Arguably the most essential function of running a small business is actually getting paid for your products or services, so you have adequate cash on hand to keep your eCommerce operations humming.

While it seems simple to just submit an invoice and get paid, there’s a lot more that goes into collecting payment from your clients.

How do you handle the itemization of your invoices? What about when clients don’t meet your payment deadlines? Or what about that one client that insists on paying online with a credit card?

The truth is, invoicing can be a logistical headache.

This is especially true if you are using an outdated or inefficient invoicing system, which can lead to cash flow issues and bad client relations.

Fortunately, a variety of great invoicing software solutions are available today that make it easy for small businesses to get paid quickly and easily.

Some of the top options include FreshBooks, Harvest, and Wave, but we’ve found several other options that may better suit your business needs.

Each of these platforms comes with a range of features to help small businesses streamline their invoicing process, including automatic invoice reminders, tracking expenses and payments, and easy online payments.

So if you’re looking for a way to streamline your invoicing process and get paid quickly, be sure to check out one of these top invoicing software options for your small business. Happy invoicing!

Need to start at the beginning? See our guide on how to create an invoice.

Square Invoices

Retail, food & beverage, and professional services businesses use the Square Invoice app thanks to its simple and convenient invoicing features. It’s also great for companies that already use Square’s very popular point-of-sale system.

Moreover, the ability to accept various payment types from customers, including Apple Pay and credit cards, and send payment reminders and invoices easily from your dashboard, makes Square Invoices an attractive option for small business owners.

Payment types you can accept with Square invoices include online, ACH payments, and in-person. Some of its key features include customizable templates, automated reminders, and simple tracking tools that help you manage your cash flow and keep track of overdue invoices.

Pros:

• Free features that send invoices through email, text, or link and signing with an e-signature.
• An intuitive interface that is easy to use, allowing you to create detailed invoices in just a few clicks.
• No setup or monthly fees. Plus, it’s relatively affordable, with paid plans starting at just $29 per month.
• Integrations with financial tools, accounting software, inventory, and time-tracking software for businesses that are looking for a comprehensive invoicing solution.
• Client portal that allows your customers to view, pay and review invoices online.

Cons:

• The main issue users cite is that processing fees for payments made through Square can be somewhat high, depending on the size and frequency of your transactions.
• Square Invoicing has a free version that allows you to send five monthly invoices, which may not be sufficient for some businesses.
• Not as many customization options as some other invoicing software. Some reviewers say they can’t edit their invoice after marking it as paid.
• Some users report that the software can be a bit glitchy at times. 

Price:

$0/month for the Free plan, which you only pay when you accept a payment, and $29+/month for the Plus plan.

There is also the Premium plan with customized fees that unlock bespoke features. Processing fees are included with all three plans.

FreshBooks

If you run a service-oriented business or work with freelancers and consultants, FreshBooks is the ideal invoicing and accounting software choice.

Their web-based platform, which is primarily designed for small to medium businesses, caters to their needs by combining basic invoicing features with time-tracking tools, expense management, and project management capabilities.

Other key features of FreshBooks include:

1. Automated payment reminders and recurring invoicing
2. Budgeting options for estimates
3. Time tracking/productivity integrations with apps like Toggl, Harvest, QuickBooks Online, and Trello
4. Financial reporting tools that show revenue by clients and the ability to invoice on behalf of other users.

Pros:

• Easy-to-use dashboard and mobile access that allows you to create professional invoices.
• Integrations with major time-tracking tools like that let you easily track hours worked by employees.
• Powerful financial reporting options that allow you to view revenue metrics by client or project.
• Budgeting features for estimates and invoices, which make it easy to manage cash flow and profitability.
• Award-winning customer support via live chat, email, or phone.
• Discounts off the paid plans, which can be up to 60% off for four months.
• Mobile access allows you to send invoices from anywhere.

Cons:

• Fees associated with certain integrations to time tracking tools.
• Their lowest-cost plan supports 5 billable clients, which may not be enough for some businesses.
• The software can be a bit complex to use for smaller businesses that don’t have accounting experience.
• It’s not ideal for fast-growing businesses because of user and client limits on some of its plans.
• No bank reconciliation or accountant access in the lowest-tier plan.
• Does not provide quarterly tax estimates.

