Wave vs. FreshBooks: Free Bookkeeping vs. Client Invoicing
Wave and FreshBooks get compared a lot because both are popular with very small businesses, but they're not really solving the same problem. Wave is a free, general-purpose bookkeeping system: unlimited invoices and bookkeeping records at no cost, for any number of clients. FreshBooks is built around the client relationship itself, with time tracking, proposals, and retainers baked in, but it charges by how many clients you bill. The right choice depends on whether you need a bookkeeping system or a client-billing system first.
The short answer
Wave is the better fit if you mainly need to record income and expenses, send invoices, and keep real double-entry books, and you don't want a per-client or per-seat bill to do it — the free Starter plan doesn't cap how many clients you invoice. FreshBooks is the better fit if your business is built around billing clients directly: freelancers, consultants, and agencies that need time tracking, proposals, estimates, and retainers as core workflow, not just an invoice template.
Pricing comparison
Wave's core plan is free; FreshBooks is priced by plan tier and, distinctly, by how many billable clients you have. Regular (non-promotional) monthly pricing as published on each company's site:
| Wave plan | Price/mo | Built for |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | $0 | Unlimited invoices, bills, estimates, and bookkeeping records for any number of clients |
| Pro | $19 | Automated bank feeds, discounted payment processing, unlimited receipt capture |
| Wave Advisors | From $149 | A dedicated human bookkeeper who maintains your books for you |
| FreshBooks plan | Regular price/mo | Billable clients | Built for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lite | $23 | 5 | A solo freelancer with a small, stable client list |
| Plus | $43 | 50 | A growing freelance or consulting business |
| Premium | $70 | Unlimited | Project profitability tracking, no client cap |
| Select | Custom | Unlimited | Larger service businesses needing dedicated support |
Prices as published at time of writing; both companies change promotional pricing frequently, so confirm current rates directly with Wave or FreshBooks before buying.
What Wave does well
- No client-count ceiling, ever, even on the free plan. Wave's Starter plan includes unlimited invoices and estimates regardless of how many clients you bill, which FreshBooks only matches once you're on Premium or Select.
- Real double-entry accounting on the free tier. Wave's core bookkeeping engine is a complete double-entry system from day one, not a stripped-down version you upgrade into later.
- Pay-as-you-go payment processing instead of a bundled subscription, which can be cheaper if you invoice infrequently or in small volume.
- Wave Advisors lets you hand bookkeeping to an actual human without leaving the platform.
What FreshBooks does well
- Unlimited time tracking on every plan, including the cheapest one. If you bill clients by the hour, this is built in from the start rather than added on later.
- Proposals, estimates, and retainers are core to the product, useful for consultants and agencies that need to formalize scope and get sign-off before work begins.
- Project profitability tracking on Premium, so you can see whether a specific client or project actually made money once your time is factored in.
- Accountant access from Plus upward, making it easier to loop in a bookkeeper or CPA without sharing your login.
FAQ
Does Wave's free plan really include double-entry accounting?
Yes. Wave's Starter plan is built as real double-entry accounting software at no cost, not a limited trial of a paid product. FreshBooks, by contrast, only adds double-entry accounting reports starting on its Plus plan; its entry-level Lite plan doesn't include them.
Does FreshBooks limit how many clients I can bill?
Yes. FreshBooks plans are priced by the number of billable clients: 5 on Lite, 50 on Plus, and unlimited starting on Premium. Wave doesn't gate by client count at any tier, including its free Starter plan.
Is FreshBooks' time tracking available on every plan, including the cheapest one?
Yes, unlimited time tracking is included on every FreshBooks plan, including Lite. Wave doesn't offer a comparable built-in time-tracking feature, which matters if you bill clients by the hour.
Bill clients by the hour or by project?
FreshBooks' time tracking and retainers are built for exactly that. See current plans and try it for yourself.