Hubdoc vs FreshBooks: Which Is Best for Your Accounting in 2025?

Is managing your business finances becoming a headache?

Many small business owners and freelancers struggle with keeping track of receipts, invoices, and expenses. 

But what if you could simplify your accounting? 

We’ll break down what Hubdoc vs FreshBooks offers so you can make an informed decision and take control of your accounting.

Overview

We’ve spent a good amount of time with both Hubdoc and FreshBooks.

Diving deep into their features and how they work for real businesses.

This hands-on experience has given us a clear picture of what each tool does best, leading us to this direct comparison.

What is FreshBooks?

FreshBooks is an accounting tool made specifically for small businesses and freelancers.

It’s super helpful for sending invoices, tracking work hours, and monitoring expenses.

You can create professional-looking invoices quickly.

Also, explore our favorite FreshBooks alternatives…

Key Benefits

FreshBooks has some really cool things it does well:

• It makes sending professional-looking invoices super easy. You can even set up automatic payment reminders!
• Keeping track of your time is a breeze with its built-in time tracking tools. This is great if you bill clients by the hour.
• You can easily see how much money you’re making and what you’re spending with its clear reports.
• It lets you work with your team and share information easily.
• FreshBooks can connect with over 100 other apps to make your work smoother.

Pricing

FreshBooks has different plans depending on what you need:

• Lite: $10.50/month
• Plus: $19/month
• Premium: $32.50/month
• Select: Talk to a consultant

What is Hubdoc?

Hubdoc is like your super-organized digital filing cabinet for all your business papers.

You send in your receipts, bills, or statements.

You can snap a picture, email them, or upload them.

Also, explore our favorite Hubdoc alternatives…

Key Benefits

Hubdoc shines when it comes to getting your documents in order. Here are some of its best features:

• It can automatically fetch documents from over 800 different banks, suppliers, and online services.
• You can easily upload documents by taking a picture with your phone or sending an email.
• It helps you say goodbye to manual data entry by pulling key information from your documents.
• Hubdoc works smoothly with popular accounting software like Xero and QuickBooks Online.
• It keeps all your important financial documents securely stored in the cloud.

Pricing

• Annually Subscription: $24

Feature Comparison

Now, let’s dive into the specifics. This section offers a detailed feature comparison of Hubdoc and FreshBooks.

We’ll explore how each accounting software handles key tasks.

Helping you see which one better fits your workflow and needs.

1. Document Management & Data Entry

Both tools aim to reduce manual data entry when handling financial documents, but they do so differently.

• Hubdoc: This is where Hubdoc truly shines. It’s a dedicated document management tool that uses automated data capture to fetch bills, receipts, and statements. You can email documents, snap photos, or upload files. Hubdoc then extracts key information, helping to significantly reduce manual data entry. It’s designed to streamline the collection of all your financial documents.
• FreshBooks: FreshBooks also offers receipt capture. You can upload photos of receipts to track expenses. However, its data entry features are more basic compared to Hubdoc. While it helps organize your income and expenses, it doesn’t have the same robust auto-fetching capabilities.

2. Invoicing & Payments

Getting paid is crucial for any business, and both platforms offer solutions, though their focus differs.

• Hubdoc: Hubdoc is not an invoicing tool. Its primary function is to collect and process your existing financial documents, like bills you receive or receipts for purchases. It helps manage the documents behind your invoices, but it doesn’t create them.
• FreshBooks: This is a core strength of FreshBooks. It’s renowned for its user-friendly invoicing features, allowing you to create professional, customizable invoices quickly. You can send recurring invoices, track payment statuses, and accept online payments directly, making it an excellent accounting solution for service-based businesses.

3. Expense Tracking

Keeping tabs on your spending is vital for accurate financial records.

• Hubdoc: Hubdoc excels at capturing expense documents. You upload a receipt, and it extracts the vendor, date, and amount. This makes it easy to categorize expenses later, especially when integrated with your main accounting system like Xero or QuickBooks.
• FreshBooks: FreshBooks provides robust expense tracking. You can connect your bank accounts, categorize transactions, and even snap photos of receipts directly within the app. It helps you monitor all your income and expenses, providing a clear picture of your cash flow.

4. Time Tracking

For many service-based businesses, tracking time is essential for billing clients accurately.

• Hubdoc: Hubdoc does not offer time tracking features. Its role is solely focused on document collection and data extraction.
• FreshBooks: FreshBooks offers built-in time tracking, allowing you or your team to log hours spent on projects. These tracked hours can then be easily converted into invoices, which is a major advantage for consultants, freelancers, and agencies.

5. Reporting & Financial Statements

Understanding your business’s financial health requires clear reports.

• Hubdoc: Hubdoc’s reporting is limited to document-related insights. It doesn’t generate comprehensive financial statements like a profit and loss statement or a balance sheet. Its main contribution is providing accurate data for your integrated accounting software to produce those reports.
• FreshBooks: FreshBooks provides a variety of financial reports, including profit and loss statements, expense reports, and accounts aging. While not as complex as dedicated enterprise accounting software like QuickBooks or Xero, it offers enough to give small businesses a good overview of their financial performance.

6. Integrations

How well a tool plays with others can significantly impact your overall workflow.

• Hubdoc: Hubdoc boasts powerful integrations, especially with major accounting software like Xero vs QuickBooks. It’s designed to seamlessly push extracted data into these systems, making it an excellent companion tool to your primary accounting system. It’s often used with accounting platforms, not as a standalone replacement.
• FreshBooks: FreshBooks integrates with numerous apps, including payment gateways, payroll services, and other business tools. While it can connect to other platforms, its strength lies in being a more comprehensive, all-in-one accounting solution itself, reducing the need for extensive third-party integrations for core accounting functions.

