Wave Accounting Review 2023

Wave Accounting remains the best free accounting solution for freelancers and other cost-conscious small-business owners.
Best budget accounting solution
Wave
Wave Accounting
  • pro
    Free for life
  • pro
    Free invoicing, accounting, and receipt scanning
  • pro
    Unlimited expense and income tracking
  • con
    Limited scalability for growing businesses

Data as of 1/9/23. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.

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Wave Accounting is the best free accounting software solution for freelancers, solopreneurs, and small-business owners alike. While it doesnt have as many features as paid competitors like QuickBooks Online, Waves unlimited expense tracking, free invoicing, and basic reporting make it an ideal solution for many freelancers.

Since Wave only has one accounting plan, though, its not perfect for business owners who want to add accounting features as they grow. And its email-only customer support means users are largely on their own if they encounter an immediate problem. 

Pros
pro Entirely free accounting software
pro Unlimited users
pro Unlimited businesses manageable on the same account
pro Solid features, including expense and income tracking and basic reporting
Cons
con One plan only (limited scalability)
con No accounting or receipt-scanning apps (invoicing only)
con Email-only customer service

Wave Accounting plans and pricing

Brand
Pricing
Number of users
Invoicing
Payment acceptance
Mobile app
Get started
Free for lifeUnlimited
bulletYes
bulletYes
bulletNo

Data as of 1/9/23. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.

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Wave’s key accounting features

When you’re working for yourself, you don’t need to spend hundreds of dollars a month on fancy accounting software with every possible bell and whistle. Instead, you need software that crunches numbers and an app that easily accepts payments—and that's exactly what you get with Wave Accounting, and then some: 

Honestly, these features outpace those included with some paid accounting software. For instance, Xero only includes expense tracking with its priciest plan, which starts at $65 a month. QuickBooks Online limits user numbers by plan (its cheapest plan, QuickBooks Simple Start, includes just three users). And FreshBooks doesnt limit your user number, but it does charge an extra $10 a month per user—which adds up fast

Wave also lets you manage multiple businesses under the same Wave account. If you have multiple Etsy, eBay, or Amazon shops or work a few different freelance gigs, you can keep each businesss income and expenses separate.

Compare Wave with top competitors

Brand
Starting price
Free trial
User limit (with basic plan)
Mobile accounting app
Get started
Free for lifeN/AUnlimited
bulletNo
$15.00/mo.*30 days (or 50% off for 3 mos.)1 user + accountant access
bulletYes
$13.00/mo.30 daysUnlimited
bulletYes
$0.00/mo.**N/AUnlimited (addt'l per-user fee)
bulletYes
$1.50/mo.***30 days (or 90% off for 3 mos.)Unlimited (addt'l per-user fee)
bulletYes

Data as of 1/9/23. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
*Current sale price: 50% off for three months or 30-day free trial
**Free for businesses with an annual revenue below $50K USD
***Current sale price: 90% off for three months. Available to new customers only.

Key drawbacks

Wave Accounting does a lot for the price—but it cant do everything. For instance, it doesnt offer the same built-in time-tracking and project-tracking features you get with most other basic accounting software plans. Unlike with QuickBooks, you cant manage 1099 contractors with Wave (which is one reason Waves better suited to 1099 contractors rather than those who employ them).

And in contrast to just about every accounting software provider at this point, Wave doesnt have a mobile accounting app. It also recently got rid of its receipt-scanning app: now, the only Wave app is its invoicing app—which is fine and functional, but nothing to write home about (unlike, say, FreshBooks stellar invoicing app).

Wave also doesnt have quite as many integrations as other paid (and more popular) accounting software options. Most importantly, it doesnt sync with any third-party payroll providers.

If you want to integrate your Wave Accounting software with payroll, you have to choose Waves own product: Wave Payroll. Its a fine payroll product, both in terms of features and price, but its definitely not the best payroll bargain out there (thatd be Gusto, OnPay, or QuickBooks Payroll). 

Of course, if you freelance, you don’t need to worry about running payroll either now or in the future. But for small-business owners who want to eventually expand their businesses and hire an employee or two (or more), just know that Wave doesn't make it easy to add payroll software beyond its own.

