FreshBooks costs $23, $43 or $70 per month on monthly billing for Lite, Plus and Premium, plus $11 per month for each team member you invite. Select has no published price. I checked these FreshBooks pricing figures on the US pricing page in October 2026.
Two numbers decide your bill. Billable clients pick the plan, because Lite stops at 5 and Plus at 50.
Headcount sets the rest, because every invited team member adds $11 per month. Accountants are the exception: up to 10 are free on Plus, Premium and Select, and Select includes 2 team member accounts.
Quick pricing answer
FreshBooks Lite costs $23, Plus $43 and Premium $70 per month, billed monthly, in US dollars; Select is priced by quote. Each invited team member adds $11 per month, apart from up to 10 free accountants on Plus, Premium and Select.
A 30-day free trial needs no credit card. Until November 16, 2026, buying without the trial gets 80% off for 4 months: $4.60, $8.60 or $14.00 per month.
Plus fits most growing service businesses: 50 clients and free accountant access for $43 per month. The caveat is the client cap, which counts archived clients too. Checked October 2026.
In This Article (12 sections)
FreshBooks Pricing at a Glance
FreshBooks charges $23, $43 and $70 per month, billed monthly, for Lite, Plus and Premium, and lists Select as Contact sales. The billable-client cap is what separates the three priced plans.
| Plan | Monthly billing | Yearly billing, first year | Billable clients | Best for | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lite | $23 per month | $276 – $94.67 = $181.33 per year with the offer | 5 | Solo freelancers with a few steady clients | Higher plan: Plus for proposals, retainers and accountant access |
| Plus | $43 per month | $516 – $176.99 = $339.01 per year with the offer | 50 | Growing service businesses that work with an accountant | Higher plan: Premium for project profitability |
| Premium | $70 per month | $840 – $288.12 = $551.88 per year with the offer | Unlimited | Firms past 50 clients or tracking project margins | Every invited non-accountant team member still costs $11 per month |
| Select | Contact sales | Contact sales | Unlimited | Teams with heavy card volume or a move from QuickBooks | Price and payment rates not published |
Sources: FreshBooks plans and prices, Monthly and Yearly views, checked October 2026.
Prices are from the US view, in US dollars and before applicable taxes, as the terms of service state. Monthly figures are regular list prices. Yearly figures are the “Was” price minus the saving the Yearly view prints under the current offer.
The plan cards lead with the offer prices; the struck-through “Was” amounts ($23.00, $43.00 and $70.00) are what you pay from month 5. Each price step also buys features, and those decide whether moving up is worth it.
FreshBooks Pricing Plans and Features Explained
Client count triggers the first upgrade, accountant access is the next reason to pick Plus, and project profitability is the reason to pay for Premium. Select is a different deal: included seats and lower payment fees for a quoted price.
Lite: $23 per month for up to 5 clients
Lite fits a solo freelancer who bills 5 or fewer clients. A year on monthly billing costs $23 x 12 = $276, before team members or payment fees.
The 5-client cap counts active and archived clients. Deleting a client frees the spot and keeps its invoices accessible, so delete old one-off clients rather than archive them.
Proposals, client retainers, accounting reports, receipt scanning and accountant access all start on Plus. A freelancer whose accountant needs a login has outgrown Lite even with two clients.
Plus: $43 per month for up to 50 clients
Plus costs $43 – $23 = $20 more per month than Lite and raises the cap to 50 clients. It adds proposals, client retainers, financial and accounting reports, expense receipt scanning and accountant access.
The accountant seat carries real money. On Plus, Premium and Select, a business can invite as many as 10 accountants free (help center), while any other invited role costs $11 a month.
Move to Premium at client 51, or when you need to see whether each project makes money.
Premium: $70 per month for unlimited clients
Premium is worth its $70 – $43 = $27 monthly step over Plus once you bill more than 50 clients or need project profitability reports. It also adds bill receipt scanning with line items and custom email templates.
Unlimited clients do not mean included people. Premium bundles no team member accounts, so for a firm with several staff logins, headcount rather than the plan drives the bill.
