Wave Review 2026: Is It Worth It?
6.8
/10
Phil Collective Score
Confidence: 0.9
What Is Wave?
Genuinely free accounting and invoicing. no catch, no 'freemium' bait-and-switch. Wave makes money on payment processing and payroll add-ons. Perfect for solopreneurs and micro-businesses who need real double-entry accounting without spending a dime.
| Founded | 2010 |
|---|---|
| HQ | Toronto, Canada |
| Deployment | cloud |
| Category | General Accounting |
| Free Trial | No |
| Free Plan | Yes |
| Affiliate Commission | Revenue share on payments |
Wave Pricing
Accounting (Free)
$0
per monthly
Payments
$0
per monthly
Payroll (Tax States)
$40
per monthly
Wave Features
| Feature | Available | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Receipt scanning | ✗ | |
| Audit trail | ✗ | |
| Tax preparation | ✗ | |
| Accountant access | ✗ | |
| Bank reconciliation | ✗ | |
| Bill pay | ✗ | |
| Double-entry accounting | ✗ | |
| Expense tracking | ✗ | |
| Inventory tracking | ✗ | |
| Invoicing | ✗ | |
| Mobile app | ✗ | |
| Multi-currency | ✗ | |
| Multi-entity | ✗ | |
| Role-based permissions | ✗ | |
| Time tracking | ✗ | |
| API access | ✗ | |
| Bank feeds | ✗ | |
| Payroll integration | ✗ | |
| Budgeting | ✗ | |
| Custom reports | ✗ | |
| Financial reports (P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow) | ✗ | |
| Project profitability | ✗ |
Wave Alternatives
- Zoho Books — 9.3/10
- QuickBooks Online — 8.6/10 — from $38/mo
- Xero — 8.4/10 — from $15/mo
- Sage Business Cloud — 8.1/10 — from $15/mo
- FreeAgent — 7.7/10 — from $14/mo