There are a little more than 30.2 billion small businesses in the United States alone – providing work for roughly 55% of the workforce(1). With over 400 billion invoices being printed every year(2), the time has finally come to normalize receipts. If you are a business that is looking to find a powerful record-keeping tool that can be used as a business strategy(3), we can only recommend the best invoicing software for you.
What is the Invoicing Software?
As the name suggests, invoicing software is a powerful tool that is used to generate bills. It does so by creating a list of services and products along with their prices in a digital format(4). Invoices are not appropriate for all types of payments – for example, upfront payments don’t require any sort of invoices such as those from pubs, bars, and cafés.
The Best Invoicing Software in 2020
Here is a compilation of the best invoicing software for small businesses:
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FreshBooks
FreshBooks is potentially the best user-friendly invoicing software that is catered to the general public.
Top features:
- Create unlimited multi-purpose invoices
- Add the ability to send, receive, and get notified of payments through the mobile app
- Ability to request deposits and accept payments in multiple currencies
What’s interesting about this software:
You can easily collaborate with your team and the user interface benefits both the business and the customer.
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Square Invoices
Perhaps the best free invoicing software that offers great customization.
Top features:
- Comes pre-packaged with a free mobile app
- Easily integrate with a PoS terminal by Square
What’s interesting about this software:
The small transaction fees when using a Square terminal (2.6% + $0.10) makes it a great option for small businesses that sell expensive products such as electronics.
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Wave
Another free product that could very well but one of the best free invoicing software on the market, Wave makes a profit out of transactions.
Top features:
- Needs dedicated devices for both sending and receiving payments but are free.
- Does accept ACH payments too
What’s interesting about this software:
You don’t need to enter any credit card information when creating your account and data is automatically updated on the cloud – no matter what device you access your account from.
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QuickBooks
If you want the cheapest service, no good service gets cheaper than QuickBooks – but with a catch.
Top features:
- Scalable transaction fee that scales from 2.4% + $0.25 to 2.9% + $0.25 depending on the situation.
- Schedule and track payments to save time and effort
What’s interesting about this software:
The most interesting thing about this product is that you can scale the prices and create purchase orders depending on the profitability of the job.
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Hiveage
Though a paid service, Hiveage has what it takes to become the best invoicing software for small businesses.
Top features:
- A huge number of payment options through this application
- Unlimited number of bills, invoices, and estimates
What’s interesting about this software:
The most interesting thing about Hiveage is that its prices are scaled depending on the number of clients you have. The more clients you get, the higher the prices.
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Xero
One of the most versatile invoicing software on this list, Xero may not look impressive, but it gets the job done.
Top features:
- Do up to 20 bank transactions a month
- Best used in a professional capacity and cheapest option is best for small businesses
What’s interesting about this software:
The ability to set up payment options with a debit card, credit card, and even PayPal is impressive, and it also accepts online payments.
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FreeAgent
A rather technical invoicing software, FreeAgent can help you make professional-looking invoices through easy customizability.
Top features:
- Easy to customize
- Comes with multiple currency and language options
What’s interesting about this software:
If you sign up as a new client, you have to pay 50% of the starting price for 6 months – which is a great way to start up a small business.
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Zoho Invoice
Automated invoicing software that beats even the best invoicing software in its forte: Zoho Invoice is cost-effective and powerful.
Top features:
- Automate up to 10 workflows
- 10 payment gateways and 14 integrations
What’s interesting about this software:
It is one of the oldest invoicing software: it was originally released in 2008 and offers the best customer service around.
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Sage 50c
Released in 2016, Sage 50c provides cloud-based services without the need for a dedicated PC.
Top features:
- Customize each invoice as you print it, even from your phone
- Comes with a powerful dashboard that can track cash flow, project income, expenses, and profit
What’s interesting about this software:
The ability to do everything an invoicing software should be able to do on any IoT device makes it a powerful solution for all small businesses.
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Tipalti
Though mainly designed for B2B businesses, it also caters to small-time B2C business, offering premium services.
Top features:
- Premium accounting services that even professionals stagger to provide
- Tough to set up, but has a higher chance of succeeding at luring customers in
What’s interesting about this software:
The premium price tag is the most interesting thing, as it costs at least 10 times more than the other options on this list.
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Intuit QuickBooks Online
An effective tool solution that is easy to learn and quick to set up, Intuit QuickBooks Online is exactly what it sounds like.
Top features:
- Easily print recurring invoices with a single click
- Link invoices to partners for better customer payment methods
What’s interesting about this software:
Because it can easily link itself to other partners, it provides an easy and intuitive record-keeping solution without much user input.
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SCoro
An all-in-one business management and invoicing software that helps create invoices and manage your business.
Top features:
- Streamline the process of sales, prepayment, and credit invoices
- Provides an option for recurring payments and overdue reminders
What’s interesting about this software:
Aside from providing a streamlined process for invoices, any small-time business can get a complete overview of a project’s profitability easily.
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AvidXchange
Another automated invoice software that is aimed at the B2B market, AvidXchange is better used for bigger companies that cater to other businesses.
Top features:
- Automation of key processes like management of account payables and bank reconciliation
- Improve financial management accuracy easily without needing a professional
What’s interesting about this software:
It is one of the highest-rated B2B invoicing software on the market, potentially the best invoicing software you will ever find for a small-time B2B business.
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Vcita
One of the best invoicing software according to its users, Vcita provides both customer service and automation of invoices.
