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Wave Accounting

Wave Accounting

Overview

What is Wave Accounting?

Wave Accounting is a free, cloud-based accounting platform exclusively for small businesses. It supports double-entry bookkeeping and permits unlimited user access, invoicing, and expense management. Wave Accounting integrates with Wave's invoicing, receipt scanning, payment processing and payroll apps.

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Recent Reviews

TrustRadius Insights

Wave Accounting is a reliable tool for staying up to date with accounting tasks such as creating invoices, tracking payments, and managing …
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Disappointed in Wave Accounting

1 out of 10
January 19, 2024
I am an artist and the only user. In trying to reconcile sales tax in wave to what I report to the state by quarter using the P&L, all …
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Good Accounting Software for SME's

9 out of 10
January 13, 2022
We use Wave Accounting for all the financial data of the organization (SME.) The payroll, however, was outsourced. The product addresses a …
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Wave Accounting Review

1 out of 10
August 17, 2021
Went from Rave to RIOT over payout holdups. [It seems like] they've delayed my money countless times. They suspend payment, asking for …
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Awards

Products that are considered exceptional by their customers based on a variety of criteria win TrustRadius awards. Learn more about the types of TrustRadius awards to make the best purchase decision. More about TrustRadius Awards

Popular Features

View all 44 features
  • Bank reconciliation (63)
    9.5
    95%
  • Accounts receivable (67)
    9.5
    95%
  • Standard reports (67)
    9.4
    94%
  • Dashboards (68)
    9.3
    93%

Reviewer Pros & Cons

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Pricing

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Unavailable

What is Wave Accounting?

Wave Accounting is a free, cloud-based accounting platform exclusively for small businesses. It supports double-entry bookkeeping and permits unlimited user access, invoicing, and expense management. Wave Accounting integrates with Wave's invoicing, receipt scanning, payment processing and payroll…

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services

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Alternatives Pricing

What is Xero?

Xero is an online accounting software product for small businesses and personal finance. Its features beyond general ledger and double-bookkeeping include quotable invoicing, bank reconciliation, purchase order and expense management, and tax management. Third party apps can extend its features…

What is QuickBooks Online?

QuickBooks Online is a SaaS version of the QuickBooks product. It contains all of the features found in the local version. Higher-priced plans include greater automation, payment management, inventory and time tracking, and analytics features.

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Product Demos

How To Use Wave Accounting App | Get a hold of your Money! | Ibukun Awosika

YouTube

Wave Accounting Demo

YouTube
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Features

Payroll Management

Provides for pay calculation and benefit plan administration, in addition to managing direct deposit, salary revisions and payroll tracking.

6.2
Avg 7.5

Customization

This addresses a company’s ability to configure the software to fit its specific use case and workflow.

8.5
Avg 7.0

Security

This component helps a company minimize the security risks by controlling access to the software and its data, and encouraging best practices among users.

9.5
Avg 7.9

Reporting & Analytics

Users can report on and analyze usage, performance, ROI, and/or other metrics of success.

8.2
Avg 7.6

General Ledger and Configurable Accounting

Financial management solution, including capabilities for general ledger and configurable accounting

6.8
Avg 7.4

Inventory Management

The ability to track and manage the flow of goods or materials into and out of an inventory.

8.1
Avg 7.0

Order Management

The ability to process orders, and track them from quote to cash.

7.6
Avg 7.4
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Product Details

What is Wave Accounting?

Wave Accounting is a fast growing, free, cloud-based accounting platform exclusively for small businesses (less than 9 employees) offered by Wave in Toronto. It supports double-entry bookkeeping and permits unlimited user access to always-available records and reports, as well as unlimited invoicing and expense management. Wave integrates with expense tracking software Shoeboxed. The software is mobile-accessible.

