# Wave Reviews 2026. Verified Reviews, Pros & Cons | Capterra > Is Wave the right Billing and Invoicing solution for you? Explore 1726 verified user reviews from people in industries like yours to make a confident choice. Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/178021/Wave-Apps/reviews/ --- Wave 4.4 (1726) [View alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/178021/Wave-Apps/alternatives/) Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) * * * Last updated July 21st, 2026 # Reviews of Wave Ease of use 4.5 Customer Service 4.0 ## Pros and Cons in Reviews Free and affordable options 94% positive reviews out of 401 Most reviewers appreciate pricing, emphasizing the free tier, cost savings, and valuable features without high fees. Anonymous User Consultant, 1 employee. "Generous free starter plan with everything needed for a startup." Unreliable customer assistance 53% negative reviews out of 190 Some reviewers describe customer support as inconsistent, difficult to reach, and slow to resolve problems or answer questions. Tailored for small businesses 95% positive reviews out of 329 Most reviewers describe small business use as ideal, citing affordability, essential features, and suitability for startups. Christian W. Founder, 1 employee. "These features are more than essential to the small business owner and are easy to generate on the go quickly with the mobile application." Slow and limited email support 67% negative reviews out of 86 Most reviewers report email support is slow, often unresponsive, and lacks timely, effective communication for urgent needs. Aaron G. Owner, 2 - 10 employees. "However towards the end of 2024 the customer support has disappeared - no response on the live chat and no response via email." Straightforward setup and navigation 96% positive reviews out of 242 Most reviewers find ease of use valuable, highlighting simple setup, intuitive navigation, and accessible tutorials. Frequent slowdowns and lag 82% negative reviews out of 76 Most reviewers indicate performance and speed issues, mentioning slow load times, freezing, and occasional crashes during use. ## Showing most helpful reviews Showing 1-25 of 1726 Reviews Sort by: Most Helpful Rating Company Size Reviewer's Role Length of Use Frequency of Use Amanda J. Owner Marketing and Advertising Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Wave Recent Changes in Experience" April 19, 2025 3.0 Pros I've used Wave for 5 years. It's very easy to use and can help process payroll, send invoices and keep track of expenses. Cons In the recent past, I've had issue with them processing tax payments on time, and their support has significantly decreased from the past. Alternatives considered [HoneyBook](https://www.capterra.com/p/162588/HoneyBook/) Reason for choosing Wave Best value for the money and easily handled payroll and tax services. Review Source KS Kathryn S. Coach and Consultant Professional Training & Coaching Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Wave has been the perfect fit for me" February 25, 2026 5.0 Overall, if I had to set things up all over again, I would still pick Wave. It's been an excellent fit for my business. Pros I first started using Wave after trying to learn Quickbooks and finding it frustrating and way too complicated for my small, service-bases business. Wave was free at the time, and it was far more intuitive. I had a couple of questions that were easily answered by searching through Wave's online resources. I'm not a professional bookkeeper, and I felt way more confident using Wave than I did using Quickbooks. I've kept using it for years even after there was a cost to do so because it was definitely worth it. It continues to be easy to use, and now that I have a part time bookkeeper who helps me out, it lets us collaborate very well. Cons Wave's integration with my bank has not always worked effectively, and that has caused some problems. I'm not clear on whether it's my bank or Wave that's the issue, but a couple of times, the integration stopped working then started working again, and this resulted in some duplicate entries that had to be cleared out. It was simple enough to fix but irritating. Alternatives considered [QuickBooks Online](https://www.capterra.com/p/190778/QuickBooks-Online/) Reason for choosing Wave Wave was far easier to use than Quickbooks. Switched from [Kashoo](https://www.capterra.com/p/113351/Kashoo-Online-Accounting/) Kashoo raised their prices a ridiculous amount. Review Source Tim O. Partner Retail Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Wave is free but has limited customer support " March 6, 2026 2.0 If you want a free payroll and accounting provider, Wave fits the bill. If problems arise, you might be on your own and dealing with the consequences for months. Pros The starter edition is free which is awesome, you are able to process payroll, invoice clients and perform monthly accounting at no cost. There is a small fee for accepting credit card payments which is standard amongst other payment providers. Cons Customer support is non existent. Never thought this was a concern until Wave