5 Free Best Invoicing Software For Freelancers
Here are the 5 best cloud based invoicing software programs for freelancers who need to create and track invoices.
Getting paid for the work you have done is arguably one of the hardest things about freelancing. Cash flow can make or break your freelancing career. The best free invoicing software for freelancers can help smooth out the cash flow by automating the process. You don’t need complicated system, it should in its most basic form, allow you to send out invoices automatically for the work you have done and follow-up on the ones that don’t get paid.
what is the best free invoicing software for freelancers?
The best free invoicing software for freelancers is Wave Invoices. Wave by far, was the easiest to use and provide more options than some software that cost twice as much.
Table of contents
Why Should Freelancers use invoice software?
It allows you to create and send invoices quickly and easily, keeping track of payments and outstanding balances. The right software will help streamline your business so you spend more time working on the things that actually get you paid instead of administrative work.
You can use invoice software to generate invoices for the work you have done, automatically send follow-ups, and track your overall revenue for the year.
How to choose The right software for your freelance business?
There are five key features to look for:
1. Ease of use: The software should be easy to set up and use, with a user-friendly interface.
2. Invoice customization: The software should allow you to customize your invoices to match your brand identity, including your logo, color scheme, and contact information.
3. Payment processing: The software should offer convenient payment processing options, such as online payments or integrations with popular payment processors such as PayPal or Stripe and Square.
4. Reporting: The software should provide valuable insights into your business through comprehensive reporting features. This data can help you track your progress, identify areas of improvement, and make better informed decisions about your business.
5. Pricing: Here are two most common pricing and fee structure for invoicing software.
- Monthly subscription fees
- Payment processing fees
best free invoicing software for freelancers - Wave
Wave accounting software was better than all the other free options I tested and even better than some of the paid ones. For a freelancer looking to keep their costs down wave is by far the best option
Wave helps business owners keep track of their finances, create invoices, and manage payroll. The software also offers a suite of features specifically designed for small businesses, including Wave Payroll and Wave Invoicing. Wave accounting software is easy to use and is free, so you can decide for yourself if it will work for you.
Pros
- Accepty Payments Online
- Recurring billing
- Syncs with your banks accounts
- Can be used it for payroll
- Free to use
Cons
- Only integrates with wave software
What I liked about Wave:
- 100% free if you don’t use any addons
- Get paid via credit card if you sign up for their credit card processing service
- Wave can send overdue reminders automatically
- Has a recurring billing function
- Invoicing and payment information can sync with your account
- All Major Credit Cards are accepted: Visa, Master Card, and American Express.
- Get Paid within one day for credit card payments.
- You can process credit card payments over the phone, online, or in person through their software.
- Has the option to sync with their free accounting software so your bookkeeping is already done.
- Free Trial
- Automatic Payment Reminders
- Free Plan
Pricing: Free
runner-up for best free invoicing software for freelancers - Zoho
For a free invoicing software option Zoho is a good option if you need more options like time tracking and submitting formal estimates. The reason I didn’t make it my number one pick for freelancers is it offers too much options that a freelancer does not always need. It offers time tracking and estimates and a lot of other services that freelancers don’t use.
Pros
- Free
- Integrates with the full suite of Zoho Tools
- Know when your invoice is viewed by a customer
- Brand your invoices with custom logos and colors
- Mobile app
- Can set recurring invoices
Cons
- Not a true accounting software by itself
- Can only integrate with the other Zoho Suite of tools
- The interface can be confusing to use
Zoho invoice software is an application that helps small businesses create and send invoices to their customers. Zoho Invoice integrates with Zoho Books, Zoho CRM, and Zoho Expense, making it easy to track customer payments and expenses. Overall, Zoho Invoice is good free invoicing option for the small business on a tight budget.
What I liked about Zoho invoicing:
- Know when an invoice is viewed by a customer – You can set up the software to notify you when an invoice is viewed by a customer through the portal.
- View invoice history – Keep track of changes of the invoice for payments received and when more expenses were added.
- Brand your invoice – Add customizable branding to your invoice with a logo and colors that are unique to your brand.
- Multiple Pre-made templates – Choose from a large library of pre-made templates and customize to fit your brand.
- Create multilingual and multicurrency invoices.
- Compliant with ESIGN and eIDAS e-signature laws
- Set recurring invoices – If you have a service or customer that receive periodic services you can set up invoices to go out automatically.
- Get real-time invoice reports. You can run real time reports or schedule them to run on recurring basis and receive them by email.
