Wave Accounting Reviews & Insights

Score8.1 out of 10

179 Reviews and Ratings

Community insights

TrustRadius Insights for Wave Accounting are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, third party data sources.

Pros

Comprehensive and Versatile Software: Users have found Wave Accounting to be a comprehensive and versatile solution for bookkeeping and budgeting. It has been praised for its ability to effortlessly track and categorize financial transactions, streamline invoice creation without redundant data entry, as well as generate various financial reports.

Cloud-based Accessibility: The cloud-based nature of Wave Accounting is highly appreciated by users, providing them with easy accessibility from any computer while eliminating concerns about computer glitches or server problems. This feature has been mentioned by numerous reviewers.

Powerful Invoicing Feature: Users have lauded the invoicing feature in Wave Accounting for its power and user-friendliness. They can easily create and send invoices, keep track of due dates, and mark off paid invoices. The software also provides automatic invoice numbering, facilitating quick reference to different invoices.

Reviews

82 Reviews

Perfect accounting choice for small businesses

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

April 29, 2025

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Tracking financials, invoicing clients.

Pros

Professional invoicing
Bookkeeping is simple
Easily track expenses and profits

Cons

Connection w/ other accounts thru Plaid sometimes glitchy

Likelihood to Recommend

For a small business with basic needs I think Wave is perfect. I cancelled my Quickbooks and moved to Wave years ago and have never looked back. I have suggested it to multiple friends and at least 1 I know uses it.

Nikki Brandt, CPCU, AU, AIS, AINS

President & Founder in Professional Services at NB TALENT (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

4 years of experience

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Wave Accounting - solid bookkeeping software

Rating: 6 out of 10

Incentivized

July 5, 2024

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Wave Accounting in our accountancy practice for a small pool of micro clients. Software produces useful reports from transactions including a trial balance, profit and loss and balance sheet that we can then import into our accounts production software. It is free to use for very small businesses who do not require more advanced features such as VAT, MTD etc.

Pros

Online invoicing
Payments online
Bank reconciliation

Cons

Making Tax Digital
VAT reports
Payroll

Likelihood to Recommend

It is a useful software for micro businesses but it is now less suitable for UK market. UK compliance requirements have increased in recent years with the introduction of Making Tax Digital and many businesses, not only VAT registered, need to have this feature, and it is missing in WaveApp software.

Daniel Jaworski

Certified Public Accountant in Finance and Accounting at Deeagle Tax and Accounts Limited (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

5 years of experience

Wave Accounting Apps perfect for Very Small Clients with Limited Revenue

Rating: 7 out of 10

Incentivized

June 27, 2024

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I use Wave Accounting for a nonprofit Client which has neither large revenue nor transactions. I have them set-up in the free version as they do not require much in the way of accounting software bells and whistles. They are basic with an average of 10-20 transactions per month, 1 bank account, 1 credit card account and payroll.

Pros

Offers free version
Reasonably easy to set-up
Works similar to Xero
Reporting is more than adequate

Cons

Journal entries are not as fluid as QBO
Hard to customize reporting
Difficult to customize Chart of Accounts
Slightly remedial - not good for large organizations

Likelihood to Recommend

For VERY small clients with minimal revenue and no budget, I would wholeheartedly recommend however if the client is at all large needing robust bookkeeping, I would never recommend Wave Accounting Apps. It all depends upon each client and what their bookkeeping needs will be. This is also good for the smaller clients to handle their own bookkeeping if they cannot afford a bookkeeper.

Lisa A Lewis

Owner in Finance and Accounting at Money Matters Bookkeeping, LLC (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

17 years of experience

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Disappointed in Wave Accounting

Rating: 1 out of 10

January 19, 2024

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I am an artist and the only user. In trying to reconcile sales tax in wave to what I report to the state by quarter using the P&L, all income by customers and the account balances for the same time period (accrual) show different totals. I am at a loss how they can produce different numbers from what should be the same data. I am finding them unusable.

Pros

Site is nicely done
It's easy to read

Cons

In my experience, by quarter reports do not show the same totals
They closed the community support page
In my opinion, chat bot is useless for anything that isn't simple
Reporting on sales tax, I need to print 3 different reports to get the info I need

Likelihood to Recommend

I would not recommend for anyone who needs to track sales tax, total and taxable sales.

Verified User

Executive (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

Wave Accounting has become unreliable

Rating: 3 out of 10

July 24, 2023

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Wave seems to be down more than it is up. The last few weeks it has been under repair very often making it very hard to do business. I like to use their software for invoicing but I can't get into doing my work. It is strange for a large company like this to be unavailable to its clients.

Pros

Easy to work
Used to be available
Familiar

Cons

MAINTENANCE
Reliability
Poor Customer Service

Likelihood to Recommend

I have been trying to create invoices for two days. It seems strange that they cannot fix the problem. The yellow system is down again.

Marc Fogel

PRINCIPLE in Corporate at Luxury Line Transportation (11-50 employees)

Vetted Review

4 years of experience

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Wave has all you need for basic acounting

Rating: 10 out of 10

November 19, 2022

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I use it for personal and business account. My bookkeeper has access and will update my accounts and generate financial statements and use it to communicate with my accountant at year end. Its nice that it imports all my financial statements from my banks allows me to categorize transactions and view my transactions and a recolcile my books as well. its easy enolugh for me to use as well and I have no finance background. The reports are helpful from P&L and balance sheets and more.

