For businesses, particularly small ones without a dedicated accounting team, making mistakes or entering erroneous information on your customer’s billing can be a nightmare. Fortunately, with present technological advancements, there are now several invoicing software options that can make business transactions easier and smoother for both you and your clients.
Table of Contents:
Top 10 Best Invoicing Software
Why Use Invoicing Software?
Types of Billing and Invoicing Software
Key Features of Billing and Invoicing Software
What are the Potential Issues When Using Invoicing Software?
What are the Factors to Consider When Choosing an Invoicing Software?
Best Invoicing Software FAQs
To find the best invoicing app, look for software that not only offers basic invoicing and billing functionality but also has supplementary features that make financial management easier. Let’s learn more about invoicing software and the ten best invoice apps available today.
Top 10 Best Invoicing Software
1. FreshBooks
FreshBooks is an invoice solution that’s fairly popular among small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) and freelancers due to its intuitive design and interface. With this app, Plus and Premium plans subscribers can schedule reminders for due payments and recurring invoices so missed customer billings can be avoided. It also gives users the option to automatically add penalties to late payments.
FreshBooks offers a 30-day free trial period and three basic plans, with varying features and number of billable clients allowed: the Lite plan at $15/month, the Plus plan at $25/month, and the Premium plan at $50/month.
✅ PROS:
- Tracks billable time
- Send invoices as email or paper copy
- Multi-currency support
⛔️ CONS:
- Lacks batch-invoicing shortcuts
2. Zoho Invoice
Despite offering a wide range of services, Zoho Invoice is still easy to navigate and use. It offers a convenient way to create and customize invoices, as well as track billable time and expenses. It has some automation features like recurring payment reminders and automated workflows for smooth, seamless transactions.
Zoho Invoice offers a free plan that gives access to several of its features but has a billing cap of five clients. It has three paid plans with varying client caps: the Basic $9/month plan, the Standard $19/month, and the Professional $29/month.
✅ PROS:
- Informative dashboard
- Retainer invoicing
- Reporting capabilities
⛔️ CONS:
- Limited merchant integration options
3. Wave
Designed especially for small business owners, Wave is a completely free invoice app. It offers invoicing, accounting, and billing features. Although there are standard fees for payments and payrolls, this scheme ensures that you only pay for the services you need.
It also has a good user interface with an easy-to-read dashboard, so you’d be able to see the state of your invoices in one glance.
✅ PROS:
- Automatic books update
- Accepts payment from all major credit cards
- Receipt scanning
⛔️ CONS:
- Lacks time-tracking features
- May not be ideal for large businesses
4. Invoice2Go
Invoice2Go provides a good range of features that help you manage billing and invoicing but it also enables you to quickly assess your business’s financial condition through reports. It features an invoice tracker that lets you see if your clients have read your sent invoices and allows you to set schedules for follow-ups. It also has expense and time tracking features that make keeping tabs on your expenditures and billable time easier.
Invoice2Go offers annual plans, with rates that may vary per location, and with each plan offering a higher cap on clients and invoices than the lower plans. There’s the Lite plan at $59.99/year, the Standard plan at $119.88/year, the Advanced plan at $239.88/year, and the Unlimited plan at $407.88.
✅ PROS:
- Variety of billing options
- Professional-looking invoice templates
- Automated reminders
⛔️ CONS:
- Not as visually sophisticated as other options
- Wide disparity of features between plans
5. BQE Core
BQE Core is a customizable invoicing software that assists you in the billing and accounting aspects of your business while also offering time tracking and project monitoring services. What makes it distinctive is its modular design—it allows you to add only the services that you need. It features a comprehensive monitoring system for budgets, projects, and people, so you can effectively run and keep track of your business.
BQE Core offers a 15-day free trial and offers four plans for SMBs. There’s the Time and Expense at $11.95/month, the Manager and the Billing plans both at $23.95/month, and the Accounting plan at $29.95/month. Prices may go lower if you avail of the annual or the 3-year plan.
✅ PROS:
- Automated workflow processes
- Customizable dashboard
- Native mobile apps
⛔️ CONS:
- Learning the software may take some getting used to
6. Xero
Xero’s streamlined processes and smooth navigation make it one of the easiest invoicing software to use. It lets you manage inventory, sales, purchases, expenses, and bills with no difficulty, and it also offers additional features like mobile integration and bill tracking. Transactions are made easy with its ready-made templates for purchase orders, quotes, bills, invoices, and credit notes.
