The 6 Best Invoicing Software for Consultants and Agencies in 2026

Quick answer: the best invoicing software for consultants and agencies

Three of the best invoicing software options for consultants and agencies in 2026 are Rho, Harvest, and QuickBooks Online, depending on how you bill. Rho is one of the best options for firms that want invoices paid straight into their Rho business account, with clients paying by ACH, domestic wire, check, or card.

How we ranked them. We scored each tool on five criteria that matter to services firms:

1. Support for hourly, retainer, and milestone billing

2. The payment methods your clients can use

3. How well it handles international clients

4. Total cost: subscription plus processing fees

5. Where the money lands once a client pays

All competitor pricing and features come from each vendor's official site, checked October 15, 2026.

Best invoicing software for consultants and agencies compared

Pricing and fees as of October 15, 2026. Scroll to see more on mobile.

Prices are list prices from each vendor's official pricing page, before promotions.

If most of your revenue arrives by ACH, fees on those payments matter more than the subscription. See how Rho Invoicing works.

Time and project billing features

For firms that bill hourly or by project, here is how the billing-software side of the field compares, as of October 15, 2026.

So which one is right for your firm? It depends on what slows down your cash today.

The best invoicing software for consultants and agencies, reviewed

1. Rho: best for getting paid straight into your business account

Rho is one of the best invoicing options for consultancies and agencies that want client payments to land straight in their Rho business account. Invoices go out from the Rho banking platform, so payments arrive in the same account you run the business from, with no second dashboard to reconcile against.

Your clients get options. They pay through a payment portal by ACH, domestic wire, check, or card, and card payers can use a credit card, debit card, or Google Pay. They do not need a Rho account to pay you.

That matters for agencies with enterprise clients. Large clients often pay by wire or ACH out of habit and policy, while smaller clients and startups often want to pay by card.

Harvest and Bonsai take online payments through PayPal and Stripe, and Zoho Invoice through a gateway you connect. Rho takes ACH, domestic wire, check, and card in one payment portal, so your client's finance team pays the way it already does.

Here is the pricing. Rho Invoicing is free for Rho customers: $0 per invoice and $0 per month. Card payments cost 2.9% + $0.30 per card payment, which your business pays; your client pays only the invoice amount, with no surcharge added. There are $0 Rho fees on domestic ACH payments into Rho. Pay-by-card is available for eligible Rho businesses.

What you get

• Invoice payments land directly in your Rho business account

• Clients can pay by ACH, domestic wire, check, or card

• Clients do not need a Rho account to pay

• No monthly or per-invoice fee for Rho customers (card payments 2.9% + $0.30, paid by the business), and $0 Rho fees on domestic ACH payments into Rho

Verdict: Rho is one of the best choices for consultancies and agencies that want invoicing and banking on one platform, and want enterprise and small clients alike to pay the way they already pay. See how it works on the Rho Invoicing page.

2. Harvest: best for hourly billing from tracked time

Harvest started as a time tracker, and it still thinks like one. You track hours and expenses against projects, then build invoices from that tracked time instead of retyping it. For firms that bill by the hour, that removes the most error-prone step in the whole process.

Time tracking and invoicing are included on every plan. The Free plan covers 1 seat and 2 projects, which works for a solo consultant testing the workflow. Teams costs $11 per seat per month billed monthly, or $9 billed annually. Enterprise is $17.50 per seat per month billed monthly, or $14 billed annually.

Clients pay online through Harvest's PayPal and Stripe integrations. On Teams and above, Harvest syncs invoices and payments to QuickBooks Online or Xero.

Pros

• Invoices built directly from tracked hours and expenses

• Time tracking and invoicing on every plan, including Free

• Syncs with QuickBooks Online and Xero on Teams and up

Cons

• Per-seat pricing grows with headcount

• Online payments require a PayPal or Stripe connection

• Free plan caps you at 2 projects

Verdict: Harvest is the best pick for consultancies whose revenue is measured in billable hours.

3. QuickBooks Online: best for invoicing inside full accounting

QuickBooks Online is the default answer for a reason. Invoicing is one piece of a full accounting system, so every invoice already sits in your books. For a firm that has an accountant, that is often the deciding factor.

List pricing on October 15, 2026: Simple Start $38 per month (1 user), Essentials $85 (3 users), Plus $140 (5 users), and Advanced $340 (25 users). A $0 Free tier covers 1 user. Essentials adds employee time to invoices. Plus and Advanced add project profitability tracking and progress invoicing, which suits milestone billing.

Clients can pay by credit card, debit card, ACH, PayPal, Venmo, or Apple Pay without a QuickBooks account. Intuit lists 2.99% per invoiced card transaction and 1% per ACH transaction, plus 1.75% for instant deposit.

Pros

• Invoices live inside full accounting

• Recurring invoices and automated reminders

• Progress invoicing for milestone billing on Plus and Advanced

Cons

• Project profitability requires the $140 Plus plan or higher

• 1% fee on ACH payments, plus 2.99% on invoiced cards

• User caps push growing agencies up the plan ladder

Verdict: QuickBooks Online is a strong choice when your accountant already lives in QuickBooks and you want invoicing in the same place.

4. Bonsai: best for solo consultants who want proposals, contracts, and invoices together

Bonsai is built for the independent consultant who wants to send a proposal, get a contract signed, and invoice the client from the same tool. For a one-person practice, that removes three subscriptions.

Pricing is per user. Billed monthly: Basic $15, Essentials $25, Premium $39, and Elite $59 (3-user minimum). Billed annually, those drop to $9, $19, $29, and $49. Time tracking is included from Basic. Proposals and contracts start at Essentials. Bonsai also offers retainer and subscription invoices on Essentials and up.

