Square is built for in-person payments and retail. Its invoicing product works for simple billing but lacks the time tracking, project tools, and automation that freelancers need. Tidybill is built specifically for freelance billing workflows.
Why freelancers look for a Square alternative
Square Invoices is a competent billing tool. These are the gaps that freelancers run into.
Square Invoices has no time tracking feature. Freelancers who bill by the hour track their time in a separate tool, calculate totals, then manually enter line items into Square. There is no native link between tracked hours and invoice creation.
Square charges payment processing fees on each invoice paid online: 3.3% plus 30 cents for cards in the US. Free invoicing is only free until a client pays. For freelancers sending significant invoice volumes, these per-transaction fees add up.
Square does not provide a client-facing portal where your clients can log in, review invoice history, and pay outstanding balances. Clients manage invoices via individual email links.
Square's invoicing product and payment processing infrastructure are most fully featured in the US. UK and South African freelancers may find feature parity and payment processing options more limited than US-based users.
Square Invoices works well if you are already using Square for in-person card payments. If you run a service business that takes both in-person and online payments, Square's unified platform makes sense: one account covers your card reader, your invoices, and your customer records.
Square Invoices is also free to use up to the point of payment collection, which makes it accessible for businesses watching costs. The free tier has no invoice limit.
Square Invoices has two tiers:
Payment processing fees vary by market. For current rates in your country, check Square's pricing page directly.
If you are a freelancer who bills by the hour, has ongoing retainer clients, or wants to give clients a self-service portal, Tidybill covers those workflows directly. Key differences:
Tidybill's Starter plan is $7/month billed annually. For unlimited clients and invoices, Pro is $15/month. See our pricing page for a full breakdown. You can also compare with the PayPal Invoicing alternative if you are evaluating multiple payment-native invoicing tools.
Side by side
For freelancers who need more than a payment link.
| Feature | Tidybill | Square Invoices |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly fee | $0 free / $7 Starter |
$0 free / $20 Plus |
| Time tracking | Built-in |
Not available |
| Recurring invoices | Yes, Starter |
Yes, all plans |
| Client portal | Yes, Starter |
Not available |
| Late fees | Automatic rules |
Not available |
| UK-focused features | Full support |
US-primary, UK available |
Time tracking, invoicing, recurring billing, and client portal in one place. Start free today.
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