Xero offers three subscription plans after a 30-day free trial, with different limits and available features: the $20/month Starter plan, the $30/month Standard plan, and the $40/month Premium plan.
✅ PROS:
- Functional and flexible expenses tool
- Smart sales tax lookup
- Real-time communication with customers
⛔️ CONS:
- Lacks time billing
- Fewer invoice customization and layout options
7. QuickBooks
What sets QuickBooks apart from the other invoicing software is its transaction fees, which are among the lowest in its category. It offers quality invoicing services that help you keep track of expenses, sales, profits, and sales tax. Even with the basic plan, you can send out an unlimited number of invoices. Meanwhile, the higher plans support multi-currencies and generate sales quotes.
With QuickBooks, you can choose from a 30-day free trial and three paid plans with different user caps. Each of these plans enables you to grant access to your accountant: the $15/month Simple Start plan, the $23/month Essentials plan, and the $31/month Plus plan. You can get 50% off on all plans if you choose to buy straight without the free trial.
✅ PROS:
- Inventory tracker
- Creates purchase order
- Tracks job profitability
⛔️ CONS:
- Transaction fees climb depending on the payment type
8. Invoicely
Invoicely boasts easy operation and seamless navigation, plus a free plan that lets you send an unlimited number of invoices to unlimited clients. It also features automated workflow and reminders, scheduled payments, customization, and management of multiple businesses. Its encrypted server systems secure your private invoicing data, so you don’t have to worry about any leaks.
Invoicely also offers three paid plans with different user caps: the $9.99/month Basic plan, the $19.99/month Professional plan, and the $29.99/month Enterprise plan.
✅ PROS:
- Time, mileage, and expenses tracker
- Dynamic reports and financial statements
- Contact database
⛔️ CONS:
- No mobile app
- Lacks tax calculator
9. Invoicera
Besides offering the basic features and functionality of invoicing software, Invoicera also facilitates interaction between businesses and their clients, thus simplifying account management. It features attractive invoice templates and the ability to send invoices in twenty-five international languages. It also has templates for estimate management and easy project monitoring on the dashboard.
Invoicera offers a free Starter plan with limited features, and a 15-day free trial for its three paid plans, which have various caps on clients and staff: the $15/month Pro plan, the $29/month Business plan, and the $149/month Infinite plan.
✅ PROS:
- Financial forecasting
- Invoice mobile apps
- Legacy systems integration
⛔️ CONS:
- Limited reporting and time tracking
- Lacks live bank feeds
10. InvoiceNinja
With its wide array of features, even in its Forever Free plan, InvoiceNinja makes invoicing easy for small businesses and entrepreneurs who are just starting out. It offers branding customization for invoices, project and task management with Kanban boards, a client activity tracker, and tax rate settings. Paid plans offer further customization of the URL as well as password protection for client-side portals.
InvoiceNinja offers two paid plans: the $10/month Ninja Pro plan that comes with a 15-day free trial, and the Enterprise plan that starts at $14/month for 1-2 users, $26/month for 3-5 users, $36/month for 6-10 users, and $44/month for 11-20 users.
✅ PROS:
- Proposals creation
- Real-time creation of invoice PDF
- Automatic currency conversions
⛔️ CONS:
- Limited invoice design templates
Why Use Invoicing Software?
Some of the major benefits of switching from manual paper-based billing to invoicing software are being able to save on costs and time through streamlined and unified processes and having data accuracy. In a 2018 survey, the identified advantages associated with electronic invoicing include improved productivity, better management of cash flow and working capital, and reduction of deadlines.
The modernized processes, with their efficiency and heightened accuracy, also improve the quality of relationships between businesses and their clients. According to research conducted by New York-based business magazine Inc., giving your clients an option to pay online increases your chances of getting paid by 30%. You also increase the likelihood of getting paid by 50% if you issue the invoice on the same day.
