# AI timesheet parser

> Forward client timesheets in Excel, email text or a photo of paper. The AI parser reads them into structured hours and flags anything it is unsure about.

URL: https://timetracking.tech/features/ai-timesheet-parser
Language: en
Last updated: 2026-10-23

Clients send hours in every format imaginable: a spreadsheet, a few lines in an email, a phone photo of a signed paper sheet. The AI timesheet parser reads them into structured hours so your office stops retyping.

## How the AI timesheet parser works

1. **Forward the document**: Send the email to your organisation's import address or upload the file. Excel, CSV, email text, PDFs and photos are accepted.
2. **AI extracts the hours**: The parser identifies the document type, extracts workers, dates, start and end times and breaks, and matches names to people and placements.
3. **You check the exceptions**: Lines with high confidence go straight into the period. Anything unclear, such as an unreadable digit or an unknown name, lands on an exceptions screen for a person to confirm.

## Built for messy real-world input

Client timesheets rarely follow a template. Columns move, names are abbreviated, dates come in three formats and some sheets are handwritten. The parser is designed for that reality rather than for a perfect form.

It works with the large language models from Anthropic's Claude family, including vision for photos and scans. No separate OCR vendor is involved.

- Excel and CSV with any column layout
- Hours written in the body of an email
- Photos and scans of paper timesheets
- Fuzzy matching of names to workers and placements

## Confidence, not blind trust

Every extracted value carries a confidence score. Below the threshold, a human confirms it. The original document stays attached to the entry, so anyone can check what the parser saw.

The parsed hours then go through conflict detection, which compares them with what workers logged in the app.

## Where the time savings come from

Retyping a client timesheet is slow and error-prone work, and agencies with many clients do it every week. The parser removes the typing; your office only handles the exceptions and the conflicts that genuinely need a decision.

## Tips for the best results

Give each organisation one import address and ask clients to send their weekly hours there, so documents never get lost in personal inboxes. For photos, a flat sheet in good light with all four corners visible gives the most reliable result. Several workers on one sheet, or several sheets in one email, are fine.

The original document stays attached to every entry it produced, so anyone checking a number can see the source. How long originals are kept follows your organisation's retention settings.

- One import address per organisation
- Flat, well-lit photos with all corners visible
- Originals kept according to your retention settings

## Frequently asked questions

### Which file types does the parser accept?

Excel (XLSX and XLS), CSV, PDF, plain email text, and images such as phone photos or scans of paper timesheets.

### What happens when the parser is unsure?

The line goes to an exceptions screen with the original document next to it, and a person confirms or corrects it.

### Is client data used to train AI models?

TimeTracking uses Anthropic's commercial API, which by default does not use customer inputs to train models. Documents and extracted hours are stored on TimeTracking's EU-hosted platform.

### Which plan includes the AI timesheet parser?

The AI email parser and AI back-office are part of the Pro plan at €3 per user per month.