Pricing:

Price: $6/month for the Lite plan, $12/month for the Plus plan (most popular), and $22/month for the Premium plan. There is also a custom pricing option with unlimited billable clients and specialized features.

Zoho Invoice

Zoho Invoice is a popular invoicing software designed for solopreneurs and small business owners. It offers free and simple intuitive tools that allow you to create professional-looking invoices.

The system integrates with Zoho’s suite of accounting tools as well as popular payment processors like Stripe, PayPal, and Authorize.Net, so you can easily collect payments from your clients.

You get everything a business needs to bill multiple customers and create invoices, retainers, and credit notes.

Other key features of Zoho Invoice include:

1. Customizable invoice templates.
2. Automated billing and payment reminders.
3. Integrations with accounting tools like Xero and QuickBooks Online.
4. Bank reconciliation and tracking of expenses.
5. Estimates with built-in budgeting controls and recurring invoices to automate billing.
6. The ability to create custom invoicing workflows.

Pros:

• You can track expenses and billable hours—all for free. There are no ads, contracts, or hidden fees.
• Includes a client portal so your clients can view their statements, pay invoices online, and communicate with you.
• Customizable templates to make it easy to create professional-looking invoices.
• Adapts to local tax laws, currencies, and languages.
• Multiple payment gateways support all major credit cards, and you get paid quickly with Zoho’s instant payment notification service.
• You can convert projects and estimates into invoices.

Cons:

• The free plan is limited to three clients only, which may not be enough for growing small businesses.
• The lack of bank reconciliation and contact management features is a downside for some users who prefer more robust accounting tools.
• Some users may find the system difficult to figure out, especially regarding the estimates feature. 
• Zoho Invoice does not provide all of its functionalities on the mobile version of its platform.

Xero

At its core, Xero is accounting software. However, the platform’s lower-based plans also include features that make it a great option for small business owners looking for an all-in-one solution for their invoicing needs.

For instance, all of its plans let you add accounting features, such as bank reconciliation and expense tracking, along with invoicing. Xero’s smooth interface gives you transparency about your business’s financial position, and its top-tier plan lets you perform project tracking.

Additionally, Xero offers a range of additional tools for small businesses beyond invoicing that save you time and money. These include billing and time tracking features, as well as project management tools like estimates, trackable expenses, budgets, and more.

Lastly, Xero is very scalable, allowing it to grow when your company does.

Pros:

• Cloud-based, so no installations or downloads are required.
• Several choices in payment processors.
• Features a free 30-day trial so you can test features before committing.
• Unlimited users.
• Payroll, combined with automated superannuation payments, is built in.
• Seamlessly integrates with third-party plugins and apps.
• Offers a capable estimating, quoting, and order process that smoothly ties into AR invoices.

Cons:

• There is a bit of a learning curve involved in using Xero.
• Purchase, requisition, and inventory sides are rudimentary.
• There is no built-in function for chasing debts, so businesses must follow up on unpaid invoices manually.
• No support for Exchange Trade Products (ETPs).
• Xero can slow down if you are sending a high volume of sales through PayPal.

Pricing:

Xero offers payment plans that are geared toward what stage your business is in—Early, Growing, or Established. For example, their Early plan is designed for sole traders, startups, and the self-employed.

Growing, which is their most popular plan, is designed for small businesses that are expanding. The Established plan is good for — you guessed it — established businesses. They are $12, $34, and $65/month, respectively.

Scoro

Scoro is a comprehensive business software solution that offers powerful invoicing features alongside project management, CRM, and finance tools.

You can easily create invoices based on estimates and track customer payments in real-time, as well as access detailed reports to get a 360-degree view of your business performance.

For small businesses looking for a complete financial solution, Scoro provides everything they need to manage their finances in one place.

Other key features include expense tracking, billable hours management, budgeting and forecasting, and real-time updates on sales and project profitability.

Plus, Scoro integrates with a wide range of business software solutions, including Xero, PayPal, Salesforce, Hubspot, Google Apps, and more.

Pros:

• Easily creates and sends customized sales, prepayment, and credit invoices and quotes.
• Recurring payments let you spend less time on monthly billing.
• Automated overdue reminders help you get paid on time.
• You can get a detailed overview of the profitability of each client and project.
• You can view vital information, such as monthly estimated revenue and sent invoices, on a real-time dashboard.