switched payroll processors and caused the system to crash. Wave went silent for weeks, only resolve was to email the company and those went unanswered. Had to turn to Redditt for workarounds, worst part was Wave never took responsibility for their mistake, switched to another provider which I pay for but willing to do so after my experience with Wave. Review Source JL Joseph L. Principal Public Relations and Communications Used the software for: 2+ years ### "An excellent resource for you and your accountant " April 28, 2026 5.0 Excellent in every way as I have used it for now 3 tax years without complaint from either myself or my accountant who works with what I send over in Wave. Pros Easy to input information and create my own financial Reports, and my accountant has no issues with importing my entries over for his own purposes to prepare my company’s yearly Return Cons Candidly, there is nothing to complain about. Regardless of your level of sophistication, you will find a benefit in using it. Switched from [QuickBooks Enterprise](https://www.capterra.com/p/174984/QuickBooks-Enterprise/) Cost comparison verses competitors made this the best choice Review Source AC Aaron C. Founder and CEO Marketing and Advertising Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Best free invoicing and financial management platform in Canada" October 20, 2025 4.0 Pros Wave has very solid web and app platforms. It's easy to navigate and makes the quoting, invoicing, and payment processes very streamlined -- while accepting payments from all major credit cards in Canada. The free version is already very useful for businesses just starting out, or those that are still in the early growth phase, but they also have an affordable paid version that adds a suite of automations and expense / receipt management functions to further boost productivity. Cons The main thing I don't like about Wave is that they don't use standardized "GAAP terminology" for some of their financial management and reporting features. While this may make it more accessible to a certain user base, it actually makes it a bit confusing for me (who has a bit of formal CPA / accounting training). Alternatives considered [BILL Accounts Payable & Receivable](https://www.capterra.com/p/166559/BILL/)[FreshBooks](https://www.capterra.com/p/142390/FreshBooks/)[QuickBooks Online](https://www.capterra.com/p/190778/QuickBooks-Online/) Reason for choosing Wave Wave has a much cleaner, more modern interface that doesn't feel overly crowded or cluttered for a small / growing business. It's much easier to navigate vs platforms like Quickbooks. Review Source Ron W. Property Management, Development and Investment Real Estate Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Love Hate Relationship" December 7, 2025 3.0 Love the UI and wanted it to be a viable alternative to the other players in the bookkeeping/accounting market but it fell far short and failed in it’s current itteration. Love the free version but it’s super basic and limited but upgrading to paid version is very expensive when using it for more than 1 business and offers inadequate features to do the job vis-a-vis other competitors in the market. If … WAVE would add AI, connectivity to banks and credit cards, and features to operate multiple businesses in the paid subscription I’d use it. As my daily driver vs the competitors. Pros Ability to have multiple accounts/businesses (free version only) Value for the money Very user friendly Payments and invoicing features Cons Inability to have multiple accounts/businesses in paid version Poor Value for the money with paid version because each account requires additional pay subscription Lack of AI Categorization vs competitors Lack of connectivity ability to import Banks & Credit Cards transctions Switched from [Microsoft Excel](https://www.capterra.com/p/176574/Excel/) Better UI, ease of use, invoicing and payment capability Review Source WEU William E U. Owner Financial Services Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Wave Accounting App." January 28, 2026 5.0 I've been using WaveApps for several years now and have been very satisfied with the ease and accuracy of the site. I would recommend it to any small business as an excellent and cost-effective accounting site. It has many features that I don't take advantage of, but likely would if I had a larger business. I gave it 5 stars and would definitely recommend it. Pros I use the free Wave App. I bookkeep for two small businesses and the fact that is free is my favorite feature. I have generally had no issues with the program and when I did have one (the only one), the company support was able to resolve the issue for me in only one call and I've never had an issue again. Cons One feature that I would appreciate would be to have an auto-fill feature. For example, I have many entries that are identical except for the date and amount. It would be helpful if it could auto-fill a name or entry after it recognizes the first few letters. Switched from [QuickBooks Desktop](https://www.capterra.com/p/212058/QuickBooks-Desktop-Pro/) To save money, Waveapps was free, Intuit