Best accounting software for freelancers

Unless you are a certified accountant, keeping track of expenses and invoices may not be the most exciting business activity to you. But just because they’re boring doesn’t mean they’re not important. 

Hiring an accountant, if you can afford to, would be a great way to not have to worry about doing these tasks yourself. You can work on core business activities while your accountant handles the finances. Unfortunately not everyone is in a financial position to hire an accountant. 

Thankfully there are plenty of accounting software that can help us keep our finances organized, so that when tax season comes around, we’re not in a panic trying to get all of our records together.

Some accounting software is better than others, so it may be tough trying to figure out which one works best for our specific needs. Luckily most come with a free-trial, so you can test out the features and see if they work for you. 

In our opinion, here’s the 5 best accounting software for freelancers. Try them for yourself and see which one fits your needs the most.

Wave

A beginner friendly software that comes with a free plan that covers almost all basic accounting functionalities. That includes tracking finances, reporting revenues, and sending out invoices to clients. 

Wave allows you to connect directly to your bank, so all invoice amounts will be deposited into your bank. 

And while Wave is a beginner friendly option, it still gives you the ability to upgrade as your business grows and as you add team members. 

Freshbooks

Freelancers with more complex pricing structures will find themselves leaning towards Freshbooks. If you consistently hire subcontractors and pay out of pocket for project expenses before sending invoices, Freshbook gives you the ability to track those expenses and add them to a project. Track hours spent on a project and add them to your invoice as well.

You’ll also be able to set up and send automated payment reminders to your clients if their invoice due date is coming up or past due. 

Freshbooks does not have a free plan, but their lowest tier is $6/mo for 5 billable clients. So this software is another example of having to upgrade your plan as your business grows. 

Zoho Books

With Zoho Books, you’ll also be able to track time and expenses related to a project and easily add them to an invoice. You can track profit margins for individual projects by recording revenues and expenses for each one. Projects with higher profit margins are probably going to get more of your time and energy. 

Automate repetitive tasks like monthly invoices, transactions, or reminders. Zoho Books comes with a free plan for smaller freelancers (under $50,000 annual revenue), so this is another great software for beginners. 

Quickbooks

If you use TurboTax for your taxes, then Quickbooks might be the best option for you. Since they are both owned and operated by Intuit, Quickbooks and TurboTax are easily integrated. Information can be easily transferred from one to the other, so filing your own taxes will be a lot easier.

You’ll be able to track mileage for business trips using their mobile app, and be able to separate your personal bank account from your business bank account. 

Quickbooks’ starter plan starts at $5/mo and comes with all the basic accounting features you’ll need as a freelancer.

Xero

Xero is typically used by bigger companies, especially in the e-commerce space because of its ability to track inventory. That doesn’t mean it can’t be used by freelancers though. 

Their starter plan is $12/mo but has a limit of 20 invoices per month. You also will not be able to track expenses. For $34/mo you’ll be able to send an unlimited amount of invoices per month and also track expenses.

It’s by far the most expensive option on this list, but also has the most features. Most of the features aren’t necessary for early-stage freelancers, but this product at the very least deserves a shout-out because of its popularity and strong feature-set.

Analysis paralysis – Don’t overthink it

It may feel like there are an unlimited amount of options for accounting software. And that may be true. It’s important to find the best one for you and your business. 

But don’t overthink it too much. Don’t let the amount of choices stop you from moving forward. Pick one and try it out. If it works, great! If not, try another one. 

Eventually you’ll find one that fits your needs perfectly.

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