7. Payroll Management

Handling payroll is a complex but necessary part of running a business.

• Hubdoc: Hubdoc doesn’t directly handle payroll. It can collect payroll-related documents, such as timesheets or payroll summaries, but it does not process payments or manage payroll calculations.
• FreshBooks: FreshBooks does not have a built-in payroll feature. However, it integrates with popular payroll services like Gusto, allowing you to manage employee payments and related taxes through a connected service. This means you won’t be able to handle payroll directly within FreshBooks.

What to Look for When Choosing Accounting Software?

Choosing the right accounting software is crucial. Here’s what you should consider:

• Ease of Use: Is the interface intuitive? Can you navigate it easily?
• Key Features: Does it have invoicing, expense tracking, time tracking, and reporting if you need them?
• Integration: Does it connect with your bank, other business tools, or your existing accounting system?
• Scalability: Can it grow with your business? What happens if you add more clients or employees?
• Customer Support: What kind of help is available if you run into issues?
• Mobile Accessibility: Can you manage your finances on the go with a mobile app?
• Reporting Capabilities: Does it provide the financial insights you need, like profit and loss or balance sheet?
• Automation: How much can it automate repetitive tasks to reduce manual data entry?

Final Verdict 

After looking at FreshBooks vs Hubdoc, our pick depends on your needs.

If you’re a freelancer or small service business needing invoicing, time tracking, and basic accounting.

FreshBooks is your champion. It makes daily finances simple.

It’s a specialist in automating document collection.

FreshBooks is your full accounting suite; Hubdoc is your digital document assistant.

Choose based on your biggest financial problem!

More of FreshBooks

Here’s how FreshBooks vs other top accounting and document management tools stack up:

• FreshBooks vs Puzzle IO: Puzzle IO offers AI-assisted reconciliations and real-time investor-grade reporting for startups.
• FreshBooks vs Dext: Dext excels at automated receipt and invoice data capture for simplified expense management.
• FreshBooks vs Xero: Xero is a comprehensive accounting solution with robust features for growing businesses, often used by accountants.
• FreshBooks vs Synder: Synder automates e-commerce sales data syncing and reconciliation across multiple channels.
• FreshBooks vs Easy Month End: Easy Month End (often a concept, or tool focused on closing books) simplifies month-end financial processes.
• FreshBooks vs Docyt: Docyt uses AI to automate document processing and bookkeeping tasks, aiming for workflow streamlining.
• FreshBooks vs RefreshMe: RefreshMe focuses more on personal finance tracking and budgeting, not business accounting.
• FreshBooks vs Sage: Sage offers diverse accounting solutions, from small business to enterprise, with varying feature sets.
• FreshBooks vs Zoho Books: Zoho Books provides comprehensive accounting with strong invoicing and an extensive app ecosystem.
• FreshBooks vs Wave: Wave offers free accounting, invoicing, and receipt tracking, primarily for very small businesses.
• FreshBooks vs Quicken: Quicken is mainly personal finance software, though a business version exists for combined tracking.
• FreshBooks vs Expensify: Expensify specializes in automated expense reports and receipt management for teams.
• FreshBooks vs QuickBooks: QuickBooks is a comprehensive accounting powerhouse for all business sizes, offering advanced features.
• FreshBooks vs AutoEntry: AutoEntry focuses on automating data extraction from bills and receipts for accounting software.
• FreshBooks vs NetSuite: NetSuite is a comprehensive cloud ERP system for large, complex businesses, far beyond basic accounting.

More of Hubdoc

Here’s how Hubdoc vs other top accounting and document management tools stack up:

• Hubdoc vs Puzzle IO: Puzzle IO offers AI-driven accounting automation and investor-grade reporting for startups.
• Hubdoc vs Dext: Dext is very similar, focusing on automated data extraction from receipts and invoices.
• Hubdoc vs Xero: Xero is full accounting software; Hubdoc is a document collection tool that integrates with it.
• Hubdoc vs Synder: Synder excels at syncing e-commerce sales data to accounting software like Xero.
• Hubdoc vs Easy Month End: Easy Month End streamlines month-end closing tasks and balance sheet reconciliations for finance teams.
• Hubdoc vs Docyt: Docyt uses AI for automated bookkeeping and document processing, offering real-time insights.
• Hubdoc vs RefreshMe: RefreshMe is for personal finance management, tracking budgets and investments.
• Hubdoc vs Sage: Sage offers broader accounting suites; Hubdoc is a specialized document capture solution.
• Hubdoc vs Zoho Books: Zoho Books provides comprehensive cloud accounting, including invoicing and expense tracking.
• Hubdoc vs Wave: Wave offers free accounting, invoicing, and receipt scanning, mainly for very small businesses.
• Hubdoc vs Quicken: Quicken is primarily for personal and small business finance tracking, not deep document automation.
• Hubdoc vs Expensify: Expensify focuses on automating expense reports and receipt management with corporate cards.
• Hubdoc vs QuickBooks: QuickBooks is full accounting software; Hubdoc enhances its document capture capabilities.
• Hubdoc vs AutoEntry: AutoEntry is very similar to Hubdoc, specializing in automated data extraction from documents.
• Hubdoc vs NetSuite: NetSuite is a comprehensive ERP system for large businesses, far beyond document capture.

Frequently Asked Questions