Invoicing software should not cost more than the invoices you send. This guide ranks every major invoicing tool by actual price, focusing on what freelancers and small businesses actually need - professional invoices, payment tracking, and basic expense management.
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Tier 1: Completely Free
Wave $0 - Best Free
Wave is the gold standard for free invoicing. Unlimited invoices, unlimited clients, online payments, recurring invoices, and receipt scanning. Wave makes money from payment processing (2.9% + 30 cents) and payroll add-ons, so the core invoicing is genuinely free forever.
- Invoices: Unlimited
- Clients: Unlimited
- Features: Recurring invoices, online payments, receipt scanning
- Catch: Payment processing fees apply for online payments
Zoho Invoice Free $0 - 5 Clients
Zoho Invoice is free for up to 5 clients with unlimited invoices. You get automated payment reminders, online payments, time tracking, and multi-currency support. For freelancers with a small client base, this covers everything.
- Clients: Up to 5
- Invoices: Unlimited
- Features: Time tracking, expenses, payment reminders
- Catch: 5-client limit on free plan
Tier 2: Under $10/Month
Zoho Invoice Basic $4/mo
At $4/month, Zoho Invoice Basic removes the client limit and adds automated workflows, client portal, and snail mail invoicing. This is the cheapest paid invoicing software that offers a full professional feature set.
- Clients: 50
- Automation: Payment reminders, recurring invoices
- Client portal: Clients view and pay online
- Price: $4/mo billed annually
Invoice Ninja Free/Pro $0 or $10/mo
Invoice Ninja is open-source invoicing software. The free plan supports 100 clients. The Pro plan at $10/month adds custom branding, proposals, and purchase orders. You can also self-host the open-source version for free with no limits.
- Free: 100 clients, unlimited invoices
- Pro: Unlimited clients, proposals, purchase orders
- Self-host: Free with no limits
- Price: Free or $10/mo
Tier 3: $10-$20/Month
FreshBooks Lite $17/mo
FreshBooks Lite supports 5 clients at $17/month. More expensive than alternatives, but FreshBooks has the best invoicing UX in the market. Time tracking, expense tracking, and the most professional-looking invoices out of the box.
- Clients: 5
- Features: Time tracking, expenses, proposals
- UX: Best-in-class invoice design
- Price: $17/mo (often discounted first year)
Complete Pricing Table
| Tool | Price/Mo | Free Tier | Clients | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wave | $0 | Unlimited | Unlimited | Best free overall |
| Zoho Invoice Free | $0 | 5 clients | 5 | Zoho users |
| Invoice Ninja Free | $0 | 100 clients | 100 | Open source |
| Zoho Invoice Basic | $4 | N/A | 50 | Cheapest paid |
| Invoice Ninja Pro | $10 | N/A | Unlimited | Full features |
| FreshBooks Lite | $17 | Trial | 5 | Best UX |
Bottom Line
For free invoicing, Wave is the clear winner with unlimited everything. For the cheapest paid plan, Zoho Invoice at $4/month is the floor. If UX matters most, FreshBooks is worth the premium for its polished invoice templates.
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