If recurring billing is the core of how your business gets paid, ReliaBills is the cleaner choice. It was built specifically for automated recurring invoicing and collection, has no client-count caps, and charges $24.95 flat per month for unlimited accounts. FreshBooks is a stronger fit for freelancers who also need time tracking, expense management, and double-entry accounting, but its card-on-file autopay requires a $20/month add-on on top of the base plan, and it caps billable clients by tier. For businesses whose entire model depends on recurring revenue, that distinction matters.
The ReliaBills vs FreshBooks question comes up because both platforms support recurring payments and both are priced for small businesses. But they were built for different problems, and that distinction determines which one fits your operation.
ReliaBills vs FreshBooks: What Each Platform Was Built to Do
ReliaBills was built as a focused accounts receivable and recurring billing platform. It handles recurring invoice generation, automated payment reminders, late fee triggers, failed payment retries, and a self-service customer portal. What it does not do is accounting. There is no double-entry bookkeeping, no profit and loss reporting, and no time tracking. If you need those features, ReliaBills integrates with QuickBooks Online, but it does not replace it.
FreshBooks is a full small-business accounting platform that includes invoicing, expense tracking, time logging by project, proposals, and financial reports. Its recurring billing feature is capable, but the ability to store a client’s card and auto-charge it on every cycle requires the Advanced Payments add-on, which costs $20 per month on top of the base plan and carries a higher per-transaction rate of 3.5% + $0.30, compared to the standard 2.9% + $0.30 for online invoice payments.
That add-on structure is the most important thing most ReliaBills vs FreshBooks comparisons miss. When FreshBooks lists recurring billing as a feature across all plans, that is accurate. Clients can opt into AutoPay themselves by saving their card on the first payment. What requires the Advanced Payments add-on is the ability for the business owner to enter and store a client card directly or to require autopay enrollment upfront. For businesses that need to control the payment setup rather than wait for client action, the $20/month add-on is not optional.
Pricing: What You Actually Pay
The table below shows verified pricing as of July 2026. FreshBooks figures are sourced from ReliaBills figures sourced from reliabills.com.
| ReliaBills Free | ReliaBills Plus | FreshBooks Lite | FreshBooks Plus | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly price | $0 | $24.95 | $23/mo | $43/mo |
| Client cap | None | None | 5 clients | 50 clients |
| Recurring invoices | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Card-on-file autopay | No | Yes | Add-on only | Add-on only |
| Card-on-file add-on cost | N/A | Included | +$20/mo | +$20/mo |
| Credit card processing | N/A | 3.0% + $0.30 | 2.9% + $0.30 | 2.9% + $0.30 |
| ACH / eCheck | N/A | $0.99 flat | 1% (capped $15) | 1% (capped $15) |
| Additional users | N/A | Included (roles) | +$11/user/mo | +$11/user/mo |
| Time tracking | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Expense tracking | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| QuickBooks sync | Yes | Yes | No native sync | No native sync |
A few things the table reveals that most comparisons skip:
ReliaBills’ flat $0.99 ACH fee is a significant cost advantage for businesses collecting larger payments. FreshBooks charges 1% of the transaction, capped at $15. On a $1,500 ACH payment, that is $15 under FreshBooks versus $0.99 under ReliaBills. For recurring billing businesses collecting monthly service fees, retainers, or rent at $500 or more per account, that difference compounds quickly across a full client list.
FreshBooks’ additional user fee of $11 per month per team member applies to every plan, including Lite. A small team of four people on FreshBooks Plus pays $43 + $33 (three extra users) = $76 per month before any add-ons. ReliaBills Plus at $24.95 includes unlimited users with role-based access at no extra charge.
Where FreshBooks Wins
FreshBooks is genuinely stronger in a few areas that matter for specific business types.
Time and project tracking.
Freelancers and agencies that bill by the hour need time tracking connected directly to invoicing. FreshBooks handles this natively: log time by project, convert it to an invoice line item, and send. ReliaBills has no time tracking and is not the right tool for hourly billing.
Expense management.
FreshBooks lets users scan receipts, import bank transactions, and categorize expenses automatically. If you need a single place to manage both outgoing expenses and incoming invoices, FreshBooks covers more ground.
Accounting depth.
From the Plus plan up, FreshBooks includes double-entry bookkeeping, bank reconciliation, and financial reports. ReliaBills does not have these features and expects users to handle accounting separately or via QuickBooks sync.
Estimates and proposals.
