About

ActivityWatch is a free, open-source, cross-platform application originating from Norway, launched around 2017, that serves as a powerful automated time tracker and system activity monitor. It provides productivity insights, anti-procrastination tools, and Pomodoro timers, all while maintaining a strong privacy-focused approach with no third-party data collection and decentralized, local storage. The core product, ActivityWatch, offers a versatile suite of features including automatic time tracking, a visual timeline, task time tracking, automated usage tracking, idle detection, screen time monitoring, and goal tracking. It allows for custom categories, data export/import, and works offline. The platform is highly extensible by plugins/extensions through its open API and development API, supporting Mac, Windows, Linux, Android (requires Android 6.0+), Self-Hosted environments, and browser extensions for Google Chrome, Chromium, and Mozilla Firefox. Built with Rust and Python, ActivityWatch is positioned as a leading open-source alternative to competitors like RescueTime and ManicTime. Users commend its ultras accurate data, super customizability, and effectiveness in boosting productivity through hindsight, though some note the categorization interface can be slow to refresh. It is celebrated for its robust functionality, local data storage, and regular updates, embodying the 'four horsemen of good software' for many, and also offers capabilities like multi-device support, portability, calendar view, cloud sync, calendar integration, and employee time tracking.