Select: quote-based, with 2 team members and Advanced Payments included
Select has no published price: the pricing page shows “Let’s Talk” and a Talk to a Consultant button. It includes 2 team member accounts at no extra charge and Advanced Payments, which costs $20 per month on the other plans.
Select also adds lower credit card fees, capped ACH fees, removal of FreshBooks branding from client emails, Easy Switch data import and dedicated phone support. FreshBooks does not publish Select’s card rate or its ACH cap.
To judge a quote, price the same extras on Premium: $70 for the plan, $11 x 2 = $22 for two members and $20 for Advanced Payments. A Select quote below those three together saves money before the lower payment fees count.
Before paying for any plan, the trial lets you run your own invoicing workflow at no cost.
Does FreshBooks Have a Free Plan or Trial?
No free plan is listed, but FreshBooks offers a 30-day free trial with no credit card and no contract (pricing page FAQ). The trial allows as many billable clients as you need, so it will not show you where Lite’s 5-client cap bites.
The trial and the current discount exclude each other. The 80% offer applies only through the Buy Now & Save option, which includes no free trial (offer terms). FreshBooks Payroll is not available during a trial either.
If you do not subscribe after the trial, FreshBooks keeps your invoices, expenses and other data stored, and severs any bank connection until you resume.
Once the trial ends, the next choice is billing cadence, and the offer changes that math.
Monthly vs Annual FreshBooks Pricing
Yearly billing is the cheaper first year on all three priced plans. Billed yearly, Lite’s first year costs $276 – $94.67 = $181.33. Monthly billing with the same offer costs $4.60 x 4 = $18.40 plus $23 x 8 = $184, total $202.40.
| Plan | 12 months at the regular monthly price | First year, monthly billing with the offer | First year, yearly billing with the offer | Difference, first year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lite | $23 x 12 = $276 | $4.60 x 4 = $18.40 plus $23 x 8 = $184, total $202.40 | $276 – $94.67 = $181.33 | $4.60 x 4 + $23 x 8 + $94.67 – $276 = $21.07 less billed yearly |
| Plus | $43 x 12 = $516 | $8.60 x 4 = $34.40 plus $43 x 8 = $344, total $378.40 | $516 – $176.99 = $339.01 | $8.60 x 4 + $43 x 8 + $176.99 – $516 = $39.39 less billed yearly |
| Premium | $70 x 12 = $840 | $14.00 x 4 = $56 plus $70 x 8 = $560, total $616 | $840 – $288.12 = $551.88 | $14.00 x 4 + $70 x 8 + $288.12 – $840 = $64.12 less billed yearly |
Sources: FreshBooks plans and prices, Monthly and Yearly views, and the Buy Now offer terms, checked October 2026.
The offer covers both cadences: 80% off for 4 months for US residents who buy Lite, Plus or Premium between October 15 and November 16, 2026. FreshBooks may modify or end it without notice. The Yearly view of the pricing page says “10% discount included in price” on each card.
The page does not print the yearly price after the first year, so I would not budget year two from that discount label. Yearly billing pays off once your client list has settled the plan.
If you expect to cross the 5- or 50-client cap within months, monthly billing avoids prepaying a year of the wrong plan, because fees are non-refundable after the first 30 days.
The plan price is only part of the bill, and the next costs grow with your team and your clients’ payments.
Additional FreshBooks Costs to Consider
Each invited team member beyond Select’s 2 included accounts adds $11 per month on any plan. Up to 10 accountants are free on Plus, Premium and Select.
Advanced Payments costs $20 per month (Included on Select), and Payroll $40 per month plus $6 per employee. Card payments cost 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction and ACH bank transfers 1%, per the payment fee list.
| Cost type | When it applies | Pricing basis | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team Members | Each person you invite to a paid role | $11 per person per month, every plan | Unassigned profiles are free; up to 10 accountants free on Plus, Premium and Select; Select includes 2 accounts |
| Advanced Payments | Saving client cards, recurring card billing, cards taken by phone or in person | $20 per month on Lite, Plus and Premium; Included on Select | Needs a connected Stripe account; keyed-in cards cost 3.5% + 30 cents per transaction |
| FreshBooks Payroll | Paying yourself or employees through FreshBooks, powered by Gusto | $40 per month plus $6 per month per employee | Unlimited payrolls, free direct deposit, federal and state payroll tax filing; not on the free trial |
| Card payments | A client pays by credit or debit card | 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction | Same headline rate through FreshBooks Payments or Stripe; Select gets lower card fees |
| ACH bank transfers | A client pays by bank transfer | 1% per transfer | Select gets capped ACH fees; the cap is not published |
Sources: FreshBooks plans and prices, Advanced Payments, FreshBooks Payroll and the team members help article, checked October 2026.
