Volunteer Hour Tracking Software for Nonprofits: Free Tools & Best Practices

Volunteer hour tracking software lets nonprofits log volunteer time by person, project, and activity — then automatically calculate the dollar value of those hours for FASB in-kind contribution reporting and grant applications. The best options in 2026 are Alignmint (free tier, integrated with fund accounting), Track It Forward (standalone, free for small orgs), and Galaxy Digital (enterprise). Tracking volunteer hours is essential for grant reporting, in-kind contribution calculations, and understanding the true impact of your organization — yet many nonprofits still rely on paper sign-in sheets or honor-system estimates.

This guide walks you through how to set up volunteer hour tracking, what tools are available (including free options), and how to connect volunteer data to your financial reporting.

Why Track Volunteer Hours?

Grant Reporting

Many funders require volunteer hour data as part of grant reports. They want to see community engagement and the return on their investment. Without accurate tracking, you're guessing — and funders notice.

In-Kind Contribution Reporting

Under FASB ASC 958-605, certain volunteer services must be recognized as revenue on your financial statements. Specialized services (legal, accounting, medical, construction) that you would otherwise purchase must be valued and reported.

Impact Measurement

Volunteer hours are a key metric for demonstrating community impact. Board members, donors, and the public want to know how many people are engaged in your mission.

Volunteer Recognition

Accurate tracking enables milestone recognition — 100-hour pins, annual awards, and personalized thank-you messages that keep volunteers coming back.

Methods for Tracking Volunteer Hours

1. Paper Sign-In Sheets (Free, But Limited)

Pros: Zero cost, no technology required Cons: Easy to lose, hard to aggregate, no reporting, manual data entry

Best for: Very small organizations with fewer than 10 volunteers

2. Spreadsheets (Free)

Pros: Free (Google Sheets or Excel), customizable, shareable Cons: Manual entry, no self-service, error-prone, no integration with accounting

Best for: Small organizations with 10-50 volunteers who have a dedicated admin

3. Standalone Volunteer Apps ($50-200/mo)

Pros: Self-service portals, mobile apps, scheduling Cons: Another subscription, no accounting integration, data silo

Best for: Organizations that only need volunteer tracking and nothing else

4. All-in-One Nonprofit Software (Free-$149/mo)

Pros: Volunteer tracking + accounting + CRM in one platform, self-service portals, automatic in-kind reporting Cons: May have more features than you need initially

Best for: Organizations that want volunteer data connected to their financial reporting

Setting Up Volunteer Hour Tracking

Step 1: Define Your Categories

Before choosing a tool, decide how you want to categorize hours:

• By Project/Program — Which initiative did the volunteer support?
• By Activity Type — Direct service, administrative, fundraising, board governance
• By Location — On-site, remote, field work

Step 2: Create a Simple Logging Process

The easier you make it, the more accurate your data will be:

• Self-service is best — Let volunteers log their own hours via a self-service portal or app
• Set expectations — Ask volunteers to log hours within 48 hours of service
• Provide categories — Don't make volunteers guess where to log

Step 3: Review and Approve

Designate a volunteer coordinator to review submitted hours weekly. Look for:

• Unusually high or low entries
• Missing categorization
• Volunteers who haven't logged recently

Step 4: Generate Reports

At minimum, generate these reports quarterly:

• Total hours by volunteer — For recognition and engagement tracking
• Total hours by project — For grant reporting and impact measurement
• Mileage report — For reimbursement processing

How Alignmint Makes It Easy

Alignmint includes volunteer hour tracking on every plan — including the free Starter plan. Here's how it works:

1. Volunteers get a self-service portal — They log in, submit hours, and view their summaries
2. Hours are categorized automatically — By project, activity type, and date
3. Mileage tracking included — Automatic IRS standard rate calculation
4. Connected to accounting — Volunteer hours can flow into in-kind contribution reports
5. Reports export to PDF and Excel — Ready for grant reporting

No separate volunteer app needed. No spreadsheet maintenance. No manual data entry.

Because volunteer tracking is part of the same platform as your fund accounting and donor CRM, you can see the full picture of each supporter — their giving history, volunteer hours, event attendance, and communication preferences — all in one profile.

Connecting Volunteer Hours to Financial Reporting

Under FASB ASC 958-605, certain volunteer services must be recognized as in-kind contributions on your financial statements. This applies to specialized services — legal, accounting, medical, construction — that you would otherwise have to purchase.

Your volunteer tracking system should:

• Identify qualifying services — Flag hours that meet the FASB recognition criteria
• Calculate fair market value — Apply appropriate hourly rates for each service type
• Generate journal entries — Record in-kind contributions in your fund accounting system
• Produce audit documentation — Provide the detail auditors need to verify in-kind revenue

If your volunteer tracking is disconnected from your accounting, this process is entirely manual. Integrated platforms handle it automatically.

Ready to simplify volunteer tracking? Schedule Your Free Setup | Explore Features

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Related:

• Nonprofit Volunteer Management Software — The complete guide
• Digital Waivers for Nonprofits — Go paperless in 2026
• FASB Compliant Accounting — What nonprofits need to know
• Volunteer Management — See how Alignmint tracks volunteer hours