ZipBooks Starter Is Free With No Invoice or Customer Cap
The most permissive free tier in this category on paper. One bank connection is the limit that decides whether it holds.
ZipBooks Starter is free with unlimited invoices, unlimited vendors and customers, digital payment acceptance through Square or PayPal, basic reports and one connected bank account. Smarter at $15 a month adds recurring invoices, automated reminders, multiple bank accounts, time tracking and five team members. Sophisticated at $35 adds reconciliation, locking and unlimited users.1
On headline numbers, this is the most generous free accounting tier in the category: no invoice cap, no customer cap, no vendor cap.
The constraint is narrower and more practical. One bank connection is what separates a bookkeeping tool from an invoice printer.
What you actually get
| Starter (free) | Smarter | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0 | $15/mo |
| Invoices | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Customers | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Vendors | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Bank connections | 1 | Multiple |
| Team members | 1 | 5 |
| Recurring invoices | No | Yes |
| Automated reminders | No | Yes |
| Time tracking | No | Yes |
| Reconciliation | No | Sophisticated |
An Accountant tier exists for bookkeeping firms managing multiple client accounts, and a free trial covers the paid plans.
One bank account is the real limit
Most small businesses have at least two accounts: a current account and something for tax or savings.
The moment a second account matters, Smarter is required. That is a cleaner trigger than a customer count.
For a sole trader with a single business account, the free tier genuinely covers the whole job.
Unlimited customers is unusual
Invoice Ninja caps free at five clients. Zoho Invoice caps at 500 invoices and two users. ZipBooks caps neither.
That makes it the right answer for a business with many small customers, where the client list grows faster than the invoice volume. A tradesperson with two hundred occasional customers fits the free plan comfortably.
Vendors are unlimited too, which matters for anyone tracking expenses properly rather than just issuing invoices.
What free deliberately withholds
No recurring invoices. A retainer business has to raise invoices manually every month.
No automated reminders, which is the feature that most reliably gets small businesses paid sooner.
No time tracking, no saved line items and no reconciliation. Those are the mechanics of running books rather than billing clients.
Payments run through Square and PayPal
Starter accepts digital payments via Square or PayPal rather than a native processor, so the fee structure depends on whichever you connect.
That is a reasonable arrangement: no payment markup of its own, and no lock-in to a processor. It also means the money lands in an account you control rather than an intermediary's.
Credit card acceptance is therefore a configuration choice rather than a ZipBooks product, which some users will prefer and others find indirect. Either way, the processing rate is set by the connected service rather than by ZipBooks, so it is worth checking before choosing one.
How it compares
Wave is free with full double-entry bookkeeping and automated bank import on the paid tier.
Zoho Invoice caps at 500 invoices and two users but includes time tracking free.
Invoice Ninja has unlimited invoices and only five clients.
Harvest is a time-tracking tool first, free for one seat and two projects.
ZipBooks is the most permissive on customers and the most restrictive on banking.
When it is enough
A sole trader with one business bank account, unlimited customers and no need for recurring invoices, where the books are simple enough to reconcile by eye at month end.
A small business issuing many low-value invoices where customer count is the thing that grows.
Anyone wanting to test a full accounting interface before paying for the automation on Smarter.
When it stops being enough
The second bank account, which arrives the moment a business separates tax money from operating cash.
The first retainer client that needs a recurring invoice rather than a monthly manual one.
When chasing late payers becomes a weekly task that automated reminders would remove.
Frequently asked questions
Is ZipBooks free?
Yes. The Starter plan is free with unlimited invoices, customers and vendors.
How many bank accounts can I connect?
One bank account on the free Starter plan.
Does the free plan support recurring invoices?
No. Recurring invoices with auto-bill are part of Smarter at $15 a month.
How many team members are included?
One on Starter, five on Smarter, unlimited on Sophisticated.
How do I accept payments?
Through Square or PayPal on the free plan.
Is there a free trial of paid plans?
Yes, a trial covers Smarter and Sophisticated before you commit.
Starter allowances, the single bank connection, payment processors and tier pricing verified against ZipBooks' pricing page on 20 October 2026.
Sources
- ZipBooks pricing: zipbooks.com/pricing. Used for: Starter free: unlimited invoices and vendors, one bank connection.
All sources are the vendor's own plan or documentation pages, checked on 20 October 2026. Plan terms change without notice, so confirm current limits before you rely on them.
