Wave
Free invoicing and accounting for freelancers and very small businesses, with paid add-ons for bank automation, receipts and payroll.
- Starting price
- Free; Pro from $19 / month
- Hosting
- Cloud (SaaS)
Overview
Wave is invoicing and accounting software built for small business owners and solopreneurs rather than accountants. The free Starter plan carries unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and bookkeeping, recurring billing and a mobile app, and lets customers pay by credit card, bank transfer or Apple Pay. The paid Pro plan connects bank accounts and automatically imports, merges and categorizes transactions, adds custom invoice branding and automated late-payment reminders, and reduces payment-processing fees. Receipt scanning with OCR and Wave Payroll are priced separately as add-ons.
Our take
Wave makes sense when bookkeeping is a chore rather than a discipline: a freelancer can invoice, get paid and stay ready for tax time without paying anything, which very little else in this category offers. Where it stops being free is the more useful question, because the unpaid plan expects transactions to be entered by hand, so the subscription is less an upgrade than the point at which the software starts saving time. Anyone who needs receipts and payroll as well should add the three figures together before comparing it with an all-in suite, since the headline price covers none of that. Payroll and payments are built around US and Canadian rules, which settles the question for anyone filing elsewhere.
Key Facts
| Category | |
|---|---|
| Starting price | Free; Pro from $19 / month The Starter plan is free with unlimited invoicing and bookkeeping. The Pro plan adds bank connections, automatic categorization, invoice branding and reduced payment fees. Receipt scanning (from $8 / month) and Wave Payroll (from $25 / month) are paid add-ons. |
| Hosting | Cloud (SaaS) |
Screenshots
Placeholders. They are replaced as soon as the vendor sends material, and both open the same short form.
Features
- Invoicing and quotes
- Yes, unlimited professional invoices, estimates and bills on every plan, with recurring billing, online payments and automated late-payment reminders on Pro
- Bookkeeping and bank feeds
- Yes; the Pro plan connects bank accounts and auto-imports, merges and categorizes transactions, while the free Starter plan records them manually
- Expenses and receipts
- Receipt scanning with OCR is a paid add-on (from $8 / month); expenses are otherwise tracked through categorized transactions and the Tags feature
- Tax and compliance
- Through the paid Wave Payroll add-on: automatic payroll tax payments and filings with state agencies and the IRS, excluding 1099 filings, plus W-2, W-3 and 1099-NEC forms in the US and T4 and T4A slips and summaries in Canada
- Payroll
- Available as a paid add-on, Wave Payroll, from $25 / month
- Reports and exports
- Yes, financial reports and dashboard insights, with a Tags feature for tracking profitability by project or client
- Integrations and API
- Yes, a documented GraphQL API on Wave's developer portal, with OAuth applications, a single public endpoint, webhooks and an API playground
Integrations
- Plaid
Deployment and Support
- Deployment
-
- Cloud (SaaS)
- Browser-based
- Support
-
- Email helpdesk
- Chat
- Onboarding
-
- Documentation and knowledge base
- Company size
-
- Freelancers
- Small and mid-sized
Suitability
| Industry | Freelancers | Small and mid-sized | Enterprise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agencies | Stated as a fit | Stated as a fit | Not stated |
| Architecture & Engineering | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
| Consulting | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
| Media & Creative | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
| Technology | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
The table combines the industries the vendor addresses with the company sizes the tool is aimed at. An empty cell means the combination is not stated, not that it is ruled out.
Pros and Cons
Strengths
- Free Starter plan with unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and bookkeeping
- Pro plan connects bank accounts and auto-categorizes transactions
- Add-ons for receipt scanning, payroll and expert bookkeeping through Wave Advisors
- Accepts credit card, bank transfer and Apple Pay payments
Limitations
- Bank connections, invoice branding and reduced fees require the paid Pro plan
- Receipt scanning and payroll are paid add-ons rather than included
Pricing
-
Starter
Free
Unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and bookkeeping, plus the mobile app. Online payments cost 2.9% + $0.60 per transaction.
-
Pro
$19 / month
Adds bank connections with automatic import and categorization, custom invoice branding, automated late-payment reminders and reduced payment-processing fees. Also $190 / year.
Best For
Alternatives and Comparisons
FAQ
- Is Wave free?
- Wave's Starter plan is free and includes unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and bookkeeping plus the mobile app. The paid Pro plan (from $19 / month) adds bank connections, automatic categorization, invoice branding and reduced payment-processing fees.
- Does Wave include payroll?
- Payroll is a paid add-on, Wave Payroll, starting at $25 / month, rather than part of the Starter or Pro plans.
- How does Wave handle receipts?
- Receipt scanning with OCR is a paid add-on starting at $8 / month. Expenses are otherwise tracked through categorized bank transactions and the Tags feature.
What users say
Reviews
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- Not rated yet
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- Support and service
- Not rated yet
- Value for money
- Not rated yet
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