10 Best Legal Billing Software for Lawyers in 2024

The idea of preparing an invoice may raise an image of endless scribbles and tiers of narratives, hours wasted in doing numbers, ending the day in apprehension and post-calculation jitters! But with legal billing software specifically designed for law office professionals, billing is not so problematic.

After organizing and executing complex cases and dealing with the varying needs of different clients, any general legal billing system would be too simple and an inefficient way of invoicing clients. There is no simple way to invoice a client for a "flat fee" case, and the many varied expenses incurred can be a bookkeeping nightmare.

The time it takes to write an invoice that is detailed enough to avoid client confrontation and the frustration of having to revise an invoice because there has not been a clear enough way of tracking all billable time and expenses can become a huge drain on a lawyer.

In the worst of cases, after spending a great deal of time on one particular task, it can be quite disheartening to find that the task was not billed or was underbilled because of a lost time slip.

In an industry where time is quite literally money, effective time tracking is essential. This is where legal billing software can greatly reduce revenue losses for a small amount of time and money investment.

According to a 2008 ABA survey, on average, lawyers only collected 86% of the standard rate of their billed time.

We will explain the top 10 best legal billing software for lawyers to help lawyers send invoices on time and get paid for their services without stress.

Abbreviated as LBS, legal-billing software offers lawyers and law firms an easy way to track time and bill clients. If you are a legal professional and thinking of buying the best legal billing software for lawyers, here are the top ten billing software programs (not in order of preference):

PCLaw has been providing quality legal billing software to North American lawyers for over 30 years. It's a complete law practice management solution that includes time tracking, matter management, and trust accounting.

The time and expense of entering data in PCLaw is already simplified with a variety of shortcuts and a mobile app to enter data from anywhere. The software also features conflict avoidance through client/matter checks and budget analysis tools to help regulate billing patterns.

PCLaw billing gives you various billing rate options for each case and customizable reports to keep your business efficient and ensure peace of mind, knowing you've invested wisely.

There is no doubt that MyCase simplifies the daily lives of lawyers by providing all the necessary tools in a single integrated system. The legal billing software for attorneys features document management, time and expense tracking, and a fully integrated billing system. The time and expense tracking services are easily organized with a simple to-do list and include cost allocation and markup features.

MyCase billing integrates trust accounting to maintain unified ledgers, trust notifications for upcoming automatic payments, and a platform for clients to pay through e-check or credit card. Invoices are sent as a secure link and can be printed and mailed with an addressed return envelope.

The software also includes features that help promote your business, such as a customer contact database, and mail and form builders to design newsletters, announcements, and custom legal forms.

Bill4Time is a time billing software program designed with legal professionals in mind. It features a number of different time-tracking options, such as a stopwatch and manual entry.

There are also numerous billing templates and the ability to create customized invoices and detailed reports. Once you have tracked your time and billed your clients, you can send them an invoice with trust or retainer requests (utilizing LawPay integration) and then send reminders to belligerent clients.

Bill4Time also offers complete management of your billing and trust accounts, with shareable reports to make it easier to analyze and maintain your business functions.

Trial Works is an innovative and well-established company that provides excellent legal case management software. They are highly recognized for their software, which provides solutions to help legal professionals work easier, more efficiently, and with better organization.

Trial Works is a customized case management tool for busy litigation practices. This is designed to screen the intake, develop the case, and track the outcome of the case. This effective software makes the permissible process easier for each case, which can then be further retrieved to track case status at any time.

This, in turn, allows law firms to increase usability, which results in increasing revenue by having cases processed quicker and more efficiently.

Action Step is online legal software for small to medium-sized law firm practices. It is easy to use, fully secure, and completely hassle-free. Action Step is a simple and complete solution that has unlimited email and telephone support included in the monthly subscription.

This excellent legal management software caters to all practice areas. Its features include fully integrated legal trust accounting, pre-configured matter types, and workflow. The software is designed to simplify complex legal matters, providing you with more time to spend with your clients.

Additional benefits include instant document creation, tracking deadlines, and full email integration.