Cons:

• Users say there are hidden costs that you need to look carefully for before signing up.
• It can be time-consuming to set up Scoro to sync with Outlook.
• Reviewers indicate they have trouble modifying some parameters and leaving them as default.
• The custom PDF template module for invoices, purchase orders, and quotes are limited.

Pricing:

Scoro offers a range of subscription plans starting at $26/user/month for the Starter plan to the $63/user/month Premium plan that Scoro recommends its customers use. All plans include free training and customer support. Also, you can try Scoro free for 14 days.

Wave

Wave is a powerful invoicing and accounting software solution that lets you easily create estimates, track project progress, manage expenses and view real-time reports on sales and profitability.

In addition, this financial management platform is user-friendly and approachable, especially for those without accounting experience. The platform helps you manage accounting, bookkeeping, and invoicing tasks in one area via internal integrations.

Another key point is that Wave has several accounting software services that provide a free version of its software. For most platforms, the free version typically limits the number of monthly invoices, users, and integrations.

However, that’s not the case with them, and they provide a single plan that gives you an unlimited number of invoices, users, reports, and credit card connections at no charge.

While you never pay a monthly fee, you must pay a credit card processing fee of 2.9% + 30 cents per transaction through Wave to process your credit card payments. This fee varies, depending on the type of card the customer pays with.

Pros:

• It’s hard to beat their free accounting software, with unlimited invoices and users, that is typically reserved for accounting software plans you have to pay for.
• Solid features such as automatic bank account setup and automatic expense tracking.
• Dedicated invoicing mobile app that lets you send invoices and track payments.
• Wave’s Intuitive and user-friendly interface makes it simple to manage your invoices.
• A thorough online helpdesk lets you access support and training materials anytime.

Cons:

• Limited scalability. Wave is a good option if you have 10 people or fewer working for you. Larger companies will face steep limitations that will probably drive them to an alternative solution.
• Limited customer service support makes things difficult for users who need help during regular business hours.
• The native time-tracking feature is lacking, requiring third-party integrations in order to get the job done.

Pricing:

Wave invoicing, accounting, and banking are 100% free.

Invoice2go

Software engineers designed Invoice2go as a way for entrepreneurs who did not need to invest in a full accounting package to send invoices quickly.

To begin with, they created a mobile-only app and later added a desktop version. However, the mobile app became one of the company’s biggest advantages for entrepreneurs on the go, and that philosophy is reflected in its name, Invoice2go.

What also resulted from their endeavor is an easy-to-use cloud-based invoicing software solution you can use to generate and manage professional invoices and track expenses.

Some other key features of Invoice2go include the ability to create unlimited invoices and estimates, track profits and sales performance, connect with payment gateways, generate custom reports with visual representations of your data, and much, much more.

Pros:

• Their user-friendly mobile app. Whether you are an invoicing novice or an experienced business owner, Invoice2go is designed to be simple and straightforward.
• Highly customizable. From fonts and colors to payment terms and shipping information, you have complete control over the look of your invoice with Invoice2go.
• Real-time reporting on income and expenses.
• Reliable and responsive customer support.

Cons:

• Starter plans include only two invoices per month. That could be a dealbreaker for many small business owners.
• The 3.5% payment fee on their beginning plan is steep.
• Some reviewers say they find the billing structure confusing.
• Missing subscription receipts for auto-renewal.
• Users say that accounting reports don’t register the discounts.
• Limited payment options can make it difficult to manage incoming payments and chase down late ones.

Pricing:

Invoice2go offers three different plans: Starter, Pro, and Premium. The Starter plan costs $59.99/year and includes 30 invoices/year.

The Pro plan costs $99.99/year and includes 100 invoices/year. The Premium plan unlocks unlimited capabilities, recurring invoices, and lower credit card payment fees for companies with annual revenue of more than $100k.

OneUp

OneUp is a comprehensive small business accounting software that helps you stay on top of billing. It offers a comprehensive range of features to help manage your invoices, monitor overdue invoices, record expenses, and track sales.

Some key features include the ability to generate unlimited invoices/estimates, create recurring bills and automate late invoice payment reminders, use automated tax calculations, and support for tracking apps such as Xero and Slack.

OneUp is also known for its excellent customer support, with 24/7 live chat support and personalized onboarding to help you get up and running quickly. Plus, OneUp offers a generous 30-day free trial that allows you to test out all of its features before committing to a subscription plan.

