Wave Accounting Pricing Explained: Plans, Costs and What You Get

Wave Accounting costs $0 on Starter and $19 a month on Pro. Plans, card fees, payroll, and add-ons explained, plus when Pro is worth paying for.

By Galactic News Editorial · Published 2026-11-08T07:22:12+00:00 · Updated 2026-11-08T07:22:12+00:00

Wave Accounting Pricing Explained: Plans, Costs and What You Get

Wave Accounting costs $0 on its Starter plan and $19 a month on Pro. Starter includes unlimited invoices, estimates, bills, and bookkeeping records. Pro adds automatic bank imports, receipt capture, and a cheaper card rate. The real cost of Wave sits in the add-ons and card fees, not the subscription. This guide explains every plan, every fee, and when Pro is worth paying for.

Wave Accounting pricing at a glance

Wave sells two software plans. Starter is free. Pro costs $19 a month billed monthly, or $190 a year billed annually. The Pro fee is charged per business, not per user. A single account with three businesses on Pro pays three times. Annual billing saves $38 a year against monthly billing.

There is no free trial to sign up for. Starter is the trial. You can use it as long as you like, then upgrade when you need the Pro features.

What the free Starter plan includes

Starter is a genuine free ledger. It uses double-entry accounting, not a simplified version. You can send unlimited invoices and estimates. You can record unlimited bills and bookkeeping records. You can invoice from the mobile app. You can manage cash flow and customers from one dashboard.

Starter also accepts online payments. Card payments cost 2.9% plus $0.60 per transaction. American Express costs 3.4% plus $0.60. Bank payments cost 1% per transaction, with a $1 minimum fee. Approval for online payments needs identity verification and a credit review.

Starter has limits. Bank transactions must be entered by hand. There is no automatic import. Receipt capture is a paid add-on. You cannot add admin, editor, or viewer roles. Only the account owner and a payroll manager or tax professional can access the books. Support is limited compared with Pro.

What Wave Pro adds for $19 a month

Pro adds the automation that saves time. Bank transactions import automatically through Plaid. They merge and categorize themselves. Receipts can be captured without limit from mobile, desktop, or forwarded email. Late payment reminders go out on their own. Wave branding comes off invoice footers. Admin, editor, and viewer roles open the books to a team or an accountant.

Pro also cuts card fees. The fixed fee drops from $0.60 to $0 for the first 10 card transactions each month. After that, Starter rates apply. On a $100 invoice, that saves $0.60 per payment. Ten payments a month saves $6. That alone does not cover the $19 fee. The bank automation and receipt capture are the real reasons to pay.

Pro costs $9.50 a month for the first three months for new monthly subscribers. That is a promotion. Budget on the full $19.

Wave add-ons and hidden costs

Wave's subscription is cheap. Its add-ons are where the bill grows. Receipt capture on its own costs $11 a month, or $96 a year, on Starter. On Pro it costs $8 a month, or $72 a year. It is included in Pro at no extra charge.

Payroll is a separate add-on. It costs a $40 monthly base fee, plus $6 per active employee and $6 per contractor paid each month. It covers tax filing in all 50 US states. A 30-day free trial starts when you process your first payroll.

Wave Advisors is the bookkeeping service. It starts at $149 a month, with a higher tier from $199 a month. It includes Pro features, a dedicated bookkeeper, and monthly financial statements prepared for you. Coaching packages are available separately.

Card fees deserve attention. A business taking 30 card payments a month on Starter pays $18 a month in fixed $0.60 fees alone, before the 2.9% percentage. That is nearly the cost of Pro. Businesses that take many small card payments should run the numbers before choosing Starter.

Starter vs Pro: which should you pick

Pick Starter if you are a freelancer or sole trader with a few clients. It fits anyone who invoices a handful of times a month and can enter bank transactions by hand. It fits businesses that take few card payments. It fits anyone who wants real accounting without a monthly bill.

Pick Pro if you want bank feeds to import themselves. It fits businesses with many monthly transactions. It fits anyone who scans receipts every week. It fits teams that need extra user roles for an accountant or a partner. It fits businesses taking more than 10 card payments a month, where the fee discount helps.

Pick a different tool if you need inventory tracking, multi-currency accounting, or deep reporting. Wave does not cover those. QuickBooks Online starts at $38 a month. Xero starts at $27 a month. Both handle more complex books.

Bottom line

Wave Accounting pricing is simple. Starter costs $0 and covers real bookkeeping with unlimited invoices. Pro costs $19 a month or $190 a year, and adds bank automation, receipt capture, and a small card-fee discount. Payroll costs $40 a month plus $6 per person. Receipt capture alone costs $11 a month on Starter. For a freelancer with simple books, Starter is the best free accounting software available. For a business with many transactions, Pro pays for itself in saved time. Check the pricing page before you sign up, because add-on prices and promotions change.