FreshBooks is the invoicing tool we recommend first for most Canadian service businesses and contractors who bill a manageable number of clients: it prices in CAD, handles GST, HST, and PST on invoices, and builds time tracking and expenses around the invoice. If you run payroll, bill many one-off clients, or want full bookkeeping on the cheapest plan, another tool may fit better.

This review covers what FreshBooks costs in Canada, how its billable client pricing works in practice, how it handles sales tax, what accounting you get on each plan, and which alternatives suit other needs.

How we evaluated

This is a research-based review. We did not use FreshBooks hands-on. We read FreshBooks' Canadian pricing page (including its plan comparison table and FAQ), its Canadian feature pages, and its help centre articles on sales tax, reports, client settings, and payroll. We checked Canadian tax rates against the CRA. All prices are regular monthly list prices in Canadian dollars, checked in September 2026, and exclude GST/HST.

We rate FreshBooks 4.5 out of 5 as invoicing software, which matches our best invoicing software for Canadian contractors roundup and our FreshBooks vs QuickBooks comparison. We rate it 3.5 in our best accounting software in Canada roundup because, judged as full bookkeeping software, its sales tax output is a summary rather than a GST/HST return and its double-entry reports, bank reconciliation, and accountant access start on the CAD $42 Plus plan.

Pricing in Canada

FreshBooks Canada has three published plans, priced in CAD by the number of billable clients: Lite at $26/month, Plus at $42/month, and Premium at $72/month. A fourth plan, Select, is custom-priced through a sales consultant.

FeatureLitePlusPremiumSelect
Regular price (CAD/month)$26$42$72Custom quote
Billable clients550UnlimitedUnlimited
Invoices, estimates, recurring invoices
Automated bank import
Proposals and e-signatures
Client retainers
Double-entry reports and bank reconciliation
Accountant access
Automatic receipt data capture
Project profitability and accounts payable
Team members includedOwner onlyOwner onlyOwner only2 included
FreshBooks Canada plans, regular monthly list pricing in CAD, September 2026. Extra team members are CAD $13/month each on every plan. Swipe the table to see all 4 tools.

Extra team members cost CAD $13/month per person on every plan. The Advanced Payments add-on is CAD $25/month (included in Select), and payroll through PaymentEvolution is quoted through a consultant rather than published.

FreshBooks offers a 30-day free trial with no contract and no credit card required, and a 30-day money-back guarantee on purchases. In September 2026 the pricing page was also showing promotions: Lite at CAD $1/month for one year, and 80% off Plus and Premium for three months. Those are introductory offers, so budget for the regular price above, which is what you pay after the promotion ends.

How the billable client limit works

FreshBooks charges by how many clients you bill, not by how many invoices you send or how many people use the account. Invoices are unlimited on every plan, with Lite covering 5 clients and Plus 50.

It helps to know what counts. The pricing FAQ says the client limit "refers to the number of both active and archived clients in your account." Archiving a client does not free up a spot. The same FAQ says you can delete clients you no longer bill to make room. Before you delete anyone, check what history you need to keep for your own records and the CRA.

Here is how that plays out:

  • A consultant with four monthly retainer clients fits on Lite at CAD $26/month, or CAD $312 a year at the regular price.
  • A bookkeeper or designer with 12 clients over time, including a few past ones, needs Plus at CAD $42/month, since archived clients still count toward Lite's 5.
  • A renovator who invoices 80 different homeowners a year passes Plus's 50-client limit within the year and would need Premium at CAD $72/month, or would delete old clients regularly to stay on Plus.
  • A two-person shop on Plus pays CAD $42 plus CAD $13 for the second person, so CAD $55/month.

If most of your work is repeat clients, this model can be cheaper than per-user pricing. If you bill many one-off customers, compare it with QuickBooks Online, which prices by user with unlimited clients.

Invoicing and getting paid

Invoicing is where FreshBooks is strongest. Every plan includes unlimited customized invoices and estimates, recurring invoices, scheduled late fees, automated late payment reminders, deposits, client credits, and a client portal.

Plus adds proposals, e-signatures, and client retainers, which matter if you quote larger jobs or bill agencies on a monthly retainer. Currency and invoice language are set per client, and French is one of the available languages, which helps if you bill clients in Quebec.

