How we make this list: we compare pricing pages, product documentation and public user reviews. Rankite is independent; if a vendor ever pays for a featured spot, that listing is clearly labeled Partner.
Key takeaways
- Consultants bill time and chase invoices, so the shortlist is FreshBooks ($23/month), Bonsai ($15/month) and HoneyBook ($29/month billed annually): all built around client billing, not product inventory.
- If you work with a CPA or plan to grow into a firm, Xero ($25/month) and QuickBooks Online ($38/month) are the safer long-term ledgers.
- Wave and Zoho Books both offer genuinely free tiers, which is enough for many solo consultants with simple books.
- Bonsai and HoneyBook bundle contracts, proposals and client portals with the accounting, which replaces two or three subscriptions for client-facing consultants.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Best for | Starting price | Free plan |
|---|
 FreshBooks | Consultants who live in invoices and time tracking | $23/month (Lite plan) | Free trial (30 days) |
 Xero | Growing practices and consultants who work with an accountant | $25/month (Ignite plan) | No (no free trial advertised) |
 QuickBooks Online | Consultants who want the standard US ledger their CPA already knows | $38/month (Simple Start plan) | No (Intuit runs discount promos instead of a free trial) |
 Wave | Solo consultants who want real bookkeeping for free | Free (Starter plan); Pro from $16/month | Yes (Starter is free) |
 Zoho Books | Consultants wanting full accounting free under $50K in revenue | Free (under $50K annual revenue); Standard $20/month | Yes (free tier under $50K revenue) |
 HoneyBook | Client-facing consultants who want proposals, contracts and payments in one place | $29/month (Starter plan, billed annually) | Free trial (all plans start with a free trial) |
 Bonsai | Freelance consultants wanting contracts, time tracking and tax help together | $15/month (Basic plan) | Free trial (7 days) |
 Sage | Budget-conscious consultants wanting a free individual accounting tier | Free (Individual plan); paid from $7/month | Yes (Individual plan is free) |
 Dubsado | Consultants who want deep workflow automation around every client | See website (pricing not published on the pricing page crawl) | Free trial (21 days, full access to the Premier plan) |
Is your product missing or out of date?
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
The best accounting software for consultants
A consultant's accounting needs are specific: time-based invoicing, expense tracking, client proposals and contracts, and clean books at tax time. Generic small business accounting covers the last item and fumbles the rest. These nine tools split into pure accounting platforms and client-work platforms that include accounting, so you can pick the shape that matches how you actually work.
Starting price$23/month (Lite plan)
Free planFree trial (30 days)
FreshBooks started as invoicing software for service businesses and still leads there. Time tracking is built in, expenses flow in from bank feeds, and the automatic tax summary tells you what you owe before your accountant does. For a consultant whose revenue is billable hours and project fees, the workflow from tracked time to invoice to paid is the shortest in this list.
The pricing structure needs attention. Lite at $23 per month covers 5 billable clients; consultants with more clients step up to Plus at $38 per month for 50 clients. That client cap is the thing most buyers miss on the pricing page. If you carry inventory or need deep reporting, look at Xero or QuickBooks instead. For pure consulting, this is the fastest path from work to cash.
What we like- The cleanest invoicing workflow in the category with excellent time tracking
- Automatic expense import and tax summaries
- Client-friendly payment experience
Watch out for- Lite caps you at 5 billable clients, which solo consultants outgrow
- No inventory or deep job costing
- Reporting is basic next to QuickBooks
#2
Xero
Best for: Growing practices and consultants who work with an accountant
Visit xero.com
Starting price$25/month (Ignite plan)
Free planNo (no free trial advertised)
Xero is the straight upgrade path for consultants who outgrow invoicing-first tools. Every plan includes unlimited users, which matters the moment a CPA, a bookkeeper and a virtual assistant all need access. Bank reconciliation is fast, multi-currency works properly for international clients, and the integration marketplace covers payroll (Gusto), CRMs and project tools.
The honest catch is the entry plan. Ignite at $25 per month caps you at 20 invoices and 5 bills monthly, which an active consultant can hit in a busy month; most consultants realistically need the Grow plan at $47 per month. Xero also has less native US tax depth than QuickBooks, though the gap matters less for service businesses with simple tax situations. If you have an accountant, ask which they prefer before choosing.
