FreshBooks
Invoicing-first accounting aimed squarely at service businesses. The entry plan is cheap and capped at five billable clients - which is the number that decides whether it fits you.
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| Best for | Service freelancers and small agencies who want invoicing and bookkeeping in one place and bill a manageable number of clients. |
|---|---|
| Not ideal for | Anyone with many small clients on the entry plan, or a freelancer whose needs stop at sending invoices. |
| Pricing model | Subscription, from $23/month |
| Platforms | Web, iOS, Android |
Prices are the vendor's published USD list prices, checked on 25 August 2026. FreshBooks was running a 90%-off-three-months promotion at the time, which is not the ongoing cost. Always confirm current pricing on the vendor site before buying.
On this page
FreshBooks is accounting software that grew out of invoicing, and it still shows in the best way: the invoice is the centre of the product rather than an afterthought bolted to a ledger. For freelancers and small service businesses - the audience it has always targeted - that ordering matches how the work actually happens.
The interesting question is not whether it does the job. It is whether the job is one you need doing, given how capable the free alternatives in this category have become.
What it costs
FreshBooks publishes four tiers. The prices below are list prices, and the plans are differentiated primarily by how many clients you can bill.
| Plan | List price | Billable clients |
|---|---|---|
| Lite | $23 / month | 5 |
| Plus | $43 / month | 50 |
| Premium | $70 / month | Unlimited |
| Select | Custom | Unlimited |
On top of the subscription, additional team members are $11 per month each on any plan. Advanced Payments is a $20 per month add-on (included with Select), and FreshBooks Payroll is $40 per month plus $6 per user. Select is also where FreshBooks says lower card transaction fees and capped ACH fees apply; it does not publish those rates on the pricing page.
FreshBooks runs introductory discounts more or less continuously - a 90%-off-for-three-months offer was live when we checked. Budget against the list price, not the promotion.
The number that actually decides the plan
Most software is priced on volume of use. FreshBooks is priced on how many different clients you bill, and that catches freelancers out because it is uncorrelated with income.
A consultant with three retainer clients at $4,000 a month fits comfortably on Lite. A designer doing $300 logo jobs for twenty different people does not, despite earning a fraction as much - and the jump from Lite to Plus is $23 to $43 a month.
So the question to answer before choosing a tier is not "how much do I earn" but "how many separate clients will I invoice this year". If the answer is more than five and your average job is small, price the Plus plan and decide against that, or look at the free alternatives where client count is not the metric.
Who it suits
FreshBooks makes most sense for a service business that has outgrown invoicing alone and does not want to run bookkeeping separately. Once you are tracking expenses against income, chasing payment on multiple open invoices, and preparing something a tax professional will read, having those in one system genuinely saves reconciliation work.
It also suits people who bill for time, because time entries feeding invoices removes a transcription step - though a dedicated tracker like Toggl Track or Harvest will do the tracking itself more thoroughly.
Who it does not suit
If you only need to send invoices and record who paid, this is more product than the problem needs. Zoho Invoice costs nothing and Wave's free plan covers unlimited invoicing and bookkeeping records, charging only when a client pays by card. Paying $276 a year for invoicing you could have had free is the most common way freelancers overspend here.
It also suits small studios less well than the per-account pricing first suggests. At $11 per additional team member per month, a three-person setup on Plus is $65 a month before any add-ons.
Before you commit
- Count the separate clients you will invoice in a year, and choose the tier against that number rather than the price.
- Check whether you need Advanced Payments; at $20 a month it is close to the cost of the entry plan again.
- If anyone else needs access, add $11 a month per person to whatever the plan costs.
- Confirm current pricing on the vendor's own page - this category changes its packaging often.
For the direct alternative most freelancers weigh it against, see FreshBooks vs Wave. For the wider field, including the free options, see FreshBooks alternatives.
Strengths and trade-offs
What FreshBooks does well
- Invoicing and bookkeeping in one product, so billed work and business accounts do not live in separate tools.
- Pricing is per account rather than per seat until you add team members, which suits a solo business.
- Clear upgrade path as client count grows, without changing product.
Where FreshBooks falls short
- The entry plan allows only five billable clients - a limit reached quickly by anyone doing small jobs.
- Extra team members cost $11 per month each, on every plan.
- Advanced Payments and Payroll are paid add-ons on top of the subscription, not plan features.
- Free alternatives cover basic invoicing at no cost, so the value depends on needing the accounting side.
How FreshBooks compares
Alternatives worth a look
Wave
Freelancers who need real invoicing and basic books at no fixed cost, and whose expenses are simple enough to…
Zoho Invoice
Freelancers whose requirement genuinely stops at invoicing, quotes and getting paid.
Bonsai
Freelancers who send proposals and contracts as well as invoices, and would otherwise pay for three separate tools.
Harvest
Freelancers on a small number of long-running projects who want tracked time to become a paid invoice without a second…
Questions people ask
How much does FreshBooks cost?
The published list prices are $23 a month for Lite, $43 for Plus and $70 for Premium, with a custom-priced Select tier above that. Additional team members are $11 a month each. FreshBooks frequently runs introductory discounts, so the first months may cost considerably less than the ongoing price.
What is a billable client in FreshBooks?
A client you invoice. The Lite plan allows five, Plus allows 50, and Premium is unlimited. This is the single most important number when choosing a plan, because it is based on how many clients you bill rather than how much you bill them - so a freelancer doing lots of small jobs can outgrow Lite while earning very little.
Is FreshBooks worth it if I only need invoices?
Probably not. If invoicing is the whole requirement, Zoho Invoice is free and Wave's free plan covers unlimited invoicing. FreshBooks earns its price when you want the bookkeeping alongside it rather than reconciling two systems.
Where this information comes from
Product details change often. Each item below links to the primary source we checked, so you can confirm anything that matters to your decision.