Who doesn’t love to get paid? Especially when you are a freelancer!

But do you still need help preparing invoices using manual methods? If yes, then you need invoicing software for freelancers. Small businesses and freelancers can benefit from invoicing or billing software as it simplifies creating and sending invoices, allowing them to focus on tasks rather than chasing client payments.

One of the things about billing and invoicing software is that most of them are free. In this article, we will explore the best invoice software for freelancers with features like project management, receiving online payments, time tracking, recurring invoices, automatic payment reminders, etc.

We will analyze their features and pricing plans (including any modules like add-ons) and discuss the critical factors to consider when selecting the most suitable software for your business. Ultimately, making the right choice is crucial as it directly impacts your business operations.

10 Best Invoicing Software for Freelancers in 2024

The freelance invoice software is the one that strikes a balance between user friendliness and having a range of valuable features. These tools enable you to efficiently convert estimates and projects into invoices, which can be sent to customers for payment.

While there are options for billing software available, we have narrowed it down to the top 10 choices tailored explicitly for small businesses.

Given the abundance of features and capabilities offered by free billing or accounting software, it can take time to determine which would suit your needs best. Some free plans limit the number of customers included, while others allow an unlimited number of invoices to be generated.

The finest free billing software doesn’t charge anything extra but has some limitations. For instance, they all work with the most popular payment gateways, but not all free plans provide that option.

While no monthly costs are associated with the free plan, transaction fees may be assessed by the payment processor. For these reasons, it’s essential to review what each supplier provides in terms of paid plans in case you subsequently wish to upgrade as your company expands.

1. Moon Invoice

When it comes to unlimited invoicing for free, the first name that comes into our mind is Moon Invoice.

You can effectively send infinite invoices to all of your customers, vendors, and service providers when you use Moon Invoice, the finest invoicing software for freelancers. Estimates, invoices, and reports on expenditures can all be prepared rapidly and straightforwardly.

To facilitate simple retail payment processing, the billing and invoicing software incorporates the POS billing app and functions for monitoring the passage of time. Downloading and installing this application is possible on desktop computers operating Windows or Mac OS X and on Android or iOS mobile devices. It is the market’s most superior app for creating invoices. A user-friendly interface and customizable branding are also features of this product.

Customers can pay using over twenty different payment methods supported by this all-in-one solution software. Invoices are generated automatically, and the program includes a “pay now” option. Getting paid is a straightforward and speedy process.

Our web-based billing system provides a unique feature referred to as “Proforma Invoice” that is not offered by other free invoicing software that is comparable. As a consequence of this, it is simple for you to produce an unlimited number of proforma invoices for the sake of clearing customs. You may turn pro forma invoices into paid invoices with just a single click and then connect those paid invoices straight to whatever payment system you want.

Top Features

  • Invoice Customization for Drafting Professional Invoices
  • Unlimited Invoices + Proforma Invoices
  • Automatic Payment Reminders
  • Invoice Tracking
  • Multiple Payment Options
  • Inventory and Stock Management
  • Expense Management
  • Invoices for Unlimited Customers
  • 24-hour Customer Support
  • Exclusive POS Module
  • Bank Reconciliation
  • Delivery Challan
  • Sales Receipts
  • Time-Tracking
  • Project Management
  • Send Invoices on WhatsApp + Email

Pricing

The pricing structure of Moon Invoice’s invoicing tool comes in 3 main plans: Bronze, Silver and Gold. For individual prices and packages – You can check them out here.

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2. Invoice Ninja

Invoice Ninja offers more than an invoicing system. Recently, it has focused on enhancing its project management features, such as Kanban boards and time tracking. Since my initial evaluation, the user interface has improved, and now version 5 is over. To this day, it can be overwhelming and confusing.

With Invoice Ninja, you can create an inventory list for your items, effectively manage projects and tasks and utilize billing tools. You can send invoices and quotations to up to 50 customers. The best part is that you can quickly expand your business globally as Invoice Ninja supports a range of 45 payment channels.

Speaking of sending invoice clients, Invoice Ninja keeps you informed by notifying you when a customer views or pays an invoice. Customers have access to their invoices and payment details through a protected gateway.

This way, you can strengthen your relationship with them without bothering them for payments or investing heavily in efforts to retain them as users.

Top Features

As we talk about invoicing tools that can be used for free, here are some of their features.

  • 20 Clients + Unlimited Invoicing
  • 4 Professional Invoice Templates
  • Brand Invoices with Your Logo
  • Accept Payments Online with a Click
  • Auto-Billing & Recurring Invoices
  • Product Item Library Management
  • Inventory Management
  • Create Projects & Track Billable Time
  • Manage Projects with Kanban Boards
  • Setup Vendors & Track Expenses
  • Taxes per line item or Invoice Total
  • Alerts when Invoices are Viewed & Paid

Pricing

There are three pricing modules available at the Invoice Ninja. One is the free one, the next is Ninja Pro, which is about 100$ per year, and the enterprise plan is about 140$ per year for 1-2 users.

