As a freelancer or a small business owner, you work hard. You provide a phenomenal product or service, work with your clients to make sure they’re totally satisfied, and when all is said and done, you get paid.
Well, almost. There’s another step that you’re missing:
Invoicing.
It’s one of the least exciting parts of the freelance life. But it has to be done. And if you want things to go smoothly—invoices being received, paid on time, easy to gather for taxes and financial tracking—you need a system.
The invoicing apps below take the pain out of this process. We’ll look at six great pieces of online invoicing software for freelancers and then we’ll go through some tips on making your invoicing process as effective as possible.
1. Hubstaff
Hubstaff’s online invoicing software’s distinctive feature is that it is integrated into the app. In other words, it allows you to invoice clients for individual items or time tracked via Hubstaff without having to use another tool. The invoice generator can easily create accurate, automatic line items for projects and tasks as you can see in the video above.
You also have the option to build invoice templates and set billable and payable rates to keep track of the project expense as well as the amount to bill for each project or person. Add notes, tax, PO numbers, and more.
Once generated, the invoices can be sent in multiple formats such as HTML, PDF or email. You can even see when a client has viewed the invoice. To help with accounting, you can record a full or partial payment against the item.
All of these features are available from $10 for a single user/month. A free trial is also available so you can try out the app.
2. Zoho Invoice
Zoho makes it easy to create and send well-designed invoices. Even with the free account, you’re able to customize every little detail on your invoice to reflect your brand.
The service is integrated with several payment gateways including Google Checkout, PayPal, Stripe, 2Checkout, and Authorize.net. With the free account, you can have up to five customers and one user. You’ll need to step up your plan to add more clients, customers, or team members (paid plans start at $7 per month for a single user and up to 50 customers).
Zoho Invoice also integrates well with Zoho’s other suite of apps, which includes marketing, email, HR, and business process tools. Mobile invoicing makes Zoho a good choice for people on the go, and mobile access to their wide variety of other business tools is great for freelancers and small business owners who do a lot of traveling.
Don’t forget that Zoho integrates with Hubstaff for easy time tracking and reporting, too!
3. FreshBooks
FreshBooks’ invoices stand out as looking extremely professional. You can customize your own invoice to match the style and message of your brand, and the ability to accept credit card payments right from the invoice adds to the sense of professionalism.
Automatic reminders, late fees, and the ability to accept deposits for work not yet done all make FreshBooks a great option for small business owners and freelancers. Invoice tracking, recurring invoices, discounts, tax calculations, and a host of other features make this a standout option. You can even automatically import expenses from your bank account.
All of this power comes with a cost, though. After a free trial, you’re looking at $15 per month for up to five clients, and $25 per month for up to 50 clients.
4. Hiveage
Hiveage offers a variety of services, and this invoice system for small businesses and freelancers is one of the best. Every plan includes unlimited clients and invoices—and the $15 per month Starter plan includes two staff, 250 recurring profiles, and 50 auto-billing profiles.
Payment reminders, time and expense tracking, 12 online payment gateways, dashboard reports, and a variety of other features that you’d expect to come with an online invoicing solution come with every plan. You can also do some customization to make your invoices look more professional.
Hiveage recently added two-factor authentication and detailed reports. Although it’s not the cheapest option, it’s definitely worth the expense.
5. Wave Invoicing
Wave offers a complete suite of billing and invoicing tools for small businesses and freelancers.
And it stands out as being the only hosted option that’s always completely free. You never have to pay to create and send invoices. Wave offers customizable invoices, recurring billing, and payment reminders, too. Automatic status updates and payment receipts mean you don’t have to spend extra time managing the entire invoicing process. And if you use the Wave Accounting app for your small business, the invoices integrate right into your financial tracking.
You can even offer credit card payments right from your invoice so customers don’t have an excuse to put it off. Mobile apps make it easy to get your invoicing done on the go, too.
6. Momenteo
For freelancers looking for an app that lets them invoice hassle-free after finishing projects, Momenteo gets the job done.
Momenteo lets freelancers customize their invoices, which helps in creating a professional and respectable brand image. The app allows you to check the invoice status after they have been sent, so you don’t have to keep following up on your clients if they haven’t seen the invoice yet.
Momenteo’s free plan comes with all its features and two active clients, but it doesn’t support online payments. The paid plans start at $5.50 per month.