What we like- Unlimited users on every plan, so your accountant and bookkeeper cost nothing extra
- Strong multi-currency support for consultants with international clients
- 1,000-plus integrations
Watch out for- Ignite caps invoices at 20 and bills at 5 per month, which active consultants hit fast
- Less native US tax depth than QuickBooks
- Payroll needs an integration
Starting price$38/month (Simple Start plan)
Free planNo (Intuit runs discount promos instead of a free trial)
QuickBooks Online is the default answer for one reason: compatibility. Your CPA already uses it, your bank connects to it, and every integration you might ever need exists for it. Reporting depth beats everything else here, which matters the moment a client engagement needs project profitability or class-level tracking. Simple Start runs $38 per month, with Essentials and Plus stepping up for multi-user access and project features.
The costs stack. Each additional user costs extra, and the plans climb from $38 to $75 and beyond. For a solo consultant with straightforward books, this is more software than needed, and the interface shows it. Buy QuickBooks when you need the standard: a CPA who requires it, complex reporting, or plans to grow into a multi-person firm. Otherwise the lighter tools above cost less and move faster.
What we like- The deepest reporting library in the category
- Every US accountant knows it
- Strong app ecosystem with 750-plus integrations
Watch out for- Simple Start allows only 1 user, which costs extra to expand
- Price keeps climbing across tiers
- Interface is more than most solo consultants need
Starting priceFree (Starter plan); Pro from $16/month
Free planYes (Starter is free)
Wave is the honest free option. Starter includes unlimited invoicing, estimates, bills and bookkeeping records at no cost, which covers the core needs of a solo consultant. Receipt scanning works, bank connections are reliable, and the interface stays out of your way. Pro from $16 per month adds features like bank payment processing and removes ads.
The gaps are what you would expect at the price. There is no built-in time tracking, so billable-hour consultants need a separate timer. Project accounting is thin, and payroll is a paid add-on. For a solo consultant with simple books and a handful of clients, Wave is enough software, and the price is right. When the practice grows, the migration path to Xero or QuickBooks is well trodden.
What we like- Genuinely free accounting, invoicing and receipt scanning on Starter
- Unlimited invoices and bookkeeping records
- Simple enough to run without an accountant
Watch out for- Pro features and payroll cost extra
- No time tracking built in
- Limited project accounting for complex engagements
#5
Zoho Books
Best for: Consultants wanting full accounting free under $50K in revenue
Visit zoho.com
Starting priceFree (under $50K annual revenue); Standard $20/month
Free planYes (free tier under $50K revenue)
Zoho Books is the value play. Businesses under $50,000 in annual revenue get a full accounting platform free, not a crippled demo. Standard at $20 per month ($15 billed annually) includes 3 users, and the feature depth covers invoicing, expenses, projects, inventory and multi-currency. For a consultant already in the Zoho ecosystem, the integrations with Zoho CRM, Projects and Expense make it a natural pick.
The tradeoff is polish. The interface works but does not delight, and the best experience comes to businesses already running other Zoho apps. US payroll goes through a third-party integration. For a consultant watching every dollar, though, free-until-$50K-revenue is a genuine offer, and Standard at $20 per month undercuts Xero and QuickBooks by a wide margin.
What we like- The most accounting per dollar in the category
- Free tier covers businesses under $50K in annual revenue
- Standard adds 3 users and client portal features
Watch out for- Interface is functional rather than polished
- Ecosystem lock-in is strongest for existing Zoho users
- US payroll needs a third party
#6
HoneyBook
Best for: Client-facing consultants who want proposals, contracts and payments in one place
Visit honeybook.com
Starting price$29/month (Starter plan, billed annually)
Free planFree trial (all plans start with a free trial)
HoneyBook is not really accounting software; it is a client management platform with accounting attached, and for many consultants that is the right shape. Client inquiries, brochures, proposals, contracts, scheduling and payments all run through one branded portal. The workflow from "interested lead" to "signed contract" to "paid invoice" happens in one place instead of across a CRM, a contract tool and an invoicing app. All plans start with a free trial.
The pricing is published and clear: Starter $29 per month billed annually ($36 month-to-month), Essentials $49 ($59 monthly), Premium $109 ($129 monthly). The catch is scope: if you only need books, HoneyBook is overkill, and its accounting is lighter than FreshBooks or Xero. It fits consultants who sell packaged engagements and want the client experience to look professional from first contact to final payment.