Clients pay through PayPal and Stripe integrations, and Bonsai offers multi-currency billing on Essentials and up, with automatic reminders.

Pros

• Proposals, contracts, time tracking, and invoicing in one tool

• Retainer and subscription invoices

• Multi-currency billing on Essentials and up

Cons

• Proposals and contracts require Essentials or higher

• Payment processing fees are not listed on Bonsai's pricing page

• Per-user pricing adds up for agencies

Verdict: Bonsai is the best fit for solo consultants who want the whole client workflow in one place.

5. Zoho Invoice: best free option for small firms

Zoho Invoice is free, and not as a trial: Zoho calls the plan forever-free. For a small consultancy, the feature list is generous, with quotes, recurring invoices, time tracking with timesheet invoicing, payment reminders, and a customer portal.

The free plan covers up to 2 users, 3 projects, 500 invoices per year, and 2 organizations. Invoices carry "Powered by Zoho Invoice" branding.

Clients can pay by credit or debit card, ACH, or e-wallet through the online payment gateway you connect. Processing fees are set by that gateway.

Pros

• $0 price

• Recurring invoices, time tracking, and reminders included

• Customer portal for clients

Cons

• 3-project and 500-invoice yearly limits on the free plan

• Zoho branding on invoices

• Card and ACH fees depend on your gateway

Verdict: Zoho Invoice is the right call for a small firm that wants real features at $0 and can live within the limits.

6. Xero: best for agencies that want accounting plus project tracking

Xero is the other full-accounting option, and its top plan adds what agencies care about: project time and cost tracking, plus multiple currencies for international clients.

US list pricing on October 15, 2026: Early $27 per month, Growing $59, and Established $97. Early includes quotes and 20 invoices. Project tracking and multi-currency are on Established only. Xero supports repeating invoices and automated invoice reminders.

Clients can pay by credit card, debit card, ACH debit, Apple Pay, or Google Pay through Stripe and GoCardless. Xero notes that payment fees apply to online invoice payments, in addition to the monthly subscription.

Pros

• Full accounting with repeating invoices and reminders

• Project time and cost tracking on Established

• Multi-currency on Established

Cons

• Early plan caps you at 20 invoices

• Project tracking and multi-currency require the $97 Established plan

• Online invoice payment fees are charged on top of the subscription

Verdict: Xero is a solid pick for agencies that want project tracking and accounting together and will pay for the top plan.

Best invoicing software for consultants with international clients

The best fit depends on how your overseas clients pay and what currency you invoice in. Xero (Established plan) and Bonsai (Essentials and up) handle multiple currencies.

On the payment side, the simplest route for many overseas clients is a wire, because their finance team already knows how to send one.

On the currency side, Xero offers multiple currencies on its Established plan, and Bonsai offers multi-currency billing on Essentials and up. If you invoice in several currencies every month, weigh those plans against your volume.

Here's the practical move. Ask your three largest international clients how their accounts payable team prefers to pay. Pick the tool that matches the answer.

Still deciding between two? These five questions settle it.

How to choose billing software for consultants and agencies

Feature lists all look alike after the third pricing page. These are the questions that actually separate the tools for a services firm.

1. How do you bill?

• Hourly: You want invoices built from tracked time. Harvest, Zoho Invoice, and Bonsai include time tracking on their entry plans.

• Retainers: You want recurring or retainer invoices. Bonsai, QuickBooks Online, Zoho Invoice, and Xero all list recurring billing.

• Milestones: You want progress invoicing. QuickBooks Online offers it on Plus and Advanced.

2. How do your clients want to pay?

Enterprise clients pay by ACH or wire. Startups and smaller clients often prefer card. Pick a tool that accepts both, or you will end up chasing payments outside it. Rho takes all of these in one payment portal.

3. What does getting paid actually cost?

Add the subscription to the processing fees on your real payment mix.

On a firm that collects $50,000 a month by ACH, a 1% ACH fee is $500 a month before any subscription. QuickBooks lists 1% per ACH payment and 2.99% per invoiced card payment. Rho Invoicing is free for Rho customers, with $0 Rho fees on domestic ACH payments into Rho, and card payments at 2.9% + $0.30 paid by the business.

4. Where does the money land?

Some invoicing tools collect payments in a separate processor balance that you then move to your bank. If you want invoice payments to arrive in the same account you run the business from, look at invoicing built into your banking platform. Our guide to the best business bank accounts for agencies covers that side of the decision.

5. How many people need access?

Per-seat pricing from Harvest and Bonsai and per-plan user caps from QuickBooks Online add up as an agency grows. Price the plan you will need in 12 months, not the one you need today.

How to write a consultant invoice (template checklist)

A consultant invoice needs the same core elements no matter which tool sends it:

• Your business name, address, and contact details

• The client's name and billing contact

• A unique invoice number and the invoice date

• The service period and a description of the work, by project, phase, or hours

• Rates, quantities, and the total due

• Payment terms, such as Net 15 or Net 30, and the due date

• The payment methods you accept and how to pay

If you need a one-off invoice before you pick software, our free consulting invoice template generator is a starting point.

Which one should you pick?

• You run your firm on the Rho banking platform, or want to: Use Rho Invoicing and have client payments land in your Rho business account.

• You bill by the hour and need time tracking first: Harvest.

• Your accountant runs your books in QuickBooks: QuickBooks Online.

• You are a solo consultant who sends proposals and contracts: Bonsai.

• You want a capable tool at $0 and have a small client list: Zoho Invoice.

• You need project tracking and multiple currencies inside accounting: Xero on the Established plan.

The real cost of invoicing is not the subscription. It is the fees on every payment and the days between sending an invoice and having cash in your account. Pick the tool that keeps both low for the way your clients actually pay.