Wave and QuickBooks are two well-liked platforms for billing and accounting for small businesses. While Wave is a relative newcomer that is addressing the needs of contemporary freelancers and microbusinesses that don’t require the complex services QuickBooks provides, QuickBooks is a mainstay that has dominated the market for decades.
In this comparison of Wave and QuickBooks, we’ll look at the features, advantages, and disadvantages of each service as well as the types of businesses that can use it.
- Banking: You have the choice to open a free checking account connected to your invoicing account through both Wave and QuickBooks. You can get paid faster and prevent problems associated with connecting an external bank account by receiving online payments straight into this account. A free business bank account called Wave Money connects to your Wave account for simple bookkeeping and quicker payments. You can receive invoice payments instantly rather than having to wait for a payment to process and appear in your bank account, and there are no monthly fees or minimums. You can get integrated bookkeeping, instant deposit of your payments, and 1% APY interest on your balance (as of July 6, 2022) with QuickBooks Checking. There is no monthly fee for you.
- Payments: Wave and QuickBooks allow customers to make online payments through Apple Pay, credit card or bank account information, or both. Transaction fees are charged on both platforms, and payment options are optional. Customers can stop accepting payments and choose alternative methods like paper cheques or PayPal. Wave deposits money into the linked bank account within two business days, while QuickBooks deposits payments the following business day for free with a QuickBooks Checking account or charges a 1% fee for immediate deposits. Fees for invoiced credit card payments and ACH payments are 1%.
- Payroll: features can be added to your account in Wave and QuickBooks for an additional cost. You can onboard and pay staff members and independent contractors through Wave using direct deposit. In 14 additional states, Wave also manages payroll taxes; however, all other states are self-serve (although the platform is still adding more full-service states). Payroll in Wave costs $35 plus $6 per worker or contractor per month in full-service states. The price in self-serve states is $20 plus $6 a month for each employee or contractor. It doesn’t handle benefits for employees. Employee and contractor payroll, HR and benefits, employee time tracking, and automatic payroll tax filing and payment are all included in QuickBooks payroll. Depending on your QuickBooks plan, payroll costs range from $35 to $77.50 per month plus $4 to $8 for each employee or contractor.
- Invoicing: For small businesses, Wave and QuickBooks both provide reliable invoicing features and functionalities. With a user-friendly interface and basic features that let you record client details and save product or service information to easily build invoices each time, Wave invoicing is better suited for freelancers and businesses of one. Since Wave doesn’t have a time-tracking feature, you’ll need to keep track of your hours manually if you work hourly. Construction and other service-related industries are among the more complex industries for which QuickBooks invoicing is designed to scale. Along with the features you would anticipate from most invoicing software, such as customized templates, client databases, and recurring invoices, it provides time tracking and item-based pricing.
- Time tracking: Wave lacks an integrated time tracker for hour-based pricing, making it less suitable for clients who charge by the hour, as QuickBooks is a better fit.
So, the choice between QuickBooks Online and Wave depends on your business’s needs and budget. QuickBooks Online offers a comprehensive solution for complex accounting, while Wave is cost-effective for small businesses or freelancers needing basic functionality without advanced features. It’s essential to carefully evaluate your business requirements and budget before deciding.