- Easy estimates – Create estimates and turn them into invoices with one click.
- Time tracking – Zoho allows you to log and track time spent on projects.
- Collect advance payments for projects – Zoho will automatically deduct advanced payment from invoices to show the customer their true balance.
- Expense tracking – Allows you to track your expenses and know where your money is going with a reports.
- Free trial
- Automatic Payment Reminders
- Free Plan
Pricing: FREE
Best Premium option for freelancers- FreshBooks
FreshBooks was one of the easiest to use and had the most options. It was the closest to a full accounting software as you can get without spending a small fortune, and it will handle all the needs of a small business as it grows. You should choose FreshBooks if you want an invoicing system that can also take the place of you accounting system and grow with you. FreshBooks offers a free trial to see if it will work for you.
Pros
- Easy to use
- Native integration with lots of other software
- Bookkeeping and accounting features
- Lots of useful reports
- Mobile app
- Customizable profesional invoices
Cons
- There is no free option
- Can get expensive if you have a lot of users
FreshBooks has lots of features that are essential to running your business. It can keep track of income and expenses, and can integrate with your bank account to show you where you stand financially .
Some of the stand-out features I liked of FreshBooks are:
- Professional Invoicing – Impress Clients with customizable professional invoices that clearly show the work you have done.
- Expenses – Never miss a expense, you can snap receipt photos, email receipts to your account, and import expenses directly from your bank account.
- Track time to the minute – You can work on multiple projects at once and log the times into FreshBooks. This will automatically add the time to invoices if you choose to bill that way.
- Set up Multiple Projects – Projects allow you share information all in one place and keep everyone updated.
- Automated Payments – You can give your clients multiple ways to pay. From credit cards to multiple other options, making it easy for your client to pay their invoices.
- Reporting – FreshBooks can track every dollar in and out of your business so you can run any report you want to diagnoses any issue you may have with cash flow. This also makes it easy at the end of the year when tax time comes around.
- Accounting – Has Double-Entry Accounting tools and reports that are the standard for all accredited accounting firms.
- Mobile – You can send invoices track expenses, and check up on projects all on the go with the FreshBooks mobile app.
- Good Customer Support – FreshBooks says that a real human will always answer your calls and help you with your questions.
- Free Trial
- Free Plan
Pricing:
Lili - Honorable Mention for Freelancing invoicing software
Lili is a banking tool that is designed for your business. They offer a one stop shop for all of your small business financial needs like banking accounting and taxes. Lili has no Minimum deposit and and no monthly fees.
Pros
- Easy to use
- manage everything with one app
- No hidden fees
- Lots of useful reports
- Mobile app
- Customizable professional invoices
Cons
- Cannot choose to use just their invoice function
- Invoicing software is not very good
If you are looking for a business banking account and want everything all in one place Lili will be a good option for you. It can be nice to have just one app for all your banking needs that is tied to you accounting software. The issue may be if you ever decide you want to change banks or invoicing software, they will not integrate as easily into Lili software.
Some of the stand-out features I liked of Lili invoicing software are:
- They accept all payment methods – Visa, Mastercard, American Express, ACH, Venmo, Cash App, PayPal and much more.
- You can generate custom invoices in just a few clicks
- Invoice tracking to manage overdue invoices
- Has a CRM software that allows you to store your customers information
- No limit to the number of invoices you can send
- Each account comes with a Visa Business debit card.
- Free Plan
- Their mobile app will send you a notification every time you get paid or money leaves your account
- Free Trial
Pricing: Free
Bonsai- best all-in-one Freelance invoicing software
Bonsai is an all-in-one software that allows you to focus on your passion and not your paperwork. This tool can help make you look more professional. Their CRM software is very good and it allows you to keep all your information about your customers in one place.
Each one of their custom contracts are vetted by legal professionals to be sure that the language is correct and meets all regulatory requirements.
Pros
- can accept lots of different payment options
- manage everything with one app
- Invoice automation is very good
- Lots of useful reports
- Mobile app
- Customizable professional invoices
Cons
- can get expensive
- Some hidden fees
If you are looking for an all-in-one software that can take the place of your current CRM software, accounting software, and invoicing system that combines them all into one place. Bonsai is the best software for you.
Some of the stand-out features I liked of Lili invoicing software are:
- Custom CRM software
- All their software works together and moves down the pipeline as it progresses.
- Invoice tracking to manage overdue invoices
- Has a CRM software that allows you to store your customers information
- No limit to the number of invoices you can send
- Free trial
Pricing:
What is invoicing software for freelancers?