Wave Accounting integrates with Wave's invoicing, receipt scanning, payment processing and payroll apps, into one relatively comprehensive package. However, the automated payments and payroll functionality must be purchased; the payments addition bills per transaction, and the payroll feature bills by number of employees over a flat rate. To support the free platform, Wave integrates advertisements from business partners. Thus these are a necessary facet of the service.

Wave Accounting Competitors

Wave Accounting Technical Details

Operating SystemsUnspecified
Mobile ApplicationNo

Frequently Asked Questions

Wave Accounting is a free, cloud-based accounting platform exclusively for small businesses. It supports double-entry bookkeeping and permits unlimited user access, invoicing, and expense management. Wave Accounting integrates with Wave's invoicing, receipt scanning, payment processing and payroll apps.

QuickBooks Online, FreshBooks, and Xero are common alternatives for Wave Accounting.

Reviewers rate Multi-currency support and Order entry and Cost of goods sold highest, with a score of 10.

The most common users of Wave Accounting are from Small Businesses (1-50 employees).
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Comparisons

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Reviews and Ratings

(172)

Community Insights

TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!

Wave Accounting is a reliable tool for staying up to date with accounting tasks such as creating invoices, tracking payments, and managing financial obligations. Users appreciate how Wave Accounting simplifies these processes, eliminating the need for manual tracking. The software offers an intuitive interface and essential accounting features that make it a popular choice for small businesses. It has been commended for its ability to quickly generate professional estimates and invoices, as well as provide performance insights through flow graphs and profit and loss graphs. Although some users have experienced drawbacks such as limited customer support and lengthy credit card acceptance processes, overall, Wave Accounting has been highly recommended by users who find it valuable for organizing their businesses. It is particularly useful for tracking inventory purchases, sales, expenses, managing independent contractor businesses, and is considered an affordable and powerful solution by accounting professionals in service-based industries.

Comprehensive and Versatile Software: Users have found Wave Accounting to be a comprehensive and versatile solution for bookkeeping and budgeting. It has been praised for its ability to effortlessly track and categorize financial transactions, streamline invoice creation without redundant data entry, as well as generate various financial reports.

Cloud-based Accessibility: The cloud-based nature of Wave Accounting is highly appreciated by users, providing them with easy accessibility from any computer while eliminating concerns about computer glitches or server problems. This feature has been mentioned by numerous reviewers.

Powerful Invoicing Feature: Users have lauded the invoicing feature in Wave Accounting for its power and user-friendliness. They can easily create and send invoices, keep track of due dates, and mark off paid invoices. The software also provides automatic invoice numbering, facilitating quick reference to different invoices.

Horrible Reconciliation Process: Users have expressed frustration with the reconciliation process in Wave, describing it as horrible. They find it difficult to match transactions and suggest a simpler method for reconciliation.

Lack of Customer Support Options: Many users complain about the lack of customer support options in Wave. They mention the absence of phone or chat lines and express frustration with the frequent response to read documentation. Users desire more personalized assistance and quicker ways to resolve their issues.

Limited Reporting Features: Users feel that the reporting features in Wave could be more robust and flexible. They report issues with exporting general ledger items and mention the need for improvements in sorting options for reports. Some users desire preset date options for reports and request further development of this aspect in Wave.

