You're Switching from Toggl Track.
Here's Why VFX Artists Choose Nexa.

Toggl Track
$18/mo
$216/year — every year, forever
Nexa
$279
Once. Own it forever.
or 3 payments of $99
Break even in 15.5 months. Then it's free forever.
"Switched from Toggl Track after the last price increase. Nexa does everything I needed for $279. Wish I'd done it sooner."
— Verified VFX Artist, former Toggl Track customer

The Bottom Line

VFX Artists on Toggl Track pay $18/month — $216/year. Over three years, that's $725. Nexa is $279 once. Break-even runs about 15.5 months. The median VFX Artist earns $45,000/year, so Toggl Track's annual cost is roughly 0.5% of typical revenue — every year, forever.

Key Numbers

$45,000
Median VFX Artist income
3.5%
Typical SaaS spend as % of revenue
15.5 mo
Break-even vs Toggl Track
$446
3-year savings switching to Nexa

What Toggl Track Is Costing You

The Damage

Toggl Track monthly $18/mo
Annual drain $216/yr
Year 2 (11.4% SaaS inflation) $241
Year 3 $268
3-year total $725

That's $725 gone. And you don't own anything. Stop paying, lose access.

Your Toggl Track subscription has cost you $0.00 since you opened this page.

Why VFX Artists Leave Toggl Track

✗Free tier limited to 5 users
✗Per-user pricing adds up for teams
✗Only does time tracking
✗Need separate invoicing tool
✗Limited project management
VFX Artists are leaving Toggl Track every week.

You're not the only one who's had enough.

Why This Matters for VFX Artists

You start by checking the overnight renders, and one sequence failed at frame 1,140, so the morning is diagnosing a memory crash and re-queuing it, losing hours of farm time. The day's shot is a creature comp: tracking the plate so the CG element locks to the camera, then integrating the render with matching light, shadow, and a touch of grain so it doesn't scream 'computer.' Houdini is simulating the secondary effect, the dust the creature kicks up, and each tweak to the sim means a fresh sim cache and another render pass. The director's note comes in: 'make the creature feel heavier.' That's not a slider, that's re-animating the weight, re-simming the contact dust, and re-rendering the whole shot overnight again. You comp the latest frames, balance the integration, and send a review. The bid covered three iterations; you're on the seventh. The render farm bill is climbing whether the client thinks about it or not, every frame is real compute time. You submit the night's renders, log the shot's iteration count and farm hours, and note the production house is net-60, so this shot won't pay until two months after it's approved. By the end of the day you've moved one shot forward by one iteration, and queued a render that'll run all night.

VFX Artists face unique challenges: VFX is bid per-shot, but a 'simple' shot turns complex the moment the client wants a different camera move or a re-comp, and changes ripple into re-renders that eat days. Render time is real, billable hours of machine and electricity, but clients treat the render as 'just hitting export' and don't expect to pay for it. Iteration and director's-eye notes are endless ('make the explosion bigger, make the creature feel heavier'), each requiring re-sim and re-render far past the bid rounds. Studios and production houses pay net-60 or later, so an artist fronts months of compute and labor before seeing the money. On top of all that, Toggl Track charges $18/month ($216/year) — money that comes directly from your revenue. The median VFX Artist earns $45,000/year. Software at $216/year is a meaningful percentage of that income, every year, forever. And you do not own anything.

Your Nuke or After Effects for compositing is yours. You bought it once. Nexa works the same way — $279 once for invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, and full accounting. All connected. All offline-capable. You own it like you own your tools.

Your Full Stack Cost

Toggl Track is just one piece. What else are you losing money on?

Want this breakdown emailed to you?

Your exact Toggl Track cost, full stack total, and what switching saves. 10 seconds.

"I was paying Toggl Track $18/month and didn't question it until I did the math. $725 over 3 years for tools I don't even own. Nexa was $279. Once. Done."
— VFX Artist business owner

What You Get Instead

Feature Toggl Track Nexa
Invoicing ✓ ✓
Scheduling ✗ ✓
CRM ✗ ✓
Time Tracking ✗ ✓
Full Accounting ✗ ✓ (SIMPL)
Task Management ✗ ✓
Price $18/mo forever $279 once
or 3 × $99
3-Year Cost $725 $279
Stop paying? Lose everything Keep everything forever

Switching Takes 1-2 Days

Most vfx artists are fully switched before the weekend.

