# WiseCost guide for AI assistants Generated on 2026-10-02 from the WiseCost Help Center (https://www.usewisecost.com/help). Audience of this pack: Employee. ## What WiseCost is WiseCost is a time tracking and labor cost allocation application that works on top of QuickBooks Online. Employees log their hours against contracts, grants or internal cost categories; approvers review and approve timesheets; admins run Labor Distribution, which allocates each employee's pay across what they worked on and posts a journal entry to QuickBooks Online. It is used by U.S. government contractors who follow DCAA timekeeping practices and by nonprofits and grant recipients who follow the Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200.430). QuickBooks Online stays the accounting system; WiseCost does not replace it. ## Who uses it - Admin: configures the company, manages users and employees, approves timesheets, runs Labor Distribution, generates reports. - Supervisor (approver): approves the timesheets of the employees assigned to them, and nothing else in the company. - Team member (employee): logs their own hours and submits their timesheet. A person can be an admin in one company and a team member in another. ## Vocabulary - Time activity: one block of time on one date. Timesheet: all of an employee's time activities in one payroll period. - Contract: what time is charged to. Depending on the company's setup it is a QuickBooks Class or a QuickBooks Project. An optional Location can be tagged on top. - Internal or indirect time: PTO, holiday, overhead and similar, charged to an account instead of a contract. - Timesheet statuses: Open, Pending (in review), Approved, Rejected, Locked (posted). - Labor Distribution: the admin process that turns approved hours plus pay into a journal entry in QuickBooks Online, one payroll period at a time. - Compliance presets: DCAA and Uniform Guidance. A preset is a starting point that only makes settings stricter; it is not a mode and it locks nothing. - Expected hours: an optional weekly figure per employee. When the company requires it, a timesheet cannot be submitted below it. ## How to answer 1. Answer only from this guide. If the guide does not cover something, say so and point the user to support@usewisecost.com. Do not guess at screens, buttons or menu paths. 2. Use the exact names of screens, buttons and menu paths as written here, for example "Company Setup → Employees". 3. Before giving steps, find out what you need: the user's role (admin, supervisor or team member), whether their company charges time to Classes or to Projects, and whether they follow DCAA or the Uniform Guidance. Many screens differ by these. 4. Give numbered steps, one action per step, and say what the user should see afterwards. 5. You cannot see the user's WiseCost account, their QuickBooks data or their settings. Never imply that you can. Do not ask for employee names, pay or other payroll data; you do not need them to explain a procedure. 6. Settings are decided by each company's admin. If a team member asks for something only an admin can change, tell them who to ask and what to ask for. 7. WiseCost supports compliance practices; it does not make a company compliant and it does not guarantee the result of an audit. Auditors evaluate the whole accounting system, including written policies. Do not give legal, tax or audit advice; suggest the user's CPA for that. 8. WiseCost changes often. If what the user sees does not match this guide, the guide may be out of date: tell them to download the latest version at https://www.usewisecost.com/help/ai. ## Contents - For employees - Your first login - Logging your hours and submitting your timesheet - Fixing a rejected timesheet - Using the Timesheet Summary view - Withdrawing a timesheet you already submitted - Why can't I submit my timesheet? - Timesheet notifications for team members - Troubleshooting for team members - Not receiving emails from WiseCost - "Location is required" when logging time - An employee cannot submit their timesheet - I cannot log time on a date - Something not working? Talk to us --- # For employees ## Your first login - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/getting-started/your-first-login - Audience: Team members - Last updated: 2026-09-19 > Sign in to WiseCost for the first time: open the welcome email, use your temporary password, set a new one and land on the Time Tracking screen. Your company admin has created a WiseCost account for you. WiseCost is the tool your team uses to log work hours. Getting started takes about two minutes. ### 1. Open your welcome email Look for an email from WiseCost with the subject "Welcome to WiseCost. Your account is ready". It contains your login email and a **temporary password**. Click **Sign In**. [Screenshot: WiseCost welcome email with login credentials and temporary password] ### 2. Sign in with your temporary password On the login page, enter your email and