Best for
Small business merchants in need of payment processing services that are looking for something that is intuitive and easy to use.
Specializes in
FreshBooks specializes in providing excellent customer service to its merchant customers. This company works almost exclusively with small businesses and freelancers to provide them with feature-rich invoicing and accounting software.
Pricing Summary
Setup Fee: Unknown
Monthly Fee: Unknown
Swipe Rate: Unknown
Keyed-in Rate: Unknown
Early Termination Fee : Unknown
Contract Terms:
Mike McDerment is the Chair of the Board and Co-Founder of FreshBooks.
This company has been in business since 2003, and it is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.
To date, more than 24 million people have used FreshBooks and the company has processed more than $60 billion in payments.
FreshBooks is a company that has been around since 2003. Its co-founder and CEO, Mike McDerment got his start while he was self-employed and running a small design agency.
Since that time, FreshBooks has grown to become one of the most popular payment processing options for small businesses, freelancers, and those who are self-employed.
FreshBooks is located in Toronto Canada, however, the company works with merchants all over the world. While FreshBooks has the capability of processing payments, this company is not a merchant account provider or an ISO. It falls under the classification of payment aggregator, similar to Stripe and PayPal.
This company may be an excellent option for merchants, freelancers and self-employed individuals to get started with payment processing for their businesses.
Head Quarters
250 - 1655 Dupont St, Toronto, ON M6P 3T1
Year Founded
2003
CEO
Don Epperson
Employees
N/A
Merchant Provider Risk Tolerance
Specializes in serving small businesses.
They are a system aggregator focused on helping businesses flow smoothly.
Upfront with all their pricing.
No approval or underwriting is necessary to set up an account.
They offer phone support for any tech issues.
Reviews state they may be expensive for small startup companies.
Accounts can go dormant and need to be reopened.
The company uses reseller and referral programs in its advertising.
No indication their software works with all POS systems.
A low number of online reviews and they all seem to be negative.
Hardware & Software
FreshBooks offers its own software to provide payment processing services, as well as other services to merchants. It operates based on invoices, which merchants can send to their customers in order to get paid.
Invoices are:
Customizable for each merchant
Equipped with payment reminders
Charge automatic late fees for late payments
Recurring, if needed
Payable in multiple currencies
Duplicatable
Available in multiple languages
Attached to inventory tracking
Value Added Services
In addition to its invoicing and payment processing features, FreshBooks offers several other value added services to its merchant customers. They include:
Expense tracking software
Estimate and proposal capabilities
Time tracking capabilities
Project collaboration tools
Accounting and reporting tools
Client information tools
Google apps add-ons
Mobile payment capabilities
Integratable payroll features
Supported Payment Types & Services
FreshBooks supports many different payment options for its merchant customers. They include:
Payments from all four major credit cards
ACH bank transfers
Stripe payments
PayPal payments
Apple Pay
FreshBooks also supports payments in multiple currencies.
Discloses All Important Terms
Unknown
Public Pricing Available
Unknown
FreshBooks offers four different plans in order to meet their merchant customers’ individual needs:
Lite - $6 a month
Plus - $10 a month
Premium - $20 a month
Select - Custom pricing is available
There are also add-ons for each plan that are available to merchants:
Additional team members - $10 each, per month
Gusto Payroll - pricing varies
Advanced payments - $20 a month
FreshBooks advertises rates of 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction for credit card payments. ACH payments are 1% to cover the cost of bank transfer fees.
Pricing Model
Unknown
Swiped Rate
Unknown
Keyed-in Rate
Unknown
Mobile Payment Rate
Unknown
Virtual Terminal Rate
Unknown
Monthly Fee
Unknown
Payment Gateway Fee
Unknown
Batch Fee
Unknown
Early Termination Fee
Unknown
PCI Compliance Fee
Unknown
Equipment Lease Terms
Unknown
Address Verification Service (AVS)
Unknown
Application Fee
Unknown
Account Setup Fee
Unknown
Gateway Setup Fee
Unknown
Annual Fee
Unknown
Monthly Minimum
Unknown
Statement Fee
Unknown
There is no information on FreshBooks’ website that the company has contracts with its merchant customers. This is typical of every payment aggregator. However, the company does state that it reserves the right to cancel a customer’s account at any time.
Also, accounts that are not used for two months will be placed on hold, but can be restored by contacting the company.
Contract Length
Unknown
Early Termination Fee
Unknown
Because FreshBooks is a payment aggregator, merchants can begin using this company’s services without needing to get approval from underwriting or getting set up with a merchant account.
Setup can be done in as little as a few minutes, which allows merchants to begin accepting payments right away.
The company website has a Support page that has a lot of helpful information that merchants can search. FreshBooks’ phone number is located at the top of every page, and there is a Contact page that has phone numbers for sales in North America and elsewhere in the world.
BBB Rating
FreshBooks is not accredited with the Better Business Bureau, but the company does have a profile and an A+ rating on the BBB website. There have been five complaints closed in the last three years, and that includes two that were closed in the last 12 months.
One review is posted on the BBB website for FreshBooks from a merchant who was angry that their account with their payment processor was closed. This issue was not a FreshBooks issue, and the company did offer the merchant additional options for processing.
Other Online Reviews
Other websites have favorable reviews for FreshBooks, and they mention that it might be somewhat expensive for small business owners as the biggest drawback.
BBB
A+ and This Business is not BBB Accredited. (1 Reviews; 4 Complaints)
N/A
No Reviews
Yelp
3.5 Stars / 3 Reviews
Total Online Reviews
5+
Total Online Complaints
5+
Lawsuits
Unknown
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