Bonsai vs FreshBooks
We give Bonsai a 2.4 GPA and FreshBooks a 2.6, out of 4.0. Bonsai grades higher on value for money and platforms. FreshBooks grades higher on features and ease of use. They get the same grade on the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Bonsai
Client, project and billing software for agencies and freelancers
FreshBooks
Invoicing and accounting for freelancers and service businesses
How we grade them
| 2.4GPABonsaiFair | 2.6GPAFreshBooksGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CBasic is $9 a user a month billed yearly, but it can't send an invoice. Billing starts on Essentials at $19 a user yearly or $25 monthly, near this category's middle, and every extra person pays the same again. | DLite is $23 a month, right at this category's middle, but it bills only 5 clients and has tax-time reports only. Accounting reports and bank reconciliation start on Plus at $43, and every extra team member is $11 a month on top. |
| Free plan and trial | CA 7-day free trial with full access, and the card only comes in when it ends. A week is short for judging something you'd run your business on, and there's no free plan. | CA 30-day free trial with no card needed, which is fair. There's no free plan, though, and the 80% off for 4 months is a discount, not a trial: after that you pay the full $23, $43 or $70. |
| Features | CProposals, contracts, forms, scheduling, a CRM, projects, time tracking, invoices and expense tracking. But the listing says itself that it's not a full accounting ledger, and the QuickBooks and Xero links that fill the gap need Premium. | BInvoices, estimates, proposals, retainers, online payments, unlimited time tracking, expenses, double-entry reports, bank reconciliation, accounts payable on Premium and payroll run with Gusto. That's the whole job for a business that bills clients. |
| Ease of use | C4.3 from 311 App Store ratings, just enough ratings to count. There's plenty to set up, too: clients, projects, proposal templates and a bank connection before it all hangs together. | A4.7 from 10,979 App Store ratings, the top band for accounting apps. It's built around sending an invoice, which is the first thing most small business owners need to do. |
| Platforms and integrations | AWeb, Mac, iPhone, Android and a browser extension, with QuickBooks Online, Xero, Zapier, Calendly, Gmail and Slack, plus an MCP connection for AI assistants like Claude and ChatGPT. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with card payments through Stripe, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Affirm and Afterpay, and payroll through Gusto. There's no desktop app, which keeps it off an A. |
| Best for | freelancers who want proposal to invoice in one app | invoicing first, with the books behind it |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Bonsai and FreshBooks. How we grade
Price against what you get
Bonsai starts at $9 a month for each person and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. FreshBooks starts at $23 a month and scores 3.3.
FreshBooks scores higher, and starts $14 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other accounting and invoicing tools on the chart, 1 scores higher than Bonsai for less, and 1 scores higher than FreshBooks for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Bonsai starts at $9 per user / month, billed annually. FreshBooks starts at $23 per month, billed monthly.
- Only Bonsai lists a macOS app.
- Only Bonsai lists a browser extension.
- Bonsai also covers forms.
- FreshBooks also covers payroll.
At a glance
| Bonsai | FreshBooks | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $9 per user / month, billed annually | $23 per month, billed monthly |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial with full access, then a card is needed to continue | 30-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Bonsai Technologies Inc. | FreshBooks |
| Price read from | hellobonsai.com | freshbooks.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Bonsai
- Freelancers and small agencies that bill clients by the hour or by retainer
- Studios that want proposals, contracts, projects and invoices in one app
- Teams that keep their ledger in QuickBooks Online or Xero
FreshBooks
- Freelancers and consultants who bill a handful of clients for their time
- Service businesses that send estimates, proposals and retainers
- Owners who want invoicing first and accounting reports second
Worth knowing
Bonsai
- Basic has no invoices, payments or expense tracking; billing starts on Essentials at $19 per user a month, billed annually.
- It is not a full accounting ledger; the QuickBooks Online and Xero integrations that fill that gap need Premium.
- Every plan is priced per user, and Elite needs at least 3 users.
- Online payments carry processing fees that vary by method; the pricing page points to a help article for the figures.
FreshBooks
- The advertised prices are 80% off for 4 months; plans then renew at $23, $43 or $70 a month.
