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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Calamari

    Score9 out of 10
    Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
    Calamari is a workforce management software system offered by Chrobrus.

    $10

    per month

    FreshBooks

    Score9.2 out of 10
    Small Businesses (1-50 employees)
    FreshBooks is an accounting service for small businesses. The solution enables users to send and manage invoices, track billable time and collect online payments. The vendor’s value proposition this that their solution provides a straightforward service that simplifies the billing process.

    $21

    per month

    Pricing
    CalamariFreshBooks
    Editions & Modules
    Leave Mgmt
    Starting at 10
    per month
    Clock In/Clock Out
    Starting at 20
    per month
    Leave Mgmt + Clock In/Clock Out
    Starting at 30
    per month
    Lite
    $21
    per month
    Plus
    $38
    per month
    Premium
    $65
    per month
    Select
    Custom Pricing
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    CalamariFreshBooks
    Free Trial
    YesYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details—10% discount for annual pricing.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    CalamariFreshBooks
    Considered Both Products
    Calamari
    No answer on this topic
    FreshBooks
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    No answers on this topic
    69%
    Would buy again
    9 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    No answers on this topic
    82%
    Delivers good value for the price
    9 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    No answers on this topic
    54%
    Happy with the feature set
    7 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    No answers on this topic
    64%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    7 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    No answers on this topic
    62%
    Implementation went as expected
    8 Answers
    Features
    CalamariFreshBooks
    Customization
    Comparison of Customization features of Calamari and FreshBooks
    Feature
    Calamari
    -
    Ratings
    FreshBooks
    9.1
    35 Ratings
    18% above category average
    API for custom integration00 Ratings9.330 Ratings
    Plug-ins00 Ratings9.026 Ratings
    Security
    Comparison of Security features of Calamari and FreshBooks
    Feature
    Calamari
    -
    Ratings
    FreshBooks
    10.0
    41 Ratings
    20% above category average
    Single sign-on capability00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Role-based user permissions00 Ratings10.041 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Calamari and FreshBooks
    Feature
    Calamari
    -
    Ratings
    FreshBooks
    7.5
    57 Ratings
    4% below category average
    Dashboards00 Ratings9.057 Ratings
    Standard reports00 Ratings8.855 Ratings
    Custom reports00 Ratings4.82 Ratings
    General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
    Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of Calamari and FreshBooks
    Feature
    Calamari
    -
    Ratings
    FreshBooks
    7.5
    56 Ratings
    2% below category average
    Accounts payable00 Ratings8.041 Ratings
    Accounts receivable00 Ratings9.455 Ratings
    Cash management00 Ratings7.03 Ratings
    Bank reconciliation00 Ratings7.02 Ratings
    Expense management00 Ratings6.651 Ratings
    Time tracking00 Ratings7.642 Ratings
    Multi-currency support00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Regulations compliance00 Ratings6.021 Ratings
    Self-service portal00 Ratings9.13 Ratings
    Order Management
    Comparison of Order Management features of Calamari and FreshBooks
    Feature
    Calamari
    -
    Ratings
    FreshBooks
    9.5
    49 Ratings
    25% above category average
    Pricing00 Ratings8.839 Ratings
    Order entry00 Ratings9.337 Ratings
    Credit card processing00 Ratings9.741 Ratings
    Cost of goods sold00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    CalamariFreshBooks
    Small Businesses
    Deputy
    Score8.6 out of 10
    QuickBooks Self-Employed (discontinued)
    Score4.2 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Harri
    Score6 out of 10
    MYOB
    Score8.3 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Enterprise eTIME, by ADP (discontinued)
    Score10 out of 10
    Microsoft Dynamics GP
    Score5.4 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    CalamariFreshBooks
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.1
    (4 ratings)
    7.6
    (75 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.6
    (18 ratings)
    Usability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.6
    (20 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (2 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    6.0
    (11 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    CPA Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.0
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    CalamariFreshBooks
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Calamari
    Calamari is constantly striving to account for and provide useful, practical, and simple solutions to its employees that everyone can use without significant inconvenience. Always seeking to be in an active business environment that allows them to manage the various labor policies that exist in each region and company where they work.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    FreshBooks
    I recommend FreshBooks to anyone running a service-based business that needs invoicing, time reporting, and accounting tools. FB is adept in all three of these scenarios and isn't overly complicated like similar accounting packages I have used. I love how I can write estimates and proposals, manage the business development process from the software, and quickly convert prospects to invoiced clients.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Calamari
    • Complex rules to define each team member's PTO allowance.
    • Overview of remaining allowance and when it is has been requested for.
    • Easy login options.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    FreshBooks
