The short answer
If you're a solo freelancer or small team (under 10 people) who mainly needs to send invoices, accept payments, and track who owes you money — Invoicely.live is a better fit and far cheaper. Wave is built for larger businesses with full accounting needs and a budget to match.
If you have employees on payroll, complex inventory, or need full chart-of-accounts accounting, Wave is better suited.
Full comparison: Wave vs Invoicely.live
| Feature | Invoicely.live | Wave |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | $0/mo |
| Free plan | ✓ Yes (5 clients, 15 invoices/mo) | ✓ Limited |
| Time to set up | Under 2 minutes | 15-30 minutes |
| Send invoices | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Stripe payments | ✓ Direct (no markup) | ✓ With added fees |
| Recurring invoices | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Quote → Invoice conversion | ✓ One click | ✓ Yes |
| Custom branding | ✓ Logo + 8 accent colors | Limited on lower tiers |
| Free invoice generator (no signup) | ✓ Yes | ✗ No |
| Free CV maker | ✓ Yes | ✗ No |
| Multi-currency | ✓ 21 currencies | ✓ Yes |
| Client portal | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes (paid tiers) |
| Mobile-friendly | ✓ Web app + PWA | ✓ iOS + Android apps |
| Full chart-of-accounts | ✗ No | ✓ Yes |
| Payroll integration | ✗ No | ✓ Yes (paid) |
| Migration from Wave | ✓ CSV import | — |
Wave pros and cons
👍 What Wave does well
- Genuinely free core accounting
- Good for very small businesses
- Solid receipt scanning
- Decent for US users
👎 Where Wave falls short
- Payments fee of 2.9% + 60¢ — higher than Stripe direct
- Now charges $16/month for advanced features that used to be free
- Limited international support (US/Canada only for many features)
- Customer service is slow (pushed to email-only on free tier)
- No client portal
- Ads in the dashboard
- Acquired by H&R Block — slower development
- Very limited customization on invoices
Our honest verdict
Wave is free but you pay for it in other ways: ads, slow support, US-centric features, and increasing pressure to upgrade. Good if you only invoice 1-2 clients per month.
Wave is best for: US-based businesses with very simple needs and small volume
Invoicely.live is best for: Solo freelancers, agencies, and small businesses who want professional invoicing, automated payment chasing, and Stripe payments without complexity or a $30/month price tag.
Pricing comparison
| Use case | Invoicely.live | Wave | You save |
|---|---|---|---|
| Just starting out | $0/mo (free plan) | $0/mo | $0/mo ($0/yr) |
| 5–25 clients | $5.75/mo (Basic) | $0/mo+ | ~$0/yr |
| 25–100 clients | $11.85/mo (Standard) | $8/mo+ | ~$0/yr |
| 100+ clients | $24.25/mo (Plus, unlimited) | $16/mo | ~$0/yr |
💡 Switching saves the average freelancer $0/year. That's a vacation, a new laptop, or three months of rent.
How to migrate from Wave to Invoicely.live
- Export your data from Wave — Settings → Export → choose customers and invoices as CSV
- Sign up for a free Invoicely.live account — takes 30 seconds
- Import your customers — Settings → Import → paste your CSV
- Connect Stripe — same Stripe account works (no need to switch payment processors)
- Cancel Wave — you'll keep access until the end of your billing period
Try Invoicely.live free for 14 days
No credit card. Full access. Migrate from Wave in under 10 minutes.
Frequently asked questions
Is Invoicely.live really free?
Yes. The free plan covers 5 clients and 15 invoices per month — enough for most freelancers starting out. No credit card required.
Can I import data from Wave?
Yes. Wave exports your customers and invoices as CSV. We accept CSV imports for both. Migration takes about 10 minutes.
Will my Stripe account work?
Yes. Invoicely.live connects directly to your existing Stripe account — no need to set up a new payment processor. Your customers won't notice any difference.
What if I outgrow Invoicely.live?
Our Plus plan is unlimited customers and invoices for $24.25/month — about 1/8 the cost of Wave's top tier.
Do you support international clients?
Yes. 21 currencies supported, multi-language invoices coming soon, and our PDF templates work for clients in any country.