3. Zoho Invoice

Zoho Invoice software has proven invaluable for businesses as it enables the automation of invoicing processes, leading to growth. It is one of the many SaaS solutions offered by Zoho, playing a role in their success.

Zoho Invoice offers a range of features, including types of invoices (recurring, retainer, credit notes) estimations and accepts online payments in multiple currencies through 10 different payment channels.

However, the automated features are what set Zoho Invoice apart. There will be premade invoice/estimate templates and a means to set one’s payment reminders and in-app alerts.

But the actual value arises from you triggering automation to activate unique discounts or late payment fines based on how early your customers pay you.

Top Features

Pricing

Taking Zoho as the best free invoicing software, here is the pricing structure:

Zoho is entirely free to use when it comes to creating invoices. If you need a solution for complex billing needs, then contact the Zoho Expert Team.

4. Hiveage

Hiveage, formerly CurdBee, is a user billing platform designed for contractors.

Setting up the framework is a breeze. The developers have stripped away any elements, resulting in an interface that is easy to navigate. Adding an invoice is as straightforward as inputting your business bank account details and customer information (using a CRM).

The organized Dashboard provides all the information about your cash flow for the current fiscal year and a profit and loss statement with a comparison between accounts receivable and accounts payable. It’s convenient to have the Track tab, where you can monitor time estimates and mileage all in one place, making it easy from a design standpoint.

One standout feature of Hiveage is its gem called Multi profiles. Simply put, you can add businesses under one account. Combine this with support for 30 languages and various payment channels. You have a billing and invoicing solution to manage multiple side businesses.

Thanks to its emphasis on simplicity and ease of use, I encountered issues while using Hiveage. It stands out as top-notch invoicing software for freelancers since the freemium plan allows unlimited billing for up to five customers.

However, there may be more suitable choices than Hiveage if you want accounting features.

Top Features

  • Offline Payments
  • Tax Calculator
  • Payment Reminders
  • Quotes (Estimates)
  • Payment Processing
  • Contact Database
  • Recurring (Subscription Billing)
  • Project Billing
  • Online Payments
  • Track Payments
  • Online Invoicing
  • Mobile Payments
  • Invoice History
  • Hourly Billing / Billable Hours
  • Customizable Invoices
  • Customer Portal
  • Multi-Currency

Pricing

Talking more about cloud-based invoicing software Hiveage, below is the pricing structure:

  • Free
  • Basic (16$ per month)
  • Pro (25$ per month)
  • Plus (42$ per month)

5. Harvest

Harvest is a tool for tracking time and creating invoices, making it ideal for freelancers and business owners who prefer a user interface. One of the things that sets Harvest apart is its easy learning curve, with onboarding and quick feature tour guides to get you started.

In the “Invoices” module, there’s an Overview that displays all the invoices issued within the year, along with the balance of those invoices. While this feature is pretty neat, I did encounter an issue when I marked some invoices as paid – the balance didn’t update in the Overview. The timeline remained unchanged.

If you need information about your invoices in a CSV or Excel format, a handy “Report” tab allows you to filter your invoices based on timeframe clients or status.

Creating an invoice is simple once you know how it works. After sending out an invoice, you can set up reminder emails, write it off if necessary, or even create recurring invoices for repeat clients.

While Harvest works well for freelancers and project managers alike, it may not be as suitable for employees who want to track their work summaries without manually calculating their time entries. Many users have found this challenging when they need admin privileges.

If you’re a freelancer or a small business owner, sending invoices should be fine if you’re looking for a tool that effectively combines time tracking and invoicing. It’s something we find essential.

Top Features

  • API
  • Accounting Integration
  • Activity Tracking
  • Alerts/Notifications
  • Attendance Tracking
  • Billable & Non-Billable Hours
  • Billable Items Tracking
  • Expense Tracking
  • Invoice Management
  • Mobile Access
  • Mobile Time Tracking
  • Progress Tracking
  • Project Management Tools
  • Project Time Tracking

Pricing

Harvest comes in 2 plans

  • Free
  • Pro Plan – $10.80 per seat per month, billed yearly

6. Invoicely

Like an invoicing tool, Invoicely offers a streamlined solution for small businesses and freelancers with a limited customer base.

With a glance, you can easily access information such as the number of invoices and expenses submitted, the amount of money in your accounts receivable and accounts payable, the number of payments received, and your recent activity. Invoicely allows users to create invoices, bills and estimates, manage customer details, track time spent on projects and monitor costs.

You can send up to five invoices each month with Invoicely if you wish to keep track of your time spent on projects or tasks, manage finances effectively, including mileage tracking, create estimates (also known as quotes), or brand your company documents with a personalized touch; upgrading to a premium plan would be required.

