A detailed comparison of FreshBooks and Wave to help you choose the right tool for your needs.
Invoicing and accounting software designed for freelancers and service businesses.
Free accounting software for small businesses with invoicing and payments.
| Plan | FreshBooks | Wave |
|---|---|---|
| Free Tier | ✗ No | ✓ Completely free accounting |
| Lowest Paid | $19/mo | $0 (payroll extra) |
| Enterprise | Custom | N/A |
| Feature | FreshBooks | Wave |
|---|---|---|
| Professional invoicing | ✓ | — |
| Time tracking | ✓ | — |
| Expense tracking | ✓ | — |
| Project management | ✓ | — |
| Online payments | ✓ | — |
| Proposals | ✓ | — |
| Free accounting | — | ✓ |
| Free invoicing | — | ✓ |
| Receipt scanning | — | ✓ |
| Financial reports | — | ✓ |
| Payments processing | — | ✓ |
| Payroll (paid) | — | ✓ |
| Open Source | ✗ | ✗ |
| Rating | ⭐ 4.4 | ⭐ 4.4 |
Choose FreshBooks if: You need freelancers and service-based small businesses wanting professional invoicing with time tracking. FreshBooks excels with its best for freelancers and beautiful invoices.
Choose Wave if: You need freelancers and micro-businesses wanting completely free professional accounting software. Wave stands out with its 100% free for core features and full accounting suite.
Best free option: Wave offers a free tier (Completely free accounting).
It depends on your needs. FreshBooks is better for freelancers and service-based small businesses wanting professional invoicing with time tracking, while Wave is better for freelancers and micro-businesses wanting completely free professional accounting software. Both are excellent tools rated 4.4 and 4.4 respectively.
FreshBooks starts at $19/mo while Wave starts at $0 (payroll extra). Wave also has a free tier.
Most tools offer import/export features to help you migrate. We recommend trying Wave's free tier before fully committing to a switch.
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