Log hours per project and invoice monthly as a freelancer

Many freelancers want one project per client and use that project as the place where all hours are logged. That makes sense because scope, planning and time stay together. The next question is obvious: can you invoice that project again every month?

The short answer is yes. Time is logged on the project, but the invoice flow runs through the deal. That means the same project can lead to multiple invoices as long as already billed hours are linked to an invoice and new hours are still open.

When does a one-project-per-client setup work well?

This approach works especially well for longer client relationships, retainers or recurring monthly work. You keep one project as the fixed workspace and invoice only the new hours for each month.

• For ongoing work or support per client
• For projects where you add time every month
• For freelancers who want projects, hours and invoices connected
• For clients where a new project every month would be unnecessary noise

See how projects, time and invoices fit together

How the flow works step by step in the current UI

The cleanest flow is: create the client, open a deal, create a project inside that deal and log hours on that project. The project keeps your work structured, but the invoice action itself happens on the deal page.

On the deal page you select billable hours that do not yet have an invoice link. Then you convert those selected entries into an invoice. If a draft invoice already exists for that deal, the new hours are added there. If not, a new draft invoice is created.

That is what makes monthly invoicing possible: old hours stay linked to an earlier invoice, while new hours remain available for the next one.

View invoicing software

Can you have multiple invoices on the same project?

Yes. In practice that means the project remains one ongoing workspace, while each invoice contains only the new hours for a specific period. The project does not stop after the first invoice.

• Hours already linked to an invoice are not billed again
• New hours on the same project remain available for the next invoice
• So month 1, month 2 and month 3 can all be invoiced separately on one project
• Just avoid leaving an old draft invoice open if you want the next month to stay separate

Also read how to move from quote to invoice

What is the smartest monthly workflow for freelancers?

The most practical setup is: keep one active project per client or engagement, log your hours there, close the month by selecting only open time entries and convert those into an invoice. Then process or send that invoice so the next month starts clean.

That prevents an old draft invoice from collecting new time by accident. You keep control over period, wording and payment moment without splitting your project structure into unnecessary pieces.

That is exactly why this works well for freelancers: no scattered spreadsheets, no separate project tools and no guessing which hours were already billed.

Also read how time tracking works for freelancers

Where does this usually go wrong?

Most confusion does not start in the project itself but in the invoicing flow around it. If there is no deal, if time entries are not billable or if an old draft invoice remains open, it can feel like monthly invoicing is broken. In reality the structure just is not tight enough yet.

• Time is logged without the right deal and project connection
• Not all time entries are marked billable
• An old draft invoice is still open
• You expect invoicing to happen on the project while the current action sits on the deal