Attribute Ratings

Reviews

(1-25 of 79)
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Score 1 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
I am an artist and the only user. In trying to reconcile sales tax in wave to what I report to the state by quarter using the P&L, all income by customers and the account balances for the same time period (accrual) show different totals. I am at a loss how they can produce different numbers from what should be the same data. I am finding them unusable.
Marc Fogel | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 3 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Wave seems to be down more than it is up. The last few weeks it has been under repair very often making it very hard to do business. I like to use their software for invoicing but I can't get into doing my work. It is strange for a large company like this to be unavailable to its clients.
Allen Eshmoili | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
I use it for personal and business account. My bookkeeper has access and will update my accounts and generate financial statements and use it to communicate with my accountant at year end. Its nice that it imports all my financial statements from my banks allows me to categorize transactions and view my transactions and a recolcile my books as well. its easy enolugh for me to use as well and I have no finance background. The reports are helpful from P&L and balance sheets and more.
Score 1 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
As a somewhat accounting-illiterate owner of a small business, Wave has been easier to use than Quickbooks. It's made my finances accessible and easy to understand. Also the invoices that go out, along with the automatic reminders, look very professional. Best of all for a micro-business like mine, it's free!
The very consequential difficulty has come in finding bookkeepers or accountants who will use Wave. This has frankly led me to hire a sub-par bookkeeper who did such a poor job that someone else had to straighten things out. This is because all the talented bookkeepers wouldn't touch Wave. They complain that it's not properly set up for what they normally do, and that they have to transfer all the numbers from Wave to Quickbooks, anyway, which isn't worth their time.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
We use Wave Accounting for all the financial data of the organization (SME.) The payroll, however, was outsourced. The product addresses a training problem within the organization as it is easy to use, and minimal training is required. We have a platform where we can invoice, bill, track all our expenses and manage our finances with the reports produced by the system. It is very user-friendly.
August 17, 2021

Wave Accounting Review

Score 1 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Went from Rave to RIOT over payout holdups. [It seems like] they've delayed my money countless times. They suspend payment, asking for "client contracts" to prove my [business] [is legitimate] after paying me for months! I have legal [business] docs, but they said [I needed to show] "client contracts, Social Media, or Website to review". I was OFFENDED [and refused to give] a client contract! And WHY NOT [ask for] THAT UPFRONT? Their "support" [is only] Mon-Fri 8-5! I buckled and applied for Wave Debit & instant payouts. Last [month] [my account] said "instant payout $500". Hadn't had one since before the suspend. Clicked to "instant payout" and [I felt like a] fool! Suspended, AGAIN! Waited for Monday to chat support and was told "new" debit card is why. [I think they are the] same two cards on account, [which they] paid [previously]. Then [support] emails others to "release" the suspension. Waited ALL DAY with no reply, I got worried they were closing, checked account [and] it was released. Currently [I've been] told to wait 7 business days (MAX time) on ACH client paid 7/27. They ALWAYS pay [out on] days estimated, [and it] was never more than five [days] before. I [am upset that] I didn't [change vendors] after the first problem.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Wave Accounting was very useful for managing all of the accounting for my marketing consulting practice. I was able to issue invoices, track expenses, and manage basic bookkeeping easily. The user interface was easy and intuitive and made the tedious task of accounting easier for someone who's not an accountant.
Rachelle Smith | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I have used Wave for eight years, and discovered it soon after starting my business. I am the owner, and use it weekly for my company. It helps with my accounting needs. I am a solopreneur, and it helps that it is so easy to navigate and use. There have been periodic product enhancement updates along the way, which have made my experience even better.
Score 1 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Used by a small chamber of commerce to handle credit card payments, payroll, and bookkeeping. Has a nice appearance but when we try to reconcile with our bank statement it gets bad. Usually, there are three Wave transactions for every bank transaction. Sometimes there are duplicates. I read their documentation, watched many videos, and sent emails. The answer was the same: either delete or merge transactions. I didn't know which to delete or which to merge. I finally paid $199 for an advisor to show me what to do. I had an associate at the Zoom meeting. The advisor talked way too fast, and after asking several times to slow down, he did not. He then started to say delete that or merge those two. I didn't understand why, and after over 30 minutes, he seemed perplexed by what he was seeing. I asked my associate if she was getting anything out of this and, like me, it was a "No." I asked to stop the session and then asked for a refund. They refused.
Magdalene van der Walt | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 6 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
As an accounting firm, we co-use the program with our smaller clients. We are invited to use the system on their side, and then managing their financial records, and accounting transactions remotely. For our clients, it addresses the problem of cost-efficiency for our smaller clients as it has a free version. For us, it allows us to work remotely without having to visit our clients at their office. This is important as we are a virtual accounting firm, meaning we do not have a physical office address, but rather work from our own individual homes from our PC's. Many site visits would increase costs for our clients, many of whom are small clients, and need their costs kept as low as possible for cash flow reasons.
Rachel Zeldin | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 1 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
We are a technology startup and began using Wave in 2015 for bookkeeping, an "upgrade" from our Excel bookkeeping efforts.