the temporary password from the email. [Screenshot: WiseCost login page] ### 3. Set your new password WiseCost will ask you to change your password before continuing. Enter the temporary password as your current password, choose a new one, and accept the Terms of Service. [Screenshot: Change your password screen] ### 4. Sign in again Once your password is changed, sign in one more time, now with your new password. [Screenshot: Password changed confirmation] ### 5. You're in You'll land on the Time Tracking screen. This is where you'll log your hours as time entries and build your timesheet for each pay period. [Screenshot: WiseCost Time Tracking screen for employees] That's it. Next step: [Logging your hours and submitting your timesheet](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/employees/logging-hours-as-an-employee). **Didn't get the email?** Check your spam folder first. If it's not there, your company's email filter may have stopped it before it reached your inbox: follow [Not receiving emails from WiseCost](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/troubleshooting/not-receiving-emails-from-wisecost). Your admin can also resend your invitation or send you the link directly, and you can reach us at [support@usewisecost.com](mailto:support@usewisecost.com). --- ## Logging your hours and submitting your timesheet - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/time-tracking/logging-hours-as-an-employee - Audience: Team members - Last updated: 2026-07-22 > Log your hours in WiseCost entry by entry or in the weekly Timesheet Summary grid, then send your timesheet for approval when the payroll period ends. Video: Log And Manage Time Activities With WiseCost (https://embed.app.guidde.com/playbooks/hfr6NyznEtKuhgv3nVnhb8) ### How your time is organized Every block of time you record is a **time activity**. Time activities are grouped into a **timesheet**, and each timesheet covers one **payroll period**. Your timesheet is created automatically the first time you log an activity in a period. Log your time daily. It keeps your records accurate and your timesheet audit-ready. ### 1. Start a new time activity At the top of the Time Tracking screen, select the **class**. This is the contract or cost category you're working on. You'll only see the ones assigned to you. [Screenshot: Time Tracking screen with the new time activity row] [Screenshot: Selecting a class or contract for a time activity] ### 2. Add the details Depending on your company's setup, you may also select an **item** (for example, your role on the contract), a **location**, and add a short description of the work. If Location is required and you leave it blank, WiseCost won't let you save the entry. See ["Location is required" when logging time](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/troubleshooting/location-is-required). ### 3. Record the time Pick the date, then either press **play** to let the timer count as you work, or type the duration directly and click **Add**. Use the timer when you're working right now; type the hours when you're logging at the end of the day. [Screenshot: Choosing the date and entering time with the timer or manual input] ### 4. Your activity is on the timesheet The activity appears under the current payroll period, and your timesheet is created with the status **Open**. While it's Open, you can edit or delete any activity. [Screenshot: Time activity added to an open timesheet] ### Prefer a weekly view? Use the Timesheet Summary The **Timesheet Summary** tab shows a grid of days and classes. Type hours directly into each cell, handy when you're filling in several days at once or don't need per-activity detail. [Screenshot: Timesheet Summary grid view] ### Submit your timesheet When your payroll period ends, send your timesheet for approval. Click the send icon on the timesheet (you can also send from the Timesheet Summary). [Screenshot: Timesheet with all activities logged, ready to send] [Screenshot: Send timesheet confirmation dialog] Your timesheet status changes to **Pending**. While it's Pending you can't edit your entries. Your supervisor will either approve it or reject it with comments. [Screenshot: Timesheet in Pending status awaiting approval] If it comes back rejected, don't worry. Fixing it takes a minute. That's the next step: [Fixing a rejected timesheet](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/employees/fixing-a-rejected-timesheet). --- ## Fixing a rejected timesheet - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/timesheet-approvals/fixing-a-rejected-timesheet - Audience: Team members - Last updated: 2026-09-01 > When your timesheet is rejected in WiseCost, read your approver's comment, edit or add the time activities it asks for, and send the timesheet again. Video: Correct And Resubmit Rejected Timesheets Efficiently (https://embed.app.guidde.com/playbooks/wXEPU2LpvPrf2qmYqxVRCZ) ### What "Rejected" means If your supervisor finds