Expense tracking for freelancers comes down to three tasks: digitizing receipts, logging mileage, and categorizing expenses for tax time. We compared FreshBooks, Wave, and Indy to identify which platforms automate these workflows and at what cost. Two of the five products researched are not expense-tracking tools.
How we approached this
We reviewed vendor pricing pages and feature lists for FreshBooks, Wave, Indy, HubSpot, and Notion. Our focus: receipt digitization (manual upload vs automated data capture), mileage tracking, tax categorization, and bill management. We cite plan names and prices exactly as published.
FreshBooks
FreshBooks pricing pages list three plans with expense features: Lite ($23/mo, 5 clients), Plus ($43/mo, 50 clients), and Premium ($70/mo, unlimited clients). All three include expense tracking, mobile mileage tracking, automated bank import, and tax-time reports. Plus adds expense receipt scanning; Premium upgrades to bill receipt scanning with automatic line-item capture. A Select plan exists but requires contacting sales. Add-ons include Team Members ($11/mo per user), Advanced Payments ($20/mo, included in Select), and FreshBooks Payroll ($40/mo plus $6/mo per user).
FreshBooks
- +Automatic receipt data capture at Plus tier
- +Multi-line bill scanning at Premium tier
- +Mobile mileage tracking on all plans
- +Automated bank import for expense categorization
- −Receipt scanning limited to Plus and above
- −Bill line-item capture only at $70/mo Premium
- −Lite plan caps at 5 billable clients
Wave
Wave's homepage describes a mobile money platform: deposit and withdraw for free, send money for 1%, pay bills for free, and buy airtime. No mention of expense tracking, receipt scanning, or accounting features appears on the researched page. The site positions Wave as a mobile financial transfer service, not an expense-management tool.
Wave
- +Free bill pay (utility/phone bills, not expense categorization)
- +1% transfer fee to send money
- −No expense tracking features listed
- −No receipt scanning or mileage logging
- −Not positioned as an accounting platform
Indy
The researched Indy URL (indy.com/pricing) resolves to IndyStar, the Indianapolis Star news site. No expense-tracking, accounting, or freelance-management features appear. The domain does not host a SaaS product.
HubSpot
HubSpot's homepage lists Marketing Hub, Sales Hub, Service Hub, Content Hub, Data Hub, and Revenue Hub (CPQ, billing, and payments). No expense-tracking, receipt-scanning, or mileage-logging features appear in the researched content. HubSpot is a CRM and marketing automation platform, not an accounting tool.
Notion
Notion's pricing page lists Free, Plus ($10/seat/month), Business ($20/seat/month), and Enterprise plans. Features include databases, forms, sites, AI agents, and meeting notes. No expense-tracking, receipt-scanning, or mileage-logging capabilities appear. Notion is a workspace and project-management tool.
Verdict
- For receipt scanning and basic expense tracking: FreshBooks Plus at $43/mo. Includes automated receipt data capture, mileage tracking, and tax reports for up to 50 clients.
- For multi-line bill capture (vendor invoices with itemized expenses): FreshBooks Premium at $70/mo. Adds automatic line-item extraction from bills.
- For solo freelancers with under 5 clients and manual expense entry: FreshBooks Lite at $23/mo. Includes mileage tracking and bank import but no receipt scanning.
- Skip Wave and Indy: Wave is a money-transfer app, not an expense tracker. Indy (as researched) is a news site.
- Skip HubSpot and Notion: Neither platform offers expense-tracking features. HubSpot is a CRM; Notion is a workspace tool.
What we'd skip
- Wave: No expense-tracking features. Designed for peer-to-peer money transfers and bill payments (utilities, not business expenses).
- Indy (IndyStar): The researched URL is a news publication, not a SaaS product.
- HubSpot: Marketing and CRM platform with no accounting or expense-management capabilities.
- Notion: Workspace and project tool. No receipt scanning, mileage logs, or tax categorization.
