About Wave
What is Wave Accounting?
Wave Accounting, part of Wave’s suite of financial products, is a web-based accounting platform designed to help small businesses manage income, expenses, payments, and invoices.
How do you use Wave Accounting?
Wave Accounting requires no downloads and is accessible from web-connected devices. Data can be imported from other apps, such as Quickbooks. From an online interface, users can access visual dashboards, reporting, invoicing tools, and more.
Who uses Wave Accounting?
Wave Accounting is used by small business owners, freelancers, accountants, bookkeepers, and tax preparers.
How much does Wave Accounting cost?
Wave Accounting is free. Upgraded plans with more features are available for other Wave products.
Does Wave Accounting have an app?
Yes, the Wave Invoicing app (for iOS and Android) provides on-the-go access to invoices.
Wave pricing
Wave has a free version and offers a free trial. Wave paid version starts at USD 20.00/year.
Alternatives to Wave
Wave Reviews
Feature rating
- Industry: Human Resources
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
I LOVE Wave!
Overall, I highly recommend Wave if you are running a business and want low costs and an easy way to manage your finances. My business is simple and Wave makes it so much easier for me to stay on top of things and know where I need to focus my energy.
Pros
I have been using Wave since around 2015 and my books were a mess when I first began because I was doing them (not my strength) and once I heard about Wave's bookkeeping services, I couldn't believe how affordable they were. It's super easy to set up and use, run reports and know about your financials. I tried switching to QB for about 1 month and hated it, so I switched back. Lesson learned and I'm sticking around!
Cons
One thing I had to get used to was because I had my bank account connected and until the month is reconciled, when a invoice is paid I mark it paid and then the 'payment' comes in again from banking. It was easy to catch and now my Wave bookkeeper keeps all that reconciled. Thank you!
Reasons for Switching to Wave
I chose Wave because of a family recommendation and how easy it was for me to set up an account and get things moving. The others may have changed, but I still recommend Wave to anyone who is looking for an easy & affordable way to get their business going.- Industry: Automotive
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 1+ year
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Review Source
Accounting without a Cost
I loved this software/app so much that I actually decided to open a personal account and use it for mine and my husbands personal finances! I had been using the good ole trusty excel for this. But this makes everything so much nicer. It imports all my husbands charges and then I can code them and see just where our money is going.
Not to mention, it has help the business I work for be more successful in bringing in a bigger profit!
If you are trying to decided between software's and don't know where to start, try Wave for your business accounting needs.
Pros
The first greatest thing about Wave is that is FREE!!! If you are just starting out, or a small business where overhead and expense need to be kept to a minimum, I recommend this app. It has all basic functions you need like, quotes, invoicing, statements, entering bills, receipts, reconciling bank statements, etc. All of these services including reporting are included in the free software! It has payroll functions for an additional charge, which we have opted out of for the time being. You can even link your bank account to it and it will import all the your debits and credits for reconciling.
Also, this software is super user friendly and you do not need to be a tech expert to understand it. It will set you up with preloaded items it thinks you need for your business and then you can change them or delete them. You can also add new ones super easy while doing this or after the fact. I really love that its cloud base and can be accessed anywhere. This makes it key for me when traveling for work.
Cons
Honestly Wave is pretty awesome that it was hard to find cons with it. The only drawback for me is the reporting. I wish I was able to customize them and select certain data to analyze. The reports are basic and standard, they just don't quite cover what I am looking for in my reporting.
Alternatives Considered
QuickBooks EnterpriseReasons for Switching to Wave
I choose Wave due to pricing, that its also stored on the cloud so it can be accessed anywhere at anytime. Also the setup was super easy and done in a day.- Industry: E-Learning
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Weekly for 1+ year
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Review Source
Wave delivers
Overall, my experience using Wave was good. The platform is not difficult and it's pretty straight forward to use.
Pros
What I like most about Wave is the user-friendly platform and the convenience of their app. It is also very easy to send out invoices and get paid.
Cons
Honesty, I don't have anything that I least liked. Wave delivered and gave me what we needed for our business.
- Industry: Computer Software
- Company size: 501–1,000 Employees
- Used Daily for 1-5 months
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Review Source
Solid solution for small businesses
Wave is ideal for freelancers, startups, and small businesses.
Pros
I have used Wave for just one month when I was working as a freelancer. The accounting features cover essential needs like invoicing and expense tracking. The real-time financial snapshots and automated processes save our time a lot.
Cons
Lack of advanced features is the drawback I see.
- Industry: Arts & Crafts
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Weekly for 2+ years
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Review Source
Compact invoicing software
Was positive till a section of the app was discontinued for non-US subscribers.
Pros
I love ease of use and functions that match my business needs.
Allows branding and customisation of invoices. Love that I can clone invoices saving time for repeat services to same clients ( art coaching in my case)
Cons
Disappointed that they removed wave receipts for non-US clients. This particular feature was critical to document hard copies of receipts on the go, into the online wave system. Now their is nothing else to integrate the hard copies of receipts into the wave system