17 Best Invoicing Software for Small Business in 2024

Drowning in a sea of unpaid invoices? Feeling like you're wasting time by chasing down late payments? You're not alone. A staggering 27% of US businesses struggle with the invoice creation.

Here's the good news: You don't have to be a martyr to the invoicing grind. Powerful invoicing software can save your business from negative cash flow by streamlining your billing and putting your time back in your pocket.

But with a dozen options out there, which one is the right fit for your small business? Don't worry, I've done the heavy lifting! I've reviewed over a dozen of the top contenders and ranked them based on features, ease of use, and value.

Ready to ditch the invoice drama and watch your cash flow flourish? Dive into this article and discover the invoicing software that's your perfect match!

Ranking the Best Invoicing Software for Small Business

Choosing the right invoicing software for small business may prove difficult, especially when many options are available. The right billing software solutions can make or break your small business’s invoicing strategy. 

Pay close attention to each of the billing software mentioned on my list. Only then can you choose the right one for your business.

1. QuickBooks Online

QuickBooks Online is the best overall invoicing software for small business. It occupies the top spot on my list because of its standout features. 

If you compare QuickBooks Online with other invoicing software for small business, you will realize the availability of options and features of this software. 

The invoices provided by QuickBooks Online are highly customizable. You can change the layout, upload your brand logo, including custom fields, and many more customization options. 

QuickBooks Online

• Highly customizable invoices
• Option to add billable hours
• Real-time tracking
• Payment dispute protection

Additionally, you can personalize your invoices as per your targeted niche. For example, if you run a law firm, you can include additional fields for retainer amounts and case numbers. 

In short, you can easily customize your options despite the type of business you run and the type of business you’re sending invoices to. This will help you receive payments without any confusion. 

After you send your invoices, you can track them in real-time. This will ensure your dues are paid on time. You can also create auto reminders to alert your customers regarding overdue invoices. Here's the pricing structure of QuickBooks Online.

All plans will come with dedicated features like tax deductions, general reports, mileage tracking, cash flows, etc. Apart from saving 50% for the first three months, you can pay $50/month for assisted bookkeeping.

Unlike many other invoicing and bookkeeping software, QuickBooks Online will calculate sales-tax rates on your behalf. After that, it will automatically include the reports in your invoices per the customer’s address. 

2. Invoicera

Despite lacking accounting features, Invoicera still made it to my list of best invoicing software for your small business. Whether you have a startup or a medium-sized business, Invoicera will prove helpful. 

While integrating your invoicing system with your accounting system is good, some businesses prefer a standalone system. If you’re looking for the best standalone invoicing software for small business, nothing can beat Invoicera. 

Invoicera combines accounts payable (A/P) management with Accounts Receivable (A/R) within a single dashboard. You don’t need to visit multiple websites to achieve the same results.

Invoicera

• Versatile invoicing platform
• Global billing
• Customized templates
• Multi-currency and multi-lingual

The platform impressed me with its eye-catching accounting features. Invoicera allows you to create your own customized invoices or choose from seven invoice templates. You can customize them further and schedule them to be sent at a particular time. 

However, not providing the accounting features was a crucial disadvantage to me. If you want to use separate invoicing software for small business and any other type of accounting system, you can choose Invoicera. 

If you cannot find your desired invoice templates, you can send Invoicera your requirements, and they will create a customized template for you. Moreover, you can send recurring invoices, create and send reminders, and charge late fees. 

The number of clients will increase as you choose the more advanced plans. Besides getting API access from the Business plan, you will also get to export batch PDFs. The custom development and integration services will also prove beneficial.

If your small business has complex billing workflows, you can use Invoicera to streamline them. It will streamline how team members authorize, review, and approve invoices before sending them to clients. 

3. FreshBooks

FreshBooks has almost identical invoicing features to QuickBooks Online. However, since all pricing plans allow only one user, I believe it’s more focused on solopreneurs and freelancers. 

This easy-to-use invoicing software for small business is perfect for individuals with little to no accounting and invoicing knowledge. The intuitive interface will be of no problem to even beginners. 

FreshBooks

• Professional looking invoices
• Accept ACH and credit cards
• Deposits for upfront payment
• Automatic tax calculations

FreshBooks comes with time-tracking and project management features. This will help you convert tracked time into billable invoices. This feature is handy for businesses that charge on an hourly basis. 

Additionally, this invoicing software for small business will help your company accept payments, create recurring invoices, calculate late fees, and highlight outstanding invoices. 

I was so impressed with the features of FreshBooks invoicing that I decided to create a free account. A great thing about its pricing plans is that you can create a trial account without any credit card information.