1

Export your data

Go to Reports → Detailed → Export as CSV. Download your full time entry history.

2

Set up Nexa

10-minute setup. Import your project and client structure.

3

Start tracking in Nexa

Use Nexa time tracker for new entries. Import historical data if needed.

4

Cancel Toggl

Cancel subscription. Download a final export for your records.

✓ Run both in parallel. Cancel Toggl Track when you're confident. Zero risk.

What vfx artists actually deal with

A day in the life of a vfx artist

You start by checking the overnight renders, and one sequence failed at frame 1,140, so the morning is diagnosing a memory crash and re-queuing it, losing hours of farm time. The day's shot is a creature comp: tracking the plate so the CG element locks to the camera, then integrating the render with matching light, shadow, and a touch of grain so it doesn't scream 'computer.' Houdini is simulating the secondary effect, the dust the creature kicks up, and each tweak to the sim means a fresh sim cache and another render pass. The director's note comes in: 'make the creature feel heavier.' That's not a slider, that's re-animating the weight, re-simming the contact dust, and re-rendering the whole shot overnight again. You comp the latest frames, balance the integration, and send a review. The bid covered three iterations; you're on the seventh. The render farm bill is climbing whether the client thinks about it or not, every frame is real compute time. You submit the night's renders, log the shot's iteration count and farm hours, and note the production house is net-60, so this shot won't pay until two months after it's approved. By the end of the day you've moved one shot forward by one iteration, and queued a render that'll run all night.

The tools a working vfx artist actually owns

Local vfx artists on Nexa

Real vfx artists near you who run their business on Nexa — book directly, no platform fee. Are you a vfx artist? Post your business and get found in your area — $2.99 one-time. Or browse every vfx artist on Nexa →

FAQ

Is Nexa really a Toggl Track replacement for vfx artists?

For solo operators and small teams (1-5), yes. Nexa includes invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, task management, and full accounting. Toggl Track may be better if you have a large team (10+) or need enterprise-specific features.

$279 seems like a lot.

It's $7.75/month over 3 years. Toggl Track is $18/month — that's $725 over 3 years. Which is more? And if you'd rather split it, Nexa is also available as 3 payments of $99.

Can I pay in installments?

Yes. Nexa is $279 as a one-time payment, or 3 payments of $99 ($297 total). Either way it's a one-time purchase — no subscription, no recurring fees ever.

What if I don't like it?

30-day money-back guarantee. Full refund. If Nexa doesn't save you $500 in year one, you get every penny back.

Can I import my Toggl Track data?

Export your data from Toggl Track as CSV, import into Nexa in about 5 minutes.

VFX Artists in Virginia Beach

The average solo operator there spends about $1,900/year on software — and VFX Artist face their own version of that math. Virginia income tax up to 5.75%. Military spouse rules may apply. No city income tax but business license tax based on gross receipts. Virginia requires contractor licensing through DPOR for projects over $1,000. Virginia Beach requires a business license with gross receipts reporting.

Numbers reflect typical solo operators in the Virginia Beach metro. Your situation will vary.

If You Need These — Nexa Has Them

Specific gaps VFX Artists run into with Toggl Track, and what Nexa does instead.

✗
Toggl Track gapInvoicing
✓
NexaInvoicing built in — send unlimited, accept cards.
✗
Toggl Track gapFinancial suite
✓
NexaBuilt into Nexa’s $279 once purchase — no separate add-on.
✗
Toggl Track gapTask management
✓
NexaBuilt into Nexa’s $279 once purchase — no separate add-on.
"Toggl Track raised prices again and I was done. Found Nexa — $279 once. I own it. No more 'we're updating our pricing' emails. Best business decision this year."
— VFX Artist, switched from Toggl Track

Stop Losing $216/Year to Toggl Track

$725 over 3 years. Or $279 once (or 3 × $99). Own your tools.

Get Nexa — $279 Once
or 3 payments of $99
✓ 30-day money-back guarantee — save $500 or full refund

Still want Toggl Track?

We think Nexa is the better deal at $279 once vs $18/mo. But if you've decided on Toggl Track, here's the link. No hard feelings.

Toggl Track — $18/mo →

This is an affiliate link. If you sign up, we earn a commission.

Also Compare