Expensify vs FreshBooks
Expensify and FreshBooks are both accounting & finance tools. Expensify is aimed at small businesses and enterprise, while FreshBooks is aimed at freelancers and small businesses. Expensify costs less, from $5/mo versus $23/mo for FreshBooks. Only Expensify has a free plan.
Receipt scanning, expense reports and corporate cards for SMBs
Invoicing and accounting for service businesses
| Pricing | Freemium · $5 | Paid · $23 |
| Starting price | $5/mo | $23/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Free trial | — | 30 days |
| Built for | Small businesses, Enterprise, Freelancers | Freelancers, Small businesses |
| Platforms | web, ios, android | web, ios, android |
| Country | US · 2008 | CA · 2003 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Expensify if
Small and mid-size companies that reimburse employee spending and want proven receipt scanning with low per-member pricing.
- Collect at $5 per member is cheap and needs no annual commitment
- Control pay-per-use bills only members active that month
- SmartScan and the mobile app are fast and well proven
Look elsewhere if: US companies wanting free card-led spend management or very simple bookkeeping (Ramp, Brex or QuickBooks fit better).
Choose FreshBooks if
Freelancers and service businesses that bill clients for time and projects.
- Easiest invoicing experience
- Time tracking built in
- Clean, friendly interface
Look elsewhere if: Product businesses with inventory or companies needing complex accounting.
Expensify vs FreshBooks pricing
Expensify
- Submit$0Free for individuals submitting expenses to an approver
- Collect$5/member/moPay-per-use only; approvals, reimbursements, QuickBooks and Xero
- Control (Annual)$18/member/moAs low as $9 with the Expensify Card; 12-month commitment
- Control (Pay-per-use)$36/member/moNo commitment; billed per active member each month
FreshBooks
- Lite$23/mo5 billable clients; intro promo 80% off for 4 months
- Plus$43/mo50 billable clients, receipt scanning, accountant access
- Premium$70/moUnlimited billable clients, project profitability
- SelectCustomUnlimited clients, 2 team members, Advanced Payments included
Expensify · Key features
- SmartScan receipt capture that reads merchant, date and amount from photos
- Expensify Card with automatic transaction matching and real-time limits
- Multi-level approval workflows and rule-based policy enforcement
- Next-day and global reimbursements to employee bank accounts
- Mileage, distance and per diem tracking in the mobile app
- Built-in travel booking tied to expense policies
Cons
- Control pricing mixes annual sizes, pay-per-use and card discounts
- Annual subscription size can only be reduced at renewal
- Recent app redesign moved familiar features around
FreshBooks · Key features
- Invoices, estimates and proposals with branding
- Time tracking linked to projects and invoices
- Expense tracking with receipt capture
- Online payments and recurring billing
- Client portal and project collaboration
- Double-entry accounting and reports
Cons
- Billable client limits per plan
- Weak inventory features
- Pricing rises quickly
Expensify vs FreshBooks: FAQ
Which is cheaper, Expensify or FreshBooks?
Expensify starts at $5/mo and FreshBooks at $23/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do Expensify and FreshBooks have a free plan?
Expensify has a free plan. FreshBooks has no free plan, a 30-day free trial.