FreshBooks Review – Invoice & Accounting Software Reviewed

FreshBooks is a user-friendly accounting software for small businesses and freelancers who want to stay on top of their finances.

Do you have trouble juggling your work duties with behind-the-scenes financial responsibilities?

If you want a straightforward, affordable pricing option to manage your business accounting, you’ll love what FreshBooks offers.

Over 30 million people use the software to maintain their records, saving an average of 192 hours annually.

Read this FreshBooks review to find out what the software could do to boost your business and streamline your workload.

What is FreshBooks?

In 2003, Mike McDerment accidentally lost some invoice information while working on his business finances.

That forced him to start over again but gave him the idea for FreshBooks to help other small business owners avoid making the same error.

McDerment streamlined the software to help self-employed, sole proprietors and small business owners manage every aspect of their work.

FreshBooks offers unlimited invoices, accounting data, bookkeeping, client management and mileage tracking.

How FreshBooks Works

FreshBooks uses the cloud to save information with every click, so you don’t have to worry about your computer crashing and losing an unsaved invoice.

The program has security protection to keep your data private and offers responsive email support.

It goes beyond invoicing to provide other accounting features such as tracking expenses, custom pricing and paying bills.

When you manage finances from one dashboard, you get a clear picture of your business. This program also simplifies the work you need to do at tax time.

FreshBooks Features

FreshBooks reviews go over each feature the program offers, such as oversight of revenue streams and balance sheets.

While you might want to try FreshBooks because of the invoicing software, the overall intuitive functionality of the add-ons can solve your accounting needs.

FreshBooks Accounting

The accounting feature allows you to manage expenses, income, loans and assets from a central dashboard.

If you hire an external accountant for tax time, they can access the profile and get all the data they need to file your federal taxes.

FreshBooks accounting features include:

• Accounts payable, which shows overdue invoices that need reminders.
• Expense reports that display how you’re spending money.
• Sales tax summaries to track taxes paid and collected, simplifying tax time.
• General ledger to get a broad overview of your finances.

FreshBooks Invoicing

A FreshBooks invoice is entirely online. You can customize a template and send it to your client in minutes. Your customers can pay with credit cards or online payment options, so you can quickly reconcile the invoice and add the income to your financial database.

The software goes above and beyond the standard invoicing features.

It has such perks as:

• Accepted payments from Mastercard, Visa, American Express and Apple Pay.
• Automated invoice reminders to ensure clients pay the amount due.
• Personalized thank you notes to send after receiving payment.
• Ability to schedule recurring invoices for regular customers.

FreshBooks Bookkeeping

FreshBooks partnered with Bench for its bookkeeping services, using real experts for bank reconciliation. Its bookkeepers import your bank statements and prepare monthly reports to keep you informed about your financial status.

Additional benefits of the FreshBooks and Bench bookkeeping partnership include:

• Retro services, helping you sort your finances up to 2 years in the past.
• Automatic monthly statement preparation.
• Complete data so you can file taxes on time and without audit every April.
• Saves you hours of work each month, which puts money back into your business.

Payroll Software

When you own a small business or work for yourself, it’s easy to get caught up in daily tasks and forget about payroll.

FreshBooks partnered with Gusto for its payroll integration. Your employees get paid, and you don’t have to spend hours calculating the checks.

Gusto covers every aspect of employee payroll, such as:

• Direct deposits.
• W-2s and 1099s.
• Deductions for medical, dental, and vision benefits.
• Automatic calculations for PTO, overtime and holidays.

Project Management Software

It takes a team to keep a business running smoothly, and everyone can have access to the project management dashboard in FreshBooks.

You can give those invited specific permission to work on files.

Using FreshBooks for project management means you can:

• Host attachments in one location instead of sending long email threads.
• Collaborate with several clients in the cloud, simplifying the feedback process.
• Track income and expenses to see project profitability.

Client Management Software

FreshBooks’s client management software resembles its project management functionality. You can track projects by the client to stay updated on billable hours, project feedback and invoice receipts.

This option promotes transparency between your business and clients.

Special features of the client management dashboard include the ability to:

• Track billable hours by the client instead of project.
• Create invoices, accept client retainers and send automatic payment reminders.
• Keep a database for client information to improve loyalty.

Proposal Software

There’s no need to spend hours developing a proposal only to lose a client and waste time and money. FreshBooks has proposal software templates that could save you about 36 hours a month.

Using the FreshBooks proposal software gives you the ability to:

• Insert details into a template and add images and attachments
• Accept digital signatures to commit to the project.
• Input the proposal into the software and assign a timeline and team members.

