Wave Accounting Platform Reviews

“Simple and exactly what we needed

Pros

In my experience the dashboard is simple and user-friendly, it's affordable, easy to pick up quickly and it includes every feature our team needs.

Cons

I couldn't spot any real drawbacks with Wave, it matched our requirements perfectly and worked exactly as we needed.

“Free and surprisingly capable

Pros

it's free and gives an experience very much like QuickBooks, without the hefty price tag that comes with that software.

Cons

I haven't run into any problems so far with the parts I use, at this stage I don't have anything negative to say.

“Easy and straightforward for small businesses

Pros

I am a fan that it's easy and simple to operate for small businesses especially when you don't want to deal with a lot of complexity.

Cons

Honestly I feel the receipt and expense tracking features need work and could be made more reliable and easier to manage.

“Great value for simple accounting

Pros

For free or very low-cost requirements, this app has changed how we operate and is an absolute lifesaver. I find it fully capable of meeting the demands of a nonprofit and in our situation it satisfies our homeowners association's needs perfectly. Creating new accounts or updating ones already in the system is easy and sending invoices is a breeze. It also supports online payments which I personally find extremely handy for those preferring to pay digitally.

Cons

I find it frustrating that the program doesn't let me print checks directly from within the platform. I have to log every expense and then input checks by hand. That ends up feeling like I am entering the same information twice or repeating steps that could easily be streamlined. Overall the inability of the software to handle payments directly feels somewhat old-fashioned.

“generate clear statements

Pros

One big reason I use Wave is that it's free which really appeals to me. The accounting tools generate clear profit-and-loss statements and balance sheets and I can connect my bank and credit-card accounts so transactions flow into the app automatically, leaving me to only sort and categorize them.

Cons

That said the reconciliation workflow feels less user-friendly than QuickBooks Online and I noticed Wave won't attempt to predict or suggest matches for unreconciled items. Also, wrapping my head around Wave's debit and credit mechanics was more complicated for me than it was in QBO.

“Easy invoicing that saves me time

Pros

Honestly invoicing with Wave makes my life so much easier because it automatically sends invoices to my clients every month which means I no longer have to keep track of billing dates or stress about forgetting to bill someone. I also love the automated payment reminders, I always feel awkward chasing customers for money but Wave takes care of that follow-up for me and saves me a lot of awkward conversations.

Cons

At first it felt a little complicated for me as a new user but after spending some time with it I gradually got used to the layout and workflows. What I still wish for though, is a richer set of analytics and visual charts I can flip through because I want to be able to see my full financial picture at a glance.

“Super easy setup and invoicing

Pros

Setting everything up was ridiculously easy, I completed the entire integration in under an hour which saved me a lot of time. I also appreciate that payments are processed within two business days and there's no charge for sending unlimited invoices.

Cons

I tried to send a handful of invoices but the system informed me that the verification process was on hold. I still haven't received a clear explanation for the hold and that lack of communication has been frustrating.

“Great fit for our business

Pros

For my small business, Wave Accounting turned out to be exactly what we were looking for. The software feels excellent to use and its layout is easy to pick up. I am finding it very user-friendly!

Cons

If pushed to pick one downside, I'd say I wasn't satisfied with the quality of customer support provided overall.

“Simple invoicing that saves time

Pros

Every month I rely on Wave Accounting to complete my invoices. It's really easy to navigate and packed with useful tools for example, I can send automated reminders to clients who haven't paid yet which helps me chase unpaid bills.

Cons

I have tried looking for an option to switch the date format from the American mm/dd/yyyy style to the UK dd/mm/yyyy layout but cannot find one. That occasionally leaves clients confused when they see the dates.

“helped our startup a lot

Pros

I was pleasantly surprised by what I could accomplish using the free service, it genuinely helped me get our startup's bookkeeping in order without spending anything.

Cons

What bothered me was that the reports used an enormous font which made the pages look cluttered and not very clean or professional.

“Love how it grew with me

Pros

I have been using Wave since 2009 and honestly it feels like my business grew alongside the app. It showed me what I was doing right and where I was making financial mistakes in my business. It makes filing monthly sales taxes so much easier. I keep a routine of staying organized, double-checking every transaction and making sure everything reconciles with my bank accounts. All those habits, together with putting transactions into the correct categories, turn tax season into something I barely worry about, I finish taxes in two days and don't have to panic because everything is already organized, mostly I just enter expenses and record sales.

Cons

What I dislike the most about Wave is that a few years back they dropped support for free accounts. There's absolutely no human support at all anymore and I really disagree with that decision big time. On top of that, bank connections sometimes get severed and you may be unable to reconnect for many, many months, without support you're left stranded and frustrated. As a solo small-business owner I don't need the extra paid features Wave offers so I cannot justify upgrading just to get live help which means I am permanently stuck without any human support. It doesn't sit well with me given how long I have relied on their platform and the trust I have built using this software.

“Simple and exactly what we needed

Pros

In my experience the dashboard is simple and user-friendly, it's affordable, easy to pick up quickly and it includes every feature our team needs.

Cons

I couldn't spot any real drawbacks with Wave, it matched our requirements perfectly and worked exactly as we needed.

“Free and surprisingly capable

Pros

it's free and gives an experience very much like QuickBooks, without the hefty price tag that comes with that software.

Cons

I haven't run into any problems so far with the parts I use, at this stage I don't have anything negative to say.

“Easy and straightforward for small businesses

Pros

I am a fan that it's easy and simple to operate for small businesses especially when you don't want to deal with a lot of complexity.

Cons

Honestly I feel the receipt and expense tracking features need work and could be made more reliable and easier to manage.

“Great value for simple accounting

Pros

For free or very low-cost requirements, this app has changed how we operate and is an absolute lifesaver. I find it fully capable of meeting the demands of a nonprofit and in our situation it satisfies our homeowners association's needs perfectly. Creating new accounts or updating ones already in the system is easy and sending invoices is a breeze. It also supports online payments which I personally find extremely handy for those preferring to pay digitally.

Cons

I find it frustrating that the program doesn't let me print checks directly from within the platform. I have to log every expense and then input checks by hand. That ends up feeling like I am entering the same information twice or repeating steps that could easily be streamlined. Overall the inability of the software to handle payments directly feels somewhat old-fashioned.

“Excellent experience

Pros

I have had a wonderful experience with Wave. Accounting by Wave totally saved a big client project for me.

Cons

I havent found anything negative yet.

“Review

Pros

High level of integration. It is totally worth your investment.

Cons

An update would be nice but I absolutely love it.

“FAVORITE!

Pros

Wave is extremely user friendly. It is the easier invoicing Software. I love it.

Cons

Nothing honestly. It is a great software.

“Love Wave. Wonderful experience

Pros

The Invoicing system is my absolute favorite. It is so easy to understand and manage.

Cons

I would have liked to be able to schedule the payments by specific date rather than generically as day, week, month, etc.

“Can do better

Pros

The features are great and can be extremely useful.

Cons

The software lags a little which stops us from using the features fully.