If you want to simplify your invoicing pay attention. In this guide, we’re going to share a list of the best invoicing tools on the market. The tools on this list can help you save time sending, tracking, and managing your invoices.
Most invoicing platforms have to target specific niches. That is to say, they put more emphasis on different functions. That means that some invoicing tools are a better fit for specific users.
For example, the ability to track time is critical for freelancers, but it’s probably not such a big deal for wholesalers. In most cases, the opposite will apply to multi-lingual functions. So how are you to know which is the best for you? Well, before we go into the gritty details, here’s a bit of an overview of today’s findings;
| Software | Starting From | Best Thing About It | Biggest Problem |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvest | Free. | Time tracking functions. | The free version is only available for freelancers. |
| FreshBooks | $12.95 a month. | Read notifications for invoices. | Expensive to add multiple users. |
| Invoicera | Free. | Suited to scaling. | Price is based on the number of clients. |
| Billiving | Free. | Multi-lingual support. | Extra users incur additional costs. |
| Invoice Ninja | $5 a month. | High level of customization. | Limited visual options. |
| Blinksale | $15 a month. | Organizational features. | Most expensive invoicing tool. |
The table provided a summary of our findings. Let’s take a look at the best invoicing tools in a little more detail.
Harvest
Harvest is the first of the invoicing tools we’ll look at together which is has a free version. This, however, is only available for freelancers or solopreneurs. Things get more expensive when multiple users are added into the mix. This is fairly telling of Harvest’s target market.
Indeed, of todays’s invoicing tools, it’s definitely the most freelancer friendly. It’s main focus is time tracking. This can be done a number of ways. You can manually stop and start a timer, or input your own timesheet. More impressively, however Harvest also integrates with a number of other platforms, so it’s easy to work your time tracking directly into your workflows.
Your invoices are then automatically generated and sent out to your clients. You can also set up automatic reminder emails and PayPal integration. These are two features that are really great for cutting down the need to chase clients. Every freelancer knows that time doing this is time that could be better spent.
FreshBooks
Starting from $12.95 per month, FreshBooks is a complete accounting software solution for small businesses. As you might expect, FreshBooks has invoicing functionality.
The FreshBooks’ visual editor makes creating professional looking invoices an absolute breeze. You start with a template, then add your logo and make any changes you want to the color scheme or font. That way, you can have a slick looking invoice in minutes.
FreshBooks is easy to use and feature-rich. I particularly liked the receipt manager, which helps make accounting for expenses that bit easier —some of my favourite features related to late payments. You can set up your invoices with reading notifications, so you know your client has seen it. FreshBooks can also be configured to apply late payment fees automatically.
Invoicera
Invoicera is the next of our free invoicing tools. Interestingly their payment structure isn’t based on number of users. It’s calculate on the number of clients. The first three are free, beyond that prices start at $19.95 per month. That fact along could determine whether or not it is a cost effect option for your business.
The main selling point of Invoicera is the ease of use. Everything is managed from a central dashboard. Here, you can view recent activities, as well as create and schedule future invoices.
The dashboard format also offers an up to date view of your financial state. That means you can keep a broad view of your business in the same tool where you create your invoices.
Billiving
The last of today’s free invoicing tools is Billiving. Even the most expensive plan is still pretty cheap at $10 per month. This doesn’t include the fact that each extra user is an additional $2 per month, though.
Billiving claim that their product is best for small businesses. I tend to agree, but I’d almost place it as a more appropriate choice for startups. The ease of use means it’s ideal for non-specialists.
It has some impressive extra features too. Billiving supports multiple currencies and languages, which is great for companies operating across markets. It also allows you to create personalized sub-domains, which is very useful for eCommerce.
Invoice Ninja
Starting at $5 per month, Invoice Ninja is another decent all-rounder. While it’s feature-packed, what makes it a really interesting option is that it’s totally open source. That means that it’s really easily customizable.
The number of payment integrations is really impressive too. You can provide over 40 payment gateways in your invoices. Making it easier to process payments makes your clients more likely to pay out promptly.
Free users get access to four invoice templates. Premium users can use an additional 10. Customisation is fairly limited, although you can add your own logo.
Blinksale
Blinksale is the most expensive of today’s invoicing tools, starting at $15 per month. Interestingly, it’s browser-based. The benefits of this are twofold. First, it makes things very easy to set up. Secondly you can access it anywhere.
There’s also a nice range of invoice and thank-you note templates. These can be integrated with Stripe, to give your clients the ability to easily make card payments, while avoiding the high fees of some other payment platforms.
Blinksale also has several features that help to keep you organized. These include push notifications for things like due dates and follow-ups.
Final Thoughts
I think I’ve given you plenty to mull over. As I mentioned already, each of these invoicing tools has distinct advantages and disadvantages. What I hoped to do is draw attention to how some of these might relate to specific users. If I had to pick the stand-out offerings, I’d probably highlight Harvest for freelancers and FreshBooks as an all-rounder.
For more useful tools for online business owners, check out our guide to the best database software for small businesses, and the best live webinar software. You might also want to check out our roundup of the best presentation software.
Hope you like our content. If you feel you have a solution that should be on this list, shoot us an email. We want to make our articles as comprehensive as possible.
