What are Billable Types?
Billable types are the different categories of work and costs you can log in Manor and bill to clients. Each type serves a specific purpose and can be configured with different billing rates, markup rules, and tax treatment. Together, they form the foundation of your time and cost tracking system.
Think of billable types as the building blocks of your invoicing. Every hour worked, every expense incurred, and every product delivered belongs to one of these types.
Billable Types Overview
Manor supports seven main billable types:
| Type | What it is | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Time | Hours worked by employees or contractors | Billing for professional services, consultations, and labor |
| Travels | Travel hours and transportation costs | Billing for time spent traveling and transportation expenses |
| Expenses | Out-of-pocket costs paid by your firm | Reimbursing employee expenses and passing costs to clients |
| Inbound Invoices | Supplier invoices imported from external systems | Documenting and referencing supplier costs for expense tracking |
| Products | Goods, software, or services sold | Billing for items sold, delivered, or licensed to clients |
| Per diems | Daily allowances while traveling | Covering living expenses (meals, lodging) during business travel |
| Bundles | Groups of multiple billables | Bundling multiple items together for a combined price |
Time
Hours and labor work.
Time entries represent billable hours worked by your team. Log time directly or import it from timesheets. Time is the most common billable type and typically represents your primary revenue source.
Key features:
- Track billable hours by employee, project, and date
- Set different billing rates for different employees or roles
- Track time against time budgets (estimated hours)
- Configure whether time is billed at hourly rates, flat fees, or retained under a retainer
Learn more: See Times for detailed time tracking instructions.
Travels
Travel time and transportation costs.
Travel entries capture both the hours spent traveling and the associated transportation costs (airfare, parking, vehicle rental, etc.). Use this when your team travels as part of billable work.
Key features:
- Track travel hours separately from regular work time
- Record travel expenses and distances
- Apply markup for travel services
- Link travel to specific projects and dates
Learn more: See Travels for detailed travel tracking instructions.
Expenses
Out-of-pocket costs and reimbursements.
Expense entries record costs paid by your firm on behalf of a project or client—such as supplies, contractor fees, or third-party services. Expenses are often reimbursed by the client or passed through on invoices.
Key features:
- Categorize expenses by type (travel, supplies, services, etc.)
- Apply VAT or tax rates to expenses
- Configure whether expenses are markup, cost-plus, or flat-rate billing
- Track reimbursable vs. non-reimbursable expenses
Learn more: See Expenses for detailed expense tracking instructions.
Inbound Invoices
Supplier invoices automatically imported from external systems.
Inbound invoices are supplier invoices automatically imported from external accounting systems, invoice processing platforms, or API integrations. These imported invoices provide the source documentation for expense entries and support accurate client billing.
Key features:
- Automatically import supplier invoices from integrated systems (e.g., Unimaze, Business Central)
- View original PDF and image documents of supplier invoices
- Track supplier name, invoice number, date, and currency
- Reference inbound invoices when creating related expense entries
- Maintain complete audit trail with original invoice documents
Learn more: See Inbound Invoices for detailed inbound invoice management instructions.
Products
Goods, software, or services sold.
Products represent tangible items or services you deliver to clients—such as software licenses, hardware, completed deliverables, or third-party services resold. Products are typically billed at fixed prices rather than hourly rates.
Key features:
- Define product catalogs with pricing
- Track inventory if needed
- Bill products at fixed or negotiated rates
- Link products to specific projects or clients
Learn more: See Products for detailed product management instructions.
Per Diems
Daily living allowances during travel.
Per diems are fixed daily allowances paid to employees for living expenses while traveling on business (meals, lodging, incidental costs). These are often passed through to clients or absorbed as costs.
Key features:
- Set per diem rates by location and travel type
- Automatically calculate daily allowances
- Track per diem expenses separately from other travel costs
- Configure billing and reimbursement rules
Learn more: See Per Diems for detailed per diem management instructions.
Bundles
Combined billables for simplified invoicing.
Bundles allow you to group multiple billable items (time, expenses, products) together and bill them as a single line item. Useful for packages, retainer billing, or combined offerings.
Key features:
- Combine multiple billable types in one bundle
- Apply bundle-level pricing or discounts
- Simplify invoices by combining related items
- Use for recurring or standard offerings
Learn more: See Bundles for detailed bundle creation instructions.
How Billable Types Connect to Invoicing
All billable types flow into your invoicing workflow:
- Log billables — Create time entries, expenses, products, etc.
- Review billables — View unbilled items in the Data section
- Create invoices — Select billables and create invoices with line items
- Send to clients — Deliver invoices for payment
Each billable type can have different billing rules (hourly rates, fixed prices, markup percentages), tax treatment (VAT, tax exempt), and visibility (hide costs, show mark-up only).
Best Practices
Choose the right type for each entry
Using the correct billable type ensures proper categorization, correct billing calculations, and cleaner invoices.
Configure rates for each type
Different billable types often have different billing rates. Set up your pricing structure in the Pricing section to ensure consistent billing.
Use per diems consistently
If your team travels frequently, use per diems to standardize travel expense handling and simplify invoicing.
Bundle related items
For complex projects or fixed-price work, group related billables into bundles for cleaner invoices and easier client communication.
Review unbilled billables regularly
Check the Data section to see what billables are waiting to be invoiced. This helps you track outstanding work and revenue.
Consider markup rules
Many firms mark up expenses and travel. Configure markup rules in your Pricing section to automate this calculation.
Related Sections
- Time — Log billable hours
- Data — View all billable items across types
- Billing — Create invoices from billables
- Pricing — Configure billing rates and rules
- Analysis — Analyze billable revenue and utilization