7 Best Invoicing Software for Small Businesses 2023
This article is part of a larger series onAccounting Software.
The best invoicing software allows you to create professional-looking invoices and helps you get paid quickly with time-saving features, such as recurring invoices and payment links. You should also be able to track the status of every invoice you send to stay on top of your accounts receivable (A/R) process.
Here are our seven best invoicing software for small businesses:
- QuickBooks Online:Best overall invoicing software with sophisticated accounting features
- FreshBooks:Best for solopreneurs and freelancers
- Invoicera:Best standalone invoicing software
- Zoho Invoice:Best free invoicing software
- Square Invoices:Best for infrequent or low-volume transactions
- ZipBooks:Best inexpensive software with basic accounting features
- TimeTracker:Best for professional service firms
Best Invoicing Software at a Glance
Invoicing Software |
Pricing ($/Month) |
Number of Users |
Unlimited Invoicing Availability |
Completely Customize Invoices |
Create Recurring Invoices |
Track Invoice Status in Real Time |
Includes Built-in Accounting Features |
Create and Share Links for Fast Payments |
Mobile Invoicing |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
$30 to $200 |
1 to 25 |
All plans |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
$17 to $55; custom pricing available |
1 plus $10 per additional user monthly |
All plans |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
$19 to $149 |
1 to unlimited |
All plans |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Free |
1 to 20 |
Included in free version |
✕ |
✓ |
✓ |
✕ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Free or $20 |
1 only |
All plans |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✕ |
✕ |
✓ |
|
$0 to $35; custom pricing available |
1 to unlimited |
All plans |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✕ |
✓ |
|
$15 per user plus a base fee of $25 |
Unlimited |
Included in Time Tracker Premium and LawBillity plans |
✕ |
✕ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✕ |
QuickBooks Online: Best Overall Invoicing Software With Sophisticated Accounting Feature
What We Like
- Calculates sales tax rate based on customer address
- Invoicing integrated with the most popular accounting system for small businesses
- All plans let you send unlimited invoices and include unlimited customers
- Invoices are extremely customizable
- Free setup assistance with a QuickBooks ProAdvisor
- All plans let you create and send recurring invoices
Drawbacks
- Expensive for small businesses
- Limits the number of users in each plan
- Cannot contact customer support directly by telephone
Features
- Lets you choose from different templates and customize invoices by adding your logo, changing colors, and including personalized messages.
- Allows you to set up invoices to send on a scheduled recurring basis
- Enables you to print and email invoices to customers
- Lets you accept short payments for customers
- Includes other accounting features, like bank reconciliation and income and expense tracking
QuickBooks Online’s excellent invoicing capability is one of the reasons it’s our overallbest small business accounting software. Its invoicing features can be customized to almost any type of industry.
例如,建筑公司总经理-term projects can set up progress invoicing when they have the Plus or Advanced version. It offers greater customization options than most other similar software, such as add your company logo, change invoice colors, and add a personalized message for your customer.
With QuickBooks, you can set up recurring invoices, which is useful for collecting regular payments, like equipment rentals and subscription-based services. Freelancers and service-based businesses can convert their hourly rates into invoices for work done. If you have multiple customers who purchase the same product or service from you, Advanced’s batch invoicing feature lets you send similar invoices to all of them in one go.
Since Our Last Update:
All QuickBooks Online versions now include recurring invoicing. In the previous version, this feature was unavailable in Simple Start.
After sending an invoice, you can track the status in real time, helping you ensure that the invoice gets paid on time. You can even set up automatic reminders to gently alert customers of overdue invoices. Additionally, unlike any other bookkeeping software we’ve reviewed, it’ll calculate the sales tax rate automatically to apply to your invoice based on the customer’s address. It then tracks your sales tax collected by jurisdiction and helps you file most required returns.
Finally, if you have QuickBooks Payments, you can set up and send a payment link where your customers can instantly pay you. Payment links only work once and will automatically expire after your customer pays their invoice. If you don’t yet have the solution, ourreview of QuickBooks Paymentscan help you decide if you should get it.
QuickBooks Online Overview
Learn how you can create and send invoices in QuickBooks Online, plus 45 other free online courses brought to you by Fit Small Business’ in-house QuickBooks ProAdvisors and accounting experts. Check out ourfree QuickBooks Online tutorials.
QuickBooks offers a free meeting with a QuickBooks ProAdvisor to help set up your new QuickBooks company, including connecting your bank account and customizing your chart of accounts. This offer is unavailable with the 30-day free trial, so be sure to select 50% off for three months as your introductory offer.
