You’re leaving money on the table if you’re still manually creating invoices in Word or Excel.
Freelancers who use proper invoicing software get paid 40% faster on average. They spend 20 minutes per invoice instead of 2 hours. They never lose a payment because everything’s tracked in one place.
Here are the best invoicing tools for freelancers, tested and compared.
Bottom Line: Use Wave if you want completely free. Use FreshBooks if you want automation and client portals. Use QuickBooks Self-Employed if you need full accounting integration.
Why Freelancers Need Invoicing Software
Invoicing software does three things: it speeds up invoice creation, it makes clients more likely to pay on time, and it gives you a record of every transaction for taxes.
When you invoice manually, you’re guessing about what you charged, which clients still owe you, and whether you’ve sent a follow-up. When you use invoicing software, all of that is tracked automatically.
You can send invoices from your phone, set up automatic payment reminders, and watch for “viewed” notifications so you know when clients have seen it.
Best Free Option: Wave
Wave is completely free. No limits. No “pay to unlock” features hiding behind a paywall.
You create an invoice in 2 minutes, send it to the client, and Wave automatically sends payment reminders. Clients can pay directly through the invoice link (via Stripe, PayPal, or direct deposit).
Wave integrates with your bank account and accounting software, so when a client pays, it appears in Wave and syncs to your bookkeeping automatically.
Who it’s for: Solopreneurs who bill 5-10 clients and want zero overhead. If you’re just starting freelancing or you bill sporadically, Wave is overkill to pay for.
The downside: Wave’s mobile app is bare-bones compared to FreshBooks. You can’t customize invoice branding much (no color changes, limited font options). And Wave occasionally changes features without warning because they’re VC-backed and experimenting constantly.
Pricing: Free forever.
Best for Automation: FreshBooks
FreshBooks is invoicing software designed for freelancers who want the invoice to do the work for them.
You can set up automatic recurring invoices (if you have retainer clients), conditional late fees, automatic payment reminders, and follow-up notifications when a client views your invoice. The client portal is beautiful—they can see a payment status, download past invoices, and pay in three clicks.
FreshBooks also tracks expenses and time (integrates with Toggl), so you can literally see “Client A used 12 hours, which equals $1,800 revenue this week.”
Who it’s for: Freelancers who manage 10+ active clients and want clients to self-service (paying without asking). If you send proposals and quotes often, FreshBooks’s proposal feature is better than Wave’s.
The downside: FreshBooks costs $15/month minimum, which is a real cost if you only invoice occasionally. It’s also more complex—you can get lost in settings and features you don’t need.
Pricing: $15/month (Plus plan, covers 50 invoices/month). Higher tiers unlock time tracking and expense management.
Best for Full Accounting: QuickBooks Self-Employed
QuickBooks Self-Employed is invoicing + tax prep + bookkeeping in one.
You invoice clients, QuickBooks tracks mileage and expenses automatically (syncs to your phone), categorizes everything for taxes, and at the end of the year you literally hit “generate tax return” and you’re done.
This is the tool if you hate doing bookkeeping and you want invoicing + tax math handled for you.
Who it’s for: Freelancers making $20k+ annually who value time over money. If you dread tax season, QB does most of the work for you.
The downside: QuickBooks Self-Employed costs $20/month and it’s overkill if you only invoice once every few months. Also, QuickBooks’ customer support is notoriously slow.
Pricing: $20/month.
Wave vs. FreshBooks: Which Should You Use?
Wave is simpler. You open the app, create an invoice, send it. Done. Perfect if invoicing isn’t complicated.
FreshBooks is more powerful. It automates payment reminders, tracks time, manages expenses, and integrates with accounting software. Perfect if you have multiple clients and want less manual work.
Use Wave if: You bill 1-5 clients sporadically and you want zero overhead.
Use FreshBooks if: You have 5+ active clients and you send invoices at least weekly.
Use QuickBooks if: You’re profitable ($20k+/year) and you want invoicing + taxes handled in one place.
Runner-Ups Worth Considering
Stripe Invoicing: If you’re already using Stripe for payments, their invoicing is built-in and minimal. Free. Good if you don’t need fancy features.
Zoho Invoice: Similar to FreshBooks but $5/month. Less polished interface, but half the price.
FAQ
Q: Can I issue invoices without software? Yes, but you lose payment tracking and reminders. Manual invoicing takes 10x longer and clients pay slower.
Q: Do freelancers really get paid 40% faster with software? Based on a 2023 survey of 2,000 freelancers by the Freelance Forward report, invoicing software users reported 35-45% faster payment collection.
Q: Which tool integrates best with accounting software? Wave, FreshBooks, and QuickBooks all sync with Stripe, PayPal, and most accounting platforms. Wave and QB have the tightest integration.
Q: Can I accept payments through an invoice? Yes. Wave and FreshBooks let clients pay via Stripe/PayPal/bank transfer directly from the invoice. Stripe Invoicing does too.
Q: What if I need more than 50 invoices per month? FreshBooks scales (higher plans), or switch to Zoho Invoice ($10/month) or Wave (unlimited).
Conclusion
Stop manually invoicing. The right tool pays for itself in time saved alone.
If you’re just starting, use Wave. It’s free and it works. When you outgrow it (you’ll know—you’ll be frustrated by the lack of automation), upgrade to FreshBooks.
Start with Wave (free) or try FreshBooks (free 14-day trial).
Disclosure: We may earn a commission if you click these links. This doesn’t affect our recommendations—we chose these tools because we use them and believe they’re genuinely useful for freelancers.