I believe the dashboard is super simple and easy to use. Just enter the relevant invoicing information and save the file. You can also send the invoice directly to your client from the dashboard.

You can also connect to your corporate bank account to import transactions, print financial statements, and reconcile credit card accounts. 

The most noticeable feature between FreshBooks and QuickBooks is that the latter will let you calculate and implement taxes automatically within the invoices. However, when using invoice tools like FreshBooks, you must create a sales tax account for each state. 

While the Lite and Plus plans have 5 clients and 50 clients, respectively, the Premium and Select plans have unlimited clients. If you need to add an additional team member, you need to pay $11/user/month.

If your small business serves clients or customers from different states, FreshBooks may not prove a feasible solution. 

4. Square Invoices

I chose Square Invoices on my list of best software for small business because it’s perfect for low-volume or infrequent transactions. This merchant service provider has no monthly fees. 

This is why Square Invoices is the best choice if your small business processes less than $10,000 per month through credit card transactions. You can also use Square Invoices if you’re using other Square features. 

Square has good invoicing features and cost-effective credit card invoice processing charges for small businesses.

Square

• Schedule recurring invoices
• Collect deposits
• Auto payment reminders
• Custom invoice layouts

You will also get essential features like recurring billing and payment reminders. However, you must understand how Square works as the learning curve may prove steep. 

If you compare Square Invoices with QuickBooks Online, you will understand that Square is missing many features. 

For example, this small business invoicing software won’t automatically calculate accurate tax rates to implement them into invoices. 

I believe Square Invoices' billing processing feature should be more refined. It should allow customers to make payments through relevant payment links. 

While it’s not as feature-packed as other invoicing software for small business, Square lets you develop, send, and track your invoices through the mobile invoice app or website. 

5. BQE Core

BQE Core can help professional service firms track the realization rates. This invoicing software for small business paid excellently with the robust invoicing capabilities of QuickBooks Online. 

If your small or medium-sized business bills clients hourly and wants to track client engagements, BQE Core can prove a great option. 

BQE Core is considered one of the best invoicing and billing software for small business workflows. It offers great flexibility when creating invoices. 

BQE Core

• Manual and batch invoicing
• Automatic and recurring deposits
• Flexible billing schedules
• Fast online payment processing

You can customize the appearance, colors, and margins of your invoices. You can also use advanced invoicing feature options, such as creating a schedule or splitting invoices according to your desired frequency for retainers and free contractors. 

I like the BQE Core as its invoicing features are closely associated with the project accounting module. This platform lets you configure ceiling rates for multiple roles and team members, define invoicing intervals, specify billing preferences, etc. 

Depending on the expenses and tracked time, BQE Core can easily create accurate invoices for your projects. After you send your invoices, you will get to track the payments and mark them once settled. 

On top of that, BQE Core lets users create customized invoice approval workflows. This is the best way to ensure the invoices are scrutinized and approved by professionals before sending them to clients. 

BQE Core is not transparent about its pricing structure. I scorched their website and found nothing except for the demo request option. However, they indicate that they have a per-user pricing structure.

You can track billing realization rates by focusing on the ratio of billable hours to the actual revenue generated. This feature can help businesses charge clients based on services and time rendered. 

6. Zoho Invoice

Zoho Invoice is my top recommendation if you’re looking for free invoicing software for small businesses. With zero financial commitments, Zoho Invoice is a great option for startups, small businesses, and freelancers. 

Unlike other free invoicing software for small business like Wave, Zoho Invoice has a more reliable customer service team. It has more robust invoice customization options than ZipBooks. 

Zoho Invoice

• Record received offline payments
• View invoice history to keep track
• Appealing invoice templates
• Set recurring invoices

Although Zoho Invoice has a free plan, it doesn’t compromise on general invoicing and customization features. However, if you need accounting functionalities, you must integrate with Zoho Books. Here's what the demo account looks like on Zoho Invoice.

Before you start creating invoices with Zoho, you can choose to turn on or off multiple settings, allowing you to use only the features you need. For example, you can track payments easily by including a detachable payment stub. 

I also found the A/R tracking feature of Zoho Invoice highly useful. This feature will let you track your business’s outstanding invoices easily and numerous filter options. You can filter invoices by their client view, draft, status, overdue, unpaid, paid, and payment initiated. 

But keep in mind that Zoho Invoice is suitable for one business only. If you need to manage invoices for multiple businesses, choose more sophisticated options like Invoicera. 

While Zoho Invoice can be integrated with most other Zoho products, don’t forget that you cannot connect it to Zoho Inventory. I found this really surprising since invoicing and inventory are linked together for most small and large businesses. 