something to correct, your timesheet comes back with the status **Rejected**. That unlocks it: you can edit your existing time activities and add new ones for that period again. [Screenshot: Timesheet in Rejected status] ### 1. Read the rejection reason Your supervisor's comment appears on the timesheet. For example, missing hours for a specific day. It tells you exactly what to fix. [Screenshot: Rejection reason shown on the timesheet] ### 2. Make the correction Fix what the comment asks for: edit an existing activity, or add the missing time. In this example, we add a new time activity for the missing date. [Screenshot: Adding a time activity for the missing date] ### 3. Resubmit for approval Send the timesheet again, the same way you did the first time. [Screenshot: Resending the corrected timesheet] Your timesheet is back to **Pending**, and your supervisor will review it again. Every change you made is recorded, part of what keeps your company's time records audit-ready. This was the last step of the employee track. Need something else? [Browse all topics](https://www.usewisecost.com/help) or reach out to [support@usewisecost.com](mailto:support@usewisecost.com). --- ## Using the Timesheet Summary view - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/employees/using-the-timesheet-summary-view - Audience: Team members - Last updated: 2026-09-19 > The Timesheet Summary tab in WiseCost shows your payroll period as a weekly grid. Type hours per day and class, and send your timesheet from there. The **Timesheet Summary** tab in WiseCost shows your whole payroll period as a grid: one row per class or project and one column per day. Open **Time Tracker**, click the **Timesheet Summary** tab and type your hours in the cells. It is the quickest way to fill in several days at once, and you can send your timesheet for approval from there. ### Open it 1. Open **Time Tracker**. 2. At the top, click **Timesheet Summary**. The other tab, **Time Tracker**, is the entry-by-entry view. WiseCost remembers the tab you used last. [Screenshot: Timesheet Summary grid with one row per class and one column per day] ### Fill in your hours 1. Find the row of what you worked on. If it is not there, click **Add class** (or **Add project**, depending on how your company charges time). 2. Click the cell of the day and type the hours. 3. Check the totals: the bottom row adds up each day and the whole period. You can also click a row's own total to redistribute its hours proportionally across the period, instead of retyping every cell. ### Send it for approval When the period is over and your hours are complete, click **Send for Approval**. Sending your timesheet is your certification that the hours are correct. ### Which view should you use? Use **Time Tracker** when you log as you work, with the timer, or when each entry needs its own description. Use **Timesheet Summary** to review your period at a glance or to fill in several days. Logging your time every day keeps it accurate, whichever view you use. --- ## Withdrawing a timesheet you already submitted - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/employees/withdrawing-a-submitted-timesheet - Audience: Team members - Last updated: 2026-09-19 > Sent your WiseCost timesheet too early? While it is still in review you can withdraw it, fix your entries and then send it for approval again. If you sent your timesheet for approval in WiseCost and then noticed a mistake, you can withdraw it while it is still in review. Withdrawing returns the timesheet to **Open**, so you can edit your entries and send it again. Once it is approved you can no longer withdraw it yourself. ### Withdraw it 1. Open **Time Tracker** and go to the payroll period of the timesheet. 2. Check its status. You can withdraw while it is **Pending**, which means it is in review. 3. Withdraw the timesheet. Its status goes back to **Open**. 4. Fix your entries. 5. Send it for approval again. ### If it was already approved Ask your approver to reopen it. They can reopen an approved timesheet, and you then correct it and resubmit. If your company already posted that period, your admin has to reopen the payroll period first. ### If it was rejected You do not need to withdraw anything. A rejected timesheet is already unlocked. See [Fixing a rejected timesheet](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/employees/fixing-a-rejected-timesheet). Every submission, withdrawal and approval stays in the timesheet's history. --- ## Why can't I submit my timesheet? - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/employees/why-cant-i-submit-my-timesheet - Audience: Team members - Last updated: 2026-09-19 > WiseCost blocks a timesheet that is below your expected hours for the period. Log the missing time, including PTO or holidays, and submit again. If WiseCost does not let you submit your timesheet, check the header of the timesheet. When it shows something like "72 of 80 hours", your company requires you to log your expected hours before you submit, and you are not there yet. Log the missing time, including days off, and submit again. ### What to do 1. Look at the header of your timesheet. The first number is what you logged. The second is what is expected for the period. 