We may earn compensation from reviewed products. Learn about our editorial policies.
As a freelance writer who loves technology, I’m on a never-ending quest to find the best tools that support my business. Since there isn’t a perfect all-in-one tool for freelancers, I use multiple services to achieve my goals. Let me be your canary in the coal mine, testing freelance tools to figure out if they’re right for you. Today, I look at the endlessly customizable Notion and how it makes freelancing easier.
What does Wave do?
Wave is an accounting system with some bonus features. The Wave bread and butter are tracking transactions and preparing necessary reports — Income Statements, Profit and Loss Statements, Balance Sheets, etc. Wave connects with financial institutions to automatically import the data to make everything extremely simple and almost automatic.
In addition to accounting, Wave also offers a customer database and digital invoicing with online payment options. While not as fully featured as Bonsai’s invoices, Wave provides all the necessary features and integrates invoice payments into financial transactions.
Wave can also prepare taxes and manage payroll should a business need these features.
What’s great about Wave is pricing — all the accounting features, report generation, and invoicing are free. Yeah, you read that correctly. Free.
Wave charges the standard credit card processing fees and a 1% transaction fee if you opt for Stripe processing instead of their built-in system (which also uses Stripe). The additional features (payroll, tax preparation, etc.) have added fees. Additionally, you can hire Wave coaches to help set up your accounts and learn the basics of financial accounting.
How do I use Wave?
I use Wave as the primary financial accounting system for both of my businesses. It tracks all income and expenses and prepares quarterly reports for my tax accountant.
I’ve set up the online payments and invoicing but haven’t used them. My current clients are set up as customers in Wave, and I link to their profiles from my Notion database.
There are a few quarks with Wave. While there’s an AutoMerge feature, it almost never matches imported transactions with things I manually enter. I have to be extremely careful to ensure entries aren’t captured twice, throwing my entire business off.
That said, Wave handles all the complicated accounting tasks with simplicity. Though Wave does not provide business budgeting — for that, I use YNAB. What Wave does, though, it does very well and at a price that can’t be beaten.
Is Wave right for you?
There are a lot of options for business accounting. Quickbooks is highly complicated and expensive. Bonsai is great but costs $19 a month (granted, it does provide additional features). If you’re looking for the least costly option for accounting, Wave is for you. Remember that Wave doesn’t make money until you use the upgrade features, so they like to remind you of these options.
Conclusion
Freelancers without overly complicated accounts need to look no further than Wave. It’s a great system, and the price is the best there is.
4 Comments
Freelance tools can make such a difference because small admin tasks have a way of eating up the creative part of the day. I always appreciate reviews like this that look at how a tool actually fits into real working life, not just the feature list. For freelancers, flexibility matters since no two schedules or workflows ever look exactly the same. I have gone through plenty of trial and error myself, trying to find systems that feel simple without being limiting. It reminds me of browsing Libetry Tax reviews before choosing help with finances, because the right support can remove stress and make the whole business feel more manageable.
What makes Geometry Dash Wave so addictive is the way it balances frustration and satisfaction, turning repeated failures into motivation and making every small improvement feel like a major achievement.
Hey Mark! Great insights on freelancers using Wave. I’ve been freelancing snowrider for a while and found that embracing tools like this has definitely helped streamline my workflow. I’d love to know if you think there are better alternatives out there!
The thrilling online game drift boss tests your drifting skills to the limit. This simple, enjoyable driving game requires players to dodge obstacles and navigate fast turns to score high. For experienced and new gamers alike, Drift Boss guarantees an intriguing and addictive gameplay experience.