You want your whole day, not just time in the editor.
- You want AI agent time, tokens and API value without installing plugins.
- You don't want your activity on a server.
- You want limits on the distractions between coding sessions.
02
Pricing, side by side
Timecard is a single payment. WakaTime is a subscription.
TimecardPay once$5once, for 1 Mac
1 Mac · $52 Macs · $105 Macs · $2510 Macs · $50
- No subscription, ever
- Every update included
- No account; your activity stays on your Mac
- 14-day refund
WakaTimeSubscription- Free1 week of dashboard history$0
- Basic$9 monthly$8.25/month, billed yearly
- Premium$14 monthly$12.83/month, billed yearly
- Team$19.25/dev/month, billed yearly
From WakaTime's own pages, October 2026.
Over three years
WakaTime's cheapest paid plan, billed yearly
Timecard$5
WakaTime$297
03
Feature by feature
 Timecard | WakaTime | |
|---|---|---|
| Tracking | ||
| Tracks apps automatically | Yes | Coding time inside editors |
| Tracks websites | Yes, in Safari, Chrome, Arc, Dia, Brave, Edge, Vivaldi, Opera and Comet | No |
| History | Forever, plus the weeks Screen Time already kept | One week on the free dashboard |
| Privacy | ||
| Account | Not needed | Required |
| Where your data lives | On your Mac, in one local file | WakaTime's servers |
| Limits | ||
| Limits that block apps and sites | Yes: blocks the tab or covers the app, then asks why | No |
| Beyond tracking | ||
| AI coding usage | Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, opencode, Gemini CLI: time, tokens, API value | Yes: AI adoption, models and spend |
| Daily summary | A timecard printed from the notch every evening | Weekly reports |
| Teams and client billing | No, it's built for one person | Yes, team dashboards |
| Availability | ||
| Platforms | Mac, macOS 14 or later | Plugins for most editors, on any OS |
04
What really sets them apart
02
Plugins vs local history
WakaTime needs a plugin in each editor. Timecard reads the history Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, opencode and Gemini CLI already write on your Mac.
03
Servers vs your Mac
WakaTime stores stats on its servers. Timecard keeps everything on your Mac, and its MCP server lets your own agents ask about your time locally.
Timecard vs WakaTime
questions
What's the best WakaTime alternative for AI coding?
For most people on a Mac, Timecard: it tracks every app and website automatically, keeps the data on your Mac, blocks apps and sites when a daily limit runs out, tracks AI coding usage, and costs one payment with no account. WakaTime is still the better fit if you want per-language and per-project coding stats across many editors.
Can Timecard track Claude Code and Codex usage?
Yes. It reads their local history and shows time, tokens and API value per session and project, plus how close you are to your plan's limits.
Does Timecard need editor plugins?
No. It tracks the editor as an app and reads AI tools' local history, so there's nothing to install in each editor.
Is WakaTime free?
WakaTime has a free plan with one week of dashboard history. Paid plans start at $8.25 a month billed yearly.
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