An owner paying five employees through Payroll adds $40 + $6 x 5 ($30) = $70 per month on top of the plan.
ACH at 1% costs about a third of the 2.9% card rate, so it is the cheaper way to collect a large invoice. A keyed-in card through Advanced Payments at 3.5% costs 0.6 points more than a card the client enters online.
That makes Advanced Payments worth its $20 a month only when card-on-file billing saves you chasing repeat clients. Payment fees vary by client, but team cost does not, so budget it first.
How Much Does FreshBooks Cost for Your Team?
A FreshBooks team pays the plan price plus $11 per month for each invited team member, at regular monthly prices. That runs from $23 + $11 x 1 = $34 a month for Lite plus one member to $70 + $11 x 9 = $169 for Premium plus nine.
FreshBooks cost calculator
This calculator needs JavaScript. The scenario table below gives the same estimate for typical workloads.
Enter what you need. The calculator prices it on every plan at list prices and names the cheapest plan that covers it.
- List prices in USD from FreshBooks’s official pricing pages, checked Oct 28, 2026. Tax and regional prices are not included.
- 12-month figures are 12 times the monthly cost at the billing you choose.
- A planning estimate at list prices, not a quote.
Enter how many members you will invite and tick what you need, such as more than 50 clients or accountant access. The calculator shows Lite, Plus and Premium side by side, monthly and over 12 months, and names the cheapest plan that fits. It leaves out Select, the offer, add-ons, payment fees and tax.
| Team size | Plan | Billing | Monthly equivalent | Annual total | Assumptions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owner plus 1 team member | Lite | Monthly | $23 + $11 x 1 = $34 | $34 x 12 = $408 | Team Members add-on at $11 each; 5 or fewer clients |
| Owner plus 2 team members | Plus | Monthly | $43 + $11 x 2 ($22) = $65 | $65 x 12 = $780 | Team Members add-on at $11 each; 6 to 50 clients |
| Owner plus 4 team members | Premium | Monthly | $70 + $11 x 4 ($44) = $114 | $114 x 12 = $1,368 | Team Members add-on at $11 each; more than 50 clients |
| 10-person team: owner plus 9 team members | Premium | Monthly | $70 + $11 x 9 ($99) = $169 | $169 x 12 = $2,028 | Team Members add-on at $11 each; more than 50 clients; a Select quote is worth asking for |
Sources: FreshBooks plans and prices, checked October 2026.
These are estimates from list prices, not quotes. From seven invited people, member fees ($11 x 7 = $77) cost more than the $70 Premium plan itself.
Every invited member in these rows is a paid team member, none invited as an accountant (up to 10 are free on Plus and Premium).
Which FreshBooks Plan Should You Choose?
Client count decides first: 5 or fewer clients means Lite, up to 50 means Plus, and more than 50 means Premium. Team size and card volume then decide whether a Select quote is worth asking for. To compare another invoicing tool’s plans, see my Zoho Invoice pricing guide.
| Your needs | Plan to consider | Why | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo, 5 or fewer clients, no accountant login | Lite | $23 per month covers the job; no upgrade needed | The 6th client, active or archived, forces Plus |
| 6 to 50 clients, or an accountant who needs access | Plus | 50 clients and up to 10 free accountant logins | Project profitability needs Premium |
| More than 50 clients, or project profitability | Premium | Unlimited clients and profitability reports | Each invited non-accountant team member still costs $11 per month |
| 3 or more invited people and heavy card volume | Select, by quote | 2 team member accounts, Advanced Payments and lower card fees included | Price and payment rates not published |
| You run payroll for employees | Any plan plus FreshBooks Payroll | $40 per month plus $6 per employee, with payroll tax filing | Not available during the free trial |
| You bill repeat clients from a card on file | Advanced Payments, or Select | Saves client cards and charges recurring billing automatically | Keyed-in cards cost 3.5% + 30 cents per transaction |
Sources: FreshBooks plans and prices and Advanced Payments, checked October 2026.