    • Invoicing - FreshBooks basically ensures our accountants spend less time on invoices via its automated invoicing system, which sends invoices to our customers and clients alike and also send them regular reminders for them to pay up their bills.
    • Collecting business insights - FreshBooks enable our company analysts measure our business performances via data reports provided by FreshBooks' intuitive dashboard. Allowing us do a comparative analysis of key business metrics of a current month against past months and determine if the business is growing.
    • Expense tracker - We have recently embraced FreshBooks as an expense tracker for teams at our company branch. Thusfar, FreshBooks has performed very well, making our expense management a perfect operation; ensuring teams do not exceed their planned budget and also eliminating the need for tracking expenses on excel spreadsheets.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Calamari
    • Lack of a mobile app.
    • A little tricky at first to use.
    • Need HR-friendly features to add.
    Read full review
    FreshBooks
    • I can brand invoices with my business logo, but I might like to change colours of the invoices themselves to match the rest of my business documents. That isn't a major point at all, but it's something that I'd like to see.
    • Freshbooks doesn't remember the categories that similar expenses were previously assigned to. It would be nice if Freshbooks would suggest a category for an already saved vendor, to ensure the consistency of expense reporting.
    • The home page of a Freshbooks account has a great graph display of expenses and income, but it only shows the last 6 months. This is still very useful, but I'd like to be able to see this kind of graph for different periods of time.
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Calamari
    No answers on this topic
    FreshBooks
    At the current needs of our business, FreshBooks suits us perfectly - it allows online access by our accountant to the system for GST purposes, easy input of expenses and tracking of Profit and Loss statements. FreshBooks customer service is great as well - very understanding and accommodating.
    Read full review
    Usability
    Calamari
    No answers on this topic
    FreshBooks
    FreshBooks is very easy to use even for novices. If you're looking for an online accounting software that is full of features, has great aesthetics and is user-friendly, then this is definitely the software for you. I've been using it for several years now and despite being tempted to switch by other vendors, I like the feel of FreshBooks and it's mobile features.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Calamari
    No answers on this topic
    FreshBooks
    FreshBooks is easy to use and always works!
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Calamari
    Working with my rep is so easy and has been the selling point on this platform. I like that I don't have to think about it much, love the Slack integrations for my team and how easy it was to transition from our old process into Calamari. It's simple, clear, and for a small team, it has everything I need. The customer support team has always responded promptly when I need anything, and we were even able to extend our trial period in the beginning and converted to a paying customer shortly after.
    Read full review
    FreshBooks
    I think the support level for FreshBooks is on par with a 6 because the folks behind this application do a fairly good job at providing support for their customer base. I still don't think they are at an elite level when it comes to supporting but are getting there although too slow in my opinion.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Calamari
    No answers on this topic
    FreshBooks
    I haven't changed my mind since my first evaluation. Freshbooks is still meeting my needs, easy to use, etc.
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Calamari
    Our HR department used Excel and paper request forms for our vacation management, and tracking working hours didn't exist. We were only obliged to sign a list when we were entering the office. Calamari is a huge improvement in every aspect of time tracking and vacation management for your company. We're loving it!
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    FreshBooks
    FreshBooks does very well in comparison, especially since it is free software for Barclays bank users. Sage software is much worse than FreshBooks. However, Xero and QuickBooks, the market leaders, are still ahead with usability, additional features, reporting, and connection with third-party software providers. We chose FreshBooks as it does everything we require from this type of software.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Calamari
    • It is quick and simple to provide application training to employees.
    • When there are problems with the connection, it is possible to record that the user does not mark their exit or accounts for extra time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    FreshBooks
    • In reality, we do not implement all of its use at the moment in order to determine an adequate ROI.
    • In our approach to the use of the system, it seems to us a considerable time saving by achieving the integration of the Mexican subsidiary with its parent located in the US.
    • Financial reports meet the necessary USGAAP requirements.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Calamari Screenshots

    Screenshot of Calendar with detailed information about upcoming absences, holidays, and remote work.Screenshot of Online Timesheets with all the details about employees' working time. Employees can clock in/out, call a break, add projects, and take notes.Screenshot of Clocking in/out and displays all the details about the work day.Screenshot of team management features.Screenshot of the integrations that are possibile using the Calamari API.Screenshot of company document management features.

    FreshBooks Screenshots

    Screenshot of the dashboardScreenshot of an invoice overviewScreenshot of an example of a customizable invoiceScreenshot of an invoice appearing across devicesScreenshot of expensesScreenshot of time tracking