7. ZipBooks

ZipBooks is another great invoicing software for small business. If you’re looking for a cost-effective solution with basic invoicing features, ZipBooks won’t disappoint you. 

ZipBooks allows you to create and send accurate invoices to clients and perform general financial management and accounting tasks, such as expense and income tracking and robust project management. 

ZipBooks

• Professional looking invoices
• Pass-through expenses
• Recurring billing
• Discounts and taxes

Despite having limited customization features, ZipBooks has decent invoicing features. When you create an invoice with ZipBooks, you can use a template to change the logo before entering relevant sales information. 

For customer payments, you can also enter general billing preferences such as accent color, credit card, and PayPal. You can also track taxes to initiate more manageable payments. Let's take a look at the ZipBook's dashboard.

Upon creating an invoice, ZipBooks will auto-generate a link. You can share this link with your clients for accessible payment collection. You can also send the invoice over email. 

ZipBooks provides a free subscription plan that allows users to create, send, and track unlimited invoices. However, essential features such as time tracking and recurring invoices are only available in the paid plans. 

However, the appearance of the invoices created through ZipBooks may not prove highly appealing. Unlike other invoicing software for small business, you cannot choose templates with ZipBooks, change invoice colors, or edit invoice fields. 

Unlike the free version, the Smarter and Sophisticated pricing plans will let you connect multiple bank accounts and add more members. The upgradable plans will also let you receive account notifications.

Zoho Invoice can be the best alternative if you want the best free invoicing software with more effective features than ZipBooks. 

8. TimeTracker

TimeTracker by eBility provides engineers, accountants, lawyers, and other small businesses with an excellent invoicing option. It ensures that professional firms receive the best functionalities since billable hours are one of the most important aspects of an invoice. 

What sets this invoicing tool apart from the competition is that it can track billable hours that are written off. Thanks to the billable realization reports, you can see which billable hours were sent to the clients and which were written off. 

TimeTracker

• Customizable time tracking
• Employee scheduling
• Accurate expense tracking
• Effective client portal

This way, you can determine the profitability of your small business. TimeTracker will also capture your attention regarding its mobile app and customization feature. 

However, I noticed that TimeTracker lacks essential features like recurring and short payments. Also, the invoices could be more visually appealing. 

TimeTracker will let your business send invoices directly from billable expenses and time entries to your clients. This is great for businesses that bill by the project or hour. 

If you like the features of TimeTracker and choose annual billing option, you can save 20%. However, make sure you utilize the platform to its core during the trial period.

You can include payment links within the invoices to ensure you collect the payments faster. This will help your clients process the payment efficiently. 

9. Sage

Sage is the best accounting and invoicing software for small business that will help you gain real-time insights into your business’s finances. You can track your expenses, revenue, and net income with Sage. 

If your invoices are viewed and paid, Sage will provide notifications to refine the tracking. This is undoubtedly a brilliant option if you need to track multiple client invoices every month. 

Sage

• Create and send unlimited invoices
• Run advanced reports
• Manage purchase invoices
• Automatic receipt capture

You can also send personalized invoices to your clients every day. It has eight templates, and you can choose anything you want according to your needs. 

You can also personalize the invoices with relevant details from your clients. Additionally, you can set auto invoices, saving you a lot of time from manual invoice creation. 

Sage also helps you with billing, especially when you’re a busy entrepreneur commuting with customers and prospects across channels. 

The Sage Accounting Start will have one user, which is perfect for freelancers. This plan will help you create, send, and track your invoices. If you're looking for unlimited users, you can choose Sage Accounting plan.

Sage invoicing software for small business can help you process payments, refunds, recurring bills, and more. To speed up payments, you can also include a Pay Now button on every invoice. 

You can also integrate Sage with other payment platforms like Stripe and PayPal for debit or credit card payments. While I loved Sage’s extensive invoicing features, the learning curve is more complicated. I believe Sage should offer more user-friendly solutions. 

10. Bonsai

Bonsai is the best invoicing software for small business if you want to process worldwide payments. You can handle PayPal, credit cards, and ACH payments, allowing your global customers to pay through multiple payment methods. 

Bonsai will let you receive payments in 100+ different currencies. You will never face any problem receiving payments. However, it’s not as vast as Oracle Netsuite. 

Bonsai

• Streamlined invoicing
• Secured payments
• Recurring payments
• Build and sell package

Whether you run a small business or a large enterprise, Bonsai is an excellent option for dealing with clients worldwide. Here's what the Bonsai dashboard looks like.

One of the best features I found about Bonsai is that the dashboard looks clean and simple. All you need to do is create an account, answer a few questions, and you're good to go.

