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Last verified:
Medium confidence

FreshBooks costs $23 to $70 per month as of July 2026, with 4 plans available. Plans: Lite at $23/month, Plus at $43/month, and Premium at $70/month. Enterprise pricing is available on request. Pricing depends on your chosen tier, contract length, and negotiated discounts.

Use the interactive pricing calculator to estimate your exact cost based on team size and requirements.

  • Free tier: No free tier available

FreshBooks offers 4 pricing tiers: Lite, Plus, Premium, Select. Paid plans include Lite at $23/month, Plus at $43/month, Premium at $70/month. The Plus plan is growing businesses with more clients and accounting report needs.

Last verified: | Sources: 2 pricing pages and reviews
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FreshBooks lists $23-$70/month, but hidden costs like implementation and support add to the total as of July 2026. Key hidden costs: payment processing fees via stripe, per-client tier limitations, payroll service add-on. Verified from 2 sources by CostBench.

Hidden Costs Breakdown

1

Payment Processing Fees via Stripe

high addon

FreshBooks uses Stripe as its payment processor for credit card payments. Users report Stripe holds funds, causing cash flow issues, and fees were increased from 2.9% to 3.5% for saved cards. Some users switched platforms specifically because of Stripe-related payment delays and holds.

trustpilot

I got a last minute notice that the CC processing fees for saved cards are going from 2.9% to 3.5%. Finally giving my my last reason to migrate to a different platform

trustpilot

THEY USE STRIPE, THAT IS A MAJOR RED FLAG. We tried using this company for our companies invoicing. There were constant holds, interferences from Stripe. Don't waste your time with this if you are doing serious volume or your company depends on timely payments.

2

Per-Client Tier Limitations

medium addon

FreshBooks pricing is based on the number of active clients rather than users. When you exceed your tier's client limit, you must upgrade to a higher-priced plan even if you don't need additional features.

reddit

Used Freshbooks for years but their per customer pricing model was a turn-off.

trustradius

50 client limit is annoying.

3

Payroll Service Add-On

high addon

Payroll functionality is not included in any FreshBooks tier. Users must integrate with and pay separately for Gusto payroll services, which starts at $40/month plus $6 per employee.

reddit

FreshBooks Premium ($60/month) + Gusto payroll ($40/month) totals $1,272/year

4

Bookkeeper User Access Not Included in Lite Plan

medium addon

The Lite plan does not include access for a bookkeeper user, requiring businesses that need accountant collaboration to upgrade to a higher tier.

reddit

Freshbooks: Lite $22 (doesn't include bookkeeper user), Plus $35, Premium $60

5

Steep Plan Jump for Additional Features

high addon

Users report that the tier structure forces expensive plan upgrades for even minor feature additions. One user noted needing to upgrade from $21/month (Lite) to $70/month (Premium) just to add one more vendor, representing a 3x price increase for marginal functionality.

trustpilot

I run a small one person business and I've been using FreshBooks for 2 years. For $21 a month, I was limited to 5 vendors which was okay at first. I would have to upgrade to $70 a month to add 1 more vendor. That's too much for me.

trustpilot

After a very impressive experience during the 30 day free trial, I was disappointed when I subscribed to the product to learn that to use Freshbooks for just basic elementary expense tracking, I would have to buy the much more expensive Premium package. Additionally, in order to have a second set of books for my personal accounting, I would have to buy a second subscription. That brings the total cost for me to use Freshbooks to over $1,000 a year which is more than a small business can afford.

6

Regular Price Increases on Existing Plans

high addon

Multiple users report significant, repeated price increases while remaining on the same plan with no added features. One user documented their plan increasing from ~$25/month to ~$45/month across multiple increments over several years without any plan upgrade or added services.

trustpilot

I'm canceling my subscription due to the continuous price increases over the years. When I first started using FreshBooks, the plan was around $25 per month. Over time it increased to $30, then $33, then $38, and now I'm being notified that it will increase again to approximately $45 per month starting next month. What is most frustrating is that all of these increases happened while I have remained on the exact same plan the entire time.

trustpilot

I've been using FreshBooks for a few years now. While it's generally a decent platform, I've experienced occasional glitches and have noticed a steady increase in pricing over time.