priced themselves out. It was a good service, but our needs were minimal and WaveApps met our needs ...and free Review Source KW Kristyne W. Travel Advisor Hospitality Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Meets most of my needs!" February 24, 2026 4.0 Pros Wave automatically imports my transactions from my financial accounts (bank accounts, credit card, etc.) to streamline my financial reporting. I love that I can see how much income, expenses, and profit I made in each period and compare it prior periods. My monthly subscription is $19, which feels like a great value. Cons I tried to set up a way to send invoices and receive payments through Wave, but even after I was approved, they removed my access due to a blanket assumption around travel agencies. I now need to use an alternative solution for invoicing and collecting payments. Alternatives considered [QuickBooks Online](https://www.capterra.com/p/190778/QuickBooks-Online/) Reason for choosing Wave I chose Wave primarily for the easy integration with my financial accounts and lower cost compared to other services Review Source VR Verified Reviewer owner and principal linguist Translation and Localization Used the software for: 2+ years ### "For a free version, it sure dots the i's and crosses the t's!" February 23, 2025 5.0 I've been a Wave customer for some years now. Although I've tried a couple of accounting systems simultaneously with using Wave, I always end up coming back to Wave. Pros Its free version comes with everything I need in order to keep accurate and up-to-date accounting books. It even lets me do foreign currency invoices, something that I don't find in other free accounting systems. Cons I can't really say; I think that this free version is quite generous in its offerings. I sure hope that Wave will keep it! Alternatives considered [Zoho Desk](https://www.capterra.com/p/169505/Zoho-Desk/)[QuickBooks Online](https://www.capterra.com/p/190778/QuickBooks-Online/) Reason for choosing Wave Wave's free version is just what I need. Switched from [Zoho Desk](https://www.capterra.com/p/169505/Zoho-Desk/)[QuickBooks Online](https://www.capterra.com/p/190778/QuickBooks-Online/) The Zoho free version didn't fill my needs. Although I liked QuickBooks, the price was too much for what I needed. Review Source Erik S. CEO Logistics and Supply Chain Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Wave Review." January 11, 2025 4.0 The system is great cost effective not the easiest to use but great system overall. Pros The features in the platform are great. Simple to use not user friendly but easy to use. Cons Their platform doesn't integrate with other systems in the transportation industry. Alternatives considered [FreshBooks](https://www.capterra.com/p/142390/FreshBooks/)[TruckingOffice](https://www.capterra.com/p/122284/TruckingOffice/)[QuickBooks Online](https://www.capterra.com/p/190778/QuickBooks-Online/) Reason for choosing Wave There system do not integrate with transportations systems. Review Source AG Ana G. CEO Marketing and Advertising Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Great for small business bookkeeping" January 22, 2025 4.0 Wave is more useful for my bookkeeping than actually collecting payments - I would probably use the payroll option via wave is I ever need it again, just to keep things streamlined Pros I like how simple Wave is for reconciling all my business expenses and auto-categorizing, based on previous years. Invoicing is also fairly straightfoward. Cons Invoicing is great for one off invoices, but doesn't integrate with other apps and more automated checkout systems. It can become cumbersome to manage service inventory, having to create new 'products' for each custom service to then sift through. Alternatives considered [QuickBooks Online](https://www.capterra.com/p/190778/QuickBooks-Online/)[Zoho Expense](https://www.capterra.com/p/142384/Zoho-Expense/) Reason for choosing Wave Wave is free and VERY easy to setup and deploy. I don't have to be an accountant to be able to reconcile my own expenses as a small business owner. Review Source PP Perla P. CEO Accounting Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Best software" February 17, 2025 5.0 I have had nothing but good experiences with Wave. Pros I like how easy it is to use and be able to have everything you need in one place Cons I have yet to find anything that i don't like yet Switched from [Square Point of Sale](https://www.capterra.com/p/275802/Square-Point-of-Sale/) more flexibility and easier to use. Also it was better for the money Review Source CL Christy L. co-founder Marketing and Advertising Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Run the Other Way" July 3, 2025 1.0 Pros I liked the user interface, the dashboard, that they show if an invoice has been viewed, but the negative is horrible. Cons What started out as a promising service quickly turned into a nightmare that I’ll be cleaning up for at least two more months. Wave messed up my June 1–15 payroll, failing to issue direct deposits to my employees — but they did pull the taxes. I had no idea what happened for over a