From creating invoices to scheduling them, you can automate most of the tasks associated with your business’s invoices. You can also send reminders and dates of fee collection. 

A great feature of Bonsai is that you can create subscription billing and recurring payments for the clients you have on retainer. 

This way, you can seamlessly manage long-term projects. You can bill them quarterly, monthly, bi-weekly, or weekly, depending on your requirements. 

If you choose the Starter plan, you cannot remove Bonsai branding. To do this, you need to upgrade to either a Professional or Business plan. The Business plan is perfect for small businesses and agencies.

Bonsai will let you create unique invoices with special conditions, customized line items, and special payment terms. 

While you can use the Bonsai application to scrutinize your invoices, you cannot implement any changes. This may seem a downside for many small business owners planning to operate Bonsai from their mobile devices. 

11. Melio

Melio is an online invoicing software for small business that helps you create visually appealing invoices. From paying vendors to contractors, you can do many tasks with Melio. 

While Melio can help small businesses, it’s also helpful for large and medium businesses. Large businesses with complicated operations and multiple vendors can use Melio as their primary invoicing software. 

Melio

• No subscription fees
• International payments
• Easy bill capture
• Partial payments

Thanks to this effective software, you can easily add invoices or sync your company’s accounting software to send invoices to clients. 

However, unlike other simple invoicing software for small business on my list, Melio offers less functionality in the areas of invoice generation.

Despite this, you can integrate Melio with other invoicing software like FreshBooks and QuickBooks. 

What’s excellent about Melio is that it can match all of your business’s incoming payments with invoices. This will help you avoid mistakes when recording or tracking payments. 

Melio can save your admins a lot of time by managing and tracking payments on any device. Thanks to its superb transparency, it’s an ideal invoicing software for small business to track payments. 

You can also use Melio to share customized payments page links that feature your email signature, business card, or website. 

12. Wave Invoicing

Wave is another invoicing software for small business that flaunts its ability to create beautiful invoices. The invoices Wave invoice generator will always showcase your business’s professionalism. 

Wave offers a user-friendly dashboard to review your cash flow, invoices, profit and loss. From the dashboard, you can pinpoint the overdue invoices that you need to clean up. 

This makes Wave an excellent option, especially when you’re overwhelmed with tracking bills, payments, and overdue vendors. 

Wave

• Create high-quality invoices
• Fast payment via credit card
• Recurring billing for customer retention
• Track payments and communications

While other invoicing platforms for small business also offers invoices directly from the dashboard, Wave’s capability to present financial information is really great. 

Wave provides accurate graphs and charts that can compare different financial markets during the fiscal year.  

As the Wave application is available on Android and iOS, you will have no problem sending your invoice to the free invoice app. Moreover, Wave has significant automation aspects.

Your payment and invoicing information will automatically sync with the free invoice software, allowing you to save significant time on bookkeeping. 

You can also create recurring billing for repeated butters, making Wave one of the best billing software options for small businesses when working with several retainers. 

However, remember that you cannot add billable hours to Wave invoices. Hence, if your business charges clients hourly, you may face problems with Wave. 

13. Invoice2go

Invoice2go is all about creating magnificent invoices for your business. This smart bookkeeping and invoicing software includes a user-friendly interface and can be accessed from any device. 

Invoice2go is a great option for contractors who handle clients or customers outside their office or home and want to create invoices with a few simple clicks. 

Invoice2go

• Create high-quality invoices
• Fast payment via credit card
• Recurring billing for customer retention
• Track payments and communications

One of the best features of Invoice2go is that you can use this software to send invoices to your client’s preferred channels, whether via email, text, or WhatsApp. 

This will prove beneficial for business owners working with different types of clients, as it will help them track communications and receive payments on time. 

If you don’t have time to track your payments and invoices, Invoice2go can set up notifications whenever your clients view your invoices, or you receive payments. 

Regardless of the plan you choose, you will get a 30-day free trial. However, you need to enter your credit card information. You can cancel the trial period anytime if you don't like the services.

You can also automate the payment reminders to create a hassle-free experience both for you and your clients. No need to worry about overdue or missed payments. 

Apart from these features, Invoice2go can help you track time and add the billable hours to the invoices. In comparison, this feature is similar to QuickBooks but better in every way. 

You will also get online deposits and client approvals with Invoice2go. Ultimately, you can convert them into invoices, saving you a lot of time. 

14. Indy

Indy is another popular name in the invoicing software for the small business market. From being easy to understand to offering affordable pricing plans, never overlook the features provided by Indy. 

The invoices can be customized to a great extent. You can add your business info, logo, theme colors, and even a personalized message. 