Top features:
- Focused more on providing services for consultants, accountants, and lawyers among others.
- Provides essential tools for managing everyday tasks like calendar and scheduling.
What’s interesting about this software:
It is not only a professional invoicing tool but also comes with other quality-of-life products that you will enjoy having.
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Invoice2go
An affordable and powerful invoice solution that is user-friendly – albeit a little expensive as you scale, Invoice2go is the go-to solution for many entrepreneurs with small businesses.
Top features:
- Provides mobile-friendly invoices
- The user interface is designed for mobiles
- Simple interface that even people who have no interest in finance can use
What’s interesting about this software:
Invoice2go may not be a comprehensive tool, but it gets the job done at a cheap price that is perfect for small businesses that want to focus on more important factors more.
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WORKetc
A powerful cloud computing platform, WORKetc is much more than simple invoicing software.
Top features:
- Captures every billable event automatically, even when you have not specified so
- Can provide payment tracking and keeps your business alive
What’s interesting about this software:
It is easy to integrate with your business and can be used for purposes other than invoicing as well.
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SliQ Invoicing
A to-the-point invoicing tool that has every invoicing feature that you will ever want, SliQ invoicing is for serious workers.
Top features:
- Generate invoices and quite numbering effectively
- Track all payments and even includes PayPal for online payments
What’s interesting about this software:
SliQ invoices are only available as a desktop program for Windows, though its features do make it an effective solution for improving productivity.
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PaySimple
If you are looking for a clean user interface that can help you make beautiful invoices in no time at all, PaySimple is the best invoicing software for your needs
Top features:
- Simple interface for creating customized invoices
- Has to support subscription billing and includes online payment forms by default
What’s interesting about this software:
The interface is jaw-dropping and makes even small businesses look considerably better. The price depends on the user’s quote too.
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NetSuite ERP
A scalable solution for invoices, NetSuite ERP is a great product that is effective for medium-sized businesses but works for small-time businesses too, if you have the budget
Top features:
- A wide array of tools for managing control and automating invoices
- Comes from one of the biggest names in the market: Oracle
What’s interesting about this software:
NetSuite ERP is a cloud-only product that does not require any technical computer knowledge to use or maintain. It is also automatically updated without extra fees.
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Harvest
Harvest is not only an invoicing software; it is a complete package that offers practice management as well as profitability reporting.
Top features:
- Easily receive estimates and unlimited invoices with integration to hundreds of apps in the market
- Has a free plan and offers some of the most affordable plans for premium small-business users
What’s interesting about this software:
Though Harvest isn’t good for product-based businesses, it is a great option for businesses that need to focus on time tracking.
Benefits of Invoicing Software
Here are some of the benefits of using invoicing software:
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Minimize late payments
Invoicing software can automate the process of reminding the customers and companies about due dates to payments. This persistent reminder can help minimize late payments as customers will always want one less distraction.
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Minimize missed payments
Careless customers are the worst kind of customers. They sometimes miss payments until reminded by the company consistently. Invoicing software can make this process less awkward by automating these reminders with no personal context.
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Maintain a professional image
Invoicing software can help maintain a professional image by bringing consistency into invoices and payment methods. Additionally, it has become to do everything digitally, and not following such a trend is labeled as old and non-professional.
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Manage subscriptions
Good invoicing software comes with several features that can help keep track of various subscriptions by customers. This is required by many companies that operate on a subscription-based model instead of a one-time payment.
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Reduced overhead
There is a lesser need to use more employees to get a job done because invoicing software can reduce the overhead of the company. By providing automation, companies will be saving precious resources that can be used elsewhere.
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Promote transparency
Invoicing software can help promote transparency by adding more information on the receipts and being more open to the customers. This can also reduce the chances of an employee running away with precious customer money – though that is also very unlikely to happen.
Invoicing Software Trends
Some of the best invoicing software trends are:
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Expanded services for large enterprises
In the near future, invoicing software trends show that larger enterprises will want to implement such software for their use. This is because large enterprises have global customers. Instead of wasting precious management and labor energy on managing different branches throughout the globe, invoicing software can provide automation and unparalleled efficiency.
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Increased worldwide payment solutions
Like some of the payment software that we mentioned earlier that have over 10 payment options, the need for more payment solutions is rising throughout all businesses. Modern invoicing software is required to have multiple payment solutions to meet the baseline of the modern market.
What is a Good Free Invoicing Software?
Any of the software that we have mentioned above has all the characteristics of good invoicing software.
How to Choose Your Invoicing Software?
Here are some factors that can help you choose an invoicing software:
- Customize invoices – Should be able to provide customized & personalized invoices to customers.
- Email invoices – Additionally, other than printing invoices, the software should be able to mail them automatically to subscribed customers.
- Accept online payments: The era of paying through cash is over. Online payments are the future and good invoicing software should accept that.
- Add expenses – An invoice should be able to change itself to add add-ons and expenses off the menu.
- Automate recurring invoices – Instead of having to ask for payments from recurring subscribers, automation for such invoices is a must-have for many companies.
- Track unpaid invoices – For security and legal reasons, good invoicing software should keep a track of all unpaid invoices in a special secure database.
Final Thoughts
If you are looking for great invoicing software, we hope this list was able to help you find what you needed. We included software for every price segment: whether you are a free user who wants invoices for a small-time project or a business that wants to grow its customer base. If you have any queries, do let us know in the comment section.
