# HelloBooks vs FreshBooks

> Last updated: 2026-05-16
> Canonical HTML: https://hellobooks.ai/compare/hellobooks-vs-freshbooks

HelloBooks is an AI-first alternative to FreshBooks for freelancers and small businesses that have outgrown FreshBooks' invoice-first focus. Pro at $9.99/mo includes full double-entry accounting, AI categorization, bill OCR, and multi-currency — features that FreshBooks gates behind its $30+/mo Premium plan.

## Side-by-side

| Feature | HelloBooks | FreshBooks |
|---------|-----------|------------|
| Starting price | Free Plan + Pro at $9.99/mo | $19/mo (Lite, 5 clients) |
| Clients included | Unlimited | 5 (Lite), 50 (Plus), unlimited (Premium $60/mo) |
| AI automation | Categorization, OCR, anomaly detection | None |
| Double-entry accounting | Yes | Limited (added in 2024) |
| Bank feeds | 11,000+ US banks via Plaid | Limited US bank network |
| Multi-currency | Included on all plans | Premium plan only |
| Inventory | Full inventory + 3-way matching | Basic items only |
| QuickBooks migration | One-click import | CSV only |
| Time tracking | Built-in for projects | First-class (FreshBooks origin) |
| Project profitability | Yes | Yes (strong) |

## Key differences

**Accounting depth.** FreshBooks started as an invoicing tool; full double-entry was a recent add. HelloBooks is double-entry from day one with all the reports CPAs expect.

**AI.** HelloBooks runs AI categorization, bill OCR, and conversational analytics. FreshBooks has none.

**Pricing model.** FreshBooks scales by client count (Lite 5, Plus 50, Premium unlimited). HelloBooks Pro is unlimited clients at $9.99/mo — substantially cheaper for any service business with >5 clients.

**Time tracking and projects.** FreshBooks wins on time-tracking UX — it's the original feature the product was built around. HelloBooks includes time-tracking for project profitability but the workflow is less polished.

## Choose HelloBooks if you

- Have outgrown FreshBooks' client-count tiers.
- Want AI categorization and bill OCR without paying for Premium.
- Need real double-entry accounting and multi-entity consolidation.
- Want to move from QuickBooks and prefer modern AI tooling.

## Choose FreshBooks if you

- Are a solo freelancer with <5 clients and rely heavily on time tracking.
- Have a deep workflow built around FreshBooks' project profitability features.
- Don't need true double-entry accounting yet.

## Migration

CSV / Excel export from FreshBooks → import into HelloBooks. Customers, vendors, invoices, expenses transfer cleanly. Time entries can be exported and re-imported as historical project data.

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