Freshbooks vs Wave
Features, use cases, pros and cons, and pricing side by side — and which one to pick.
Best for: Freelancers who bill clients for time and expenses, Solopreneurs who want bookkeeping handled without hiring help
Read the full Freshbooks reviewBest for: Freelancers who want to pay themselves and any staff with confidence, Solopreneurs who want tidy books going into tax time
Read the full Wave reviewCommission may apply at no extra cost
Freshbooks vs Wave: features compared
Compare key features side by side
Feature Comparison Summary
Which should you choose?
Choose Freshbooks if
- You need payroll built into your accounting app
- You rely on integrations like Zapier, Gusto, or Square
Choose Wave if
- You're a solopreneur with simple invoicing and bookkeeping needs
- You'd rather hand your books to Wave Advisors experts
Freshbooks vs Wave: pros and cons
Freshbooks
FreshBooks bundles invoicing, expenses, and payroll with automation that keeps billing fast and cash flow steady. Third-party reviewers rate it 4.4 to 4.5 out of 5, though client caps on lower plans and a steep post-promo price jump deserve a closer look. Overall, it's a strong pick for freelancers and small service businesses that bill by time or project.
Pros
- Tracked time and expenses flow into invoices automatically, with taxes calculated for you — billing hourly or per project takes minutes instead of an evening of manual typing.
- Automated recurring invoices plus built-in payment reminders handle the awkward follow-up for late payers, keeping cash flow predictable without you chasing anyone.
- Expenses stay current with three low-effort inputs — phone-based receipt scanning, bank transaction imports, and automatic categorization.
Cons
- Billable-client caps bite early — Lite allows just 5 clients and Plus 50, so a growing roster forces you onto Premium at the full $70/month standard rate.
- There's no free plan — only a 30-day trial — and the advertised 90%-off promo applies to just the first 3 months, after which prices jump tenfold ($2.30 becomes $23, $4.30 becomes $43, $7 becomes $70).
- The Select plan has no listed price at all; you have to contact sales for a custom quote, which makes budgeting for high-volume billing impossible upfront.
Wave
Wave bundles accounting, invoicing, and payments in one place, backed by a genuinely free Starter plan and clearly published pricing. Card fees on every payment, Plaid-dependent bank imports, and weekday-only support are the main trade-offs. Overall, it's a solid, recommendable pick for freelancers and solopreneurs who want tidy books without a big monthly bill.
Pros
- The Starter plan is free indefinitely, not a time-limited trial, and still includes unlimited invoices, estimates, bills, and bookkeeping records
- Pro automates the tedious parts of bookkeeping — bank transactions are imported, merged, and categorized via Plaid, and receipts are captured digitally without limits
- Wave Advisors puts a dedicated bookkeeper on your account who prepares monthly financial statements and handles onboarding from software like FreshBooks
Cons
- Every card payment carries a processing fee—2.9% + $0.60 on Starter (3.4% + $0.60 for Amex)—which adds up for businesses with high card volume
- Bank auto-import runs through Plaid, and not every financial institution is supported, so a working connection isn't guaranteed
- The Pro subscription fee is per business, not per owner, so running a second business means paying for a second subscription
Freshbooks and Wave in detail
Freshbooks
FreshBooks is all-in-one accounting and invoicing software for small businesses. It covers invoicing, billing and payments, expenses, payroll, reporting, proposals, estimates, and time tracking. The site targets freelancers, solopreneurs, and businesses with employees or contractors, and says over 30 million small businesses have used it. You can work from desktop or mobile and collaborate with clients, your team, and your accountant.
Standout features
- Invoices in Minutes, Not Evenings
- Getting Paid Without the Chase
- Expense Tracking on Autopilot
- Payroll Under One Roof
- The Extras That Tie It Together
Use cases
- Freelancers who bill by the hour
- Small businesses tired of chasing payments
- Owners with a team to pay
- Businesses working with contractors
Wave
Wave is all-in-one small business software that combines accounting, invoicing, payments, and payroll in a single system. It's built for people who didn't train as accountants—freelancers, solopreneurs, contractors, and consultants. You can manage your books, send professional invoices, accept payments, and check reports from a desktop or mobile app. More than 350,000 small businesses use Wave, and it holds a 4.5-star Google rating.
Standout features
- Invoicing and Estimates Without Limits
- Automated Bank Transaction Import (Pro)
- Built-In Payment Processing
- Receipt Capture and Expense Tracking (Pro)
- Automated Late Payment Reminders (Pro)
Use cases
- Freelancers: pay yourself with confidence
- Contractors: invoice and estimate in minutes
- Consultants: put repeat billing on autopilot
- Busy owners: hand off the books
Pricing compared
List prices from each vendor's pricing page, before taxes and add-ons. Costs are per month.
| Pricing compared | Freshbooks | Wave |
|---|---|---|
| From (cheapest paid plan) | $23/mo Lite | $19/mo Pro Plan |
| Free plan | No | Yes 2.9% + $0.60 per credit card transaction; 3.4% + $0.60 per Amex transaction |
| Free trial | 30 days | Not stated |
| Money-back guarantee | 30 days | Not stated |
| Annual billing savings | — | Up to 17% |
| Pricing model | Flat price | Flat price |
| Cost for 1 user | $23/mo Lite plan, billed monthly | FreeCheaper Starter Plan plan, billed monthly |
| Cost for 5 users | $67/mo Lite plan, billed monthly | $19/mo Pro Plan plan, billed monthly · price per account (user limit not stated) |
| Cost for 10 users | $122/mo Lite plan, billed monthly | $19/mo Pro Plan plan, billed monthly · price per account (user limit not stated) |
| Cost for 25 users | $287/mo Lite plan, billed monthly | $19/mo Pro Plan plan, billed monthly · price per account (user limit not stated) |
| Plans | 4 | 3 |
| Prices checked | Vendor page checked Oct 12, 2026 | Checked Oct 12, 2026 |
| Price history | Tracking prices since Oct 1, 2026. No price change detected yet. | Tracking prices since Oct 1, 2026. No price change detected yet. |
- Cheapest plan that fits each team size. Per-user plans are multiplied by the number of users (respecting stated minimums and seat packs). Plans that include some users cost their base price plus the extra-user price for each user beyond those included. Flat-priced plans with no stated user limit are counted as one licence per user.
Cheaper for your team size
For 1 user (billed monthly), Wave costs $0/mo vs Freshbooks at $23/mo.
- Only Wave has a free plan.
Computed from published list prices on the dates shown. Excludes taxes, add-ons and promotions.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I switch from FreshBooks to Wave?
Yes. Wave Advisors includes onboarding when moving from other accounting software, such as FreshBooks. The plan also adds a dedicated bookkeeper and monthly statements.