The best FreshBooks alternatives vary in complexity but can all track invoices, income and expenses while remaining affordable and easy to use. While all accounting software options listed below can accommodate freelancers’ accounting needs, some are more scalable than FreshBooks and can be a great fit for larger small businesses, too.
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Here are our top alternatives to FreshBooks and how they stand out among the competition.
Best FreshBooks Alternatives
Best FreshBooks Alternatives
Sort By
Starting at
$20/month
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $47, $80.
Promotion
90% off
for 6 months.
Learn more
on Xero's website
Pros
- Unlimited users in all pricing plans.
- Integrates with more than 1,000 third-party apps.
- Feature set includes an excellent mobile app and suite of reports, capable invoicing features, plus automated bill and receipt capture through Hubdoc.
- Simple layout and easy to use.
Cons
- No inbound phone customer support (callbacks are available, though).
- Entry-level plan limits bills and invoices to five and 20 per month, respectively.
- Must subscribe to the highest-tier Established plan to claim expenses.
Xero
Best for Unlimited users, more integrations
Starting at
$20/month
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $47, $80.
Promotion
90% off
for 6 months.
Learn more
on Xero's website
Pros
- Unlimited users in all pricing plans.
- Integrates with more than 1,000 third-party apps.
- Feature set includes an excellent mobile app and suite of reports, capable invoicing features, plus automated bill and receipt capture through Hubdoc.
- Simple layout and easy to use.
Cons
- No inbound phone customer support (callbacks are available, though).
- Entry-level plan limits bills and invoices to five and 20 per month, respectively.
- Must subscribe to the highest-tier Established plan to claim expenses.
Starting at
$35/month
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $65, $99, $235.
Promotion
90% off
for first three months or free 30-day trial.
Learn more
on QuickBooks' website
Pros
- Easy to share information with your accountant and to find QuickBooks experts and online resources if needed.
- More than 750 app integrations.
- Robust feature set includes record-keeping, reporting, invoicing and inventory management, plus a capable mobile app.
- Chat and phone support available Monday through Saturday in all plans.
Cons
- Expensive compared with the competition.
- Frequent price increases and a tendency toward upselling.
- Limited account users with each plan.
QuickBooks Online
Best for Scalability
Starting at
$35/month
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $65, $99, $235.
Promotion
90% off
for first three months or free 30-day trial.
Learn more
on QuickBooks' website
Pros
- Easy to share information with your accountant and to find QuickBooks experts and online resources if needed.
- More than 750 app integrations.
- Robust feature set includes record-keeping, reporting, invoicing and inventory management, plus a capable mobile app.
- Chat and phone support available Monday through Saturday in all plans.
Cons
- Expensive compared with the competition.
- Frequent price increases and a tendency toward upselling.
- Limited account users with each plan.
Starting at
$0
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $20, $50, $70, $150, $275.
Promotion
14-day free trial
of the Premium plan.
Learn more
on Zoho Books' website
Pros
- Less expensive than some competitors; free plan available for businesses with less than $50k in annual revenue.
- Email support in free plan; phone and chat support in paid plans.
- Rich feature set includes excellent invoicing, inventory management, workflow rules and a capable mobile app.
- Add accounting widgets to your phone’s home screen; track time using your Apple Watch.
Cons
- Fewer third-party integrations and reports than some competitors.
- No plan includes more than 15 users (can add additional users for a fee).
Zoho Books
Best for Mobile-first features
Starting at
$0
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $20, $50, $70, $150, $275.
Promotion
14-day free trial
of the Premium plan.
Learn more
on Zoho Books' website
Pros
- Less expensive than some competitors; free plan available for businesses with less than $50k in annual revenue.
- Email support in free plan; phone and chat support in paid plans.
- Rich feature set includes excellent invoicing, inventory management, workflow rules and a capable mobile app.
- Add accounting widgets to your phone’s home screen; track time using your Apple Watch.
Cons
- Fewer third-party integrations and reports than some competitors.
- No plan includes more than 15 users (can add additional users for a fee).
Starting at
$0
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $16
Promotion
N/A
Learn more
on Wave's website
Pros
- Free plan available.
- Intuitive, customizable invoicing capabilities compete with those of more robust accounting solutions.
Cons
- Lacks features that quickly growing companies need, like audit trails.
