Once logged in, your main dashboard will show your cash flow, profit and loss, invoices, bills and other financial insights. Wave's setup process can be quick or time-consuming, depending on whether you create all of your contact and product total absorption costing or service records up front. You must provide some basic business details and can then customize the app by, for example, modifying invoice and estimate forms, setting up sales tax, and specifying your currency of choice. If someone other than you needs access, you can choose among multiple roles that limit a user's ability to view, edit, enter, and delete information. That said, QuickBooks provides deeper, more granular user permissions. Wave Accounting is the best free accounting software solution for freelancers, solopreneurs, and small-business owners alike.
Wave vs. the competition: Feature comparison table
This accounting process generates two entries for every financial transaction. First, Wave is remarkably customizable—especially considering that it’s, you know, free. For instance, its unlimited invoices are much more customizable (and, in our opinion, more professional-looking) than QuickBooks’ comparatively expensive invoices. You can also customize your chart of accounts (CoA) to include only the accounts you need—useful for freelancers, who tend to have fewer expense and income categories on their books than bigger businesses. With Wave’s free plan, users can accept online ACH payments for a standard transaction fee of 1%.
Wave Accounting - great for micro businesses
- Having an independent software expert perform the bookkeeping is good for overall ease of use.
- Wave and Xero also have some crucial, unique features in common, such as unlimited users, unlimited bank connections and optional invoice-based payment acceptance.
- Tim worked as a tax professional for BKD, LLP before returning to school and receiving his Ph.D. from Penn State.
- To review Wave, we set up a free Wave Accounting account that we used to create invoices, record sample transactions and generate financial reports.
- Wave improved its software and has addressed many customer complaints in its latest redesign, including adding 1099 payroll support, duplicate transaction management, and cash-basis accounting.
- All payment information automatically syncs with the free Wave Accounting software included in your service, making accounting easy.
When you open a transaction, you get more information and can edit its details. You can add customers or vendors, add sales tax, specify a type (withdrawal or deposit), split the transaction among categories, upload a receipt, and write a note. No, Wave Accounting does not include built-in inventory tracking or management. For a limited time, new Wave Pro users can accept Visa, Mastercard and Discover four ways to legally avoid paying us income tax payments at a discount. The software setup wizard guides you through four easy setup steps to generate an uncluttered, straightforward dashboard.
Good Accounting Software for SME's
In addition to its accounting software, Wave offers paid services, including Wave Payments, Wave Payroll and Wave Advisors for bookkeeping support and accounting coaching. Wave Accounting also uses double-entry accounting, which is much more accurate than basic single-entry accounting. Most accounting software use the double-entry system, though FreshBooks’ cheapest plan is a notable exception. We love that even though Wave is free and freelance-focused, it doesn’t assume freelancers can afford to skimp on financial accuracy.
Wave might try to categorize some transactions automatically, but it didn’t guess many of mine correctly. The app learns as it goes, however, bond formulas so it should categorize similar transactions automatically as you continue to use it. We also took our expert’s view into accounting when calculating our star ratings.
Since the paid version of the software allows for multiple users, it may also appeal to midsize and growing businesses where more than one person keeps an eye on company finances. Users of Wave’s paid and free plans can both access receipt scanning, though only paid users can opt for free receipt scanning. In either case, Wave Accounting’s mobile app lets you capture unlimited receipts and import them in bulk in batches of up to 10 receipts. Wave’s other invoice automations include automatic user notifications when a client views your invoice and pays their bill. You can also schedule automatic payment deadline reminders for clients.
While it doesn’t have as many features as paid competitors like QuickBooks Online, Wave’s unlimited expense tracking, free invoicing, and basic reporting make it an ideal solution for many freelancers. Wave has recently updated its pricing model to now include a paid plan. Now, many standard features (such as automatic importing of bank transactions) are only available if you purchase a monthly or annual plan.
