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Our take
Wave is the best free accounting software for freelancers, full stop: unlimited invoices and real double-entry bookkeeping at $0. No time tracking and US/CA-only payouts are the price of free — acceptable tradeoffs for most non-hourly freelancers.
Pricing and plan limits checked against Wave’s official pricing page on September 25, 2026. How we research
How we scored Wave
Editorial scores from our published rubric — our judgment, not user ratings. Each category is scored 1–10, then combined by weight into the total below.
| Category | Weight | Score / 10 | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing & value | 25% | 10 | Free unlimited invoicing plus real bookkeeping. |
| Invoicing quality | 25% | 8 | Strong invoicing; no native time tracking. |
| Payments | 15% | 6 | Payouts to US/CA banks only; 2.9% + 60¢. |
| Freelancer workflow | 20% | 6 | No time tracking or mileage on any plan. |
| Support & reliability | 10% | 6 | Adequate; no phone support. |
| Transparency | 5% | 9 | The free plan is exactly as advertised. |
| Weighted total | 100% | 7.7 / 10 | |
Hands-on test: we tried Wave ourselves
Tested September 26, 2026 on the Wave Starter (free) plan. We signed up for a real Wave Starter account and created a test invoice end to end — kept as a draft, never sent. No credit card or phone verification was required to register.
- Creating an invoice is genuinely quick: customer, line item, per-line tax, discount, notes, and income account are all on one page, with subtotals computed automatically.
- New accounts have no preset tax rates — opening the tax dropdown launches a “Create a new tax” dialog (name, rate, income account) instead of a rate list.
- The “Add item” button grayed out after one line item for no apparent reason — a minor, confusing hiccup.
- “Payment due” defaults to “On receipt”, and its relationship to the date field beside it is not obvious at a glance.
- “Save and send…” sits right next to the draft actions in the More actions menu — easy to misclick; the safe way to keep a draft is “Save and continue”.
- Draft invoices show a clear yellow “This is a DRAFT invoice” banner and a Create → Send → Manage payments timeline, so you always know an invoice hasn’t gone out.
- The free plan keeps a “Powered by Wave” footer (removable on Pro) and shows an “Online Payments OFF” badge with setup prompts — visible but not pushy.
Wave pricing
Unlimited invoices, estimates, bills; bookkeeping; expense tracking
Per business, adds receipt capture and lower processing fees
Bookkeeping help from real accountants
- Free plan: Starter plan is free: unlimited invoices, estimates and bills, plus bookkeeping and expense tracking.
- Receipt capture add-on is $11/mo or $96/yr, and is included in the Pro plan.
- Payroll available from $25–$40/mo.
- Payment processing on Starter: 2.9% + $0.60 per transaction (3.4% + $0.60 for Amex); Pro lowers it to 2.9% + $0 for the first 10 transactions each month.
- Online payment payouts go only to US and Canadian bank accounts.
Key features
- Unlimited professional invoices on the free plan
- Full double-entry bookkeeping, free
- Expense tracking with bank import (Pro) and receipt OCR
- Online payments on invoices (US and Canada only)
- Tax reports: balance sheet, income statement, cash vs. accrual
- Multi-currency invoicing in 160+ currencies
- iOS and Android apps
Pros and cons
Wave: pros
- Genuinely free core accounting with unlimited invoicing and real double-entry books
- Fast, simple setup
- Multi-currency invoicing suits freelancers with international clients
Wave: cons
- No native time tracking, mileage tracking, or 1099 filing on any plan
- Payment payouts only to US/Canadian bank accounts
- Fewer integrations and less report customization than QuickBooks
Who is Wave best for?
Budget-conscious solo freelancers who need free, unlimited invoicing and real bookkeeping — and don’t bill by the hour.
Affiliate note: Wave runs an official affiliate program, but the commission rate is not publicly disclosed.
Wave FAQs
Is Wave really free?
Yes. The Starter plan is free and includes unlimited invoices, estimates, bills, bookkeeping, and expense tracking. The $19/mo Pro plan adds receipt capture and lower processing fees. Wave earns from payment processing, not subscriptions.
Does Wave have time tracking?
No — Wave has no native time tracking on any plan. If you bill by the hour, look at FreshBooks or Bonsai instead.
Can I accept online payments with Wave?
Yes, you can accept card payments on invoices. Note that payouts go only to US and Canadian bank accounts.
Is Wave good for freelancers?
It’s the best free option for budget-conscious freelancers who don’t bill hourly — unlimited invoicing plus genuine double-entry books at no cost.
Sources
Pricing and plan details verified against the sources above on September 25, 2026. Vendors change pricing often — confirm on the official page before buying.