Wave Review (Formerly Wave Accounting)

Pros

• Free
• Easy to use
• Numerous features
• Attractive invoice templates
• Help from expert accountants is available

Cons

• Limited mobile apps
• Unsuited for large businesses
• Poor customer support

What Is Wave?

Wave is cloud-based software that boasts a solid set of accounting features suitable for most small businesses. These features are especially appealing when you consider that Wave is absolutely free. While you do have the option to pay for add-ons, such as payroll, payment processing, or professional bookkeeping services, all other features are available at no cost — with no artificial limits holding you back.

Wave also supports multiple businesses, additional users (with four permission levels), and personal finance tracking.

That said, there are still quite a few areas where Wave could stand improvement. There’s no project management feature, limited time tracking, limited inventory, and poor mobile apps. Despite these drawbacks, Wave is still the best free accounting software out there.

Keep reading our in-depth Wave Accounting review to find out if it’s right for your business.

Wave Pricing

Wave “has always been and always will be free,” a structure that the company plans to maintain following its acquisition by H&R Block. Unlike most free plans, Wave doesn’t limit you to a certain number of invoices, customers, or transactions, making it one of the best free options out there — plus, there are no pesky ads. The company generates revenue from its credit card processing, Wave Payroll, and bookkeeping services and uses this revenue to keep the software completely free. You can cancel your account at any time.

Free Wave Plan

Wave’s accounting software is free and includes:

• Unlimited invoicing
• Unlimited estimates
• Contact management
• Expense tracking
• Accounts payable
• Basic inventory
• Reports

Extra Wave Costs & Fees

There are several additional Wave products that you can purchase for your business. Wave Payroll has two options starting at $20/month plus $6/month per employee. Tax service payroll is available in 14 states, while self-service payroll is available in the remaining 36 states.

Wave Payments is an add-on payment processing service that allows your business to accept credit cards, debit cards, and ACH payments. This is a pay-per-use service with credit card processing rates starting at 2.9% + $0.60 per transaction and ACH rates set at 1% per transaction.

Finally, if you need extra help with your bookkeeping, accounting, or taxes, Wave Advisors is a service you can add to your account. This option is great for business owners who are new to accounting or want to outsource bookkeeping and/or tax filing.

Is Wave Easy To Use?

Wave’s UI is well organized and easy to use. The only downside is that there’s no back button, but navigating the software is still pretty simple. Wave’s software takes very little time to set up and get used to — and it doesn’t require a background in accounting (especially considering that you can now get extra help with your accounting and bookkeeping from Wave advisors). The company also offers good customer support options, including an accounting guide, to help you learn to balance the books and use the software.

Wave Features

For a free software program, Wave boasts an impressive, robust feature set that rivals even some paid accounting software programs.

With Wave, you have access to expense tracking, bank reconciliation, and reporting to help you manage your finances. Wave also has some of the most appealing invoices on the market. Wave also offers time-saving automations, such as recurring invoices, automatic billing, and receipt scanning. However, some features are noticeably missing, such as project management and budgeting, that are found with paid software options such as QuickBooks Online.

Here are some of the features you can find in Wave:

Wave Customer Service

Wave offers a decent number of support resources to customers, but the response times are slow. Phone and chat support are only available for payroll or credit card processing customers. If you have a question that can’t be answered in the Wave Community or the comprehensive Help Center, your only option is email. Emails take a day for a response, so if you have a pressing issue, don’t expect a quick answer.

Wave Integrations

Wave offers a limited number of integrations, although it does support a much-needed Zapier integration, which connects Wave with 1,000+ add-ons. The integrations Wave directly connects with are PayPal, Etsy, and Shoeboxed. You can also use the Checkouts feature to create buttons on websites, such as Wix, Squarespace, and WordPress. API is available for developers.