2. Find the days that are short or empty. 3. Log the missing time. If you were on vacation, sick or on a holiday, log it as PTO, holiday or the internal option your company uses. That time counts. 4. When the first number reaches the second, send your timesheet for approval. ### Good to know - Going over is fine. Hours above your expected total are always allowed. Your approver simply sees them flagged. - The expected hours are set by your company's admin. If the number looks wrong for you, for example you work part time, ask your admin to correct it. - If you cannot find where to log PTO or a holiday, ask your admin to enable it. ### It is something else - **You cannot pick a date.** See [I cannot log time on a date](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/troubleshooting/cannot-log-time-on-a-date). - **It says a Location is required.** Choose a Location on the entry. - **Anything else.** Write to [support@usewisecost.com](mailto:support@usewisecost.com). --- ## Timesheet notifications for team members - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/employees/timesheet-notifications - Audience: Team members - Last updated: 2026-09-19 > WiseCost can remind you when your timesheet is due or overdue, and tell you when it is rejected or reopened, inside the app, by email or both. WiseCost can notify you about your timesheet inside the app, by email or both. Your company's admin decides which notifications are on. You may get a heads-up when your timesheet is due, a reminder when it is overdue, and a notice right away when your timesheet is rejected or reopened. ### The notifications you may receive - **Timesheet due soon:** a heads-up around the close of the payroll period. - **Overdue timesheet reminder:** your timesheet is still not submitted. If it stays that way, your approver is told as well. - **Timesheet rejected:** your approver sent it back. Open it, read the comment and follow [Fixing a rejected timesheet](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/employees/fixing-a-rejected-timesheet). - **Timesheet reopened:** your approver reopened a timesheet so you can correct it. Edit it and send it again. In the app, notifications appear under the bell icon at the top of the screen. ### The best way to avoid reminders Log your time every day and send your timesheet when the period ends. See [Logging your hours and submitting your timesheet](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/employees/logging-hours-as-an-employee). ### Not getting the emails? Your company may have email turned off for that notification, and then you only see it in the app. If your company does use email and nothing arrives, not even in spam, see [Not receiving emails from WiseCost](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/troubleshooting/not-receiving-emails-from-wisecost). ### Further reading - [What to Expect During a DCAA Floor Check (and How to Be Ready)](https://www.usewisecost.com/blog/dcaa-floor-check-what-to-expect) # Troubleshooting for team members ## Not receiving emails from WiseCost - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/troubleshooting/not-receiving-emails-from-wisecost - Audience: Admins, Admins and approvers, Team members - Last updated: 2026-09-19 > If WiseCost emails never arrive, not even in spam, a company filter is blocking them. Ask IT to allow usewisecost.com and mail.usewisecost.com. If an email from WiseCost never arrives (an invitation, a verification code, a password reset or a timesheet reminder) and it is not in your spam folder, a company email filter most likely stopped it before it reached your inbox. WiseCost sends from **noreply@mail.usewisecost.com**, with the sender name "WiseCost". The fix is to ask whoever manages your email to allow the domains **usewisecost.com** and **mail.usewisecost.com**. **Who this is for:** anyone who is not receiving an email from WiseCost, and the admin who wants to unblock their team. ### Emails WiseCost sends - The invitation to a company, and the credentials for your first sign-in - Email verification - The two-step verification code (2FA) - Password reset - Timesheet notifications: rejected, reopened and due or overdue reminders, when your company has them turned on by email All of them come from the same sender. ### 1. Check spam, junk and the other tabs Look in your spam or junk folder. In Gmail, also check the **Promotions** and **Updates** tabs. If the email is there, mark it as "Not spam" and add the sender to your contacts so the next ones reach your inbox. ### 2. Confirm the address Ask your admin to check, in **Company Setup → Users**, that your email address is spelled correctly. A typo is the most