The 5 Best Invoicing Apps (Honest Pros & Cons)

Picking an invoicing app shouldn’t be a whole research project. We compared five of the most popular options, looking at what each one’s genuinely good at and where it’ll annoy you, so you can grab the one that fits how you work. Here they are, in no particular order.

Short answer: if you just need a clean invoice to download, any of the free web generators below will do the job. If you want to actually get paid faster, including taking card payments in person, pick an app that handles payments too. The rest comes down to how often you invoice and whether you’re billing in Canada.

1. Easy Invoice

Best for: tradespeople and freelancers who want a free web invoice and an easy way to get paid in person.

Easy Invoice is a free web invoice generator paired with a mobile app that turns your phone into a card terminal, so you can send an invoice and take payment in person without buying a card reader.

Pros

• The web generator is genuinely free with no sign-up: fill it in and download a PDF.
• The mobile app lets you accept card payments on your phone with no extra hardware.
• Clean, professional templates that don’t look like a spreadsheet.

Cons

• The mobile app is free to start, but more invoices and extra templates need a paid plan.
• Newer name than the big accounting suites, so less brand recognition.
• Not a full bookkeeping/accounting platform.

Make a free invoice on the web

2. Invoice Simple

Best for: people who want a polished, app-first experience and only send the occasional invoice.

Invoice Simple is one of the most downloaded invoicing apps, and it shows. The interface is slick and the templates are nice. It handles deposits, QR codes on invoices, and payments via PayPal, cards, and Venmo.

Pros

• Really polished app on iOS and Android.
• Nice templates and handy extras like deposits and QR payment codes.
• Accepts PayPal, credit/debit cards, and Venmo.

Cons

• The free plan caps you at 3 invoices a month, so once you hit that you’re paying.
• Paid tiers run roughly $4.99 to $19.99 a month.
• Recurring complaints about billing and how hard it is to cancel.

3. Invoice Maker (invoicemaker.com)

Best for: someone who wants a big template library and doesn’t want to make an account.

Invoice Maker leans on choice. It advertises 500+ templates across different industries, and lets you create and download without signing up. No watermarks or ads on the free invoices, which is a nice touch.

Pros

• Free to create and download, no account required.
• Huge template library (500+) sorted by industry.
• No watermarks or ads on your invoices.
• Can accept payments via Venmo and Zelle.

Cons

• Payment tracking and unlimited invoices are behind a paid plan.
• Pricing for those paid features isn’t obvious up front.
• The “500+ templates” can be more overwhelming than helpful.

4. Zoho Invoice

Best for: businesses that expect to grow into full accounting software.

Zoho Invoice is free and backed by the enormous Zoho suite. If you already use (or plan to use) Zoho’s other tools, this is a natural on-ramp. The free generator is genuinely usable for one-off invoices.

Pros

• Free, with solid templates and customization.
• Part of a full business/accounting ecosystem you can grow into.
• Trusted, established brand.

Cons

• It’s a “gateway” tool: discounts, recurring invoices, and even saving your invoice nudge you to sign up.
• Can feel heavy if all you wanted was one quick invoice.
• Easy to end up further into the Zoho ecosystem than you meant to.

5. Free Invoice Maker (.ca)

Best for: Canadians who need one quick, no-strings invoice.

Free Invoice Maker is about as no-frills as it gets. It’s a browser tool that spits out a clean PDF with GST/HST and CAD baked in. No account, no upsell, nothing to install.

Pros

• 100% free, no sign-up, no watermarks.
• Built for Canada, with GST/HST and CAD support out of the box.
• Supports a few other currencies too (USD, EUR, GBP, INR).

Cons

• Bare-bones, with no accounts, no payment collection, no tracking.
• It’s print-to-PDF only; you’re on your own for getting paid.
• Canada-oriented, so less ideal elsewhere.

So which one should you pick?

It comes down to what you actually need:

• Just a quick PDF? Any of these free generators will do. Free Invoice Maker and Zoho Invoice are fine for a one-off.
• Sending invoices regularly? Watch the free limits (Invoice Simple’s 3 a month sneaks up fast) and pick something that won’t nickel-and-dime you.
• Want to actually get paid faster, including in person? That’s where an app that takes payments, like Easy Invoice, earns its keep.

New to this? Our guide on how to write an invoice walks through the basics, and you can start from a free invoice template built for your trade.

Whatever you choose, the best invoicing app is the one you’ll actually use every time you finish a job. Try a couple, keep the one that gets out of your way.