Wave Reviews

For the most part, Wave receives high praise from its users. The software gets 4.5/5 stars on Software Advice, 4.4/5 stars on G2Crowd, and 6.8/10 stars on TrustRadius. Also, Wave is BBB accredited and boasts an A+ on the BBB website.

While most reviews are positive, the company has recently received a 1.45/5 star rating on the BBB, and there are a handful of complaints from some less-than-satisfied users.

Negative Wave Reviews & Complaints

• Slow servers and downtime
• Various bugs in Wave’s mobile apps
• Limited reporting
• No mileage tracking, budgeting, inventory tracking, and project management features

Positive Wave Reviews

• Free software with no limitations
• User-friendly software that’s easy to learn and navigate
• Numerous time-saving automations
• Ease of creating professional-looking invoices
• The ability to track personal and business finances

Is Wave Secure?

Wave utilizes a number of security measures to keep your data safe. Here’s what Wave is doing to protect your data:

• 256-bit data encryption
• Read-only versions of banking information
• Amazon Web Services for storing data
• Regular data backups
• 24/7 monitoring of servers

How Does Wave Compare To Other Accounting Software?

Wave holds its own against two of its biggest competitors, QuickBooks Online and Xero. Wave’s free pricing structure gives the software its appeal, but users that have larger businesses and require more advanced accounting features may find QBO or Xero to be the better fit. Check out our comparisons among these top three accounting software options to find the right fit for your business.

Wave VS QuickBooks Online

Like Wave, QuickBooks Online is easy-to-use, cloud-based accounting software. But that’s about where the similarities end. QuickBooks Online boasts a robust set of features, including advanced options like project management and inventory features you won’t find with Wave. QuickBooks Online also has hundreds of integrations, connecting your accounting solution with other small business software and apps. On the other hand, QBO only supports up to 25 users on its most expensive plan. Additionally, QuickBooks does not have a free plan like Wave, with prices starting at $30/month.

Wave VS Xero

If you operate a larger business and need advanced features, give Xero a look before signing up for Wave. Xero has more advanced features, hundreds of integrations, and also supports unlimited users. However, Xero doesn’t have a free plan, with monthly subscriptions starting at $12. With limitations on Xero’s lowest-tier plans, users will have to upgrade to a more expensive option to take advantage of everything the software has to offer. Xero also doesn’t support multiple businesses, so pricing can add up quickly for some users. And it’s worth noting that while Xero has more features, the software also has a steeper learning curve than Wave.

The Final Verdict: Is Wave Worth It?

Wave is designed specifically for small business owners to use, no matter what kind of bookkeeping background they come from. The software supports multiple companies and offers personal accounting as well. Wave improved its software and has addressed many customer complaints in its latest redesign, including adding 1099 payroll support, duplicate transaction management, expense transaction automation, and cash-basis accounting. The checkout feature is one-of-a-kind and a great addition for business owners who need to charge multiple customers quickly.

However, there are a few features the software is still lacking. There’s no project management and limited time tracking, which rules the software out for a lot of businesses. Hopefully, with Wave’s track record for updates, it will add these features soon and improve customer service response times. In the meantime, though, check out these top Wave alternatives to fully explore your accounting software options.

Until then, the software is still a good solution for small business owners looking for simple, easy-to-use accounting software that won’t break the bank. Wave’s customer support resources and new Wave Advisor services make it easy for people with limited accounting experience to learn the software. It’s also great for Etsy shop owners and other eCommerce businesses using Wix, Squarespace, or WordPress. If Wave sounds like it might be a good fit for your business, give it a try! After all, it’s free.

Wave Accounting FAQs

The Merchant Maverick Seal of Approval 🏆

Wave	Visit Site

After hours of in-depth research and evaluation, we can confidently recommend this brand to our readers. Get started today and see Wave for yourself.

The Merchant Maverick Seal of Approval 🏆

Wave	Visit Site

After hours of in-depth research and evaluation, we can confidently recommend this brand to our readers. Get started today and see Wave for yourself.

Sources