Time
See where the effort goes.
Nonprofit time tracking made simple. See how your team’s time serves each program, so you know what the work really takes.
- Free tier
- Unlimited users
- No credit card
The problem
You can’t see where the effort really goes.
Payroll knows what you pay people. It doesn’t know which program they poured the week into. So you can’t tell where your effort is really landing, or whether your team is stretched too thin on the wrong things. That isn’t on you. No one ever handed you a way to see it.
Less guessing what your programs cost. More knowing.
What it feels like with Ember in your corner
Imagine the answer already waiting.
You open Ember and there it is. Each program showing exactly what your team put into it, built quietly from the weeks they already confirmed. So you can see which programs stretch a dollar furthest, and which ones need more to do their work.
You stop giving up Sundays to rebuild a year of hours. You spend that time on the programs the numbers are about, sure of which ones are worth doing more of.
That’s the difference between guessing and knowing.
Sound like what you need?
Get the real number, without the weekend spreadsheet.
Who it's for
Built for the person who does payroll and answers the hard questions.
The executive director, the operations lead, the one who somehow does both. At a small nonprofit that's usually one person, and usually on a Sunday. You got into this to change something, not to reverse-engineer a year of hours. Ember carries that part, so your energy goes back to the work.
Whatever your cause
Built for the work you do.
From food and housing to animals, kids, health, and the environment, Ember fits every kind of nonprofit.
On your side
Finally, tools that treat you fairly.
Small nonprofits get handed clunky tools built for big companies, at prices that punish you for growing. Ember is built the other way around:
Made to fit how you work
Everything is shaped around nonprofits like yours, never a big-company tool bent to fit.
Your whole team, included
Add every person you pay, and everyone who volunteers too. You're never charged per person, so a growing team never costs you more.
Your data stays yours
Export it anytime. It’s never sold, and you’re never locked in.
Frequently asked questions
Good questions, honest answers.
How do nonprofits track staff time by program?
Your team logs their hours against each program, plus admin and fundraising, right on a weekly timesheet. Hourly folks log by the day; salaried folks split their week by percentage. Ember adds it up, so you can see how much time each program took, and what it cost. You can dig into the numbers in reporting.
What's a simple timesheet tool for a small nonprofit?
Ember Time is a free timesheet tool built for small nonprofits. Everyone confirms their week in seconds, you approve it in one list, or send it back with a note, and the program cost is worked out for you. No spreadsheets, no chain of emails.
How do you know what a program actually costs?
Add a cost rate for each person, and their approved hours turn into real dollars against each program. Add volunteer hours too, and one number most nonprofits build by hand appears on its own: what a program really costs, paid and unpaid time counted against the same work. It all lands in reporting.
Do we have to set pay rates to use it?
No. Start with hours alone, which work perfectly well on their own, and add what people cost whenever you're ready. Rates live in your organization settings, and they're effective-dated, so a raise in March never rewrites what January cost.
Do you run payroll?
No, and we don't plan to. Ember records where time went; your payroll system pays people. It's built to sit alongside Gusto, Paychex, or whoever you use, handing over approved hours and gross pay while your provider handles tax and deductions.
Who can see pay and salary information?
Only the people who should. Owners and admins see pay; anyone approving timesheets sees hours, not salaries; each person sees their own week and nobody else's.
How does it handle salaried and hourly staff?
Differently, on purpose. Hourly folks log the hours they worked by day; salaried folks split their period by percentage across programs, admin, and fundraising. Ember asks each person only for what fits their situation.
Where do we add people?
In your organization settings, once. Everyone you add there shows up across Ember, so Time stays what it is: timesheets, approvals, and a payroll export.
Do we need the other Ember apps?
No, Time works on its own. Add Programs and time logged on a task flows straight onto the timesheet, already split by program. Add Volunteers and paid and unpaid hours land against the same work, so a program's full cost shows up without you piecing it together.
What do we commit to?
Nothing up front. Your data stays yours to export, encrypted in transit and at rest, never sold. Here's how pricing works, and here's our privacy commitment.
Free guides on staff time
Plain, practical guides for small nonprofits. No sign-up needed.
- How to allocate staff time across grantsSplitting time defensibly across several funders.
- What is time and effort reporting?What federal grant rules ask for when you pay staff from a grant.
- Do we need timesheets for federal grants?The short answer is no. Here's what's actually required.
- Personnel activity reports vs timesheetsTwo terms that get confused, and why it matters.
- Time and effort certification templateThree templates for federal grants, and what 2 CFR 200.430(g) asks for.
- 2 CFR 200.516 explainedWhat an auditor has to report as a finding, and the threshold.
- Common single audit findingsThe problems auditors flag most, and how to prevent each.
- Types of grants for nonprofitsGovernment, foundation, operating, matching, and more, explained.
- The Uniform Guidance, explainedA plain map of 2 CFR Part 200, subpart by subpart.
- Unrestricted grants for nonprofitsWhat unrestricted funding is, and how to ask for more of it.
Ready to see what your work really takes?
Add your team, and the first week they confirm tells you what your programs cost. You can set it up in an afternoon.
- Free tier
- No credit card
- Unsubscribe anytime