7

Payroll Add-on Costs and Errors

critical addon

FreshBooks payroll is an add-on service with significant financial liability risk. Users report payroll errors including incorrect tax submissions, missed tax payments, and continued IRS form submissions after cancellation. One user reported FreshBooks withdrawing nearly $15,000 for taxes that were never remitted.

trustpilot

Their calculations were wrong and they screwed up my 2025 tax submissions. They ended up not paying certain required taxes. they withdrew nearly $15,000 from my account that to pay taxes - which my accountant found no records that they were ever paid; after weeks of pressing Freshbooks to provide proof of where the money went, Freshbooks finally admitted they never paid the taxes and needed to refund it.

trustpilot

Freshbooks said it was an 'error on their part, not the kind of experience we want our customers to have, but nothing we can do about it; we can't amend submitted forms'

8

Migration and Data Conversion Costs

high migration

Users migrating from other platforms (especially QuickBooks) report significant data migration issues including client emails, vendor contacts, zip codes, phone numbers, and financial data not porting correctly. One user reported paying someone to fix migration errors across 1,600+ client records.

trustpilot

CLIENT EMAILS DIDN'T PORT TO CLIENT EMAIL FIELD. VENDOR CONTACT INFO/ACCOUNT NUMBERS DIDN'T PORT TO ANYWHERE IN FRESHBOOKS. CLIENT ZIP CODES DIDN'T PORT TO THE ZIP CODE FIELD NOR THE ADDRESS FIELD. CLIENT PHONE NUMBERS DIDN'T PORT TO THE PHONE NUMBER FIELD. PAYING SOMEONE TO GO IN AND FIX THE ABOVE ERRORS.

9

Second Subscription for Multiple Business Entities

medium addon

Users who need to manage books for more than one business entity (personal and business, or multiple companies) must purchase separate FreshBooks subscriptions, as the platform does not support multiple sets of books under one account.

trustpilot

in order to have a second set of books for my personal accounting, I would have to buy a second subscription. That brings the total cost for me to use Freshbooks to over $1,000 a year which is more than a small business can afford.

Frequently Asked Questions

01 What hidden costs should I budget for with FreshBooks?

Beyond the license fee, budget for: Payment Processing Fees via Stripe (2.9-3.5% of transaction value); Per-Client Tier Limitations ($17-$27/month upgrade cost); Payroll Service Add-On ($40/month + $6/employee/month); Bookkeeper User Access Not Included in Lite Plan ($17/month to upgrade from Lite to Plus); Steep Plan Jump for Additional Features ($47-$47/month forced upgrade); Regular Price Increases on Existing Plans (10-80% cumulative price increase over plan lifetime); Payroll Add-on Costs and Errors ($40/month+ payroll add-on plus potential financial liability); Migration and Data Conversion Costs ($500-$5,000 depending on data complexity); Second Subscription for Multiple Business Entities ($23-$70/month per additional subscription). Exact totals depend on your deployment size and negotiated terms.

02 Does FreshBooks charge for implementation?

Implementation costs for FreshBooks vary by deployment size and customization. Contact the vendor or check our sourced hidden-cost breakdown above for verified figures.

03 How much does FreshBooks support cost?

Premium support pricing for FreshBooks depends on your tier and contract terms. See the sourced cost breakdown above for any verified figures we have.

04 Are there overage or storage costs with FreshBooks?

Overage and storage policies for FreshBooks depend on tier limits. Check the sourced cost breakdown above for verified data.

05 What add-ons cost extra with FreshBooks?

Add-on pricing for FreshBooks varies by feature. The sourced cost breakdown above lists any verified add-on costs we have.

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