Wave vs Zervant (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Wave and Zervant share a 2.4 GPA, both have a free plan, and Zervant starts cheaper, at about $11.16 a month against $19 a month.
Checked Nov 9, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Wave grades higher on the free plan. Zervant grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Wave
Free invoicing and bookkeeping for US and Canadian small businesses
Zervant
Invoicing and estimates for sole traders, with a free plan
Which one is for you
Pick Wave if
- Fits if you're a sole trader in the US or Canada who mostly sends invoices
- Works for owners who'd pay Wave's own bookkeepers, from $149 a month, to keep the books
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if your business is outside the US or Canada
- Skip it if you bill by the hour, as there's no time tracking, projects or inventory on the listing
- Tight if you stay free, since every bank transaction is typed in by hand and card fees are 2.9% plus $0.60
- Watch out: live chat and email support need Pro or a paid add-on, and run weekdays 9 AM to 4:45 PM Eastern only
- Pricey if you add payroll, at $40 a month in the US plus $6 per employee and per contractor paid
Pick Zervant if
- Fits if you are a sole trader who sends a few invoices a month
- Works for someone who wants estimates turned into invoices from a phone
Look elsewhere if
- Too light for bookkeeping: it is an invoicing tool with no ledger
- Tight if you stay free, with 5 customers and 5 invoices a month, and 30 customers on Starter
- Watch out: card payments cost 1.9% + €0.25 per invoice for European cards, and bank payments €0.99 plus VAT
- Watch out: recurring invoices and bank connection start at Pro, and prices are in euros excluding VAT
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAWaveFair | 2.4GPAZervantFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPro is $19 a month, or $190 a year, between the cheaper quarter of accounting tools at $15 and the middle at $23. It buys bank feeds, receipt capture, late reminders and lower card fees, at a price in the middle of the range. | BStarter is €9.99 a month billed yearly, inside the cheapest quarter of accounting tools ($15). Pro is €17.99 and Growth €41.99. |
| Free plan and trial | BStarter is free with unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and bookkeeping records, plus a dashboard and reports. One person could live on that. The catch is typing in bank transactions by hand, because bank feeds need Pro. | CFree plan with 5 customers and 5 invoices a month, which a busy sole trader will reach. Paid monthly plans have a 14-day trial. |
| Features | CInvoices, online payments, bookkeeping, bank feeds, receipt scanning and payroll as an add-on. The basics are there, but the listing shows no time tracking, projects or inventory, and Wave serves only US and Canadian businesses. | CInvoices, estimates, e-invoices, post delivery, time tracking, reminders and recurring invoices. It does the invoicing job fully, but invoicing is a smaller job than bookkeeping. |
| Ease of use | C4.37 from 6,664 App Store ratings, below most accounting apps here. Live chat and email support come only with Pro or a paid add-on, on weekdays. | CNo store rating on record. You enter your business and customer details first. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with connections to Amazon, Etsy, eBay, Google Sheets, Capsule CRM and Make. Most third-party integrations need Pro, and there's no desktop app. | BWeb plus iPhone and Android apps. No integrations list or API was found. |
| Best for | free invoicing and books in the US or Canada | invoices and estimates for sole traders |
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: Wave and Zervant. How we grade
Price against what you get
Wave starts at $19 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Zervant starts at about $11.16 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Zervant starts $7.84 a month lower. Of the other accounting and invoicing tools on the chart, 8 score higher than Wave for less, and 5 score higher than Zervant 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
- Wave also covers bookkeeping and payroll.
- Zervant also covers time tracking and quotes and estimates.
At a glance
| Wave | Zervant | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $19 per month, billed monthly | €9.99 per month, billed annually (€11.99 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | Starter plan: unlimited estimates, invoices, bills and bookkeeping records, a dashboard and reports, and invoicing in the mobile app. Bank transactions are entered by hand. | 5 customers and 5 invoices a month, with estimates, mobile app and time tracking. |
| Free trial | None listed | 14-day free trial on monthly-paid plans |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Wave Financial Inc. | Zervant |
| Price read from | waveapps.com | zervant.com |
| Checked | Nov 9, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Wave
- Wave describes itself as serving businesses in the US and Canada, and its pricing page shows prices only in US and Canadian dollars.