Is FreshBooks Worth the Price?
FreshBooks is worth the price for a small service business that bills clients and wants invoicing, payments and accounting reports in one subscription. It gets harder to justify for a team with several invited users, or for a business sitting near the 5- or 50-client cap. For how it works day to day, read my FreshBooks review.
FreshBooks Pricing Pros and Cons
Pros:
- A solo owner pays one flat plan price, with no per-user charge until someone is invited.
- Plus includes up to 10 free accountant logins.
- The FreshBooks AppStore lists 100+ apps for linking the tools you already pay for.
Cons, the disadvantages buyers hit first:
- Headcount: no plan below Select includes a team member.
- Caps: client 6 adds $43 – $23 = $20 a month and client 51 another $70 – $43 = $27, whatever those clients pay you.
- Card-on-file billing: Advanced Payments adds $20 a month plus the higher keyed-in rate.
- Skip it if:
- most of your staff need their own login, since member fees pass the Premium price at seven people ($11 x 7 = $77), unless a Select quote beats Premium plus member fees.
If the per-member fee is the sticking point, my QuickBooks Online review covers the main rival. Before you commit, the billing terms decide how much of a wrong choice you can undo.
Billing, Discounts and Cancellation
FreshBooks gives a full refund if you ask within 30 days of purchase; after that, its terms call subscription fees non-refundable. Subscription fees can change with at least 30 days’ notice, and payment transaction fees can change without notice.
The 30-day money-back guarantee also applies to purchases through Buy Now & Save. Because the offer comes without a free trial, that guarantee is your trial if you take the discount.
The offer adds one free 30-minute onboarding session, which must be booked and completed within 30 days of sign-up. Cancelling the subscription or asking for a refund ends your claim to an unused session. The offer runs until 11:59 PM EST on November 16, 2026, and FreshBooks may end it sooner.
How I Verified FreshBooks Pricing
I checked every price in October 2026, on October 27 and 28, from FreshBooks’ US pricing page in its Monthly and Yearly views. I also read the offer terms, the terms of service, the Advanced Payments, Payroll and Select pages, and the help center. The region is the US; amounts are US dollars before applicable taxes.
Published prices are stated as FreshBooks prints them. Totals are calculated by me from those list prices: plan price + $11 x invited members, and annual cost = monthly cost x 12. FreshBooks does not publish the Select price, Select’s card rate or ACH cap, or the yearly price after the first year.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does FreshBooks file payroll taxes with the IRS?
Yes, if you add FreshBooks Payroll. The add-on, powered by Gusto, includes automatic federal and state payroll tax filing and generates W-2s. The core plans give you reports such as Profit and Loss and Sales Tax Summary for your own return, and FreshBooks points owners who want help to its Accounting Partner Program.
Do accountants count as paid team members?
No, not on Plus, Premium or Select, where a business can add as many as 10 accountants free. Lite’s plan card lists no accountant access. Team member profiles set to Unassigned, which only store a person’s details, cost nothing on any plan.
Can I add or remove team members later?
Yes. You upgrade the subscription from the Team Members section when you run out of invitations, and downgrade to drop an unused seat after deleting someone. A deleted member’s email address cannot be reused for a new member without contacting support.
Final Pricing Verdict
Plus is the plan I would start most growing service businesses on: $43 per month covers 50 clients and free accountant access. Lite is right only while you bill 5 or fewer clients and need no accountant login. Premium earns its price past 50 clients or when project profitability matters.
Before you compare FreshBooks with a rival, count the non-accountant team members you will invite at $11 each and add Payroll or Advanced Payments if you need them. With three or more invited people and heavy card volume, ask for a Select quote and hold it against Premium with the same extras.
If member fees push the total past your budget, QuickBooks Online is the rival to price next. For other options, see my list of the best accounting software for small business.
