6 Best Invoicing and Billing Software

As a business owner, staying on top of your finances is essential for the success of your business. But tracking expenses, creating invoices and managing payments can be time-consuming and complicated. That's why using one of the best invoicing software can help you organize and streamline your financial process, saving you both time and money.

And not only can the right invoicing software make processing bills and payments easier, but many also offer other features that can help you automate processes and minimize mistakes, such as expense tracking and automatic reminders. Read on for our top recommendations for the best billing software.

Our Top Picks for Best Invoicing and Billing Software

• FreshBooks - Best for Integrations
• Zoho Invoice - Best Free Option
• Square Invoices - Best for Product-Based Businesses
• Xero - Best Accounting Software
• QuickBooks - Best for Ease of Use
• Invoicera - Best for Inventory Management

Best Invoicing and Billing Software Reviews

Whether you are looking for a simple invoicing solution or more advanced billing software, these six programs are sure to meet your needs:

Why we chose this company: FreshBooks is one of the best invoicing software solutions on the market. It makes billing fast and simple with an intuitive user interface, comprehensive billing features and easy-to-use expense-tracking tools. The software is designed for efficiency, allowing business owners to quickly create invoices, manage payments, set up late payment reminders and view real-time reports on billing trends.

FreshBooks boasts professional-looking invoice templates, billing and payment tracking, and over 100 integrations with well-known tools and platforms like PayPal, Asana, Google Drive, WordPress and more. Businesses can also access their account on the go via FreshBooks' mobile app.

Why we chose this company: Zoho Invoice is the best invoice software solution for those on a budget. It doesn’t just offer a free trial but is free for life for all customers (and you don’t need to provide a credit card). However, if you require features beyond basic billing, such as payroll, you will need to pay. Additionally, Zoho will require some customization to get started, but on the plus side, your invoices can match your brand.

You can bill your clients in the appropriate currency for their particular area with the help of Zoho Invoice's multi-currency invoice processing support. Furthermore, the billing software supports 17 languages, yet another great feature for companies that do business internationally. Chat and voice support are not available to Zoho Invoice customers, who have access to an FAQ library and customer service email instead.

Why we chose the company: Square Invoices is a service provided by Square, which is well known for its Point of Sale (POS) product for physical businesses. As such, Square's billing software is our top pick for product-based businesses, especially those already using Square. Existing Square users are already familiar with the processing fees, and will not be surprised that there are fees for invoices paid by card (2.9% + 30 cents) and ACH bank transfer (1% + $1) as well.

With Square Invoices, small business owners can generate and track unlimited invoices and estimates. Users can create bills quickly, and send and track invoices, though these cannot be customized on the free plan.

The user-friendly program makes it simple for product-based business owners to manage their billing process in one place. Square Invoices also offers a range of useful features, including automated billing reminders, invoice templates and expense-tracking tools, making it an all-in-one billing solution.

Why we chose this company: Xero boasts a solid reputation among small business owners as accounting software, of sorts. Along with invoicing, Xero includes useful accounting automation services such as bank rules, account reconciliation, automatic invoicing reminders and recurring invoices. Moreover, you will also have access to countless plugins and extensive accounting capabilities depending on the plan you choose. This makes Xero the billing software best for business owners who also need accounting tools.

With Xero, you can keep track of your inventory and thoroughly record your company's tax status, purchases and transaction information. It also features an intuitive dashboard that makes tracking receipts simple and security features such as a multiple-approval model with two-factor authentication for shared invoices.

Why we chose this company: Intuit's QuickBooks is easy to use and offers a wide range of features. Users can create invoices, track payments and manage bills and expenses. It also simplifies billing and bookkeeping through invoice templates, tracking tools and automatic billing reminders.

Thanks to its intuitive dashboard and user-friendly design, even new users will be able to navigate QuickBooks with ease. Numerous positive user reviews further confirm QuickBooks is one of the best billing software for ease of use.