- Must subscribe to Wave’s Pro plan or other paid services (payroll, payments, advisor, etc.) to receive customer support from a human.
- No mileage tracking feature and must use Zapier for third-party integrations.
Wave Accounting
Best for Free, unlimited invoicing
Starting at
$0
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $16
Promotion
N/A
Learn more
on Wave's website
Pros
- Free plan available.
- Intuitive, customizable invoicing capabilities compete with those of more robust accounting solutions.
Cons
- Lacks features that quickly growing companies need, like audit trails.
- Must subscribe to Wave’s Pro plan or other paid services (payroll, payments, advisor, etc.) to receive customer support from a human.
- No mileage tracking feature and must use Zapier for third-party integrations.
ZipBooks
Best for Budget accounting software
Starting at
$0
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $15, $35, custom.
Promotion
30-day free trial
Pros
- Free plan available.
- Send unlimited invoices and add expenses.
- Unlimited customer and vendor management.
- Free plan includes direct integration with Square and PayPal for payment processing.
Cons
- Free plan lets users connect to only one bank account.
- Limited to one user in the free plan.
- Free plan doesn’t include live customer support.
ZipBooks
Best for Budget accounting software
Starting at
$0
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $15, $35, custom.
Promotion
30-day free trial
Pros
- Free plan available.
- Send unlimited invoices and add expenses.
- Unlimited customer and vendor management.
- Free plan includes direct integration with Square and PayPal for payment processing.
Cons
- Free plan lets users connect to only one bank account.
- Limited to one user in the free plan.
- Free plan doesn’t include live customer support.
Hiveage
4.5
Best for Invoicing-only solution
Starting at
$0
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $19, $29, $49.
Promotion
14-day free trial
of the Pro plan.
Pros
- Free plan supports unlimited invoicing for up to five clients.
- Integrates with a dozen payment gateways including Stripe, PayPal, Square and more.
- Assign different billable rates to each type of task.
- Direct clients to your own custom domain with the Plus plan.
Cons
- No built-in, direct integrations with bookkeeping or accounting software.
- All plans have client limits (highest-tier Plus plan caps at 1,000).
Hiveage
Best for Invoicing-only solution
4.5
Starting at
$0
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $19, $29, $49.
Promotion
14-day free trial
of the Pro plan.
Pros
- Free plan supports unlimited invoicing for up to five clients.
- Integrates with a dozen payment gateways including Stripe, PayPal, Square and more.
- Assign different billable rates to each type of task.
- Direct clients to your own custom domain with the Plus plan.
Cons
- No built-in, direct integrations with bookkeeping or accounting software.
- All plans have client limits (highest-tier Plus plan caps at 1,000).
NerdWallet’s picks for the best FreshBooks alternatives
QuickBooks: Best for scalability
Price:
- $35 per month for the Simple Start plan.
- $65 per month for the Essentials plan.
- $99 per month for the Plus plan.
- $235 per month for the Advanced plan.
Why we like it: QuickBooks Online is good for businesses that are still growing or plan to grow, thanks to its reporting capabilities and granular transaction tracking tools that let you group transactions by department or location, among other categories. Reporting capabilities scale up with each plan, but even the least expensive Simple Start plan includes more than 50 reports. It integrates with more POS systems and payroll software platforms than FreshBooks does, and also offers its own in-house bookkeeping support, in case you need additional assistance down the road. Read our full QuickBooks Online review.
Xero: Best for unlimited users, more integrations
Price:
- Early: $12 per month.
- Growing: $34 per month.
- Established: $65 per month.
Why we like it: If the software you need to sync with isn’t included in FreshBooks’ list of more than 130 integrations, you might find it in Xero’s app store. This accounting software integrates with more payroll and POS products than FreshBooks does and lets you add as many users as you want. FreshBooks charges $11 per additional user, per month, which can get expensive if you want to give employees access to the software. Xero is also known as a very user-friendly platform that sidesteps the potentially confusing accounting jargon you may find with other providers. Read our full Xero review.
» MORE: Top alternatives to Xero
Zoho Books: Best for mobile-first features
Price:
- $0 per month for the Free plan.
- $20 per month for the Standard plan.
- $50 per month for the Professional plan.
- $70 per month for the Premium plan.
- $150 per month for the Elite plan.
- $275 per month for the Ultimate plan.