FreshBooks:最佳发票何时&免费lancers
What We Like
- Affordable for freelancers or small businesses with a single accounting user
- Can send unlimited invoices in all plans
- Add time and expense to invoice
- Can accept short payments from customers
- Lets you send invoices on your mobile device using the mobile app
Drawbacks
- Extra fee for additional users; can be expensive when adding more than three users
- Limited number of clients in less expensive plans
- Must allow access to your bank account to use bookkeeping features
- Lacks inventory management features
Features
- Lets you customize your invoice’s style, add a logo, and include a personal message
- Allows you to track outstanding invoices to create friendly reminders
- Lets you set up sales tax rates manually
- Enables you to create estimates and convert to invoices once they are approved
- Includes other useful features, like project accounting
FreshBooks has almost the same invoicing features as QuickBooks. However, since it includes only one user in all its plans, we believe it’s a more suitable option for solo business owners and freelancers.
Not only does it have great-looking invoices, but it also has all the features of a complete bookkeeping system. It accepts online payments, calculates late fees automatically, creates recurring invoices, and prints a list of outstanding invoices. Additionally, it will connect with your bank to import transactions, reconcile bank and credit card accounts, and print basic financial statements like a balance sheet and profit and loss (P&L) statement.
The main difference between QuickBooks and FreshBooks in terms of invoicing is that QuickBooks automatically calculates tax sales to apply to an invoice based on your customer’s location. With FreshBooks, you need to set up the sales tax for each state manually. See how else the two differ in ourcomparison of QuickBooks Online vs FreshBooks.
FreshBooks Overview
Invoicera: Best Standalone Invoicing Software
What We Like
- Offers a forever-free plan
- Track both receivables and payables for all businesses that you manage
- Request personalized invoice template from Invoicera
- Track staff time and expenses by project and add to invoices
- Includes a client portal where customers can pay their invoice and export it if needed
Drawbacks
- Unlimited customers are very expensive compared to other options
- Additional users require the Business plan
- Requires integration with bookkeeping software
Features
- Lets you schedule invoices to be sent at a later time
- Allows you to create recurring invoices
- Lets you create invoicing workflows
- Allows you to create tasks and assign them to your team members
- Allows you to send invoices with the mobile app
Generally, we recommend that your invoicing be integrated with your accounting system, but if you’re looking for a standalone system, Invoicera is a good choice. It combines A/R management and accounts payable (A/P) management in a single dashboard.
It allows you to create your own invoice template or select from seven templates. You can customize your invoices and schedule them to be sent at a later time. You can even request a personalized invoice template by sending your specifications to Invoicera. Additionally, the solution lets you send recurring invoices, set up and send reminders, and charge late fees.
You can also track time and expenses by project and then add them to invoices. On the downside, the software doesn’t include any accounting functions outside of A/R and A/P management and needs accounting software integration.
Overview
Zoho Invoice: Best Free Invoicing Software
What We Like
- Completely free with no hidden charges
- Wide array of invoice customization features
- Billing features for project management
- Low learning curve for existing Zoho users
Cons
- Requires a Zoho Books subscription for any bookkeeping features beyond invoicing
- Not a substitute for accounting software
- Can’t process incoming vendor invoices
- Doesn’t integrate with Zoho Inventory
- Limited invoicing features; can’t change invoice colors
Features
- Lets you set up recurring billing for free
- Allows you to create both recurring and non-recurring invoices
- Enables you to track outstanding invoices
- Includes a timesheet feature that lets you track employee time
- Record expenses from your mobile device using the mobile app
Zoho Invoice is our recommendation for a totally free invoicing software, making it suitable for very small businesses, startups, and freelancers new to invoicing. Unlike other software on this list, it doesn’t have paid options. Also, it only offers basic to intermediate invoicing features that are suitable for small businesses.
You can choose from numerous templates or create your own. You can also clone a template so that your brand remains consistent in all your sales forms. Before you can start invoicing, you can toggle on or off several settings, allowing you to enable only the features you need. For instance, you can include a detachable payment stub in snail mail to make it easier for you to track payments.
On the downside, Zoho Invoice is good for one business only. We recommend upgrading to a more sophisticated invoicing software like Invoicera if you need to manage multiple businesses under a single account. Also, while Zoho Invoice integrates with most other Zoho products, it doesn’t connect with Zoho Inventory, which we found a bit surprising since inventory and invoicing are closely linked for most companies.
Zoho发票概述
Square Invoices: Best Invoicing Software for Infrequent or Low-volume Transactions
What We Like
- Free invoicing software
- No monthly fees for credit card and automated clearing house (ACH) processing
- Easy to set up
- Milestone-invoicing for billing project completion
Drawbacks
- Basic invoicing features cannot track time and expenses
- Businesses with more than $10,000 in monthly transactions can likely find a cheaper credit card processor
- Cannot choose from multiple invoice templates
Features
- Lets you set up recurring payments to bill customers on a predefined schedule
- Allows you to collect client payments through different options, such as credit or debit card and ACH bank payments
- Enables you to build and manage Build and manage client information through the free Square Customer Directory
- Create reminders to alert customers of late invoices
广场是一个商业服务提供商没有我的thly fee, making Square Invoices a great choice if your business processes less than $10,000 per month in credit card transactions or if you’ve been using other Square services. Square Invoices, included in your free Square account, lets you offer multi-package estimates, which is useful for managing projects that require different types of work.