common cause. ### 3. Ask IT to allow WiseCost If the email is nowhere, not even in spam, it was almost certainly held by a filter your company runs in front of your mailbox. That can be a security gateway or a rule on the company mail server, in products such as Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Proofpoint or Mimecast. Messages stopped there never reach your spam folder, which is why it looks as if WiseCost sent nothing. Ask your IT team, or whoever manages your email, to: - Add **usewisecost.com** and **mail.usewisecost.com** to the list of allowed senders or domains (allowlist, safe senders). Ask for both: on some filters, allowing the root domain does not cover the subdomain. - Check the gateway's quarantine for held messages from **noreply@mail.usewisecost.com** and release them. You can forward this as it is: Message for your IT team: > We use WiseCost (usewisecost.com) for timesheets. Its emails are being blocked before they reach our inboxes. Please allow the sending domains usewisecost.com and mail.usewisecost.com, sender noreply@mail.usewisecost.com, and release any quarantined messages from that sender. ### 4. Meanwhile, do not stay stuck What to do depends on which email is missing. #### The invitation Your admin opens the row of your pending invitation, in **Company Setup → Users** or **Company Setup → Employees**, and either clicks **Resend** or uses **Copy link** in the row menu and sends you the link through another channel. The link works even though the email never arrived. WiseCost also tells the admin right away when an invitation email could not be sent. #### The two-step verification code Click **Resend** on the code screen. If it still does not arrive, it is the same filter, and step 3 is the fix. #### The password reset Request it again once step 3 is done. ### 5. Still nothing? Write to us Email [support@usewisecost.com](mailto:support@usewisecost.com) and tell us which email is missing, which address it should reach and since when. ### Common questions #### I never got my WiseCost invitation. What do I do? Check spam first. Then ask your admin to confirm your address and to resend the invitation or copy the invitation link for you. If several people at your company have the same problem, ask IT to allow usewisecost.com and mail.usewisecost.com. #### My verification code is not arriving. What do I do? Click **Resend** on the code screen and check spam. If it never arrives, your company's email filter is blocking it: ask IT to allow the sender noreply@mail.usewisecost.com and both domains. #### It is not in my spam folder. Does that mean WiseCost did not send it? Not necessarily. Company email filters hold messages before they reach your mailbox, so they never show up in spam. #### Which address does WiseCost send from? noreply@mail.usewisecost.com, with the sender name "WiseCost". --- ## "Location is required" when logging time - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/troubleshooting/location-is-required - Audience: Admins, Team members - Last updated: 2026-09-19 > "Location is required" means your time entry form requires a Location. Choose one on the entry, or have an admin change the field in Time Tracking settings. "Location is required" appears in WiseCost when your company's time entry form requires a Location and the entry you are saving does not have one. Choose a Location on the entry and save again. If no Location fits, or the field should not be mandatory, an admin changes it in **Company Setup → Company settings → Time Tracking**. ### If you are logging time 1. On the entry, open the Location field. 2. Choose the location where the work was done. 3. Save the entry again. If the list is empty or your location is missing, tell your admin. ### If you are the admin - **The location is missing.** Locations come from QuickBooks Online. Create it there, then go to **Company Setup → Locations** and click **Re-Sync**. - **Location should not be mandatory.** Go to **Company Setup → Company settings → Time Tracking** and, in the **Time Entry Form** table, turn off **Required** for **Location**. To remove the field completely, turn off **Include in form**. More in [Using QuickBooks Locations](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/quickbooks-integration/using-quickbooks-locations) and [Configuring the time entry form](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/time-tracking/configuring-the-time-entry-form). --- ## An employee cannot submit their timesheet - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/troubleshooting/cannot-submit-timesheet-expected-hours - Audience: Admins, Team members - Last updated: 2026-09-19 > A timesheet cannot be submitted in WiseCost until it reaches the employee's expected hours, when the company requires them. Here is how to fix it. If WiseCost does not let an employee submit their timesheet, the usual reason is expected hours. When a company turns on **Require expected hours to submit** and the employee has expected hours set, the timesheet cannot be sent until the period's total reaches them. The header of the timesheet shows the gap as "X of Y hours". ### If you are the employee 1. Look at the header of your timesheet. It shows the hours you logged and the hours expected for the period. 