What we like- Inquiries, proposals, contracts, scheduling and payments live in one branded client portal
- Pricing page is transparent with monthly and annual options
- Strong fit for consultants who sell packages
Watch out for- The accounting is lighter than dedicated platforms
- Starter at $29 requires annual billing ($36 month-to-month)
- Consultants who only need books are overbuying
#7
Bonsai
Best for: Freelance consultants wanting contracts, time tracking and tax help together
Visit hellobonsai.com
Starting price$15/month (Basic plan)
Free planFree trial (7 days)
Bonsai targets the freelance consultant directly: contracts and proposals, time tracking, invoicing, expenses and tax estimates in one subscription. The pricing page publishes everything: Basic $15 per month, Essentials $25, Premium $39, Elite $59, with annual billing dropping each tier ($9, $19, $29, $49). The schema on their own pricing page even documents a 7-day free trial.
The honest read is that Bonsai replaces several subscriptions at once. A consultant running a separate contract tool, time tracker and invoicing app can consolidate here. Basic covers time tracking and project management; the higher tiers add the client-work features. Teams should note the per-user billing. For a solo consultant who wants one app for the business side of consulting, this is the most complete single subscription on the list.
What we like- Published pricing with four clear tiers
- Combines contracts, proposals, time tracking, invoicing and tax estimates
- Annual billing drops Basic to $9 per month
Watch out for- Basic is thin for consultants who need project management depth
- 7-day trial is short for evaluating a business platform
- Per-user pricing on teams
#8
Sage
Best for: Budget-conscious consultants wanting a free individual accounting tier
Visit sage.com
Starting priceFree (Individual plan); paid from $7/month
Free planYes (Individual plan is free)
Sage Accounting gives solo consultants a real free tier. Individual covers basic tracking at no cost, and the $7 per month Individual plan adds receipt scanning, extra bank connections and live support. Start at $18 per month serves small businesses ready to grow. Paid plans carry a 30-day free trial with no credit card required, and Sage offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
The tradeoff is ecosystem. In the US, fewer CPAs default to Sage than to QuickBooks or Xero, so check with your accountant before committing. The free tier is genuinely useful but basic. For a consultant who wants to pay almost nothing and still keep proper books, Sage is hard to beat on price.
What we like- A genuinely free individual tier with real accounting tools
- $7 per month individual plan is among the cheapest paid options
- 30-day free trial on paid plans
Watch out for- The free tier is basic
- US consultant mindshare is smaller than QuickBooks or Xero, so CPA familiarity varies
- Payroll is a paid add-on
#9
Dubsado
Best for: Consultants who want deep workflow automation around every client
Visit dubsado.com
Starting priceSee website (pricing not published on the pricing page crawl)
Free planFree trial (21 days, full access to the Premier plan)
Dubsado is the automation pick. Where HoneyBook streamlines the client journey, Dubsado lets you build it: lead capture forms, schedulers, proposals, contracts, invoices and follow-up sequences chained into workflows that run without you. For a consultant selling high-touch engagements with multi-step onboarding, the time saved is real. The free trial is generous: 21 days with full, unlimited access to the Premier plan.
The caution is commercial and practical. We could not verify a published price on Dubsado's pricing page, so treat any number you see online as rumor and check inside the trial. And the automation depth is a double-edged sword: building the workflows takes real setup time. If your client process is simple, HoneyBook or Bonsai gets you live faster. If your process is complex, Dubsado is the tool that can model it.
What we like- The deepest client workflow automation here: forms, schedulers, contracts and invoices chained into hands-off sequences
- 21-day trial gives full Premier access
- Strong fit for high-touch consulting engagements
Watch out for- No published price found on the vendor's pricing page, so budgeting requires signup
- Setup complexity is real for automation-heavy workflows
- Accounting is secondary to client operations
How consultants should actually pick
Start from how you get paid. If you bill hours, you need time tracking that flows into invoices: FreshBooks, Bonsai and Harvest-style workflows (Bonsai covers this natively). If you sell fixed packages, you need proposals and contracts: HoneyBook, Bonsai and Dubsado. If you mostly need clean books for a CPA, pick the ledger your CPA wants: usually QuickBooks Online or Xero.