- Lite bills only 5 clients and Plus 50, counting archived clients; each extra team member costs $11 a month.
- Payroll costs $40 a month plus $6 per employee, files US federal and state taxes, and is not available during the free trial.
- Advanced Payments is a $20 a month add-on on every plan except Select.
Key features
Bonsai
- Proposals, contracts and forms
- Send proposals and contracts from templates, collect answers with forms and questionnaires, and book calls with scheduling links.
- Invoices and payments
- Unlimited, retainer and subscription invoices with time and expenses attached, online card and ACH payments, and billing in several currencies.
- Time tracking and timesheets
- Track billable and non-billable time on every plan, with timesheet reminders, and lock timesheets on Elite.
- Projects and resourcing
- Unlimited projects and tasks with kanban views, hourly or fixed-fee budgets, task estimates and workload planning on higher plans.
- Bookkeeping
- Connect a bank account to categorize expenses by client project, see revenue dashboards, and send invoice data to QuickBooks Online.
- Bonsai MCP
- Connect an AI assistant such as Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini to update clients, create projects or draft invoices in Bonsai.
FreshBooks
- Invoices, estimates and proposals
- Recurring invoices, late fees and automatic reminders on every plan. Proposals and client retainers start on Plus.
- Online payments
- Clients pay by card, ACH bank transfer, Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Affirm and Afterpay. Card payments through FreshBooks Payments cost 2.9% plus $0.30.
- Time tracking and projects
- Unlimited time tracking on every plan, with project budgets and billing. Project profitability reports need Premium.
- Expenses and receipts
- Bank import, mileage tracking on mobile and unlimited expenses. Receipt scanning starts on Plus, and bill line-item capture on Premium.
- Double-entry accounting
- Accounting reports, bank reconciliation and accountant access start on Plus. Lite has tax-time reports only.
- FreshBooks Payroll
- Payroll run with Gusto inside FreshBooks: unlimited pay runs, free direct deposit, and federal and state payroll tax filing.
Plans
Bonsai
Basic$9
per user / month, billed annually
$15 billed monthly. Time tracking, tasks, unlimited projects and clients, a CRM and the mobile apps. No invoicing or payments.
Essentials$19
per user / month, billed annually
$25 billed monthly. Adds invoices and online payments, proposals, contracts, forms, scheduling, a client portal, and income and expense tracking.
Premium$29
per user / month, billed annually
$39 billed monthly. Adds project insights, workload, a deals pipeline, profit reports, no Bonsai branding, and QuickBooks, Xero and Zapier.
Elite$49
per user / month, billed annually
$59 billed monthly. Minimum of 3 users. Adds custom permissions, timesheet locking, markups on expenses and custom data import.
FreshBooks
Lite$23
per month for 5 billable clients, billed monthly
Advertised at $4.60 a month for the first 4 months. Invoices, estimates, expenses, online payments and tax-time reports.
Plus$43
per month for 50 billable clients, billed monthly
Advertised at $8.60 a month for the first 4 months. Adds proposals, retainers, accounting reports, receipt scanning and accountant access.
Premium$70
per month for unlimited clients, billed monthly
Advertised at $14 a month for the first 4 months. Adds project profitability, accounts payable, bill line-item capture and custom email templates.
SelectCustom
Unlimited clients, lower card fees, Advanced Payments included, 2 team members, unbranded emails and dedicated phone support.
Ways to pay less
Bonsai
- Annual discount
Up to 4 months free with yearly billing
Yearly billing brings Basic from $15 to $9 per user a month, Essentials from $25 to $19, Premium from $39 to $29 and Elite from $59 to $49.
- Other savings
Reduced rate for teams of 30 or more users
The pricing page says a reduced rate is available for teams of 30 or more users, without giving the figure.
FreshBooks
- Other savings
80% off the first 4 months
New customers pay 20% of the Lite, Plus or Premium price for 4 months, then the full monthly price. The page calls it a limited-time offer.
- Annual discount
10% off with yearly billing
Yearly plans cost $248.40 for Lite, $464.40 for Plus and $756 for Premium, 10% less than paying monthly.