Invoicing software is a computer program that freelancers can use to create, send, and track invoices. This type of software can be used to invoice for products and or services. With invoicing software, freelancers can create invoices quickly and easily. Overall, invoicing software can be beneficial for freelancers to improve their invoicing process.
The best invoicing software allows you to send out invoices and track when those invoices are paid. Some of the software allows you to store customer data in the database and keep track of all the work you have done.
You can always use a free form in Microsoft office or Google Suite to create the invoice but you will have to manually send it out and track each one.
Why you should trust me
I have been using invoicing and accounting software for over 20 years as a freelancer and as a business manager. In that time I spent hundreds of hours immersed in the software studying the reports and using it to send invoices and writing custom code to get it to do what I wanted it to do.
How I picked and tested
Ease of use
I wanted to see which software was the easiest to use and most intuitive. How much accounting background did you need to have to set it up correctly.
Did it integrate into software that you already use?
I wanted to see how easy it was to integrate into accounting software stack that someone may already be using.
Was it scalable
How easy was it to scale to the size that your company grows to.
Reports
Were the reports easy to create and read.
how do freelancers keep track of invoices?
For freelancers, tracking invoices is essential to getting paid on time and keeping accurate records for tax purposes. There are a few different ways to keep track of invoices, and the method you choose will depend on your personal preferences and business needs. One option is to use a spreadsheet, which can be helpful if you do not have lot of data to track. You can also use accounting software, which will automate most of the work for you.
There are also many apps and online services that can help you keep track of your invoices, and some of them even offer features like bill reminders and automatic payments.
Whichever method you choose, the important thing is to find a system that works for you and helps you stay organized.
Which software is the best for making invoices
The best software for creating invoices is wave. If you need a true accounting software invoice solution that is quick and easy to use, then a program like FreshBooks or Zoho Invoice will be a better option.
These programs offer a variety of templates and allow you to customize your invoices with your company logo and branding.
If you require more comprehensive invoicing features, such as the ability to track payments or generate reports, then a program like QuickBooks or Xero invoices may be a better fit. These programs offer a wide range of features and can be customized to meet the specific needs of your business.
Ultimately, the best software for making invoices is the one that meets your specific needs in the most efficient and effective way possible.
How do freelancers manage invoices?
In the world of freelancing, invoices are an essential part of doing business. Not only do they provide a record of the work that you have completed, but they also help ensure that you get paid in a timely manner.
While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to invoice management, there are a few best practices that all freelancers should follow.
1. It’s important to send invoices as soon as the work is completed. This not only ensures that your client has a record of the work, but it also shows that you are professional and efficient.
2. Make sure that your invoices are clear and concise. Include all relevant information, such as the date of service, a description of the work performed, and your contact information.
3. Follow up with clients if payment is overdue. Sending a friendly reminder can often prompt Prompt Payment and avoid any stressful situations.
By following these simple tips, you can take the hassle out of managing your freelance invoices.
How do freelancers set up invoices?
Freelancers should set up invoices with all the information a client needs to submit the payment.
When you’re a freelancer, one of the most important aspects of your job is ensuring that you get paid for the work that you do. After all, if you don’t invoice your clients correctly, you may not receive the full amount that you’re owed.
Setting up an invoice might seem like a simple task, but there are actually a few things that you need to keep in mind in order to do it correctly.
1. Include all of the relevant information about the work that you’ve completed, such as the project name, your contact information, and the date on which the work was completed.
2. Be sure to itemize all of the charges associated with the project so that your client knows exactly what they’re being billed for.
3. Include any relevant payment terms so that there’s no confusion about when the invoice is due.
Taking care to setup your invoices correctly, you can help ensure that you always get paid promptly and in full.
What makes a good invoicing software freelancers?
A good invoicing software should make it easy to create and send invoices. It should be able to track payments and provide alerts when payments are due. The software should also allow you to customize invoices with your company logo and branding. In addition, a good invoicing software should be able to integrate with your accounting software to make tracking expenses and income easier. Finally, the software should offer excellent customer support in case you have any questions or encounter any problems. With so many options on the market, choosing the right invoicing software can be a daunting task. However, by keeping these features in mind, you can be sure to find a solution that meets your needs.
Conclusion
Invoicing Software has come a long ways in the last couple of years. What you use to have to write custom code for is now handled automatically.
You don’t always get what you pay for with invoicing software. My research showed me that there are some really good option out there that are either free or don’t cost a lot of money and should provide you with everything you need to get paid for the work you do.