Why we like it: If you appreciate the ease of use and functionality of FreshBooks’ mobile app, Zoho Books could be a great alternative. Its mobile app lets you send invoices via iMessage or add widgets to your phone’s home screen so that you can easily access timers and overdue invoices. You can track time, send payment reminders and review outstanding invoices from the Apple Watch app, too. Zoho Books can also be more affordable than FreshBooks — its free plan allows for up to 1,000 invoices per year. Read our full Zoho Books review.
» MORE: Best Zoho Books alternatives
Wave: Best for free, unlimited invoicing
Price: $0.
Why we like it: Unlike FreshBooks, Wave’s accounting software is completely free to use. Features include income and expense tracking, automated invoice reminders, unlimited bank and credit card connections and a dashboard showing cash flow and invoice statuses. Wave also offers different invoice templates depending on the type of business you run: consulting, freelance, legal services, marketing or professional services. Read our full Wave Accounting review.
» MORE: Best free invoicing software
ZipBooks: Best for budget accounting software
Price:
- $0 per month for the Starter plan.
- $15 per month for the Smarter plan.
- $35 per month for the Sophisticated plan.
Why we like it: ZipBooks’ free accounting plan stands out for its Square and PayPal payment integrations, a feature some companies only provide in paid plans or as an add-on. Aside from payments, free plan subscribers can also integrate with business apps like Gusto and Slack. The company offers a separate Growth plan for generating customer reviews and managing your business listings, too. This could be a valuable feature for businesses that are just getting started and want to increase their brand awareness.
» MORE: Best free accounting software
Hiveage: Best for invoicing-only solution
Price:
- $0 per month for the Free plan.
- $19 per month for the Basic plan (or $16 per month billed annually).
- $29 per month for the Pro plan (or $25 per month billed annually).
- $49 per month for the Plus plan (or $42 per month billed annually).
Why we like it: If you primarily need an invoicing solution, Hiveage is a worthy alternative to Freshbooks. It stands out for its simplicity. Creating one-time and recurring invoices is straightforward, the dashboard is easy to navigate, and it offers time and expense tracking even in the free version. You can accept online payments with any plan, but to accept offline payments through cash, check and bank transfer, you’ll have to subscribe to the most expensive Plus plan. Hiveage can also integrate with accounting, CRM and project management software via Zapier.
When to choose an alternative to FreshBooks
FreshBooks is a simple and affordable accounting solution for freelancers and small businesses that don’t require many users and prioritize being able to operate on the go via mobile app. It’s an especially inexpensive choice for those who can work within lower-tier plans’ billable client limits.
While it can be a great fit for freelancers and contractors who need to track time, keep tabs on mileage and send invoices, it’s not the best choice for growing businesses that require features like audit trails.
What are the pros and cons of FreshBooks?
Here are some of the reasons we rate FreshBooks as one of the best accounting software picks for freelancers and small businesses:
- Its intuitive, customizable invoicing capabilities compete with those of more robust accounting solutions.
- Its mobile app stands out for its usability and features, like the ability to respond to clients’ questions from anywhere.
- It lets you automatically track mileage and label trips as business or personal.
- You can track time and add billable hours, plus other billable expenses, to invoices.
- All plans include weekday phone support.
These drawbacks, however, could be limiting for some entrepreneurs:
- The least-expensive Lite plan does not include double-entry accounting reports, accountant access or bank reconciliation.
- The Lite and Plus plans limit billable clients to five and 50, respectively.
- The highest-tier Select plan comes with only two users (additional users add $10 per month).
- There are no audit trails for accountants to review.
How FreshBooks compares to top alternatives
Last updated on June 11, 2024
Methodology
NerdWallet independently reviews accounting software products before determining our top picks. We collect the data for our software ratings from products’ public-facing websites and from company representatives. Information is gathered on a regular basis and reviewed by our editorial team for consistency and accuracy.
NerdWallet’s accounting software ratings favor products that are easy to use, reasonably priced, have a robust feature set and can grow with your business. The best accounting software received top marks when evaluated across 10 categories and more than 30 subcategories. Learn more about how we rate small-business accounting software.
These ratings are meant to provide clarity in the decision-making process, but what’s best for your business will depend on its size, growth trajectory and which features you need most. We encourage you to research and compare multiple accounting software products before choosing one.
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