Top Features

  • Effortless Invoicing
  • Accept Online Payments
  • Track Time, Expenses & Mileage
  • Manage Multiple Businesses

Pricing

While discussing invoicing features, here is the pricing structure:

  • Free plan for $0.00 per month
  • Basic plan for $9.99 per month
  • Professional plan for $19.99 per month
  • Enterprise plan for $29.99 per month

7. FreshBooks

It might be challenging for you to find software that also includes accounting functions. Finding software that offers invoicing capabilities and a comprehensive set of tools for creating invoices is even more work. That’s why FreshBooks is the solution for businesses of all sizes.

FreshBooks simplifies Accounting by providing templates that can be quickly generated and adjusted. Along with a range of features, FreshBooks makes the process more efficient and suitable for companies of different sizes.

Additionally, new users can take advantage of a 30-day trial period offered by FreshBooks.

Top Features

  • Invoicing
  • Faster Payments
  • Mobile App
  • Expense Tracking
  • Project Management and Time Tracking
  • Integration
  • Assign User Role

Pricing

It comes in the following prices:

  • Lite – $ 3.40 USD/mo
  • Plus – $ 6.00 USD/mo
  • Premium – $ 11.00 USD/mo

8. Wave Invoicing

Despite its popularity, especially among the proprietors of small businesses, Wave Invoicing, an invoicing software for freelancers, has not fared well in our rankings because of its occasional sluggishness. The UI may also sometimes be the easiest to use.

Instead, Wave is free and includes three parts: an invoicing software (for creating and sending invoices for payment), an accounting app (for monitoring income and expenses), and a receipt scanning app (for scanning receipts using a mobile device to keep track of outlays).

Automated late-payment reminders, branded invoice templates, mobile invoicing administration, customer-invoice view tracking, automatic cloud backups, and so forth are all advanced features you require from your invoicing system.

Wave’s services, which include customer limits, are free unless you use their payroll administration or online payment processing. Without these caveats, Wave becomes one of the best no-cost freelancer tools available.

Top Features

  • Invoicing
  • Tax Support
  • Estimates
  • Contact Management
  • Expense Tracking
  • Accounts Payable
  • Inventory
  • Unlimited Customers
  • No. of reports (limited in free version)

Pricing

If you are using Wave Invoicing to create recurring invoices, it is free for Invoicing and Accounting tools, but when you accept payments using Wave – it is chargeable.

9. Bonsai

Bonsai has gained popularity as a favored platform for freelancers and small companies. Aside from being a project management tool, Bonsai simplifies collaboration and management processes. It was specifically created to empower experts by allowing them to focus on their work rather than spend time and effort learning a system. Bonsai caters to proprietors, small firms and freelancers who seek a way to handle financial and administrative tasks.

Top Features

  • Cost accounting and billing
  • Bonsai also provides tools for organizing work
  • Legal Advice related to Tax

Pricing

You may choose between a monthly and annual subscription to Bonsai. Their starting plan is geared toward freelancers or small contractors and offers tools like templates, scheduling, unrestricted invoicing for freelancers, and payments.

Each user will cost you $25 per month if you pay every month. This package costs $21 per month per user if paid yearly.

10. Momenteo

Momenteo is a freelancer invoicing software. It provides a way to send invoices once assignments are completed.

With the help of Momenteo’s customization features, freelancers can enhance their brand’s credibility and professionalism. The app also offers a progress tracking feature for invoices, which is particularly beneficial for those who manage recurring bills. This eliminates the hassle of following up with customers who have not received their invoices.

Although Momenteos’ free plan includes all its functionalities and allows up to two customers, it doesn’t include payment processing. The paid tiers start at 5.50 USD per month.

Top Features

  • Accounting Dashboard
  • Dashboard & Reports
  • Billing & Invoicing
  • Client Portal
  • Custom Invoices
  • Late Payment Reminder
  • Payment Follow-Up
  • Sending Invoices by Email
  • Customer Support
  • Online Payment
  • Expenses Monitoring
  • Travel Expenses Management
  • Sales Force Automation

Pricing

  • It Starts from 5.95$ per month for freelancers.

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Tips to Choose the Best Invoicing Tool

To find the invoicing tool that suits your needs, you should consider some factors.

First, start by assessing your business requirements. What features and functionalities do you need? This includes how you handle invoices, your preferred payment methods, and any customization options you might want.
After that, look at the user interface (UI) of the tools you’re considering. It should be—User-friendly to attract attention effectively.

When evaluating tools, prioritize those that offer automation capabilities like recurring billing. These features can significantly reduce your workload. Minimize errors.

Scalability is another aspect to think about. Choose the best invoice software for freelancers that can grow alongside your company as it expands.

Additionally, make sure to investigate the data protection protocols implemented by each tool provider. Your business’s sensitive information should be safeguarded adequately.

Consider various pricing options available in the market. Select an invoicing tool with a price point that aligns with your budget while providing a return on investment.

Reading customer reviews and testimonials can provide insights into an invoicing tool’s ease of use and reliability.

Lastly, double-check if the solution seamlessly integrates with your company’s software.

As a freelancer or as small business owners can select the best invoicing software that aligns with your unique business requirements by evaluating these criteria.

FAQs