It has good invoicing features, along with affordable credit card processing rates for low-volume businesses. While not as feature-packed as accounting or standalone invoicing options, it does let you create, send, and track invoices online or through its mobile apps. You can also create automatic payment reminders and recurring billing.
Square Invoices Overview
ZipBooks: Best Invoicing Software With Basic Accounting Features
What We Like
- Invoices are very easy to create
- Unlimited customers with the free plan
- A/R report shows unpaid invoices
- Includes integrated time tracking features
Drawbacks
- Free plan invoices have limited customization
- Free plan doesn’t save products and services for future invoices
- Free plan includes only one user
- Lacks inventory accounting features
Features
- Lets you create recurring invoices in all its paid plans
- Enables you to record partial payments of invoices
- Allows you to track time your team spent on a project
- 通过让你评估你的发票ugh quality scores before sending it to client
ZipBooks’ accounting features aren’t as robust as QuickBooks Online, but the invoices look nice and provide a good first impression to your customers. In addition to invoicing, it offers many other basic features, such as project accounting, income and expense tracking, and banking and cash management.
When creating an invoice, ZipBooks provides a template that you can tweak with your logo before entering your sales information. You can set up general invoicing preferences, such as the ability to add your accent color, set up a credit card and PayPal for customer payments, and track taxes as payables to facilitate easier payments.
After creating an invoice, ZipBooks will automatically generate a link that you can share with your customer for easy payment collection. You can send the invoice via email and print it if needed. ZipBooks also offers a free subscription option, which is all you need to create, send, and track invoices for an unlimited number of customers.
ZipBooks Overview
TimeTracker: Best Invoicing Software for Professional Service Firms
What We Like
- Tracks hours written off vs invoiced
- Includes employee management features like GPS tracking and facial recognition
- Includes client portal
- Lets you add payment links for easier transactions
Drawbacks
- Expensive for firms with many employees
- Invoices aren’t as elegant as other options
- Must integrate with third-party software for accounting
Features
- Lets you track billable hours for client invoicing
- Allows you to create invoices using data from tracked hours and billable expenses
- Lets you set up customized rules for payments
- Enables you to create projects and track their statuses
- 可以让你上传照片s of receipts directly from your mobile device
TimeTracker by eBillity offers lawyers, accountants, engineers, and other professional service firms an invoicing option integrated with powerful time tracking features. It makes sense to combine these functions for professional service firms since billable hours are the primary item on your invoices.
What sets it apart from other invoicing options in this guide is that it tracks billable hours that are written off. A billable realization report shows the billable hours sent to clients vs written off, which is a crucial report to gauge the productivity of your professionals and the profitability of your firm.
TimeTracker Overview
How We Evaluated Invoicing Software
Choosing invoicing software requires careful consideration of the features that you need. We considered five key categories in evaluating the software listed here.
15% of Overall Score
Pricing is evaluated based on the software’s cost and limitations, including the number of clients you can manage and the number of invoices you can send.
20% of Overall Score
The best invoicing software lets you customize your invoice by adding your company logo, choosing from different templates, changing the invoice color, and adding a personalized message for your clients.
30% of Overall Score
Some of the general invoicing features we wanted to see include the ability to create recurring invoices and accept short payments from customers.
25% of Overall Score
我们检查是多么容易创建和发送invoices using the software and what types of customer service options it offers to support new users.
10% of Overall Score
We gathered unbiased user reviews from popular online review websites.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
A good invoicing software allows you to customize your invoice by adding your company logo, changing colors, and choosing from different invoicing styles. Also, it must be able to create recurring invoices and send late payment reminders to clients.
The best invoicing software depends on your needs. If you want a full-featured bookkeeping and accounting solution, you may consider QuickBooks, FreshBooks, or ZipBooks. If you only need invoicing features, a specialized invoicing software like Invoicera might be enough. If you are on a budget, try free software like Square Invoices or Zoho Invoice.
Invoicing software runs from $0 (free) to $200 per month.
No, as standalone invoicing software often lacks other essential bookkeeping features, such as project accounting, inventory management, bank reconciliation, and tracking of total assets and liabilities.
Yes, you can create invoices from your mobile device using accounting software with a mobile app, such as QuickBooks Online and FreshBooks.
Bottom Line
With these seven best invoicing software for small businesses, we hope that you’ll be able to choose an invoicing software that matches your business needs. We have presented free and paid options with varying features. To make a decision, we recommend that you consider your business’ invoicing and information needs and possible integration with existing software or migration from legacy systems.