On payments, every plan can accept credit and debit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and pre-authorized debit (PAD). FreshBooks says payments are powered by Stripe. Its Canadian payments page lists these rates:

  • Credit and debit cards: 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction
  • American Express: 3.5% + $0.30 per transaction
  • Bank transfers: 1% per transaction (the page says this is PAD in Canada)
  • Instant payouts: 1%, charged only when you use them

The rate table on that page does not state a currency, so confirm the rates in your account before you rely on them. Select customers can get lower rates. The Advanced Payments add-on (CAD $25/month) adds saved client cards for future billing, recurring billing profiles, and subscription payments.

GST, HST, PST, and QST handling

FreshBooks lets you create your own sales taxes and apply up to two to a line, which covers the Canadian combinations. Its help centre says you enter a tax name, a rate to three decimal places, and optionally your tax registration number, and taxes can be applied to invoices, estimates, expenses, bills, credit notes, and proposals.

In practice that means you set up the rates you charge: 13% HST for Ontario clients, 5% GST for Alberta clients, or GST plus PST for British Columbia or Saskatchewan. For Quebec clients you create QST alongside GST. The CRA lists HST at 13% in Ontario, 14% in Nova Scotia (since April 1, 2025), and 15% in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island, with 5% GST elsewhere. Which rate applies depends on where the supply is made, so read our GST/HST and PST rates by province guide or use our sales tax calculator if you bill across provinces.

For filing, FreshBooks produces a Sales Tax Summary report. It shows the tax you charged on invoices and the tax you paid on expenses and bills, which is what you need to work out your input tax credits. You can run it on an accrual basis (billed) or cash basis (collected), for this month, quarter, year, or a custom range, and export it as CSV or PDF. It shows one currency at a time.

You or your accountant take the summary numbers to the CRA; FreshBooks does not lay out or file the GST/HST return itself. This is general information, not tax advice, so talk to an accountant about your own registration and filing. If you are not registered yet, start with our GST/HST registration guide.

Expenses and receipts

Expense tracking is included on every plan, and every plan includes automated bank import. FreshBooks says it connects with over 14,000 banks and credit cards and updates transactions daily.

Automatic receipt data capture (pulling the merchant, totals, and taxes from a photo) and emailing receipts to your account start on Plus. Premium adds automatic capture on bills. You can mark expenses as billable, add a markup, and pull them onto a client invoice, which suits contractors who pass through materials. Mileage tracking through the mobile app is on every plan.

Time tracking and projects

Time tracking is unlimited on every plan. You can run a timer on the web, in the mobile app, or through the FreshBooks Chrome timer, and logged hours from you or your team can be pulled directly onto an invoice.

Every plan includes project budgets and billing, file sharing, and team permissions for employees and contractors you invite. Project profitability reports, which break down income, costs, and unbilled hours by project, start on Premium. FreshBooks focuses on billing rather than scheduling or dispatch, so a crew that books several jobs a day will want something like Jobber alongside it or instead.

How much accounting you get on each plan

Lite is invoicing and expense tracking with tax-time reports; double-entry accounting reports, bank reconciliation, and accountant access start on Plus.

Plus is where FreshBooks becomes accounting software. Double-entry accounting reports, advanced accounting, bank reconciliation, and accountant access all start there. FreshBooks' accounting page lists profit and loss, balance sheet, and trial balance reports, a chart of accounts, and journal entries, and says your accountant can update journal entries and the chart of accounts. Premium adds accounts payable.

That split is the main reason we rate FreshBooks lower as a full bookkeeping tool than as an invoicing tool. If your accountant needs to log in and reconcile your books, plan on Plus at minimum. Inventory management is not part of any plan.

Payroll in Canada

For Canadian payroll, FreshBooks works with a partner. The Canadian pricing page lists PaymentEvolution payroll as an add-on with pricing through a consultant, and FreshBooks' help centre says its own FreshBooks Payroll, powered by Gusto, is for US-based businesses only.

The common alternative is a separate payroll provider. Wagepoint says it integrates with FreshBooks, Xero, and QuickBooks Online. See our Wagepoint review and best payroll software in Canada. Either way, it is a second subscription and a second login, which is the main reason some employers choose QuickBooks, with payroll in the same account.