Amberlo is one of the easiest legal management systems available. The system has various advanced features that are easily accessible. The software is also well designed, with intuitive functionality and speed.

One of the main features of this advanced legal management system is that the software is tailored to your exact needs. This guarantees your satisfaction and helps to organize and automate various tasks and processes. Amberlo software has been designed for small to mid-sized law firms and corporate legal departments.

This is a one-stop shop for all your needs in relation to legal case management software, law practice management software, and legal billing software.

This time tracking software is a staple time tracking software for attorneys, and there are many versions of it. The price varies depending on what features you want to include. Timeslips is known for easy billing and has several billing and reporting tools. The software is user-friendly and is recommended by many satisfied lawyers who use it.

Timeslips also offers various versions of the software to suit your needs. The starting program is "Timeslips Classic," and the next step up is Premium, followed by a function-specific program called "Time Slips Premium Bill Quick" and finally the Sage Timeslips 2012. 

Pricing varies depending on what program would best suit you. Two other versions of the software, Timeslips EasySlip and Timeslips First Edition, have been discontinued.

Clio is at the top of the legal billing software game, and it comes complete with time tracking, billing, and several more features to make sure that you are not losing money on the table. One of its key features is its ability to link to LawPay, which is its payment processing software.

Clio does offer a 30-day free trial. The first three levels of the software are split into web-based access at the first level and then web-based with mobile access at the 2nd and 3rd. The 4th tier is standalone software that is not internet-based, and the 5th level is the top-of-the-line package.

Clio does a comprehensive job of explaining the types of software as well, where you can watch the feature videos for the separate packages to determine which is the best value for you.

One of the best billing software for attorneys to consider is FreshBooks legal accounting software. FreshBooks offers features to deliver invoices to clients that can be customized to reflect your law firm and are also budget-enabled.

It also caters to billing for every hour spent by your staff for the clients; it will record the expenses and bill them to the clients. FreshBooks allows you to generate reports on the expenses incurred in order to manage the client's case.

In addition, it has a simple time tracking feature to record time spent by the staff and directly bill it to the clients. Furthermore, the pricing starts at $19.99 and offers a 30-day trial.

Tabs3 allows users to track their billable hours with several built-in timers for different billing rates. When it comes to tracking billable hours, accuracy is key. Tabs3 Timers provides several popular timers that store the type of cost, start/stop times, the date, whether a resource was on the phone, a text note, and the file number.

Users record their time in a timeslip, which can be printed or posted with an automatic update to a client's pre-bill file. Users can track their performance with productivity reports that help lawyers improve their billable hours. Tabs3 also provides an electronic billing feature in which the firm can send LEDES files in time and expense formats for law firm clients who require electronic billing.

For over 30 years, they have made sure criminal defense and immigration attorney usage in their LEDES billing software is up-to-date and compliant. Tabs3 ensures they have the right solution with constant updates to their electronic billing features. Clients who use Tabs3 are very pleased with their LEDES billing and believe that it increases their profits greatly.

Time59 is a cloud-based tool that offers an in-depth time and billing solution to law firms and independent attorneys. The legal billing software program is perfect for small to mid-size law firms or even professionals who want a powerful and affordable time and billing solution.

Users can access Time59 on a pay-as-you-go or subscription basis, with no minimum term contract. Subscription rates depend on the number of active matters. Paying annually is the most economical way to use Time59.

Active support Contract holders who need telephone support can purchase blocks of time at affordable rates.

Using legal billing software offers numerous benefits for attorneys, including the following:

Whether they are mandatory because of the practice area or seen as a necessary evil, billing hours have dramatically changed the legal profession since the 1980s.

Legal billing software for lawyers gives the attorney the ability to set billable rates for each client and case, as well as track and bill time in various increments. Some billing programs will also have the ability to track case costs.

Other features of billing programs may include invoicing clients, recording cash receipts, and monitoring accounts receivable.

Reports generated by billing programs are used to portray how much time an attorney has invested in a case or a client, as well as the possibility of generating a detailed billing history with optional or chronologically sorted, activity and expenses totals, and many other useful reports.