ZipBooks

ZipBooks simplifies invoicing, expense tracking, bookkeeping, and financial management for small businesses.

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  • Overview
  • Features
  • Pricing
  • Pros
  • Cons
  • Reviews

ZipBooks Overview

  • Updated December 18, 2025

ZipBooks is a cloud-based accounting software designed for small businesses and freelancers. It offers user-friendly features like automated invoicing, expense tracking, time tracking, and financial reporting. With bank integration, real-time transaction tracking, and mobile access, it simplifies bookkeeping.

ZipBooks provides affordable plans, including a free tier, and integrates with tools like PayPal and Stripe. Its intuitive interface and automation enhance productivity, making financial management efficient and accessible.

Key Features

  • Invoicing: Create, customize, and send professional invoices with logos and themes. Supports recurring invoices, automated payment reminders, and online payments via PayPal or Square.
  • Expense Tracking: Log and categorize expenses, upload receipts, and track transactions automatically with bank integration for real-time updates.
  • Time Tracking: Track billable hours by project or client, with a floating desktop tool and calendar view to monitor team productivity. Integrates with invoicing for accurate billing.
  • Financial Reporting: Generate real-time reports like profit and loss, balance sheets, and accounts receivable. Customizable with export options to Excel or PDF.
  • Bank Reconciliation: Connect US/Canadian bank accounts for automatic transaction imports, simplifying account reconciliation and reducing manual errors.
  • Team Management: Collaborate with team members, assign permissions for invoicing, billing, or reports, and manage tasks for enhanced productivity.
  • Project Accounting: Tag transactions to specific projects, track expenses and revenues, and integrate time tracking for project-based invoicing.
  • Mobile Access: Manage finances on the go via a mobile-friendly web experience or iPhone app, supporting invoicing, receipt capture, and expense categorization. No Android app available.
  • Automated Transaction Categorization: Automatically categorize transactions from connected bank/credit card accounts, minimizing manual data entry.
  • Multi-Currency Support: Handle invoicing and transactions in multiple currencies, ideal for businesses with international clients.
  • Smart Insights: Provide data-driven insights based on transaction data, helping identify trends, profitable clients, and performance metrics.
  • Customizable Chart of Accounts: Generate a default chart of accounts or create custom accounts to suit specific business needs.

Price

Plan Price What’s Included
Starter Free Unlimited invoices, unlimited customers/vendors, one bank connection, basic reports, digital payments (via Square or PayPal).
Smarter US $15/month (flat rate) Recurring invoices with auto-bill, automated reminders, saved invoice line-items, multiple bank accounts, basic time-tracking, up to 5 team members.
Sophisticated US $35/month (flat rate) All Smarter features plus: smart tagging (by project / client / custom), full account reconciliation, secure document sharing, advanced reports, unlimited users.
Accountant Custom quote Designed for accounting/bookkeeping firms managing multiple clients — includes bulk transaction edits, multi-client dashboards, white-labeling for firms.

check price details: https://zipbooks.com/pricing/

Pros

Competitor Pros of ZipBooks
QuickBooks Online ZipBooks offers a more affordable solution with a free Starter plan that includes unlimited invoices and customers, ideal for freelancers and small businesses on a budget. Its intuitive interface is easier for non-accountants to navigate than QuickBooks’ complex setup, which can overwhelm new users. ZipBooks’ time tracking integrates seamlessly with invoicing, a feature praised for simplicity, and its pricing ($15-$35/month) is lower than QuickBooks’ Essentials plan ($30/month). The software also provides a unique Public Profiles feature, creating mini-websites for businesses, which QuickBooks lacks. For small service-based businesses, ZipBooks delivers robust project accounting and smart insights at a lower cost.
Wave ZipBooks’ free Starter plan matches Wave’s free offering but includes additional features like time tracking and smart tagging for project accounting, which Wave lacks in its basic plan. Paid plans ($15-$35/month) are competitively priced against Wave’s Pro plan ($16/month), with ZipBooks offering more advanced reporting, such as customizable charts of accounts in the Sophisticated plan. Users praise ZipBooks’ elegant, color-coded interface for better organization and motivation compared to Wave’s simpler design. ZipBooks also supports multi-currency transactions, making it more versatile for businesses with international clients. Customer support is noted for being responsive and insightful, often surpassing Wave’s support.
FreshBooks ZipBooks provides a free plan, unlike FreshBooks, which starts at $19/month, making it more accessible for freelancers and startups. Its interface is highly intuitive, with a low learning curve, and users appreciate the clean dashboard with financial metrics like Business Health Score, which FreshBooks doesn’t offer. ZipBooks’ time tracking and project accounting features are comparable but integrate more seamlessly with invoicing, and its pricing ($15-$35/month) is lower than FreshBooks’ higher tiers. The software’s smart insights and automation, like auto-billing, enhance productivity for small businesses at a better value.

Cons

Competitor Cons of ZipBooks
QuickBooks Online ZipBooks lacks advanced features like inventory tracking and electronic bill payments, which QuickBooks Online offers, making it less suitable for businesses with complex inventory needs. Its accounts receivable and payable functionalities are not as robust as QuickBooks’ Essentials plan, limiting its depth for larger teams. The mobile app, only available for iOS and described as a web-app shell, is less functional than QuickBooks’ native app, with issues like slow performance and no local data storage. Some users find ZipBooks’ reporting, such as the absence of a cash flow statement, less comprehensive than QuickBooks’ detailed financial reports.
Wave ZipBooks’ free plan, while robust, doesn’t include advanced reporting or customizable charts of accounts, which Wave’s paid Pro plan offers for slightly more ($16/month). Some users report that ZipBooks’ interface can feel bloated, with features harder to locate compared to Wave’s streamlined design. The lack of inventory management and purchase order functions makes ZipBooks less versatile for product-based businesses. Additionally, ZipBooks’ mobile app has been criticized for poor functionality compared to Wave’s, particularly for time tracking and invoice management on the go. Customer support, while generally good, has occasional negative reviews for slow responses, unlike Wave’s more consistent support.
FreshBooks ZipBooks falls short in invoice customization, offering only one minimally customizable template, whereas FreshBooks provides more template options for branding. Its mobile app is limited to iOS and lacks the robustness of FreshBooks’ mobile experience, which supports both iOS and Android with better functionality. ZipBooks also doesn’t integrate with as many third-party apps (e.g., Zapier is limited compared to FreshBooks’ extensive integrations). For businesses needing advanced accounts receivable or payroll integration, FreshBooks offers more comprehensive tools, while ZipBooks’ reporting features, like the default accrual basis, can be less flexible.

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