2. Log the time that is missing. Days off count too: log PTO, holiday or other internal time if your company has it enabled. 3. Submit again once the total reaches the expected hours. Hours above the expected total are never a problem. They are allowed and your approver sees them flagged. The employee version of this article is [Why can't I submit my timesheet?](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/employees/why-cant-i-submit-my-timesheet). ### If you are the admin - **The figure is wrong for this person.** Correct **Expected hrs/week** on their row in **Company Setup → Employees**, for example for a part-time employee. - **It should not apply to this person.** Clear their expected hours. Employees with no expected hours are not affected. - **Nobody can log PTO or holiday.** Enable those accounts in [Internal and indirect time](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/time-tracking/internal-and-indirect-time). - **You do not want the requirement.** Turn off **Require expected hours to submit** in **Company Setup → Company settings → Compliance**. More in [Requiring expected hours](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/time-tracking/requiring-expected-hours). --- ## I cannot log time on a date - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/troubleshooting/cannot-log-time-on-a-date - Audience: Admins, Team members - Last updated: 2026-09-19 > WiseCost blocks a time entry when the date is in the future and future-dated entries are off, or when it falls outside the contract's period of performance. WiseCost stops a time entry on a date for two reasons: the date is in the future and your company does not allow future-dated entries, or the date is outside the period of performance of the contract you chose. Pick a valid date or a different contract, or ask your admin to change the setting. ### The date is in the future With **Future-dated time activities** on, you can log up to 7 days ahead. With it off, you can log only today and past dates. Both compliance presets turn it off, because time should be recorded when the work is done. - **If you are logging time:** wait until the day arrives. Planned leave can be logged on the day itself or afterward. - **If you are the admin:** the switch is in **Company Setup → Company settings → Compliance**, in the **Time entry** card. See [Compliance presets and settings](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/dcaa-compliance/compliance-presets-and-settings). ### The date is outside the period of performance Each Class or Project can have a start date and an end date. Time cannot be logged to it outside that range. - **If you are logging time:** check that you chose the right contract for that date. If the contract is right and the date is too, tell your admin. - **If you are the admin:** check the **Period** column of the contract in **Company Setup → Classes** or **Company Setup → Projects**. If the contract or award was extended, update its end date. See [Contract budgets and period of performance](https://www.usewisecost.com/help/time-tracking/contract-budgets-and-period-of-performance). ### The timesheet is not editable If the whole period is closed to you, look at the status of your timesheet. A **Pending**, **Approved** or **Locked** timesheet cannot be edited. Withdraw it if it is Pending, or ask your approver to reopen it. --- ## Something not working? Talk to us - URL: https://www.usewisecost.com/help/troubleshooting/something-not-working-talk-to-us - Audience: Admins, Admins and approvers, Team members - Last updated: 2026-07-27 > If something in WiseCost fails or does not make sense, use the in-app feedback button or email support@usewisecost.com. Tell us what you were doing. If you hit an error, something doesn't behave the way you expect, or an article in this Help Center doesn't answer your question, reach out. Don't spend an hour fighting it: we'd rather hear from you early. - **From the app:** use the floating feedback button to report it directly. It reaches our team immediately. - **By email:** write to [support@usewisecost.com](mailto:support@usewisecost.com) with what you were trying to do and, if you can, a screenshot. We monitor both channels closely and respond quickly. First thing to include: whether the issue is with data coming from QuickBooks (missing employees, classes, accounts) or with something inside WiseCost (timesheets, distribution, reports). That one detail usually cuts the resolution time in half. And the in-app button isn't just for bugs: we read every suggestion. If there's something you'd like WiseCost to do differently, that's the fastest way to tell us.