- Payroll costs $40 a month in the US plus $6 per active employee and $6 per contractor paid (Canada: $25 CAD base).
- Bank feeds, automatic reminders and most third-party integrations need Pro; Starter has no bank import.
- Live chat and email support come only with Pro or a paid add-on, Monday to Friday, 9 AM to 4:45 PM Eastern.
Zervant
- The Free plan stops at 5 customers and 5 invoices a month, and Starter at 30 customers.
- Card payments cost 1.9% + €0.25 per invoice for European cards, and bank payments €0.99 plus VAT per invoice.
- Prices are in euros, excluding VAT, with versions in pounds, kronor and francs; they may differ outside the main European markets.
- This is an invoicing tool; it is not a full bookkeeping ledger.
Key features
Wave
- Invoices and estimates
- Unlimited invoices and estimates on the free plan. Pro removes Wave branding, adds reusable message templates and sends automatic late payment reminders.
- Online payments
- Customers pay invoices by card or bank payment once online payments are approved; deposits can be collected through estimates.
- Bookkeeping and bank feeds
- Unlimited bookkeeping records on every plan. Pro imports bank transactions through Plaid, then merges and categorizes them.
- Receipt capture
- Receipts uploaded from the mobile app, desktop or email become records by OCR. Included in Pro, or $8 a month on Starter.
- Wave Payroll
- Pays employees and contractors, with tax filing in all 50 US states and CRA remittances in Canada. A separate add-on.
- Wave Advisors
- Wave's in-house bookkeepers can keep the books for you or coach you to do them yourself, from $149 a month.
Zervant
- Invoices and estimates
- Create and send invoices and estimates by email or PDF, and turn an accepted estimate into an invoice.
- E-invoices and postal delivery
- Premium deliveries send an invoice as an e-invoice or by post, with monthly allowances that rise by plan.
- Time tracking
- Track working hours and transfer tracked time onto an invoice on Pro and Growth.
- Online payments
- Customers can pay by card or bank from the invoice email, priced per use rather than in the plan.
- Recurring invoices
- Pro and Growth add recurring invoices, down payments, payment schedules and multiple trade names.
- Payment reminders
- Send reminders on overdue invoices from the Starter plan up.
Plans
Wave
Starter$0
Unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and records. Card payments cost 2.9% plus $0.60 each, and bank transactions are not imported automatically.
Pro$19
per month, billed monthly
Bank feeds with auto-categorizing, unlimited receipt capture, late payment reminders, more users and card fees of 2.9% with no fixed fee on the first 10 a month.
Wave Advisors$149
per month and up
Pro features plus a dedicated bookkeeper who keeps the books and prepares monthly financial statements. Mobile receipts are not included.
Zervant
Free€0
5 customers and 5 invoices a month, estimates and the mobile app.
Starter€9.99
per month, billed annually (€11.99 billed monthly)
30 customers, unlimited invoices, estimates converted to invoices, payment reminders.
Pro€17.99
per month, billed annually (€20.99 billed monthly)
Unlimited customers, recurring invoices, down payments, payment schedules and bank connection.
Growth€41.99
per month, billed annually (€47.99 billed monthly)
Pro features with more premium deliveries: 30 a month by e-invoice or post, against 10 on Pro.
Ways to pay less
Wave
- Annual discount
Save $38 with annual Pro billing
Pro costs $190 a year when billed annually, against $228 for twelve monthly payments of $19.
- Other savings
Half off Pro for the first 3 months
New Pro subscribers paying monthly on Wave's website pay $9.50 a month for the first three months, saving $28.50, then the listed $19 a month.
- Other savings
Black Friday: Wave Advisors from $134 a month
Bookkeeping plans bought from November 2 to November 30, 2026 start at $134 a month instead of $149, with up to 25% off two-year plans and $30 to $40 off coaching sessions.
Zervant
- Annual discount
Save up to 15% with yearly plans
The pricing page says yearly plans save up to 15% against monthly ones, which come with a 14-day trial.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Wave or Zervant?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Zervant is cheaper to start with: about $11.16 a month, against $19 a month for Wave. Wave starts at $19 per month, billed monthly, and Zervant starts at €9.99 per month, billed annually (€11.99 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Wave or Zervant?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Wave and Zervant have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.