Browser extension: turn browsing time into draft entries

Install the Beebole browser extension for Chrome, Edge, or Firefox and turn time on the sites you choose into draft timesheet entries.

The Beebole browser extension drafts time entries from the websites you choose. It works in Chrome, Edge, and Firefox, connects directly to your Beebole account with your API key, and sends only the site address, page title, and time spent. The result shows up as suggested time entries — nothing reaches your timesheet until you accept it.

The extension only watches sites you explicitly pick, and it never reads the content of a page. Only the site address, the page title, and the time spent leave your browser.

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Downloading and installing

1. Open the Assistant page

   Click Assistant in the sidebar and scroll to the Browser extension section.

   

   The Browser extension section of the Assistant page

2. Download the extension

   Next to Download, pick Chrome / Edge or Firefox — or download the current build directly: Chrome / Edge or Firefox. Either way you get a .zip file, always the latest version.

3. Load it in your browser

   Until the extension reaches the browser stores, install it manually: unzip the download, then load it in your browser — Chrome / Edge: chrome://extensions → Developer mode → Load unpacked; Firefox: about:debugging → This Firefox → Load Temporary Add-on.

4. Connect it to your account

   Click the Beebole extension in your browser toolbar, then All settings… to open its options. Paste the Server address from the Assistant page into Beebole server, and your API key into API key. Both have a copy button on the Assistant page (click Show my API key if the key is hidden).

5. Pick the sites it may watch

   Under Sites to watch (one per line), enter each site the extension may watch, such as github.com. Subdomains are included, so github.com also covers gist.github.com. Everything else is ignored. Later, you can add the site you are on from the extension’s popup by checking Suggest time entries from this site.

6. Save and test the connection

   Click Save & test connection, and accept if your browser asks to let the extension reach your Beebole server. The options page shows Connected to Beebole when the key works.

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How it works

While you browse a watched site, the extension measures the time you spend there and sends the site address, page title, and duration to your Beebole server. Only the active tab of the browser window you are using counts, visits shorter than a minute are dropped, and counting stops after three minutes without activity.

That activity becomes suggested time entries on your timesheet: ghost entries in the calendar view, or cards in the Suggested entries pane next to the grid. You Accept, Accept all, or Dismiss them there. Suggestions from the extension carry a Web badge. Click Why? on one to see the sites behind it: the extension keeps that list in your browser, so the details only show in the browser that tracked the activity.

The extension never reads the content of a page. The site address, the page title, and the duration are all it sends, and they are what Beebole matches your time against to propose a project or task.

If your API key is rejected — it was reset, or the account it belongs to no longer has access — the extension stops tracking and tells you so, instead of retrying silently in the background. Paste the new key in its options and click Save & test connection to start it again.

Your API key gives access to your Beebole account with your permissions. If you shared it by mistake, click Reset next to the key on the Assistant page — the old key stops working immediately, and you’ll need to paste the new one into the extension.

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Related content

Beebole AI

All of Beebole’s AI features, including how suggestions work.

Desktop app

Capture activity beyond the browser on macOS, Windows, and Linux.

Timesheets

Where suggested entries appear and get accepted.

Frequently asked questions

Which browsers does the Beebole extension support?

Chrome and Edge (one download) and Firefox (another). Both are downloaded from the Assistant page in Beebole and installed manually until the extension is published to the browser stores.

Does the extension see everything I browse?

No. The Beebole extension only watches the sites you explicitly pick in its options, and on those sites it records nothing but the address, the page title, and the time spent. It never reads the content of a page.

Do I need the desktop app to use the extension?

No. The extension connects directly to your Beebole account with your API key — the desktop app is not required. Install both only if you want activity outside the browser suggested too.

Why has the extension stopped suggesting anything?

Check the API key first. If the key was reset or lost its access, the extension stops tracking and says so in its popup rather than retrying in the background — copy the current key from the Assistant page, paste it back into the extension’s options, and click Save & test connection. If the key is fine, check that the site you were on is one of the sites you allowed it to watch.

Why do my suggestions disappear after a while?

Suggestions are drafts, not time entries. Beebole clears a draft once the day it covers is more than three weeks old, and a dismissed suggestion goes away at once. Accept a suggestion to turn it into a real entry on your Beebole timesheet.