Split the stack only when the work has different owners. If the same two people sell, deliver and bill every job, a lighter setup may be enough. Once sales needs pipeline reporting and delivery needs task detail, separate tools keep the data cleaner.
Use HubSpot as the sales system, not the whole agency back office. Its free tier is useful for getting pipeline discipline in place, and AgencySoftware records it as Free, then $15. The catch is that cost and complexity rise if you push project delivery and time tracking into the CRM.
Use ClickUp when task ownership is the messy part. It starts Free, then $7 in our data, and its Unlimited plan adds native time tracking. The downside is that ClickUp’s free plan has limits such as 60MB storage, and workspace-wide upgrades can change the bill quickly.
Choose Toggl Track when time data needs to be trusted. It is the better fit for billable versus non-billable time, utilisation, capacity and profitability work. The trade-off is that it is not the main invoicing and payment workflow in the way Harvest is.
Choose Harvest when approved hours need to become invoices. Harvest starts Free, then $11 in our data, and its paid plan supports team reporting, invoicing and payment integrations. The limitation is that it does not replace a proper task and project hub like ClickUp.
Do the fee maths before standardising. HubSpot payments, Harvest online payments and third-party processors can add card, ACH or platform fees. Those costs are fine when they remove admin, but they can surprise agencies that only compare monthly software prices.