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How Each Option
Works Day to Day

It's always best to have a map when planning a new system. As far as I understand them, these would be the best fit for your tracking needs using these apps, but these workflows are just examples. Harvest for example doesn't have quite enough data layers, so you could put the extra data on any layer: add property to owner and have one per property as projects, for example.

With Harvest

  1. 1

    Create a Project for the stay

    Name it something like "Smith, 4/20, 123 Oak St" so you can find it later. There's no separate place for properties or stays, so the project name is how you keep track.

  2. 2

    Assign it to the Client

    Pick the property owner from your client list. This is how the project connects to who you'll invoice.

  3. 3

    Add Tasks

    Pick from your task list: Cleaning, Plumbing, Inspection, etc. These are the types of work, not specific jobs.

With ERPNext

  1. 1

    Click "New Stay" from your homepage

    One button from your dashboard. Enter the guest name, dates, and pick the property from a dropdown. The owner fills in automatically because it's tied to the property.

  2. 2

    Add Stay Tasks

    Pick the task type (Cleaning, Plumbing, etc.) and pick the subcontractor from a dropdown. For standard services like cleaning, the rate fills in. For quoted work, enter the quoted rate.

With Harvest

  1. 1

    Note the sub in the description

    There's no dedicated sub tracking. When you log time or expenses for sub work, write the sub's name in the description field so you can find it later.

  2. 2

    Record their bill as expenses

    When the sub sends their bill, log each line item as an expense on the project. Materials, labor, trip charges. All in the description.

  3. 3

    Review by export

    Export your data to CSV and filter in a spreadsheet to see what a specific sub has done. Familiar, but manual.

With ERPNext

  1. 1

    Open a work order

    Start sub work through a work order. Pick the sub from a dropdown, attach it to the stay and property. The work order generates a clean, professional document you can email straight to the sub. Their email pulls from their profile automatically.

  2. 2

    Record their bill against the work order

    When the sub sends their bill, enter it against the work order. Materials, labor, trip charges, whatever they itemize. Each line item stays connected to the stay and property.

  3. 3

    Review from anywhere

    Open a stay, see all its sub work. Open a property, see all subs who've worked there. Open a sub, see everything they've done. It's all linked.

With Harvest

Live timers

This is where Harvest shines. Start and stop timers from your phone as you bounce between properties. The timer experience is very polished.

After the fact

Enter hours manually at the end of the day or week.

Where hours land

Each entry goes to a project (the stay) and a task type. Two levels of tagging. Property lives in the project name.

With ERPNext

Weekly entry view

Stays as rows, days as columns. Fill in hours across the week for each property and stay. Good for batch entry after the fact.

Quick tagging

When you're ready for live tracking, tag time to a property right from the dashboard. A dedicated timer app can also be connected.

Where hours land

Time entries connect to the stay, the property, and the owner. When you invoice, they're already in the right place.

With Harvest

  1. 1

    Create an invoice from the project

    Harvest pulls in your time entries. You add sub costs manually from the expenses you logged.

  2. 2

    Adjust rates for markup

    Go through each line item and adjust the rate to include your markup. This is manual.

  3. 3

    Send to the owner

    Review and send right from Harvest.

With ERPNext

  1. 1

    Generate the invoice from the stay

    Sub costs from work orders and your hours from timesheets roll up automatically. Everything is already tagged to the right place.

  2. 2

    Add markup and review

    Apply your markup. The invoice shows what you paid, what you're charging, and your margin.

  3. 3

    Send to the owner

    Send directly from the app. The invoice is linked to the stay, the property, and the owner for your records.

Setting Up a Stay

Harvest

  1. 1

    Create a Project for the stay

    Name it "Smith, 4/20, 123 Oak St." The project name is how you keep track.

  2. 2

    Assign it to the Client

    Pick the property owner from your client list.

  3. 3

    Add Tasks

    Pick task types from your list.

ERPNext

  1. 1

    Click "New Stay" from your homepage

    Pick property, enter guest and dates. Owner fills in automatically.

  2. 2

    Add Stay Tasks

    Pick task type, sub from a dropdown. Standard service rates auto fill. Enter quoted rates for one-off work.

Managing Sub Work

  1. 1

    Note the sub in the description

    No dedicated sub tracking. Write their name in the description.

  2. 2

    Record their bill as expenses

    Log each line item as an expense. Materials, labor, trip charges. All in the description.

  3. 3

    Review by export

    Export to CSV, filter in a spreadsheet. Familiar, but manual.

  1. 1

    Open a work order

    Pick the sub, attach to the stay. Generates a document you can email straight to them.

  2. 2

    Record their bill against the work order

    Materials, labor, trip charges. Each line item stays linked to the stay and property.

  3. 3

    Review from anywhere

    Open a stay, sub, or property and see all connected work.

Time Tracking

Live timers

Polished start/stop from your phone.

After the fact

Enter hours manually. Tag to project and task type.

Weekly entry view

Stays as rows, days as columns. Good for batch entry.

Quick tagging

Tag to a property from the dashboard, or connect a timer app.

Billing

  1. 1

    Create invoice from project

    Add sub costs manually from expenses. Adjust each line for markup.

  2. 2

    Send to the owner

    Review and send from Harvest.

  1. 1

    Generate invoice from the stay

    Sub costs and hours roll up automatically. Apply markup.

  2. 2

    Send to the owner

    Send from the app. Linked to stay, property, and owner.

What's the same in both

  • Rates for one-off jobs are manual in both. ERPNext has an edge here: standard services (like cleaning) can have a preset rate that fills in automatically. But for unique jobs, you're typing it in either way.
  • Both handle time tracking. Harvest has the more polished live timer. ERPNext supports batch entry now (weekly view) and can grow into quick tagging or a connected timer app when you're ready.
  • Invoicing happens at the end of the stay in both. The difference is how much is already organized for you when you get there.

Where they differ

  • In Harvest, the structure lives in project names and notes. In ERPNext, properties, stays, and tasks are separate screens that link together.
  • In Harvest, you build the invoice line by line. In ERPNext, costs from tasks roll up into the invoice automatically.
  • In Harvest, there's no record of which sub did which job unless you wrote it in the notes. In ERPNext, subs are linked to tasks directly.

The biggest difference

Harvest is ready to use today. Low cost to start, minimal setup, and it does what it does well. But what it does today is what it does forever. There's no way to change how it's organized, add new screens, or reshape it around your business.

ERPNext is customizable from the ground up. The way it works now is just the starting point. As your business changes, the system changes with it. New properties, new workflows, new reports, new automations. Nothing is locked in.