We were looking for something simple, that easily connected to our external bank and credit card accounts, in the cloud, and low-cost.

As the company evolved, we began using it for some invoicing and for payroll. We stopped using it for Invoicing, and recently stopped using it for Payroll.
Vin Campbell | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I am personally using Wave Accounting (free version) as the primary accounting app to run the backend of my business. I use the program to create, send, and track invoices to my clients, and I use the link to my bank account to track my expenses, profit and loss, sales tax, and general income vs. expenditures. Having a piece of software this comprehensive that is completely free is a pure lifesaver. I am on a generally tight budget, so this feature solves a huge problem for me and my company!
JaCoby Marston, CPA | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 7 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
The cool thing about Wave Accounting is that there is no cost to use their accounting software. Wave Accounting is very similar to QuickBooks Online without the monthly cost. Wave Accounting is an online accounting software that is pretty easy to use. If you have a basic accounting understanding then it should be no problem for you to set up your company and start using this software to manage your business finances. You can link all of your bank accounts to this including credit cards so that it will import all of your transactions and all you have to do is assign the transactions to the correct account. This accounting software is great because it is completely online which means that you can access it anywhere you have a laptop and the internet.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I utilize it to do the bookkeeping for one small non-profit client, as well as oversee roughly 10 other clients that use it for their own bookkeeping. I like that it is free for small non-profits and startups and that it is generally easier to use than QuickBooks, but works the same way by pulling in bank account transactions and producing financial reports.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Wave Accounting is used by the Bookkeeping and Accounting Department. It's a free tool that helps with invoicing, bookkeeping, financial projections, and accountancy reports. It's online so allows our remote team to access the information and update as needed. It also has a payment processor that we don't use at the moment.
Ashley Mumm | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 7 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
As a one-woman consultation, I use Wave to manage my quotes as I bid projects. I use it as my main CRM as well to organize and keep track of current and potential clients. When bids turn into accepted projects, I convert them to invoices and track payments there as well. I've connected my bank accounts and have used the card terminal before as well. I like the mobile app function to monitor and track outstanding invoices.
Andrea Mitchell, MSW, APSW | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I own a small business and Wave is used for all of our accounting and expense tracking. It is linked to my checking account and I like that all of my expenses are already listed and I just need to go in every once in a while and categorize them. I used to do everything myself but as we have grown I now have our Office Manager do some of the categorizing and it is super simple for her to learn and do.
Jared Hammond | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Wave Accounting helps me keep track of my invoices and process payments from my customers. I don't have a large amount of time to spend, and Wave makes it very easy for me to do this. My customers can keep track of the invoices and easily pay online. It just works.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Wave Accounting is being used as a way to organize all purchases and money coming in and to quickly look at reports if need be. It's also a nifty tool to create quick invoices that are nice looking, functional, and time-saving, being that I don't have to send automatic follow-ups.
Patrick Contreras | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We are using Wave Accounting to provide us with all of our accounting needs except the accounts payables throughout our entire company. We provide invoices and estimates through Wave Accounting. We also accept credit card payments through Wave Accounting. Our payroll and tax liabilities for sales tax and payroll are all managed on Wave Accounting.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Wave Accounting is a simple invoicing solution for a one-person freelancing business. It has all the features I need and has some extra things like payroll, etc. in case I grow to need them. It's very easy to create a new invoice as well as duplicate an existing one and make changes to it. You can email it straight to your client or you can get a share link to embed in your own email.
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