Mobile apps

FreshBooks has apps for iPhone and iPad (iOS 15 or later) and Android (7.0 or later). The app covers sending invoices, logging expenses, receipt photos, automatic mileage tracking, time tracking, and notifications when a client views an invoice or it becomes overdue.

What we like and what to know

FreshBooks

Strengths

  • Priced in CAD by a company headquartered in Toronto
  • Recurring invoices, late fees, reminders, and deposits on every plan
  • Up to two custom sales taxes per line for GST, HST, PST, and QST
  • Unlimited time tracking and bank import on every plan
  • Per-client currency and French invoices
  • 30-day free trial, no credit card required

Good to know

  • Archived clients count toward the 5 and 50 client limits
  • Double-entry reports, reconciliation, and accountant access start at CAD $42/month
  • Sales Tax Summary report you use to prepare your GST/HST return
  • Canadian payroll through the PaymentEvolution add-on
  • Extra team members are CAD $13/month each
  • Dedicated phone support is listed as a Select plan benefit

FreshBooks

4.5

On support: the pricing page says the free trial includes phone and email support, and lists "dedicated phone support" and "Exclusive Access to Select Support" as Select plan benefits. Check what support your plan includes before you commit.

Who FreshBooks is for (and when to choose another tool)

FreshBooks suits Canadian service businesses where invoicing and billable time are most of the admin. Other tools fit better when you have employees, a high volume of one-off clients, or complex bookkeeping.

Pick FreshBooks if you are a freelancer, consultant, agency, or small contractor with a steady roster of clients, you bill hourly or on retainer, you want recurring invoices and automatic reminders, and you want CAD pricing.

Consider another tool if you run payroll for employees, carry inventory, invoice dozens of new customers every month, or need your software to produce a GST/HST return layout for your accountant.

Alternatives

The right alternative depends on what you need.

  • QuickBooks Online if you have employees or need deeper accounting. It starts at CAD $20/month for Lite, prices by user with unlimited clients, and sells its own Canadian payroll add-on in the same account. See FreshBooks vs QuickBooks in Canada and Xero vs QuickBooks.
  • Wave if you are a sole proprietor who wants to spend nothing. Its Starter plan is CAD $0/month with unlimited invoices, and Pro is CAD $25/month with bank import and receipt capture. See Wave vs QuickBooks in Canada.
  • A trades compliance tool if you work under construction contracts: GetMarkup, which is built by Methodical Studio, the publisher of NorthVetted, formats proper invoices under the Construction Act and tracks lien deadlines, holdbacks, and T5018 reporting, and we compare it with FreshBooks in GetMarkup vs Jobber vs FreshBooks.

For the full field, see our best invoicing software for Canadian contractors and best accounting software in Canada roundups.

Our verdict

4.5

FreshBooks is the invoicing tool we would point most Canadian freelancers, consultants, and small service businesses to first: CAD pricing, custom GST, HST, PST, and QST taxes, recurring invoices with automatic reminders, and time and expenses that flow onto the invoice. Start on Lite only if you truly have five or fewer clients, archived ones included, and choose Plus if you want real double-entry books and accountant access. If you have employees, many one-off clients, or want a GST/HST return report, QuickBooks Online is the better fit, and if you want to spend nothing, look at Wave.

Frequently asked questions

How much does FreshBooks cost in Canada?

FreshBooks Canada lists Lite at CAD $26/month for 5 billable clients, Plus at CAD $42/month for 50, and Premium at CAD $72/month for unlimited clients. Extra team members cost CAD $13/month each, and a custom-priced Select plan is available for larger businesses.

Does archiving a client free up a spot on my FreshBooks plan?

No. FreshBooks says its client limit counts both active and archived clients. Its pricing FAQ says you can delete clients you no longer work with to free up spots.

Does FreshBooks file my GST/HST return?

No. FreshBooks tracks the tax on your invoices and expenses and produces a Sales Tax Summary report. You or your accountant use those numbers to prepare and file the return with the CRA.

Does FreshBooks do payroll in Canada?

Through a partner. The Canadian pricing page lists PaymentEvolution payroll as an add-on priced through a consultant. FreshBooks Payroll, powered by Gusto, is only for US businesses. Wagepoint also integrates with FreshBooks.

Is there a free trial?

Yes. FreshBooks offers a 30-day free trial with no contract and no credit card required, plus a 30-day money-back guarantee on paid plans.

Sources