How to Export Your Time Data to Excel and CSV

You own your tracked time. Whether you need it for a client report, your accountant, payroll, or your own analysis, you want it out of the app in a format the rest of your tooling reads. Excel and CSV cover both ends of that range. Both are on every plan in Timesheet, including the free Basic.

This post walks through the configuration that makes exports actually useful: picking the right fields, saving templates, adding formula columns, and emailing or scheduling the result.

#The Two Formats

#Excel (XLSX or XLS)

The most versatile format for most users:

• Opens in Excel, Google Sheets, Numbers
• Preserves formatting and formulas
• Supports multiple sheets
• Best for reports you'll present or analyze further

#CSV

The universal data format:

• Opens in any spreadsheet application
• Imports into any database or tool
• Plain text, very small file size
• Best for data imports and integrations

When in doubt: Excel for humans reading the file, CSV for software reading the file.

#The Basic Export

#Step 1: Date Range

1. Open Export (or Reports)
2. Pick a start and end date
3. Or pick a preset: this week, last week, this month, last month, this quarter, custom

#Step 2: Filters

Narrow it down:

• Project: one or many
• Status: billable, billed, paid
• Tags: specific work types
• Team member: individual or group (Pro)

#Step 3: Format

Pick:

• XLSX (Excel 2007+, the default)
• XLS (legacy Excel)
• CSV

#Step 4: Download

Click export. The file lands in your downloads folder.

#Customizing the Fields

Where exports go from useful to powerful: you choose exactly which columns appear.

#Standard Fields

#Picking Them

1. In export settings, open Fields or Columns
2. Check the ones you want
3. Uncheck the rest
4. Drag to reorder (if supported)

#Field Recipes

Client report. Date, Project, Description, Duration, Earnings. Skip internal fields like Billable status.

Accounting. Date, Project, Duration, Hourly Rate, Earnings, Billed, Paid. Hand it to the accountant; they're happy.

Personal analysis. Everything. You'll figure out what's useful later in a pivot table.

#Formula Columns

The exports support calculated columns. Useful for reimbursements, tax math, net earnings, custom currency conversions.

#Adding a Custom Field

1. Open export settings
2. Find Custom Fields or Add Column
3. Name the column
4. Enter the formula

#Formula Examples

Earnings with rate, factor and extra/h:

= ({DURATION} / 3600 * {TASK_PROJECT_SALARY}) * {RATE_VALUE} + ({DURATION} / 3600 * {RATE_EXTRA})

Mileage reimbursement at EUR 0.30 / km:

= {DISTANCE} * 0.30

VAT amount at 19%:

= {SALARY} * 0.19

Net earnings:

= {SALARY} - ({SALARY} * 0.19)

#Available Variables

Field IDs go in curly braces:

• {DURATION}: duration in seconds
• {SALARY}: calculated earnings on the entry
• {TASK_PROJECT_SALARY}: hourly rate from the project
• {RATE_VALUE}: Factor multiplier
• {RATE_EXTRA}: Extra/h amount
• {DISTANCE}: mileage value (for mileage entries)

#Templates

If you run the same export every month, save the configuration once and reuse it.

#Saving

1. Configure the export (filters, fields, format)
2. Click Save as Template
3. Name the template
4. Available from then on

#Templates Worth Having

Monthly client report.

• Filter: specific project, last month
• Fields: Date, Description, Duration, Earnings
• Format: XLSX

Quarterly tax export.

• Filter: all billable, last quarter
• Fields: everything plus custom VAT column
• Format: CSV

Weekly timesheet.

• Filter: all projects, this week
• Fields: Date, Project, Start, End, Duration
• Format: XLSX

#Running a Template

1. Open Export
2. Pick the template
3. Adjust the date range if needed
4. Export

The template handles the rest.

#Email and Scheduling

#Email Direct

Skip the download-attach-send dance:

1. Configure the export
2. Choose Email Report instead of Download
3. Enter recipients
4. Add subject and message
5. Send

#Scheduled Reports (Pro)

For recurring reports:

1. Build the export configuration
2. Set a schedule (weekly, monthly)
3. Enter recipients
4. The reports send automatically on the schedule

Useful for monthly client retainers and recurring management reports.

#Grouping and Sorting

How the data lays out in the file.

#Grouping

• By project: every project's tasks together
• By date: tasks grouped per day
• By week: weekly summaries
• No grouping: a flat list

#Sorting

• Date (newest or oldest first)
• Project (A to Z or Z to A)
• Duration (longest or shortest first)
• Earnings (highest or lowest first)

#Subtotals

Per group, optionally include:

• Total duration
• Total earnings
• Task count

#Advanced Scenarios

#Multi-Project Client Report

A client has three projects. One report with everything:

1. Filter to the three projects
2. Group by project
3. Enable subtotals
4. Include grand total
5. Export as XLSX

#Monthly Invoice Backup

A snapshot of what got billed:

1. Filter: Billed = Yes, Date = Last Month
2. All fields
3. Export as CSV for archival
4. Store next to the invoice copies

#Payroll Integration

Export per-employee data formatted for payroll:

1. Filter by team member (Pro)
2. Include the required payroll fields
3. Export as CSV
4. Import into the payroll system

#Tax Preparation

Everything your accountant asks for:

1. Filter: Date = full tax year
2. Fields: Date, Client, Description, Earnings, Expenses
3. Add a custom VAT calculation column
4. Export as XLSX with formatted totals

#Troubleshooting

#"No data to export"

• Check the date range includes entries
• Verify the filters aren't too narrow
• Check whether projects are archived (and decide whether to include archived ones)

#Dates Look Wrong in Excel

• Excel can misread date strings depending on locale
• Try CSV instead, which is unambiguous text
• Check Excel's regional settings

#Duration Shows Wrong

• Switch between HH:MM and decimal in export settings
• Make sure the Excel column is formatted as time, not text

#File Won't Open

• Try a different format (XLSX vs CSV)
• Confirm the file finished downloading
• Check disk space

#Things That Make Exports Better

Consistent task descriptions. A clear description in tracking translates to a clear line in the client report. Lazy descriptions read like internal notes the client wasn't supposed to see.

Export before archiving. When a project completes, export everything before archiving. You'll have the record without needing to dig into archived data later.

Keep a small template library. Three to five reusable templates cover most of what you'll need. Don't proliferate them.

Preview before sending. Especially for client-facing reports. Catch the typos, the missing entries, the rows that say "TBD".

Document custom fields. If you wrote a formula column three months ago, current-you won't remember exactly what it calculates. Add a note in the template name.

#Summary

The exports support:

• Formats: XLSX, XLS, CSV
• Filters: project, status, tags, dates, team member
• Fields: pick and order what you need
• Custom fields: formula columns for calculations
• Templates: save once, run forever
• Email and (on Pro) scheduled delivery

Your data, your shape, your tooling.

#Where to Go Next

• Sync to QuickBooks for accounting integration without manual export
• Connect to Zapier for data flows into other tools
• Generate PDF invoices when you need a client-ready bill rather than a data file