QuickBooks can calculate sales tax rates based on your customer’s address and automatically apply them to the invoice. It then tracks collected sales tax by jurisdiction, creates reports and allows you to pay directly from the software. Quickbooks also integrates seamlessly with Intuit’s Turbotax, a well-known tax software that can help you file your business and personal tax returns.

Why we chose this company: Invoicera billing software is a cloud-based solution for businesses that need to manage invoicing, time tracking and subscription billing. It also integrates with several other business apps, making it easy to manage your invoices, expenses and staff from one place. The free version is sufficient for solopreneurs with only a few clients, but if you want to add staff and more than three clients, you will need to upgrade to a paid plan.

Invoicera is the best invoice software for industries needing inventory management, such as hotels and restaurants. The software allows you to track inventory levels and view stock history. It can help you in optimizing your stock expenditures to reduce costs.

Other companies we considered

Invoice Ninja

Invoice Ninja's forever-free plan gives you access to many basic functionalities, allowing you to create professional invoices and set up auto-billing. However, if you have more than 20 clients or want to put your own branding on your invoices, you will need to upgrade to a relatively expensive paid plan.

For freelancers with a small number of clients, Invoice Ninja is a solid free billing software that can generate invoices and allows you to receive payments online. However, some users note that navigation can be confusing and setting up functions like recurring invoices can be initially complicated.

Hiveage

Hiveage is designed to simplify billing and invoicing for small businesses. The billing software accepts a comprehensive range of online payment methods in addition to standard ones like PayPal and Stripe. Its multi-currency capability is also perfect for independent sellers or small businesses that accept payments from customers worldwide via various payment gateways.

Hiveage allows team members to keep track of their billable hours and tasks, issue bills, and collect client payments. It also provides accounting solutions, including mileage monitoring, timesheets and expenditure tracking. If you need time or mileage tracking, Hiveage may be a good fit for you. Otherwise, it doesn’t have many features that make it stand out from the competition.

Harvest

Harvest is a great billing software for hourly invoicing because it easily tracks time spent on projects. You can quickly start and stop timers and see how much time you've spent on a task. This makes it easy to bill your clients accurately for the time you have spent on their projects.

Additionally, Harvest integrates with several other business apps, making it easy to track your time from Slack, Asana or Trello. To ensure that teams are working effectively, managers can set a project budget and keep track of costs and labor hours. While its time-tracking tools are powerful, Harvest's invoicing is basic and doesn't offer a lot of options for customization.

Sage

Sage Intacct provides companies with full business accounting capabilities, making it more than just an invoicing platform. Users can easily modify the dashboard and create custom reports as well.

While Sage's inventory management features and e-commerce integrations would work well for e-commerce businesses or accounting teams, its wealth of business accounting features could be overwhelming for small businesses, solopreneurs or freelancers.

Zipbooks

ZipBooks is a great free-to-use option for startups and self-employed professionals searching for industry-specific, editable invoicing templates they can easily modify and send to various clients.

ZipBooks also offers accounting features such as account reconciliation and can automatically update your financial statements if you link it to your bank account. While certainly sufficient for invoicing, this software is relatively basic and doesn’t stand out from the crowd.

Invoice2Go

Contractors can use Invoice2Go to prevent billing issues like unpaid invoices and late payments. Status monitoring allows you to receive notifications when customers read your bills and set up automatic reminders, so you can stop manually following up on unpaid invoices. And if you have repeat customers, you can easily set up regular invoicing.

Invoice2Go's simple contractor invoicing app, which works on any iOS or Android device, allows you to generate and send bills instantly from your computer or mobile phone. While the starter plan is inexpensive, its features are limited and you will need to upgrade to send more than 30 invoices. It also charges 2.9% to 3.5% for card transactions, depending on your plan.

Invoicing and Billing Software Guide

Whether you're a startup, contractor or established company, there are many software options available to help you manage your invoices and billing.

The following guide covers everything you need to know to find a reliable billing software solution that supports your business needs.