Then count your clients. FreshBooks Lite caps at 5 billable clients, which sounds fine until month three. HoneyBook and Bonsai scale on features, not client counts, which suits consultants whose client roster grows. Xero's Ignite caps invoices at 20 per month, so active consultants should price the Grow tier.
Finally, price the whole stack, not just the accounting app. A consultant on FreshBooks plus a separate contract tool and scheduler can pay more than a consultant on HoneyBook or Bonsai alone. The client-work platforms look expensive until you cancel the other subscriptions.
When to hire a bookkeeper instead of better software
Software handles the mechanics; it does not handle judgment. If you spend more than a few hours a month categorizing expenses, reconciling accounts or dreading tax time, a bookkeeper on Xero or QuickBooks Online costs less than your billable hours are worth. The platforms on this list all support accountant and bookkeeper access, and Xero's unlimited users make the handoff free.
The signal to hire is complexity, not revenue. Multiple income streams, subcontractors, estimated quarterly taxes across states, or an S-corp election all push past what software alone handles well. A monthly bookkeeping service for a solo consultant typically runs a few hundred dollars, and the clean books pay for themselves at tax time and in every loan or lease application that asks for financials.
How we chose
We started with the categories buyers search: accounting software for consultants, accounting software for freelancers, and consulting business software. For each candidate we opened the vendor's own pricing page, verified prices against the published plans, and weighted the features consultants actually use: time-based invoicing, proposals and contracts, expense tracking and accountant collaboration. Where a price could not be verified on the vendor's page we wrote "See website" rather than guessing.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best accounting software for a solo consultant?
FreshBooks ($23/month) for invoicing-first consultants, Bonsai ($15/month) for an all-in-one freelance business platform, or Wave (free) if the budget is zero. Consultants who work with a CPA should ask the CPA first; the answer is usually QuickBooks Online or Xero.
Do consultants need proposals and contracts in their accounting software?
Not strictly, but it saves real money. Tools like HoneyBook, Bonsai and Dubsado combine proposals, contracts and invoicing, which replaces two or three separate subscriptions. If you already have a contract workflow you like, a pure accounting tool like FreshBooks or Xero is enough.
How much should a consultant pay for accounting software?
Between $0 and $50 per month covers nearly every solo consultant: Wave and Zoho Books are free at the low end, Bonsai ($15), FreshBooks ($23) and Xero ($25) sit in the middle, and HoneyBook ($29) and QuickBooks ($38) at the top. Add a bookkeeper when the books take more than a few hours a month.
Can I use QuickBooks Online as a consultant?
Yes, and many do, especially when their CPA requires it. Simple Start at $38 per month covers the basics. The tradeoff is that QuickBooks is built for general small business accounting, so time tracking, proposals and contracts need workarounds or add-ons that the consultant-focused tools include natively.
What is the difference between Bonsai and HoneyBook?
Both combine client work with accounting, but Bonsai ($15/month) leans toward the freelancer's back office: contracts, time tracking, invoicing and tax estimates. HoneyBook ($29/month) leans toward the client experience: a branded portal for inquiries, proposals, contracts and payments. Dubsado goes deeper on workflow automation than either.
Should a consultant use free accounting software?
Free works when the books are simple. Wave and Zoho Books (free under $50K revenue) handle invoicing, expenses and bookkeeping without cost. Upgrade when you hit limits: client caps, missing time tracking, or tax complexity that needs a CPA-friendly ledger like Xero or QuickBooks.
Sources we checked (12)
- https://www.freshbooks.com/
- https://www.xero.com/us/
- https://quickbooks.intuit.com/
- https://www.waveapps.com/
- https://www.zoho.com/us/books/
- https://www.honeybook.com/
- https://www.honeybook.com/pricing
- https://www.hellobonsai.com/
- https://www.hellobonsai.com/pricing
- https://www.sage.com/en-us/
- https://www.dubsado.com/
- https://www.dubsado.com/pricing
Is your product missing or out of date?
We review this list regularly. Vendors can request a listing, send updated pricing or ask about featured placement.
Shihab Mia · Founder, Rankite
Shihab has spent more than a decade helping SaaS and e-commerce brands grow through search. He writes Rankite's software buying guides from pricing pages, documentation and public user reviews. More about Shihab.