Indy

• Unlimited proposals and contracts
• Unlimited invoices
• Branded client portal
• White labelling customization

You can also set up recurring payments with Indy for your regular clients and customers. Depending on the estimates from proposals, Indy will automatically generate invoices. Let's take a look at the dashboard.

The best part about this invoicing software is that the generated invoices will be highly detailed. It will also include every essential thing to track the due amount. Here are the pros and cons of Indy.

This feature will ensure you receive prompt payments without any delay. You can also include the tax rates within your invoices as per discounts and specific taxable items. 

As you can see, Indy is extremely cost-effective. Despite offering such affordable pricing plans, you won't find any performance issues. Besides 30-day money back guarantee, the payments are secured by SSL encryption.

If you’re worried about collecting payments, you should use Indy. This is because the software accepts all popular payment options like Stripe and PayPal. 

15. Bill

Bill is an invoicing software designed for small businesses with low revenue. This simple billing and invoicing software will help your business tremendously, especially when you need to operate on a tight budget. 

The software specializes in making invoices easier for startups and small businesses. It allows users to have maximum control over their A/P or accounts payable. 

Bill

• Bill management from a centralized inbox
• Unlimited document storage
• Custom approval policies
• Single or recurring invoices

In addition, you will get tools to help you review and approve invoices. This feature is extremely helpful for avoiding sending inaccurate invoices to your clients. 

Apart from domestic payments, Bill will also let you carry international payments. You can receive payments from any clients all over the world. 

The software takes care of this through payment reminders and automated invoices. You can also leverage the best benefits of contact management software. 

Bill supports multiple payment gateways like PayPal, debit cards, and credit cards. Bill can also integrate with other software items. 

Before you purchase the subscription, make sure you evaluate your complexity and volume of invoices. As Bill requires a steep learnin curve, don't forget to assess your team's ability to learn and manage the platform.

Bill can also sync with your accounting software to simplify your business’s accounting needs, such as bank account reconciliation and bank balancing. 

16. Invoice Ninja

Invoice Nijna is also one of the most famous invoicing software for small business. This platform falls into the free version bracket. 

This is why many solopreneurs, startups, and freelancers consider this invoicing and accounting software over anything else. 

Invoice Ninja

• Create and send invoices in real-time
• Multiple payment gateways
• Track inventory levels
• Customize invoice fields

Invoice Ninja will provide you with most of the functionalities you receive from paid software. I created an account on Invoice Ninja, and the process is super easy and time-saving.

This free billing software comes with many unique features, from estimates and project management to time tracking. Better yet, you don’t need to pay anything, as you can enjoy Invoice Ninja with zero hidden fees. 

Invoice Ninja showcases some cool features like voice commands. You can use simple voice commands to send invoices and payments within the platform. Here's how much you need to pay for Invoice Ninja.

Invoice Ninja will allow you to receive payments with just a few clicks. Don’t forget to set up auto-billing, brand invoices, or project milestones as per your needs. 

This software, which offers a free trial, has impeccable customer support. This feature is something you will rarely find in any plan. They also give multiple ways to contact them. 

17. FreeAgent

If you’re looking for standalone invoicing and billing software for small business to customize invoice templates easily, FreeAgent invoicing software makes a great addition to your business. 

Not only can you customize the templates, but you can also easily send them to your clients. This simplicity made me put FreeAgent on my list of the best invoicing software programs for small businesses. 

FreeAgent

• Gallery of templates
• Customizable templates with CSS
• Automatic recurring invoices
• Automated late payment reminders

FreeAgent offers unlimited invoices and customizable invoice templates. They stand apart from the crowd by creating professional and simple invoices that will give your business a good first impression. 

Besides providing top-notch invoicing solutions, FreeAgent generates basic reports for important metrics like sales taxes and unpaid invoices. 

When you purchase FreeAgent for the first time, you need to pay only $11/month for the first six months as you will get 50% off. After that, you need to pay $22/month. You will also get a 30-day free trial.

FreeAgent supports multiple currencies and languages. It also supports the most standard online payment methods, such as Stripe and Paypal. 

Ready to Choose the Best Invoicing Software for Small Business?

Invoicing or billing software is one of the best additions to your small business. It makes invoicing effortless, so you don’t need to spend hundreds of hours creating invoices manually. 

However, to enjoy the maximum benefits of invoicing software for small business, you must ensure you’re choosing invoicing software that meets your business’s needs. 

Don’t forget to consider the pricing plans and features of the software. Also, determine what additional services you will receive besides the invoicing solutions. 

That’s all you need to know about the best invoicing software for small business. If you have any questions, let me know in the comments below. 

Frequently Asked Questions