FreshBooks Pricing, Features, Reviews & Comparison of Alternatives

Pros
The best thing i liked about this software is that it was created with conceptual thinking of small business, the software has various features and intergrations with third party apps such as paypal, G suite, shopify and stripe which increases the conviniency of payment to both the buyer and the seller. The software also gives the user the ability to customize and brand their financial documents by modifying its logo , colour and design giving the documents a proffesional look. Freshbooks also has a user friendly intrerface which enables individuals who do not have any background on accounting to be able to use the softtware easily and make configurations that suits their needs. freshbooks has also designed mobile application on both android and iOs platforms enabling the user to run business anywhere, anytime using mobile devices.

Cons
Although Fresbooks has many robust features it lacks in terms of inventory tracking and vendor management features thus making it less suited for manufacturing and sales based firms. Another annoying thing is that it does not offer batch invoicing feature which is very useful when creating mutiple invoices for the same service to mutiple customers. Although one can customize the invoice to his/her own liking the options are narrow compared to other softwares.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 8/10

Pros
Over the years, FreshBooks has made efforts to improve its service and update the levels of programs. The latest change they made to the interface has improved some things but other parts have been left behind and I've personally not seen any updates or changes in the past few years. What I like MOST is what they started with years ago -- the ability to remind clients at the 30, 60, 90 day marks to pay their bills. However, the interface to set that feature up changed a few years ago with their major update and it's not as intuitive now.

Cons
I do NOT like the timer starting off before you even choose what project you are working on. This is a SIMPLE FIX. I asked about it years ago and was told that -- yah, basically you launch the timer and then click the pause button while you work out what project you are on -- then start the timer again. Not a good design. I do NOT like setting up a new project and having a ton of task all added to this new project that I have to deselect -- about 20 or so that I have to remove each time -- and then add in the correct task for that project. I do NOT like having to deal with setting default payment settings and reminders for each client I set-up. Can't that just be a universal default setting to turn on? I do NOT like having service tiers change and being told the level I was previously on is changing and this new level will cost more -- and that's what I have to accept now. I'm a independent contractor and I have few clients -- I don't need the next level. But ... whatever.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 7/10

Pros
I started my freelance business nearly 3 years ago, and after initial struggles with Quickbooks (I even had a 2-hour training session with a Quickbooks instructor who just further confused me), I put off dealing with the financial side of my business for over a year (until my CPA was hounding me for tax stuff). Upon the recommendation of another freelancing friend, I decided to give FreshBooks a try. I finally got FreshBooks up and running, and I was amazed at how much it relieved my stress, rather than adding to it. The basic setup is simple and straight-forward, but as my business has grown, I've been impressed with little tricks built into FreshBooks that helps me save time and get a better overall view of my business. Also, I don't think I've ever experienced such consistently helpful and friendly customer service. Any time I call with a question, the person on the phone is empowered to help me out.

Cons
There are even more integrations and advancements that I think FreshBooks could offer to be even better. Here are a few examples: + I'd love to be able to do some kind of forecasting of income based either on draft invoices for project currently in the works, or estimates that have been accepted. + I wish I could set up estimates so clients could accept/reject specific line items so that I could send one estimate with different options, rather than multiple different estimates. + I wish I could apply discounts to specific line items in the invoices rather than the subtotal of the entire invoice so I could discount my services without discounting passed-along expenses I incur. I've shared such feedback and other minor requests with the FreshBooks team, and they've sounded receptive, so I hope updates/upgrades like these will one day be available.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 9/10

Pros
This might make me sound superficial but the first thing I loved about Freshbooks was the interface. The icons, the buttons, the way everything looks is so so appealing to me. And it made me want to use the trial version (I did this a little more than 1 year ago). Using it made me feel like I was getting my financial act together. Which it later did, btw. The time tracker is the best... time saver for me. It records time and then adds everything together in a way that nothing else really did. It seems so obvious but nothing I was using before helped track my hours this way. This is the thing that used to drive me round the bend when it came time to invoicing clients. I used to delay invoicing (aka "getting paid") because my own system was terrible..and I could not find a better way until finally deciding that maybe I needed to pay for something to help me. I like the notes section for the time entries. I like how flexible it is to shift recorded time entries around or update the text to better describe what work I actually did. I also love the support from Freshbooks. They're super responsive and extremely helpful. They do not waste my time with a lot of blather I've experienced in so many other customer service situations (like repeating back to me the question I just proferred). They include screenshots and precise language to answer my questions. Also: Expenses in FB. I now go out of my way to add in expenses as they come w/o avoiding them.

Cons
I recommended Freshbooks to a friend of mine who started using it right away. Then he had trouble with a really difficult client he'd billed using Freshbooks. This client (I subcontracted with the friend so am aware of what all happened) contested all of my friend's work and refused payment after paying the Freshbooks invoice. And Freshbooks allowed the chargeback to happen. I think other software does not allow this --- for example, my friend now uses Quickbooks as a result. I have also experienced some quirks when it came to adding new jobs to repeat clients. This is likely my own error but it's not something I've cared to reach out to the support team to question. I also have not downloaded a year's incoming and outgoing details to give to an accountant. So I don't know how well that all works. Again, my own thing, and not necessarily on them.

Rating breakdown

Pros
FreshBooks gives small businesses a well-designed and intuitive user interface that can easily be used for a variety of different functions, most notably billing, and invoicing. Users are given a wide array of attractive template designs to choose from when creating invoices, allowing for catchy, yet professional looking documents. FreshBooks also provides users with tools for team collaboration, estimates, and projects, all of which can be easily navigated and set up to increase your small businesses' ability to maximize communication, send automatic reminders, submit proposals, and secure jobs with relative ease. As an accounting package, FreshBooks also provides users with the ability to perform some fundamental bookkeeping and accounting functions, has some bank reconciliation functions, enables you to accept online credit card payments, and provides many of these features via their full-featured mobile application. Last but not least, FreshBooks provides excellent customer service from the start. A detailed and easily followed tutorial will help new users get started, while their well-trained staff is always ready to provide users with answers to any questions or issues they may encounter. FreshBooks is very proud of their customer service and their customer satisfaction rating, and it really shows when you speak with one of their representatives.

Cons
One limitation in FreshBooks as an accounting package is the fact that they utilize single-entry accounting. While this may not be an obvious flaw to a new small business owner, it will become apparent as more accounts are created, employees are hired, and payment options are implemented. Single-entry accounting is quick and simple, but it certainly leaves something to be desired. Over the years some application updates have diminished or completely removed some useful features, like service and customer records, and inventory tracking, all of which were very convenient and helpful features.

Rating breakdown

Likelihood to recommend: 8/10