Pros

Reconcile
Categorize
Reporting

Cons

Access to submit question
customer service

Likelihood to Recommend

I use it on a monthly basis to reconcile my books, see where my money is being spent, look at my profitability and cashflow as well. The reports make this easy to do and categorizing multiple transactions are easy as well. I cant think of many cases where you would not want to use WAVE accounting software

Allen Eshmoili

President/CEO in Corporate at Premier Spine and Sport Rehabilitation & Wellbeing (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

4 years of experience

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Awesome and easy-to-use software that unfortunately you can't use if you hire a good bookkeeper

Rating: 1 out of 10

August 29, 2022

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

As a somewhat accounting-illiterate owner of a small business, Wave has been easier to use than Quickbooks. It's made my finances accessible and easy to understand. Also the invoices that go out, along with the automatic reminders, look very professional. Best of all for a micro-business like mine, it's free!
The very consequential difficulty has come in finding bookkeepers or accountants who will use Wave. This has frankly led me to hire a sub-par bookkeeper who did such a poor job that someone else had to straighten things out. This is because all the talented bookkeepers wouldn't touch Wave. They complain that it's not properly set up for what they normally do, and that they have to transfer all the numbers from Wave to Quickbooks, anyway, which isn't worth their time.

Pros

Invoices with automatic reminders
If you're willing to manually issue payroll, it's by far the cheapest payroll service
Transactions easily categorized

Cons

Bookkeepers won't use it, making it only useful for small business owners who do their own books
Customer service is pleasant, but limited (understandable since it's a free service)

Likelihood to Recommend

Verified User

Professional (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

Good Accounting Software for SME's

Rating: 9 out of 10

January 13, 2022

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Wave Accounting for all the financial data of the organization (SME.) The payroll, however, was outsourced. The product addresses a training problem within the organization as it is easy to use, and minimal training is required. We have a platform where we can invoice, bill, track all our expenses and manage our finances with the reports produced by the system. It is very user-friendly.

Pros

Invoicing
Billing
Generate reports

Cons

Recurring invoice numbers not consecutive
Payment speed needs to be faster when making payments
Updates completely changing formats of certain functions

Likelihood to Recommend

Wave Accounting has a very good invoicing function, easy to use, and [is] customized specifically for small businesses. The payment processing function is also very user-friendly. There could be minor improvements to the invoice numbering as they are not always in order, it is not a big deal, but it would really be nice if the invoice number could be specific to each set of clients.

Verified User

Account Manager in Professional Services (51-200 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

Wave accounting FRAUD and malicious practices.

Rating: 1 out of 10

November 8, 2021

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Accounting

Pros

Lure people in
Lie
Misrepresent the product

Cons

company needs to be shut down!

Likelihood to Recommend

It's a scam to take peoples money! It looks pretty on the outside however they at the click of a button wipe you out. This is based on my personal experience and that of the numerous complaints online to the BBB and others!

Tony Rayl

Chief Executive Officer in Professional Services at Rhino consulting (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

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Wave Accounting Review

Rating: 1 out of 10

August 17, 2021

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Went from Rave to RIOT over payout holdups. [It seems like] they've delayed my money countless times. They suspend payment, asking for "client contracts" to prove my [business] [is legitimate] after paying me for months! I have legal [business] docs, but they said [I needed to show] "client contracts, Social Media, or Website to review". I was OFFENDED [and refused to give] a client contract! And WHY NOT [ask for] THAT UPFRONT? Their "support" [is only] Mon-Fri 8-5! I buckled and applied for Wave Debit & instant payouts. Last [month] [my account] said "instant payout $500". Hadn't had one since before the suspend. Clicked to "instant payout" and [I felt like a] fool! Suspended, AGAIN! Waited for Monday to chat support and was told "new" debit card is why. [I think they are the] same two cards on account, [which they] paid [previously]. Then [support] emails others to "release" the suspension. Waited ALL DAY with no reply, I got worried they were closing, checked account [and] it was released. Currently [I've been] told to wait 7 business days (MAX time) on ACH client paid 7/27. They ALWAYS pay [out on] days estimated, [and it] was never more than five [days] before. I [am upset that] I didn't [change vendors] after the first problem.

Pros

Site Layout is nice
No charge to add a logo to your invoice

Cons

Support hours and efficacy.
Communication of timelines & support issues
Tell me my money was released after suspending my account
Don't tell me "You got paid" when my client pays an invoice. Say "Wave has your money," because [of the time it takes] to release a payer's finalized transaction. {I feel that] either don't want to, or you can't. And it's not the bank's fault or timelines.
Tell me "You got paid" when [I did not receive my money for] 15 days after "You got paid" by my client!

Likelihood to Recommend

Well suited for the free reporting BUT Invoice somewhere else. Less appropriate for INVOICING. [I feel] that they suspend [the] account often and for reasons that aren't relevant. [It seem like] you have [to employ] someone else to take the time to sort it out on a monthly basis because you're not giving them advertised services or canceling advertised services.

Verified User

Administrator (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

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Wave Accounting Review

Rating: 1 out of 10

August 17, 2021

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Pros

Site Layout is nice
No charge to add a logo to your invoice

Cons

Support hours and efficacy.
Communication of timelines & support issues
Tell me my money was released after suspending my account
Don't tell me "You got paid" when my client pays an invoice. Say "Wave has your money," because [of the time it takes] to release a payer's finalized transaction. {I feel that] either don't want to, or you can't. And it's not the bank's fault or timelines.
Tell me "You got paid" when [I did not receive my money for] 15 days after "You got paid" by my client!

Likelihood to Recommend

Verified User

Administrator (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience