Wave Accounting Platform Reviews

“Free from limitations

Pros

Its biggest advantage is offering fully free access to essential tools such as unlimited accounting, invoicing and expense tracking.

Cons

The biggest drawback is the absence of strong, live customer support for people on the free plan, who mostly have to rely on the online help center and a chatbot.

“Frustrating payroll and messy bookkeeping

Pros

Wave Accounting's automatic invoice creation and tracking are outstanding and dependable for my needs. The cash-flow visuals are potentially valuable but they really only make sense if every part of your money management is routed through the same system.

Cons

The payroll module was a mess as I found it very confusing from the start. Because of those payroll issues, I stopped using most of it and now only use it to send invoices. Expense coding never felt user friendly either as I struggled to get comfortable with how they organize things. Problems started early with setting up direct deposit as it was overly complicated and took way too long. Also its bookkeeping layout did not help. Plus it shows every possible account you could add, including a CASH ON HAND account that made no sense for my business so I don't get large cash payments in 2025. The system also acted in duplicate ways such as a payment would show as deposited in my checking account but it would still mark the invoice as unpaid. When I marked it paid manually, it then showed I'd been paid twice. That was frustrating and totally unhelpful. It took less than six weeks before I gave up on it out of frustration.

“Great starter accounting platform

Pros

Wave's web and mobile apps are powerful and very easy to use. Using it is also simple and the workflows for quotes, invoices and payments are good too. I also really like that it accepts all major credit cards in Canada. Plus the free version already offers a lot for startups and early-stage businesses. They also have an affordable paid plan with added automation and expense tracking to help improve efficiency.

Cons

What I dislike most is that they do not use standard accounting terms in many of their reports and tools. That might make the product easier for some people but for me with my CPA background it is confusing. Plus the non-standard labels make it harder to understand the reports than it should be.

“Support is pretty good

Pros

I really like Wave's customer support team as they are incredibly helpful and consistently available to respond to any questions or concerns I have.

Cons

That said I do not have much bad to say about it other than it could benefit from additional integrations.

“Great value for starting out

Pros

When I started my business, I found Wave and it was great. As the interface was easy to use, payments processed smoothly and I got paid quickly. Job tracking was also simple. And for the cost, I definitely felt it gave me the best value. Plus it made running my business less stressful and saved me time.

Cons

As per my needs I eventually required a different software solution so I moved to Jobber which manages both my appointments and invoices very reliably.

“everythng about it is good :)

Pros

this software is a user-friendly tool. Also adding clients, creating invoices and preparing estimates is pretty easy and quick. What I like most is being able to toggle payment acceptance on or off individually for each invoice and estimate.

Cons

Nothing too major but I'd like the search tool to let me find transactions by Purchase Order number or at least offer more ways to customize searches so it fits my workflow better. Right now those options feel limited.

“Ideal tool for beginners

Pros

As a freelancer and small business owner, I have found Wave to be a great free or low-cost option for sending invoices and handling basic accounting. I also like that the reports and dashboard are easy to create and really helpful for tracking cash flow. Plus the interface is clean and simple so even someone with no bookkeeping experience can start using it without feeling overwhelmed.

Cons

It is helpful when starting a small business because it covers the basics but it does not have many advanced features that other accounting tools offer. Also it is a fairly simple solution that mainly lets me track cash and expenses, send invoices and create basic reports. So if I need more detailed accounting, it might not be enough.

“Terrible service and costly errors

Pros

Absolutely nothing good to say as it has brought me nothing but headaches. I mean I have honestly never felt so let down and disgusted by any company.

Cons

I had a terrible customer support experience. They made clear mistakes that cost me money and then refused to fix them or compensate me. In my case, they submitted my quarterly state tax filing wrong which led to penalties and interest and they won't cover it. So to me this feels like a deeply unethical company that simply does not care about its customers.

“Free from limitations

Pros

Its biggest advantage is offering fully free access to essential tools such as unlimited accounting, invoicing and expense tracking.

Cons

The biggest drawback is the absence of strong, live customer support for people on the free plan, who mostly have to rely on the online help center and a chatbot.

“Frustrating payroll and messy bookkeeping

Pros

Wave Accounting's automatic invoice creation and tracking are outstanding and dependable for my needs. The cash-flow visuals are potentially valuable but they really only make sense if every part of your money management is routed through the same system.

