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Most buyers should pick Wave.
Both have a free plan. ZipBooks is the lower-cost paid step: Smarter is $15/month for five team members, while Sophisticated is $35/month for unlimited users; annual prices are not published. Wave Pro is $19 monthly or $190 yearly ($15.83/month equivalent) and adds bank automation. Pick ZipBooks for time tracking, accounting controls and stated accounting-data migration. Pick Wave for receipt capture, payroll options and advisor services—but check transaction fees and add-on costs.
01Side by side
| ZipBooks | Wave | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free Starter plan; Smarter costs $15 monthly | Free Starter plan; Pro costs $19 monthly |
| Free plan | Unlimited invoices; basic reports; one bank account | Unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and bookkeeping records |
| Best for | Teams needing time tracking and accounting controls | Small businesses needing bookkeeping, payments and payroll options |
| Core strength | Time tracking, reconciliation and accounting reports | Invoicing, receipt capture, payments and payroll options |
| Learning curve | Review ease-of-use score: 5 | Review ease-of-use score: 7 |
| Integrations/data | Accountant plan includes accounting-data migration | Pro auto-imports bank transactions; migration not published |
| Team/seat costs | $15 for five users; $35 for unlimited users | Seat limits not published |
| Support | Review support score: 5 | Advisor services listed; review support score: 5.5 |
ZipBooks Choose ZipBooks if
- Choose ZipBooks if you need time tracking on a $15 plan.
- Choose ZipBooks if five included team members fit your needs.
- Choose ZipBooks if accounting-data migration matters.
Wave Choose Wave if
- Choose Wave if you want bank automation on Pro.
- Choose Wave if receipt capture and payroll options matter.
- Choose Wave if you want bookkeeping help from Wave Advisors.
02Pricing compared
Both offer a free plan, but the paid tiers are structured differently. ZipBooks Smarter costs $15/month and includes five team members; Sophisticated costs $35/month with unlimited users. The pricing notes list monthly rates only, so annual pricing is not published. Wave Pro is $19 month-to-month or $190/year, equivalent to $15.83/month when billed annually.
Check the extras before comparing headline prices. Wave Starter charges 2.9% + $0.60 for card payments and 3.4% + $0.60 for Amex. Digital receipts cost $11/month on Starter or $8/month on Pro, and payroll starts at $25/month or $40/month, respectively. ZipBooks lists Square or PayPal payments on Starter, but the published pricing details do not state payment fees. Wave Advisors is listed at $172/month or $134/month, though its billing terms are not stated.
03Features and depth
ZipBooks covers invoicing, estimates, recurring invoices, reminders, bookkeeping, bank connections, time tracking and reporting. Its paid tiers add accounting controls: Sophisticated includes reconciliation, locked books, advanced reporting and smart tagging by location, project and custom categories. The Accountant plan also lists client management, bulk transaction editing and migration of existing accounting data; its price is not published.
Wave combines bookkeeping, invoicing, payments and payroll options. Starter includes unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and bookkeeping records, while Pro adds automatic bank imports, transaction merging and categorization, digital receipt capture and late-payment reminders. Pro includes online card payments at 2.9% + $0 for the first 10 transactions each month; the listed Starter fee is 2.9% + $0.60, with a higher Amex rate. Receipt capture and payroll may add monthly costs. Wave Advisors offers a dedicated bookkeeper and monthly financial statements, but mobile receipts are not included. For time tracking and stated accounting-data migration, ZipBooks is the clearer fit; for payroll and receipt workflows, Wave has more listed options.
04Ease of use and learning curve
Neither product’s published details establish how much setup or training a business will need. Wave’s Pro plan lists automatic bank imports, transaction categorization and late-payment reminders, which can reduce routine bookkeeping steps. ZipBooks offers bank connections and automated categorization, but its listed time tracking and accounting controls may matter more to teams with projects or stricter close processes.
Our review scores rate Wave higher for ease of use (7 versus ZipBooks’ 5), while both reviews flag support as a weaker area. Treat that as a directional assessment, not a guarantee about your team’s experience. If you are switching, check whether your current records can be migrated: ZipBooks’ Accountant plan explicitly lists migration, while the published Wave details do not.
Questions people ask
Which is cheaper, ZipBooks or Wave?
For paid plans, ZipBooks Smarter is $15/month. Wave Pro is $19 monthly or $190 yearly, equivalent to $15.83/month with annual billing. Wave has a free Starter plan, but optional receipts, payroll and payment processing can add costs. ZipBooks annual prices are not published.
Does ZipBooks or Wave offer a free plan?
Yes. ZipBooks Starter is $0/month and includes one bank account, unlimited invoices, basic reports and Square or PayPal payments. Wave Starter is also free and lists unlimited estimates, invoices, bills and bookkeeping records. Payment processing fees apply to Wave card payments.
Which one is better for payroll and receipt capture?
Wave is the stronger listed option for those needs. Its payroll add-on starts at $25/month with Starter or $40/month with Pro. Digital receipt capture costs $11/month on Starter or $8/month on Pro. The published ZipBooks details do not list payroll or receipt-scanning features.
Can I migrate my accounting data from my current software?
ZipBooks’ Accountant plan explicitly includes migration of existing accounting data, alongside client management and bulk transaction editing. The published Wave plan details do not list data migration. Before switching, confirm which records and history are covered with the provider; the available information does not specify migration limits.