week. My support tickets were canceled without explanation, and no one responded. When I tried to stick with them just long enough to close out Q2 correctly, I couldn’t even select the correct payroll dates for nearly a week. By the time the system finally worked again, they charged me for July — and said I couldn’t cancel because the charge had already gone through, even though support had been nonexistent the entire week before. I was then told that if I wanted my tax reports filed, I had no choice but to keep paying through July. They even warned that if any taxes were collected that weren’t due until after July 31, I’d have to continue into another month to avoid being left with partial filings and no remittance. To make matters worse, you cannot start a new payroll service until they release your business from their system — effectively locking you in. And don’t expect clean exports when you leave: the reports they generate are borderline useless and don’t export in a format that any normal payroll provider can easily work with. Wave Payroll was a complete disaster. Avoid it at all costs. Review Source NK Naveed K. Managing Principal Management Consulting Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Lot of Promise, Failure to Execute" October 21, 2025 2.0 Wave was ridiculously cumbersome. Payroll was a problem. Accounting was a problem. Expense tracking was unnecessarily complex. I do like the invoice generation, but that is it. I wouldn't suggest this product. Pros The automatic invoice generation and tracking was good. The cash flow graphics could be helpful if all of your finances are tied to the same system. Cons The payroll feature itself was really confusing. I left Wave because of the payroll feature, and I maintain it simply for invoice generation. I didn't find their expense coding process to be very user friendly. The difficulty began very early when the direct deposit process was entirely too cumbersome and took an extremely amount of time. The Wave bookkeeping method was not intuitive - listing out every possible account you can possibly add as well as CASH ON HAND - an account that is a default and has no real application. Nobody is paying me cash for five figure services in 2025. Furthermore, the whole system was duplicative. A payment is registering as paid because it's tied to my checking account, but then is pinging me saying this invoice is not paid, so I mark it as paid, and then WAVE tells me I've been paid twice. Duplicative and unhelpful. It didn't take more than six weeks for me to leave this product screaming. Review Source KM Kortnee M. Chief Executive Officer Executive Office Used the software for: 2+ years ### "It’s like Quickbooks but free " July 21, 2025 5.0 My overall experience with Wave has been pretty awesome. I’ve been able to reconcile accounts, categorize transactions, and more — for free. Pros I love that this software provides a comprehensive suite of accounting tools at little to no cost. It also allows you to manage personal and business accounts. Cons I most disliked the limited functionality when it comes to uploading bank statements. Some banks don't provide the formatting that Wave requires which is limiting for accounts with many transactions. Review Source JM Jenna M. Operations Design Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Good! Would reccomend. " March 16, 2026 5.0 I like this for simple and strightforward invoicing. I htink its great for small businesses and people starting out. Pros Easy to use and pretty conperhensive for invoicing and tracking. Easy to use for beginers. I would recommend. Cons Never hurts to have more features. Custom fees ect and more tracking would be great. Also an end date to invoicce reminders. Review Source JD Jenna D. Co-founder Marketing and Advertising Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Wave is a good option for those with a small budget" July 10, 2025 4.0 I used it for the marketing agency I owned. We used it to categorize transactions, send invoices, and receive payments. It was fairly easy to use once I figured out where to find my transactions feed. The categories were easy to change. Pros The price point (free if you don't want bank feed) was good for my small business at the time. I like that it's fairly intuitive to use. Cons That it didn't have a bank feed option available for free and that it isn't as robust of a software as some other accounting platforms. Review Source AG Annie G. Sr. Accountant Accounting Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Perfect for freelancers or small businesses" October 2, 2025 5.0 Pros Wave is great for freelancers and small business looking for a free or low cost option for submitting invoices and access to accounting tools. The reporting and dashboard functionality is easy to generate and great to track cash flow. The UI is also very easy and simple to use for someone who doesn't have any experience using an accounting tool. Cons Wave is mostly good if you are starting out in your small business as there are limited features compared to other accounting tools. It is a pretty basic tool and only offers