Things to consider when choosing invoicing and billing software

When selecting the best invoice software for your business, consider the features and tools you need to help streamline your billing process. You want software that makes your life easier, not more complicated. Look for billing solutions that can automate and track bills and payments, allow you to quickly create and edit invoices, set up reminders, and provide useful financial reports so that you can stay on top of accounts receivable and other accounting metrics.

Another essential factor to consider is pricing. Most billing solutions offer different service tiers that increase in price based on the features they provide and the number of users and clients they can support, so make sure the billing solution that meets your needs also fits your budget.

Lastly, consider the software's learning curve and how much customer support you're likely to need. Look for companies that provide training and helpful resources that can help you get started quickly.

What is the average cost of invoicing and billing software?

The cost of billing software varies widely depending on the features and capabilities you need and the number of users who will have access to the program.

Invoicing software with basic features can cost anywhere between $10 and $100 per month while options with more advanced billing and accounting features can cost over $200 per month.

Nevertheless, it's possible to find great free options that provide the features you need. Read our article on the best free invoicing and billing software to find out more.

How to set up invoicing and billing software?

Setting up billing software typically involves creating an account with the billing provider and importing your billing data, such as customer names and billing contacts. This is where software integrations can be really important.

For example, if you have been tracking your customers through Google Sheets, finding an invoicing software that integrates with Sheets will save you a lot of set-up time.

Depending on the billing solution you choose, you may have to take additional steps to get your software up and running. Be sure to check with the vendor for specific setup instructions. Billing software vendors may offer training and support resources to help you get started.

Is it worth paying for invoicing and billing software?

There are many benefits to using paid invoicing and billing software, such as gaining access to accounting features and more advanced reporting of billing metrics.

Many paid billing solutions also offer features like invoicing templates, automatic billing reminders and status updates on billing activity. These tools can help you streamline your billing process and improve customer relations.

Overall, it's typically worth investing in a billing solution to help you manage your billing processes more efficiently.

How We Found the Best Invoicing and Billing Software

We consulted reviews and ratings from expert sources to determine the best billing software. We also analyzed the features offered by various billing solutions to find the ones offering comprehensive functions and flexibility.

Here are some critical components we looked for:

Reliability

Reliability is one of the most important factors when choosing billing software. When looking for a billing solution, finding a reliable and trustworthy platform with robust security features to protect your billing data is essential. We evaluated user reviews and user numbers to understand which invoicing and billing software was most trusted.

Functionality

As we compared billing software, we looked at the functionality offered by different platforms. We recommend billing solutions that provide the tools to manage billing processes efficiently, including templates and automation. We also considered if the software offered advanced features such as accounting capabilities or time tracking.

Ease of use

In addition to functionality, it's also essential to consider billing software's ease of use and design. When evaluating billing platforms, we sought intuitive and easy-to-navigate solutions with helpful guides and tutorials to help you get started quickly and easily. These software tools are designed to make your life easier, so they should offer a seamless user experience as well.

Integrations

If you operate a business, you will want to use invoicing and billing software that integrates with other important software and systems you're already using. These systems include accounting software, payment gateways, project management tools and more.We evaluated the billing software for flexible integrations, such as API or webhook, to find options that would help you quickly connect billing data with other business systems and processes. For example, using invoicing software that can integrate with the best recruiting software can help make billing operations more efficient.

Affordability

We also compared each invoicing platform's affordability and cost benefits. Many billing solutions offer a range of pricing plans with different features and functionality, so you can choose an option that meets your billing needs while staying within your budget.

Furthermore, many billing platforms offer free trials or demo versions that allow you to test the billing software and see how it can meet your needs before committing to a subscription. We chose software that offered the most value and features for the lowest cost.

Summary of the Best Invoicing and Billing Software of 2023

• FreshBooks - Best for Integrations
• Zoho Invoice - Best Free Option
• Square Invoices - Best for Product-Based Businesses
• Xero - Best Accounting Software
• QuickBooks - Best for Ease of Use
• Invoicera - Best for Inventory Management