5 Best Invoice Software for Graphic Designers to Streamline Payments

Graphic designers thrive on creativity, but managing finances, invoices, and payments shouldn’t be a challenge. The right invoicing software can simplify these tasks, ensuring designers get paid quickly and stay organized. FreshBooks is an excellent choice for freelancers and design studios, offering user-friendly invoicing, time tracking, and financial reporting. In this guide, we’ll explore the best invoicing software options for graphic designers, with FreshBooks leading the charge due to its affordability, flexibility, and specialized features designed for creatives.

Overview of the 5 Best Invoicing Software for Graphic Designers

Compare the leading invoicing tools for graphic designers based on features, pricing, and key advantages.

Why Invoicing Software is Essential for Graphic Designers

Managing invoices is crucial to maintaining a healthy cash flow, especially for graphic designers who work on a variety of projects with multiple clients. Whether you’re working on a branding project for a startup or designing a website for a small business, invoicing software can help you:

• Create Professional Invoices: Ensure that your invoices are as polished as your design work
• Track Billable Hours: Charge clients accurately based on the time spent on each project
• Stay Organized: Keep track of payments, overdue invoices, and upcoming deadlines
• Get Paid Faster: Send invoices instantly and accept payments online

Key Features to Look for in Invoice Software for Graphic Designers

When choosing invoicing software, graphic designers should consider the following features:

• Customizable Templates: A must-have to create branded invoices that reflect your design style
• Time Tracking: Useful for billing clients based on hours worked
• Recurring Invoices: Ideal for retainer clients or long-term projects
• Online Payments: Integrations with payment gateways like PayPal or Stripe to make it easy for clients to pay
• Expense Tracking: Track your business expenses alongside income to stay on top of your finances
• Client Management: Store client details and project notes to keep all information in one place

Best Invoice Software for Graphic Designers

Explore these top 5 invoicing software options for graphic designers, each designed to simplify billing and streamline your workflow.

1. FreshBooks

Price: Starts at $15/month
Best for: Freelancers and small business owners looking for an all-in-one invoicing, accounting, and time-tracking solution

Why FreshBooks is #1:
FreshBooks is designed specifically for freelancers and small business owners, making it ideal for graphic designers looking to streamline their billing process. It offers a powerful set of features, including:

• Customizable Invoices: Create professional, branded invoices that match your style
• Time Tracking: Track billable hours directly and convert them into invoices with ease
• Expense Management: Link your expenses to specific projects, keeping everything in one place
• Online Payments: Integrate payment options like PayPal, credit card payments, and more
• Client Management: Store client details and track project progress

How it Stacks Up: FreshBooks leads the pack thanks to its balance of ease of use, automation, and tailored features for graphic designers. With its focus on simplifying the invoicing process and providing excellent customer support, FreshBooks remains the best overall choice for designers looking to streamline their business.

2. HoneyBook

Price: Starts at $29/month
Best for: Creatives and service-based businesses that need a comprehensive platform for client management and invoicing

Why HoneyBook is a great alternative:
HoneyBook stands out for its CRM capabilities, which help freelancers manage projects, client communication, contracts, and invoices in one platform. Its focus on building strong client relationships makes it especially attractive for graphic designers working with long-term or high-value clients.

• Customizable Contracts & Invoices: Create beautifully branded invoices and contracts
• Client Communication: Manage all communication in one place, including messages, proposals, and invoices
• Project Management: Track projects from start to finish with scheduling and task management features

How it Stacks Up: HoneyBook’s strength lies in its all-in-one platform designed to help you grow your business through better client management, making it ideal for designers who work closely with clients from start to finish. While it leans more heavily into CRM and project management than FreshBooks, it still offers solid invoicing capabilities.

3. Invoice2go

Price: Starts at $5.99/month
Best for: Small businesses and freelancers who need straightforward invoicing tools with a focus on quick and easy invoice creation

Why Invoice2go is a great alternative:
Invoice2go focuses primarily on making invoicing as simple as possible, which is perfect for graphic designers who want to send invoices quickly without getting bogged down in complex features.

• Simple Invoicing: Create and send invoices in minutes
• Multiple Payment Options: Easily integrate with payment gateways like PayPal
• Expense Management: Keep track of business expenses in a single app

How it Stacks Up: Invoice2go’s no-frills approach to invoicing makes it ideal for graphic designers who need quick, easy invoicing without unnecessary features. However, it lacks some of the advanced features FreshBooks offers, such as time tracking and detailed reporting.

4. Dubsado

Price: Starts at $35/month
Best for: Designers who want a customizable and automated solution for invoicing and client management

Why Dubsado is a great alternative:
Dubsado offers a robust suite of tools for client management, project tracking, and invoicing. This makes it an excellent choice for designers who need a more customized solution for their workflows.

• Custom Workflows: Automate your invoicing and client onboarding processes
• Professional Invoices: Create fully customizable invoices that reflect your brand
• Client Management: Track client communications, contracts, and payments in one place

How it Stacks Up: Dubsado’s unique selling point is its focus on automation and customization, which is great for designers who want to create tailored workflows. However, the learning curve is steeper than FreshBooks’s, and its features may be better suited to designers with more complex business needs.

5. Melio (Acquired by Xero)

Price: Free for standard features
Best for: Graphic designers looking for a simple and free invoicing tool with payment integration

Why Melio is a great alternative:
Melio simplifies invoicing by offering an intuitive platform for sending and receiving payments. It integrates with Xero, making it an ideal choice for graphic designers who already use Xero for accounting and want to streamline their invoicing and payment process.

• Payment Automation: Automatically send and receive payments directly through the platform
• Free Invoicing: Send invoices with no monthly subscription fee
• Simple Interface: Focuses on ease of use, making it great for beginners

How it Stacks Up: Melio is an excellent low-cost or free option for designers looking for a simple invoicing solution. While it’s not as feature-rich as FreshBooks in terms of reporting and time tracking, its Xero integration and straightforward invoicing make it a good option for designers looking to manage payments without hassle.

Conclusion

Selecting the right invoicing software for graphic designers depends on your specific business needs. FreshBooks offers a comprehensive suite of features ideal for freelancers and small businesses, making it a popular choice for streamlining invoicing, time tracking, and client management. However, alternatives like HoneyBook, Invoice2go, Dubsado, and Melio provide valuable options based on preferences for simplicity, automation, or integration with other tools. Each software has its strengths, whether you need a straightforward solution, a platform focused on client management, or advanced customization. The best choice ultimately depends on the level of complexity and features that suit your workflow.