Hamster vs Watson
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted time tracking options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Hamster | Watson |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 49 · Fair | 43 · Fair |
| Category | Time Tracking | Time Tracking |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | Python | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,126 | ★ 2,538 |
| First released | 2008 | 2015 |
| Replaces | Toggl, RescueTime | Toggl, Harvest |
What are Hamster and Watson?
Hamster
Hamster is a free desktop time tracking application that helps individuals record how long they spend on activities. It groups entries by category and produces simple overviews and exports of tracked time.
- Activity categorization
- Daily and weekly overviews
- Local SQLite storage
- Export to common formats
Watson
Watson is a command-line time tracker written in Python. It records time frames per project with tags, stores data in local files, and generates reports and aggregates for billing or analysis. Maintained under the Jazzband organization.
- Command-line time tracking
- Project and tag support
- Detailed reports and aggregates
- Cross-platform
Hamster vs Watson: key differences
Both projects are written in Python. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Hamster versus MIT for Watson. Watson is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for Hamster. Hamster is the more established project (first released 2008), while Watson arrived in 2015. Watson has the considerably larger community, at 2,538 GitHub stars versus 1,126.
Why pick each one
Choose Hamster if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (1.1k GitHub stars)
- Written in Python
Choose Watson if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (2.5k GitHub stars)
- Written in Python
Frequently asked questions
Is Hamster or Watson better?
Neither is universally better. Watson has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Hamster and Watson free and open-source?
Yes. Hamster is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Watson under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Hamster and Watson with Docker?
Hamster: check the project docs for container support. Watson: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Hamster or Watson?
Watson has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for Hamster. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.