FreshBooks Review

Rates and Fees
75/100
Truth in Advertising
85/100
Consumer Reviews
80/100
Customer Support
80/100
4

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:

Unknown
Visit FreshBooks

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 Overview

 

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.

Quick Facts

Head Quarters

250 - 1655 Dupont St, Toronto, ON M6P 3T1

Year Founded

2003

CEO

Don Epperson

Employees

N/A

Merchant Provider Risk Tolerance

Low Risk Businesses

What We Like

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.

What We Don't Like

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.

Industries Served

  • Software & Apps

Business Types Served

  • Ecommerce
  • Mobile
  • Online

FreshBooks Products & Services

 

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.

FreshBooks Payment Processing

  • Cash Transactions
  • Credit Card Processing
  • Credit Card Terminals
  • Debit Card Processing
  • Mobile Commerce
  • Online Payments

FreshBooks Billing & Invoicing

  • Mobile Payments
  • Online Invoicing
  • Online Payments

FreshBooks Advertising & Sales

 
FreshBooks does not use any misleading or manipulative marketing language on its website. The company’s Careers page has information about sales positions, which suggests that it has an inside sales team.

However, FreshBooks also seems to advertise its services in other ways as well. The company has an affiliate program, a referral program, and a reseller program.

But it appears that all of these work well with the sales team because there are very few poor reviews about FreshBooks’ sales tactics online.

Truth in Marketing

Discloses All Important Terms

Unknown

Public Pricing Available

Unknown

FreshBooks Pricing, Rates & Fees

 

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 at a Glance

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

FreshBooks Contract & Terms

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

FreshBooks Setup & Support

 

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.

Setup Highlights

  • Documentation / Knowledge Base

Support Highlights

  • Domestic Phone Support (Business Hours)
  • Domestic Phone Support (After Hours)
  • Email Support

FreshBooks Complaints, Ratings & Reviews

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.

Ratings

BBB

A+ and This Business is not BBB Accredited. (1 Reviews; 4 Complaints)

Google

N/A

Facebook

No Reviews

Yelp

3.5 Stars / 3 Reviews

Reviews

Total Online Reviews

5+

Total Online Complaints

5+

Lawsuits

Unknown

FreshBooks Alternatives

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