Best Bookkeeping Software
Xero
Best for freelance
Wave
Budget pick
Learn more about our top brands.

And speaking of growing businesses, Wave Accounting has just one accounting plan. Thats far from a bad thing—the straightforward single plan is one reason Wave works so well for freelancers and contractors. Plus, any additional plans would likely be paid plans, and we like that Wave sticks to what it does best: providing well-rounded, free accounting software. The solo plan just means Wave isn't as scalable as multi-plan accounting brands, so small-business owners who hope to grow might want to consider scalable providers like Xero or FreshBooks instead.

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Additional Wave features

Weve already hit on a few accounting features that set Wave apart, but there are a few more perks to cover.

First, Wave is remarkably customizable—especially considering that its, you know, free. For instance, its unlimited invoices are much more customizable (and, in our opinion, more professional-looking) than QuickBooks comparatively expensive invoices. You can also customize your chart of accounts (CoA) to include only the accounts you need—useful for freelancers, who tend to have fewer expense and income categories on their books than bigger businesses. 

Wave Accounting also uses double-entry accounting, which is much more accurate than basic single-entry accounting. Most accounting software use the double-entry system, though FreshBooks cheapest plan is a notable exception. We love that even though Wave is free and freelance-focused, it doesnt assume freelancers can afford to skimp on financial accuracy.

Finally, Waves billing, payment acceptance, and invoicing features all work together to ensure you get paid on time. Clients can pay you directly through their invoice. You can also send bill and invoice payment reminders. In other words, Wave has many of the invoicing perks you get with invoice-heavy software like FreshBooks, but at no cost. 

Find Your Money—and Keep More of It

With plans starting at $15 a month, FreshBooks is well-suited for freelancers, solopreneurs, and small-business owners alike.

  • Track time and expenses
  • Create custom invoices
  • Accept online payments

The takeaway

Wave Accounting proves that comprehensive accounting software doesn’t need a huge price tag. Its a great pick for freelancers and entrepreneurs who want the most important bookkeeping features—invoicing, receipt-scanning, and expense and income tracking—at no cost. If you dont mind trading a high cost for minimal receipt-scanning features and limited scalability, we recommend checking it out. 

If Wave isnt a good fit for you, read through our article on the years best free accounting software. The article kicks off with Wave, but it includes reviews for nine other free bookkeeping programs that you might prefer. 

Related reading

Wave Accounting FAQ

Yes, Wave Accounting is really free. Wave Accounting gives you free unlimited invoices, users, expense and income tracking, credit and bank account connections, and more. It also offers multi-business management for no  additional fee. You don’t have to enter a credit card number when you sign up. Just type in your business information, and youre all set. 

Wave offers accrual-basis accounting only, not cash-basis accounting. 

Does Wave use double-entry or single-entry bookkeeping?

Yes, Wave’s accounting software does automatic double-entry bookkeeping. This accounting process generates two entries for every financial transaction. (One entry appears on the credit side of your ledger and one on the debit side.) The goal of double-entry bookkeeping is to minimize errors and ensure your account balances, which should reassure users who worry about the high cost of potential financial mistakes.

Methodology

To compare Wave Accounting to other accounting software products and assign it a star rating, we considered several key aspects of Wave's overall service: 

  • Accounting features
  • Third-party integrations
  • Customer service availability
  • Current customer reviews on third-party consumer review sites, including app ratings and reviews
  • Usability, including mobile access
  • User limits
  • Plan and pricing information

We also took our experts view into accounting when calculating our star ratings. Our star ratings are reviewed and updated frequently.

Disclaimer

At Business.org, our research is meant to offer general product and service recommendations. We don't guarantee that our suggestions will work best for each individual or business, so consider your unique needs when choosing products and services.

Kylie McQuarrie
Written by
Kylie McQuarrie
Former Business.org staff writer Kylie McQuarrie has been writing for and about small businesses since 2014. Her work has been featured on SCORE.org, G2, and Fairygodboss, among others. She's worked closely with small-business owners in every industry—from freelance writing to real-estate startups—which has given her a front-row look at small-business owners' struggles, frustrations, and successes.
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