FreshBooks generates estimates and proposals that convert to invoices on client approval. ReliaBills handles estimates but is not built for proposal workflows.
Where ReliaBills Wins
Recurring billing is the core product, not an add-on. ReliaBills was built from the ground up for recurring invoice automation: auto-generation, auto-delivery, autopay, failed payment retry, and automated collection sequences. FreshBooks supports recurring invoices on all plans but reserves the business-controlled card-on-file feature behind a paid add-on.
Flat ACH pricing.
For businesses collecting amounts of $99 or more per transaction, ReliaBills’ $0.99 flat ACH fee is less expensive than FreshBooks’ 1% fee. On a $2,000 recurring invoice, that is $0.99 versus $15.
No client caps, ever.
ReliaBills Plus covers unlimited clients, invoices, and users at one flat rate. FreshBooks forces plan upgrades as your client list grows: 5 on Lite, 50 on Plus, and unlimited on Premium at $70/month. A business with 60 active clients needing only billing features pays $70/month on FreshBooks versus $24.95 on ReliaBills.
Installment billing.
ReliaBills includes a native installment billing feature: define a total balance, number of payments, and schedule, and the system calculates and tracks each installment automatically. FreshBooks has no built-in installment billing workflow.
Collection automation.
ReliaBills includes a fully automated multi-step collection sequence: pre-due reminders, late fee triggers, failed payment retries with client notification, and escalation notices. FreshBooks handles automated late payment reminders and late fees on Plus and above, but its dunning logic is less configurable.
Which One Should You Choose?
Choose ReliaBills if your business model is recurring-revenue-first: subscription services, property management, HOA billing, cleaning services, membership organizations, or any setup where the same charge goes to the same clients on a fixed schedule. The recurring billing engine, flat ACH pricing, and unlimited client structure make it significantly more cost-effective at scale.
Choose FreshBooks if you need accounting alongside billing: time tracking connected to invoicing, expense management, double-entry bookkeeping, and project profitability reporting. Freelancers, consultants, and agencies that bill for time and need one tool for both inflows and outflows will find FreshBooks more complete.
The two tools are not direct competitors. ReliaBills is a receivables and collection automation platform. FreshBooks is a small-business accounting suite that includes billing as one of its modules.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Does FreshBooks include recurring billing on all plans?
Yes, but with a key limitation. Clients can opt into AutoPay by saving their card themselves on any plan. The ability for the business owner to enter and store a client’s card directly requires the Advanced Payments add-on at $20 per month, plus a higher transaction rate of 3.5% + $0.30.
2. Does ReliaBills have accounting features?
No. ReliaBills handles invoicing, recurring billing, payment collection, and accounts receivable automation. It integrates with QuickBooks Online for full accounting capability.
3. Is ReliaBills free to use?
The base ReliaBills plan is fully free: unlimited customers, invoices, emails, and users. Online payment processing, autopay, and collection automation require ReliaBills Plus at $24.95 per month.
4. Which platform has lower payment processing fees for ACH?
ReliaBills charges a flat $0.99 per ACH transaction. FreshBooks charges 1% capped at $15. For any payment above $99, ReliaBills is less expensive. On a $2,000 monthly retainer, that gap is $14.01 per transaction.
5. Which is better for a business with many clients?
ReliaBills has no client cap at any pricing tier. FreshBooks caps clients by plan: 5 on Lite, 50 on Plus, and unlimited on Premium ($70/month monthly). More than 50 clients means $70/month on FreshBooks for access that ReliaBills provides at $24.95.
Bottom Line
ReliaBills vs FreshBooks comes down to what problem you are solving. If the core challenge is collecting recurring payments from a stable client base reliably and at scale, ReliaBills is purpose-built for that job. Flat ACH pricing, no client caps, native installment billing, built-in collection automation, and a $24.95 flat monthly cost make it the cleaner choice for recurring-revenue businesses.
If you also need time tracking, expense management, proposals, and double-entry accounting in the same platform, FreshBooks handles more of the small-business administrative surface. The decision hinges on whether billing and collection is the specific problem you need to solve or whether you need billing as part of a broader accounting stack.
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Brant Pallazza is the Founder and President of ReliaBills, an invoicing and recurring billing platform built to help small businesses secure predictable cash flow. With over 20 years of experience in direct response marketing and e-commerce leadership, including a 13-year tenure managing over $500 million in gross sales at Digital River. Brant writes actionable guides on automated billing, payment processing, and scaling SMBs.