FreshBooks vs Wave Pricing (2026)
How do these two stack up on price? Here's what each one costs, what you get, and where the value sits.
| FreshBooks | Wave | |
|---|---|---|
| Starts at | $23/mo | $19/mo |
| Number of plans | 4 | 2 |
| Free plan | — | |
| Free trial | — | |
| Pricing model | flat-rate | flat-rate |
Lite
- Send invoices to 5 clients
- Track expenses in real time
- Create and send estimates
- Get paid with credit and debit cards, ACH bank transfer, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Buy Now, Pay Later
- Generate tax-time reports
Plus
Popular- Send invoices to 50 clients
- Track expenses in real time
- Create estimates, proposals, and client retainers
- Get paid with credit and debit cards, ACH bank transfer, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Buy Now, Pay Later
- Generate tax-time reports
- Run financial and accounting reports
- Expense receipt scanning
- Give your accountant access
Premium
- Send invoices to unlimited clients
- Track expenses in real time
- Create estimates, proposals, and client retainers
- Get paid with credit and debit cards, ACH bank transfer, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Buy Now, Pay Later
- Generate tax-time reports
- Run financial and accounting reports
- Bill receipt scanning with the ability to add line items
- Give your accountant access
- Check project profitability
- Customize your email templates
Select
- Send invoices to unlimited clients
- Track expenses in real time
- Create estimates, proposals, and client retainers
- Access lower credit card transaction fees and capped bank transfer (ACH) fees
- Generate tax-time reports
- Run financial and accounting reports
- Bill receipt scanning with automatic capture of multi-line items
- Give your accountant access
- Check project profitability
- Customize email templates and remove FreshBooks branding
- Import your data via Easy Switch
- Gain access to dedicated phone support
- Add 2 Team Member accounts for no extra charge
STARTER Plan
- Create unlimited estimates, invoices, bills, and bookkeeping records
- Option to accept online payments 2.9% + $0.60 per credit card transaction 3.4% + $0.60 per Amex transaction
- Invoice on-the-go with the mobile app
- Manage cash flow and customers in one dashboard
Pro Plan
Popular- Option to accept online payments at a discounted rate 2.9% + $0** per credit card transaction 3.4% + $0** per Amex transaction
- Auto-import bank transactions***
- Auto-merge and categorize bank transactions
- Digitally capture unlimited receipts and track expenses
- Automate late payment reminders
- And more!
FreshBooks vs Wave FAQ
- Which one is cheaper?
- Wave is the cheaper option, starting at $19/mo vs $23/mo for FreshBooks.
- Can I use either one for free?
- Wave has a free plan. FreshBooks doesn't — though they do offer a free trial.
- How do they charge?
- Both use a flat-rate model, so the comparison is straightforward — it comes down to features and limits at each price point.
- Which one is a better deal?
- Depends on what you need. FreshBooks: FreshBooks sits in the mid-market of small business accounting, priced above Wave (free) but below QuickBooks's more complex tiers — they're going after freelancers and service-based small businesses who find QuickBooks overkill. The aggressive 90% off for 6 months promo suggests they're actively competing on acquisition cost to pull users away from alternatives. Wave: Wave is firmly the budget-friendly play in small business accounting — going up against QuickBooks Simple Start (~$35/mo) and FreshBooks (~$19/mo), they're competitive on price but lead with the free tier as the real hook. They're targeting bootstrapped founders and solopreneurs who flinch at $50+/mo tools.
Keep tabs on both.
We'll monitor pricing changes for FreshBooks and Wave and let you know when something moves.