Bonsai
Client, project and billing software for agencies and freelancers
Bonsai report card
Fair · out of 4.0 · graded Oct 17, 2026
Best for freelancers who want proposal to invoice in one app
Bonsai runs the client side of a freelance business or small agency: proposals, contracts, projects, time tracking and invoices, all in one place. What it isn't is a full set of books, so you'll probably still need QuickBooks Online or Xero, and syncing to them needs Premium at $29 a user.
Who Bonsai is for
- Great if you're a freelancer who bills by the hour or on retainer
- Handy when you want proposals, contracts and invoices in one place instead of three
- Good for small studios that keep the ledger in QuickBooks Online or Xero anyway
Who Bonsai is not for
- Not for you if you want proper books, as Bonsai isn't a full ledger
- Skip it if you only need invoicing, since Basic doesn't send invoices at all
- Pricey if your team grows, because every plan charges per user and Elite needs at least 3
Why Bonsai gets a 2.4
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- CValue for moneyBasic 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.
- CFree plan and trialA 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.
- CFeaturesProposals, 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.
- CEase of use4.3 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.
- APlatforms and integrationsWeb, 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.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Bonsai's own pages on 17 October 2026, and its App Store rating. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/bonsai#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/bonsai.svg" alt="Bonsai: 2.4 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where Bonsai stands among accounting and invoicing tools
Bonsai's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 4 of the 17 other accounting and invoicing tools we grade, and level with 5.
It stands best on platforms and integrations (A, above 14 of 17) and worst on free plan and trial (C, above 0).
Its paid plans start at $9 a month for each person, against a middle price of $19 for the category: 2 of the 16 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 1 tool scores higher and costs less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 18 accounting and invoicing tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Bonsai’s own letter is outlined.
- CValue for moneyAbove 2 of 17, level with 10
- CFree plan and trialAbove 0 of 17, level with 9
- CFeaturesAbove 0 of 17, level with 12
- CEase of useAbove 0 of 17, level with 11
- APlatforms and integrationsAbove 14 of 17, level with 3
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 18 accounting and invoicing tools. Further left costs less, and higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Point at a dot to see which tool it is.
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
Keep Bonsai, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace Bonsai you would be making live feeds from your bank, which take an agreement with each bank or a service that has them. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 8 of the 17 other accounting and invoicing tools grade higher. It costs $108 a year.
What you could make
- Invoicing, time tracking, expense tracking, forms and reports: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- Live feeds from your bank, which take an agreement with each bank or a service that has them.
- Apps for macOS, iOS and Android that stay in step with each other.
- It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team.
- It plugs into other products, QuickBooks Online, Xero and Zapier among them.
What this rests on. Bonsai’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is Bonsai?
Bonsai is business software for freelancers, agencies and consultancies that bill clients for their time. It combines a CRM, proposals and contracts, projects and time tracking with invoicing, online payments and expense tracking. Its bookkeeping covers income, expenses and revenue reports, and invoice data can be synced to QuickBooks Online or Xero for the full ledger.
Bonsai is a paid product with a free trial, starting at $9 per user / month, billed annually. See every plan
Good for
- 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
Worth knowing
- 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.
Key features
- 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.
Bonsai pricing
- Starts at
- $9 per user / month, billed annually
- Free plan
- None
- Free trial
- 7-day free trial with full access, then a card is needed to continue
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | $9per 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 | $19per 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 | $29per 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 | $49per user / month, billed annually | $59 billed monthly. Minimum of 3 users. Adds custom permissions, timesheet locking, markups on expenses and custom data import. |
Read from hellobonsai.com on Oct 17, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Bonsai before you buy.
Ways to pay less
- Annual discountUp 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.
Stated on hellobonsai.com - Other savingsReduced 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.
Stated on hellobonsai.com
How people rate the Bonsai app
4.3
out of 5 for the iPhone and iPad app
311 ratings on the App Store in the United States, read Oct 17, 2026. It rates the app, not everything the product does. See the listing
Works with
Bonsai alternatives
- Bonsai vs FreshBooks
Free trial · from $23/mo
- Bonsai vs Moxie
Free trial · from $10/mo
- Bonsai vs Plutio
Free trial · from $15.83/mo
- Bonsai vs QuickBooks Online
Free plan · from $38/mo
- Bonsai vs Xero
Free trial · from $27/mo
Common questions
Is Bonsai free?
No, Bonsai is a paid product, but you can try it first. 7-day free trial with full access, then a card is needed to continue.
How much does Bonsai cost?
Bonsai lists 4 plans. Basic: $9 per user / month, billed annually. Essentials: $19 per user / month, billed annually. Premium: $29 per user / month, billed annually. Elite: $49 per user / month, billed annually. Prices were read from hellobonsai.com on Oct 17, 2026.
What platforms does Bonsai work on?
Bonsai is available on Web, macOS, iOS and Android. It also has a browser extension.
Does Bonsai offer any discounts?
Bonsai publicly lists the following: Up to 4 months free with yearly billing; Reduced rate for teams of 30 or more users.
How is Bonsai rated?
Bonsai's iPhone and iPad app averages 4.3 out of 5 from 311 ratings on the App Store in the United States, as read on Oct 17, 2026. That is the store's rating of the app, not a score from us.
Does Bonsai have a Windows app?
No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 17, 2026. Bonsai is listed for Web, macOS, iOS and Android.
Does Bonsai have a Linux app?
No Linux app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 17, 2026. Bonsai is listed for Web, macOS, iOS and Android.
Is Bonsai open source?
Bonsai is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 17, 2026.
What does Bonsai integrate with?
Bonsai's listing names QuickBooks Online, Xero, Zapier, Calendly, Google, Gmail and Slack. A listing names up to eight integrations, so it may connect to more.
Who makes Bonsai?
Bonsai is made by Bonsai Technologies Inc.
What are the alternatives to Bonsai?
The closest alternatives to Bonsai in our directory are FreshBooks, Moxie, Plutio, QuickBooks Online and Xero. Each one has a side-by-side comparison with Bonsai.
How does Bonsai compare with other accounting and invoicing tools?
Bonsai's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 4 of the 17 other accounting and invoicing tools we grade, and level with 5. It stands best on platforms and integrations (A, above 14 of 17) and worst on free plan and trial (C, above 0).
Is Bonsai good value for money?
ToolGPA grades Bonsai C for value for money. Its paid plans start at $9 a month for each person, against a middle price of $19 for the category: 2 of the 16 others that charge start lower. On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 1 tool scores higher and costs less.
Could I make my own version of Bonsai?
To replace Bonsai you would be making live feeds from your bank, which take an agreement with each bank or a service that has them. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one. That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 8 of the 17 other accounting and invoicing tools grade higher. It costs $108 a year. What you could not make: Live feeds from your bank, which take an agreement with each bank or a service that has them. Apps for macOS, iOS and Android that stay in step with each other. It is priced for each person, which means accounts and billing for a team. It plugs into other products, QuickBooks Online, Xero and Zapier among them. This is a judgement from its listing. We have not built one.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 17, 2026. What people say is linked where it appears.