Pros:

• Excellent customer support.
• A robust range of features.
• Inventory monitoring.
• Ability to connect with various other popular business software tools and services, including Quickbooks, Xero, and Slack.
• A mobile app lets you easily take care of accounting, inventory, invoicing, inventory and CRM.
• OneUp’s Business Assistant™ lets you perform end-to-end tracking from quote to invoice to cash & sales tax tracking.

Cons:

• The user interface can be confusing for beginners.
• The pricing structure is unclear and difficult to understand.
• Some users report having trouble connecting their bank accounts to the platform.

Pricing:

OneUp offers three subscription plans, which include a 30-day free trial. The Self plan, which is good for sole proprietors and independent contractors, costs $9/month/user.

The Pro plan costs $39/month and includes 2 users if you want to invite your accountant or business partner to be the second user. The other three plans range from $29-$169, and you can use their tiered system as your business grows.

Harvest

Harvest is a web-based invoicing solution for small businesses that helps teams spend their time wisely. Using it lets you turn tracked time and expenses into invoices.

Then, you can collect payments quickly from clients with integrated online payments. Harvest’s features let you easily track time, gain insights from past projects, and get paid for your work in just a few clicks.

Additionally, dedicated apps and integrations with tools like Slack and Asana let the software fit into your team’s workflow. Some key features of Harvest include unlimited invoices, tracking detailed billing data and expenses in real-time, and customizing invoices with your company logo.

You can generate and mail invoices to speed up sales transactions and increase revenue. A wide selection of visual reports keeps projects running smoothly, and your team supported.

Pros:

• Easy to use with a fast and intuitive interface.
• Excellent customer support.
• Over 20 integrations with platforms, such as Asana, Evernote, IFTTT, GitHub, Slack, Quickbooks Online, Zendesk, Xero, and Stripe.
• Harvest is very affordable —their basic plan starts at just $12/month.

Cons:

• Notifications can be sent out to the primary account but not to employees.
• Time tracking for the day on one project shows cumulatively. No option to show each time the entry was started and stopped.
• No desktop apps for Linux or Windows.

Pricing:

Harvest offers three different pricing plans, including a free plan that allows you to try out all of the features before committing.

Their basic plan starts at $12/per seat/month and gives you unlimited invoices, tracking expenses in real-time and visual reports.

For more advanced features like time tracking or employee management tools, they also offer a Premium plan for $49/month.

Chargebee

Chargebee is a cloud-based invoicing solution designed specifically for businesses in the SaaS and digital services industry. Some key features of Chargebee include the ability to easily create invoices, track billing details and expenses, and customize your invoices with your company logo or branding.

They also offer apps for both iOS and Android devices, so you can easily manage your invoices on the go.

So overall, if you’re looking for a comprehensive invoicing solution for your small business, Chargebee is definitely worth considering.

With its easy-to-use interface, excellent customer support, and affordable pricing plans, it has everything you need to streamline your billing process and get paid faster.

Pros:

• Excellent customer support, with 24/7 live chat and personalized onboarding to help you get up and running quickly.
• Connects to a wide array of payment processors.
• Very intuitive to use, making it possible to do what needs doing in just a few clicks.
• Creates a subscription for all the deals closed.
• Reviewers say the UI is smooth and gets to the point.

Cons:

• Some users have reported occasional issues with syncing and connectivity.
• Does not support multiple currencies. Pricing plans can be somewhat confusing and difficult to understand.
• One user said there were some bugs in the integration, but they were relatively easy and inexpensive to fix.
• The paid plans are more expensive than the others on this list.

Pricing:

Chargebee offers a free trial and different revenue-based paid subscription plans.

Their most basic plan includes all of the core features you need for starting the invoice and billing process, and for more powerful features like advanced analytics sales tax integration, they offer a Pro plan for $249/month.

Final thoughts

Invoicing is often tedious and a source of dread for small business owners — but it doesn’t need to be. After all, if you’re invoicing clients, that means you’re doing good business!

These platforms can not only simplify and streamline the invoicing process but help you get a better financial picture of your business as a whole.

Plus, many of these applications integrate with SkuVault, so you can tie invoices to actual inventory data.

Looking for more resources for small businesses? Check out our other guides:

• Best scheduling apps
•  Best accounting software for small businesses
• Marketing tools for small businesses
• Customer service tips for small businesses

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