simple things like tracking cash, expenses, submitting invoices and generating simple reports. Review Source VS Victor S. CEO Information Technology and Services Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Fantastic for most uses" March 5, 2025 5.0 Really good overall. There are just some things they struggled to help me do. I didn't really want to pay for a full subscription for each property. Pros The free version used to offer more but it still offers a lot. It integrates with Plaid. It has a native payment processor that reconciles. It has an algorithm to match and merge transactions. I would have stuck around but there was a better value offer elsewhere. Cons The sole reason to switch was that they wanted to charge me for a full account for each project/property that I wanted to integrate onboard. I needed better separation for reporting for my properties for real estate reasons and it was just too hard to keep them separate. Review Source MH Marcus H. CEO Internet Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Great experience with great features - for free" December 28, 2024 5.0 My overall experience with Wave has been very positive. Everything works seamlessly, from invoicing to expense tracking, and the interface is intuitive and user-friendly. It’s a reliable platform that makes managing finances straightforward and stress-free. The only small inconvenience is that the business selection doesn’t stay permanent. After logging in, I have to manually switch to the correct business every time, which adds an unnecessary step to the process. Aside from this, Wave has been an excellent tool for managing my business finances. Pros One of Wave’s standout advantages is that its core accounting features are entirely free. For small business owners, freelancers, or entrepreneurs, this means you can manage your accounting, invoicing, and expense tracking without a subscription fee. Unlike many competitors, Wave offers a robust and user-friendly platform at no cost, making it an excellent choice for budget-conscious users who need reliable financial tools without hidden expenses. Cons Actually not much comes into my mind. They changed their free basic plan that you cannot send emails now - invoices or reminders. But that seems totally fair. Review Source AD Alex D. Nutritionist Health, Wellness and Fitness Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Simple way to handle money" June 1, 2025 5.0 Pros It’s been handy for invoicing and keeping track of small business stuff. I don’t have an accounting background so this keeps it simple. Cons Some features feel a bit hidden or not super obvious at first, but once got the hang of it, it’s been chill. Also, it being free helps a lot. Review Source JO John O. Finance Officer Non-Profit Organization Management Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Wave: Robustious AP, AR & GL Automation GURU" January 28, 2025 5.0 Pros With Wave, I am able to automate complex accounting tasks such as billing and invoicing. Cons I do not experience challenges with Wave when running accounting projects. Review Source MHE Michael Herbert E. Furniture Salesperson Retail Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Manage your finances " March 10, 2025 3.0 I have a very simple and easy process that I apply to my money control which on the whole has really helped me a lot Pros It is like a piece of cake, the creation of invoices is very fast and the bank sync functionality works well to connect automatically from my bank account to the application which in turn better helps me to manage my money properly Cons Why I am struggling to understand is that the interface is not as intuitive as I would like it to be Review Source JM Jolly M. Data Associate Information Technology and Services Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Improved visibility, control and efficiency." December 2, 2024 4.0 Working smarter for quick and easy results with predictive analytics and insights. Pros Wave has the visibility and control needed across accounts payable, global payments, procurement and employee expenses to run business more efficiently and drive growth. It's users friendliness has been enhanced by the power of AI. Cons Personal designing of the dashboard is not desirable. It is also disappointing that some banks are not fully implementable on the software. Review Source KK Kelli K. Founder Non-Profit Organization Management Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "User friendly platform" September 16, 2025 5.0 I have been very happy with how easy the platform is to use. I have used systems like Quickbooks, and that is way harder to setup that Wave. Pros Love the ease of use and that it is free for what I need. The financial reporting is easy, and you can track accounts very easily. Cons So far, I haven't found anything I don't like. I use it to track spending in different accounts and to pull P&L statements. Review Source Similar Products Featured ## Send me user reviews about this product ### Fill out the form and we'll send a list of the top-rated software based on real user reviews directly to your inbox.