BookKeeper vs FreshBooks

Receipt-First vs Invoice-First

FreshBooks and BookKeeper solve different problems. FreshBooks was designed around sending invoices and billing clients. BookKeeper was designed around capturing expenses and tracking receipts.

If your primary pain is "I have a shoebox of receipts at tax time," BookKeeper is the right tool. If your primary pain is "I need to invoice clients and track time," FreshBooks is the better fit.

For many Canadian freelancers, the answer is receipt management — and that is where BookKeeper excels at a fraction of the cost.

The 5-Client Problem

FreshBooks Lite ($26 CAD/mo) restricts you to 5 billable clients. Many Canadian freelancers juggle 10 to 20 clients across different projects. To remove this limit, you must upgrade to Plus at $42 CAD/mo.

BookKeeper has no client limits on any tier.

AI That Actually Learns

FreshBooks uses traditional OCR for receipt scanning — and only on its Plus plan ($42/mo) and above. The Lite plan has no receipt scanning at all.

BookKeeper uses Gemini 2.0 Flash — a modern large language model — to extract vendor names, amounts, tax breakdowns, categories, and payment methods from receipt photos. It handles crumpled receipts, faded thermal paper, and low-light photos that break traditional OCR.

Better yet, BookKeeper's AI learns from your corrections. Every time you fix a category or vendor name, the AI remembers and gets it right next time. No other bookkeeping tool does this.

Where FreshBooks Wins

FreshBooks deserves credit for several things:

• Invoicing — FreshBooks has the best invoicing workflow in the category. Unlimited customized invoices, recurring billing, proposals, retainers, and e-signatures.
• Time tracking — Built-in unlimited time tracking on all plans, perfect for hourly freelancers.
• Client portal — Clients can view invoices, make payments, and approve proposals online.
• Mileage tracking — Mobile GPS mileage tracking for on-the-go workers.
• User interface — FreshBooks is widely praised for its clean, intuitive design.

FreshBooks is a Toronto-based company with strong native Canadian tax support, so both tools handle GST/HST well.

Who Should Choose Which?

Choose BookKeeper if you are a freelancer, gig worker, or small business owner who primarily needs to capture receipts, track expenses, and prepare for tax season. You want AI-powered automation without paying $42/mo.

Choose FreshBooks if you primarily need to invoice clients, track billable hours, and manage client relationships. You need a complete client billing workflow more than receipt management.

Built for Canadian Tax Season

Both tools support Canadian sales tax, but BookKeeper goes further with AI-powered provincial tax detection. When you scan a receipt, BookKeeper automatically identifies whether it contains GST, HST, PST, or QST based on the receipt content — not just a lookup table.

This matters because Canada's tax system varies by province:

• Ontario uses 13% HST (combined)
• British Columbia uses 5% GST + 7% PST (separate, PST not recoverable)
• Quebec uses 5% GST + 9.975% QST (separate registration required)

BookKeeper separates recoverable tax (GST/HST for Input Tax Credits) from non-recoverable tax (PST) automatically, so you know exactly what you can claim.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is BookKeeper a replacement for FreshBooks?

Not entirely. If you need invoicing and time tracking, FreshBooks is more complete. But if your main need is receipt scanning, expense tracking, and tax preparation, BookKeeper is purpose-built for that at a lower price.

Can I use both together?

Yes. Some freelancers use FreshBooks for invoicing and BookKeeper for receipt management. You can export BookKeeper data as CSV for your accountant or tax software.

Does BookKeeper have a mobile app?

BookKeeper is a responsive web app that works on mobile browsers. FreshBooks has dedicated iOS and Android apps with features like mileage tracking.

How does BookKeeper handle multiple businesses?

BookKeeper currently supports one business per account. FreshBooks also requires separate subscriptions per business on most plans.