Financial Reporting Software

Financial reporting gives you an overview of your business so you can understand how itu performs. This reporting delivers crucial information about what funding you need or how to budget for the next financial year.

On the financial reporting dashboard, you can get clear visuals of data such as:

• Profit and loss, invoice details and expense reports.
• Finances according to client, project or a set period.
• Color-coded reports showing income and expenses.

Time-Tracking Software

Tracking your work time is one of the most cumbersome tasks of running small companies. FreshBooks simplifies the process with tracking software that lets you start a timer so you know exactly how long each task takes and can bill for your effort.

The FreshBooks time tracking software helps with:

• Using a Chrome Timer to track your online work and research.
• Integrating with apps you use for work and collaboration.
• Ability to track your team’s effort for a single project or client.

Estimating Software

Making an accurate estimate for a client proposal ensures they know what to budget. It also guarantees that your team will get paid what they’re worth instead of encountering an unexpected problem and losing money.

The FreshBooks estimating software supports you by:

• Estimating the time and cost for a proposal template.
• Accepting digital signatures to commit to an estimate.
• Automating an estimate into an invoice.

Receipt & Expense Tracking Software

Instead of manually inputting your receipts, you can link your bank account and credit card with FreshBooks. The apps communicate to update your expenses and categorize them according to type.

FreshBooks receipt and expense tracking include:

• Mobile receipt scanning to update your accounts on-the-go.
• Services that digitize all costs to lessen the burden of paper records.
• Digital proof to show clients their billable expenses.

Mileage Tracking App

The FreshBooks mileage tracking app streamlines travel expenses with little effort on your part. This app tracks your car trips so you can convert the mileage to a billable fee for clients.

With the mileage tracking app, you can:

• Review your travel history.
• Assign trips to clients or projects.
• Have complete compliance with mileage at tax time.

FreshBooks Payments

Using online payment processing for your business improves your cash flow faster than sending paper invoices and waiting for a check. With FreshBooks, you can offer your clients several secure online payment options.

FreshBooks Payments allows you to accept the following:

• ACH bank transfers
• Mastercard
• Visa
• Discover
• Apple Pay
• Stripe
• PayPal

FreshBooks Pricing Plans

Lite	$15/mo
Plus	$30/mo
Premium	$55/mo

Who Should Use FreshBooks?

If you are self-employed or run a small business, you will appreciate the FreshBooks accounting solution and affordable pricing options to manage your finances.

It lets users keep their data in the cloud and integrate with Google Drive, Zoho, and other workspaces.

Even if you don’t have an accounting background, you can quickly navigate the FreshBooks dashboard and learn how to use the program.

If you have trouble with any aspect of the software, you can view helpful webinars to solve the issue or contact customer support.

While employers can benefit from FreshBooks, a rapidly growing business might need more than the software can manage.

If you’re expanding or already have a large company, it may be best to hire an accountant to manage your finances.

How Does FreshBooks Compare?

Getting Started with FreshBooks

Getting started with FreshBooks is a simple process. Follow these steps to test the software for 30 days. The trial lets you see how it can streamline your workflow.

1. Sign up by entering your email and password.
2. When you click the Get Started button, the software asks you questions about your business to better understand the services you’ll need.
3. Select the plan that provides what you need, such as the Lite plan, Plus plan, or Premium plan.
4. Add your billable clients, create an invoice and start logging expenses.

You can also simplify the signup process using your Apple ID or Google address to link accounts.

FreshBooks Reviews

FreshBooks is very adaptable for any freelance work within the company. It has a lot of security in data transmission and its interface is very easy to handle. You can set up quick alerts to be able to manipulate financial reports and have them done quickly.

Jose M., Verified G2 review

FreshBooks is exceptional in its simplicity of use, making it a great choice for any business’s accounting needs. In the beginning, it helped us save time by allowing us to automate a few procedures. Create polished invoices that will impress your customers in no time at all.

Shayla B., Verified Capterra review

Should I Use FreshBooks?

If you’re running a small business and need help simplifying the financial aspect, FreshBooks is the right solution.

It’s an affordable program, and since it’s cloud-based you don’t have to worry about what device you use to access the account or losing data in case of a crash.

You don’t need an accounting degree to use FreshBooks. The program streamlines your workflow so you can focus on your customers instead of tracking your hours and invoicing.

Sign up for a FreshBooks account and see how it helps you maintain your expenses and income.

FreshBooks FAQs

You’ve learned how FreshBooks can streamline your business, but if you need more information, check out the answers to these frequently asked questions.