Types of Billing and Invoicing Software
There are different kinds of billing and invoicing software that are distinguished by their functions and the company type they’re most compatible with. However, general types of software can be categorized by deployment:
- Cloud-based systems
Cloud-based systems, which comprise our list of the best invoicing software today, have their data stored and processed in a network of remote servers on the Internet rather than on local servers. This makes it easy to access them on-demand. - Software-as-a-Service systems
Rather than remote servers, SaaS systems are hosted on the business’s servers, although the installation and maintenance are not shouldered by the business owner. There are regular metering and billing for services rendered. - On-premises systems
On-premises systems are hosted within the client’s local IT infrastructure, which may require complex installation and hardware setups. They’re more expensive due to maintenance costs and upkeep.
Key Features of Billing and Invoicing Software
As the name suggests, billing and invoicing software create invoices and facilitate billings and payments. But to go further into the key features of the best invoice software, they typically offer the following services:
- Creation of professional invoices
The best invoicing software provides clear, professional-looking invoices that can draw from the information you’ve already inputted in the app. This information can include timesheets, projects, and customer records. The best apps also provide a variety of templates to choose from, as well as branding customization options. - Creation of a centralized customer database
This feature allows for easy tracking and management of your client’s records. It lets you see the invoices sent to each client and their pertinent purchase information. The best apps allow you to sort these records through filter options, and they also let you import or export contacts for easy look-up. - Accepts online modes of payment
Besides the creation of invoices and client database, the best billing software also enables you to accept various modes of payment online, especially credit card payments. This allows for recurring billing and automatic payment so that your client never misses a due date. - Multi-currency setting
This feature is especially helpful for businesses with international clients, as this allows for the acceptance of multiple currencies. This way, your client can conveniently pay their bills using their own currency while the billing and invoicing software does the work of conversion to ensure that you get paid the right amount. - Generation of reports
The best invoice software includes this feature to help you get a one-glance summary of your invoices and your financial records. The more competitive ones provide more options for reporting, complete with visually appealing bars and graphs for better information presentation. These reports may also include tax reports to help you keep track of your GST.
What are the Potential Issues When Using Invoicing Software?
While using an invoicing software definitely makes financial transactions that involve invoices and payments much easier, there are still some potential issues that business owners should be wary of.
Global transactions
For businesses that operate on a global scale, a potential issue is streamlining international transactions, especially with regards to compliance requirements and taxes.
Data security
As with any online transaction, there’s a risk of a possible data breach by determined hackers. While most invoicing software offer encrypted security systems to protect your data, it’s still best to implement additional protection systems.
What are the Factors to Consider When Choosing an Invoicing Software?
With the variety of invoicing software available today, you can narrow down your choices by focusing on the features that you especially need for your business. Initially, you can consider the following factors:
- Branding fit
When choosing an invoice software, try to look at how it fits in your business’s branding and context. Go for the one that offers the services you really need but also gives you options for branding customization. This helps in keeping a professional yet identifiable invoice look. - Security
Security is a top concern for any transaction, especially those that are done online. Review the security systems put in place by the invoicing software carefully. This also helps in allaying your clients’ worries. - Additional features
Some invoicing apps offer additional features like the ability to communicate with your clients in real-time, which helps in centralizing communication and facilitating data-sharing. Beyond invoicing and payment processing, consider what else you might need from your invoicing software and check which ones offer that.
Conclusion
Invoicing software is one of the useful financial technologies available today, as it helps fast-track accurate billings and facilitate secure payments. If you want a more comprehensive accounting of your finances and bookkeeping services, take a look at our list of the 10 best accounting software.
Best Invoicing Software FAQs
What is the best free invoice app?
The best choice depends on the features that you need, but our recommendation for the best free invoice app is Wave. It offers great functionality plus added features like receipt scanning.
What is the best small business invoice software?
QuickBooks is our pick for the best invoice software for small businesses, as it offers the lowest range of transaction fees among apps of the same type. It also offers unlimited invoices even with its Basic plan.
Are an invoice and a receipt the same?
An invoice is issued as a request for payment and indicates the amount due. A receipt is issued after the payment as confirmation that the amount has been paid.
What is the best invoice app for iPhone?
FreshBooks is one of the most popular invoice apps for iPhone and our pick for the best. Its easy mobile interface makes creating invoices and tracking time and expenses very convenient.
What is the difference between invoicing and billing?
They both contain the same information, but the invoice is generated and sent by the business, which the customer receives as a billing. They’re both technically the same but called differently by the two parties involved.