Cons

The payroll module was a mess as I found it very confusing from the start. Because of those payroll issues, I stopped using most of it and now only use it to send invoices. Expense coding never felt user friendly either as I struggled to get comfortable with how they organize things. Problems started early with setting up direct deposit as it was overly complicated and took way too long. Also its bookkeeping layout did not help. Plus it shows every possible account you could add, including a CASH ON HAND account that made no sense for my business so I don't get large cash payments in 2025. The system also acted in duplicate ways such as a payment would show as deposited in my checking account but it would still mark the invoice as unpaid. When I marked it paid manually, it then showed I'd been paid twice. That was frustrating and totally unhelpful. It took less than six weeks before I gave up on it out of frustration.

“Great starter accounting platform

Pros

Wave's web and mobile apps are powerful and very easy to use. Using it is also simple and the workflows for quotes, invoices and payments are good too. I also really like that it accepts all major credit cards in Canada. Plus the free version already offers a lot for startups and early-stage businesses. They also have an affordable paid plan with added automation and expense tracking to help improve efficiency.

Cons

What I dislike most is that they do not use standard accounting terms in many of their reports and tools. That might make the product easier for some people but for me with my CPA background it is confusing. Plus the non-standard labels make it harder to understand the reports than it should be.

“Support is pretty good

Pros

I really like Wave's customer support team as they are incredibly helpful and consistently available to respond to any questions or concerns I have.

Cons

That said I do not have much bad to say about it other than it could benefit from additional integrations.

“Great value for starting out

Pros

When I started my business, I found Wave and it was great. As the interface was easy to use, payments processed smoothly and I got paid quickly. Job tracking was also simple. And for the cost, I definitely felt it gave me the best value. Plus it made running my business less stressful and saved me time.

Cons

As per my needs I eventually required a different software solution so I moved to Jobber which manages both my appointments and invoices very reliably.

“everythng about it is good :)

Pros

this software is a user-friendly tool. Also adding clients, creating invoices and preparing estimates is pretty easy and quick. What I like most is being able to toggle payment acceptance on or off individually for each invoice and estimate.

Cons

Nothing too major but I'd like the search tool to let me find transactions by Purchase Order number or at least offer more ways to customize searches so it fits my workflow better. Right now those options feel limited.

“Ideal tool for beginners

Pros

As a freelancer and small business owner, I have found Wave to be a great free or low-cost option for sending invoices and handling basic accounting. I also like that the reports and dashboard are easy to create and really helpful for tracking cash flow. Plus the interface is clean and simple so even someone with no bookkeeping experience can start using it without feeling overwhelmed.

Cons

It is helpful when starting a small business because it covers the basics but it does not have many advanced features that other accounting tools offer. Also it is a fairly simple solution that mainly lets me track cash and expenses, send invoices and create basic reports. So if I need more detailed accounting, it might not be enough.

“Terrible service and costly errors

Pros

Absolutely nothing good to say as it has brought me nothing but headaches. I mean I have honestly never felt so let down and disgusted by any company.

Cons

I had a terrible customer support experience. They made clear mistakes that cost me money and then refused to fix them or compensate me. In my case, they submitted my quarterly state tax filing wrong which led to penalties and interest and they won't cover it. So to me this feels like a deeply unethical company that simply does not care about its customers.

“Simple and super helpful

Pros

I am a big fan of how user friendly this is and that it does not cost me anything for my needs. The financial reports are also simple to use and account tracking is incredibly easy too.

Cons

To date I have not noticed any drawbacks. I rely on it to monitor spending across multiple accounts and to generate profit-and-loss statements when I need them.

“Budget-friendly accounting tool

Pros

Well I am using it for basic bookkeeping on a tight budget and I must say it is a great accounting tool as long as you do not need a lot of customization or complex tracking. It is also simple to navigate and use.

Cons

The thing I do not like is the limited customization options as it does not let me tailor things much. When I need to file 1099s, it only supports certain states and transferring money to my bank usually takes several business days.

“Simple and super helpful

Pros

I am a big fan of how user friendly this is and that it does not cost me anything for my needs. The financial reports are also simple to use and account tracking is incredibly easy too.

Cons

To date I have not noticed any drawbacks. I rely on it to monitor spending across multiple accounts and to generate profit-and-loss statements when I need them.

“Budget-friendly accounting tool

Pros

Well I am using it for basic bookkeeping on a tight budget and I must say it is a great accounting tool as long as you do not need a lot of customization or complex tracking. It is also simple to navigate and use.

Cons

The thing I do not like is the limited customization options as it does not let me tailor things much. When I need to file 1099s, it only supports certain states and transferring money to my bank usually takes several business days.