Akaunting, Frappe Books, and Invoice Ninja all give freelancers and small businesses a self-hosted or open-source alternative to subscription accounting…
Freemium / Open Source · From Free (self-hosted or up to 5 clients); hosted Pro from $14/month
Best for: Freelancers and agencies that need client-facing invoicing with 40-plus payment gateways and an option to scale into multi-user hosted plans.
Free (self-hosted or up to 5 clients); hosted Pro from $14/month
Free plan
Yes
Yes
Yes
Free trial
Not documented
Not documented
Not documented
Platforms
Web, Android
Mac, Windows
Web, iOS, Android, Mac, Windows
Team collaboration
Not documented
Not documented
Not documented
AI features
Not documented
Not documented
Not documented
Public API
Yes
Yes
Yes
Standout Differences
Frappe Books is the only one with no cloud option at all
Frappe Books is free and offline-only by design, with no official paid hosted edition, distinguishing it from Akaunting and Invoice Ninja, which both sell an optional hosted SaaS version.
Frappe Books
Akaunting and Invoice Ninja both offer a paid hosted path if self-hosting isn't wanted
Both platforms let users skip server management entirely by paying for a cloud-hosted plan, ranging from roughly $8/month (Akaunting Standard) to $14/month (Invoice Ninja Pro) and up.
Akaunting, Invoice Ninja
Invoice Ninja supports the widest range of payment gateways
Invoice Ninja connects to more than 40 payment gateways including Stripe, PayPal, Square, and Braintree, a broader out-of-the-box payment footprint than Akaunting or Frappe Books document.
Akaunting's 50-plus add-on apps cover payroll, projects, CRM, and point of sale, letting a business grow its toolset inside one platform rather than adopting separate software.
Akaunting
Feature-by-Feature
Deployment and Licensing
Feature
Akaunting
Frappe Books
Invoice Ninja
Free self-hosted option
Available
Available
Available
Official paid hosted or cloud SaaS version
Available
Unavailable
Available
Multi-user or team collaboration
Available
Unavailable
Available
Core Accounting and Invoicing
Feature
Akaunting
Frappe Books
Invoice Ninja
Double-entry accounting and general ledger
Available
Available
Not documented
Online payment gateway integrations
Available
Unavailable
Available
Native mobile app
Limited
Unavailable
Available
Extensibility
Feature
Akaunting
Frappe Books
Invoice Ninja
REST API
Available
Not documented
Available
App marketplace or add-ons
Available
Unavailable
Not documented
Pricing Compared
Starting price reflects the lowest paid tier, not the full cost for every team size or usage level.
Akaunting
Standard Cloud — $12/month ($8/month billed yearly) monthly or yearly
Premium Cloud — $36/month ($24/month billed yearly) monthly or yearly
Elite Cloud — $84/month ($56/month billed yearly) monthly or yearly
Ultimate Cloud — $218/month ($145/month billed yearly) monthly or yearly
Frappe Books
Free (Open Source) — Free N/A
Invoice Ninja
Free (Hosted or Self-Hosted) — Free N/A
Ninja Pro — $14/month or $140/year Monthly or annual
Enterprise — $18-$300/month (by user count) Monthly
Premium Business — Custom (from $280/year) Annual
Pros & Cons
Akaunting
Pros
Free, open-source self-hosted option with no per-user licensing cost
Low-cost cloud plans compared with mainstream accounting software
Translated into 50+ languages, useful for international freelancers and small businesses
Cons
Self-hosting requires technical setup and ongoing server maintenance
Entry-level cloud plan (Standard) is limited to one user and 1,000 invoices
Official Android app functions largely as a wrapper around the mobile web interface, and there's no dedicated native iOS app
Smaller ecosystem and support resources compared with larger incumbents like QuickBooks or Xero
Frappe Books
Pros
Completely free with no subscription, seat limits, or feature paywalls
Works fully offline, which suits users who want privacy and independence from cloud outages
Clean, modern interface built with Vue.js, unusual for free accounting software
Open-source codebase on GitHub that can be audited, self-hosted, or extended by developers
Data stored locally, giving users full ownership and easy backup or migration
Cons
No native multi-user or team collaboration support within the desktop app
No built-in payroll or advanced ERP modules found in sibling product ERPNext
No official mobile app for on-the-go invoicing or bookkeeping
Relies on community and GitHub-based support rather than dedicated customer service
Local-only data storage means users are responsible for their own backups and device security
Invoice Ninja
Pros
Free, unlimited self-hosted version with no artificial feature caps
Affordable hosted plans compared to FreshBooks or QuickBooks
Supports 40-plus payment gateways and multi-currency invoicing
Native desktop and mobile apps alongside the web app
Bootstrapped company with a long track record and stable pricing
Cons
Self-hosting requires technical setup with a PHP/Laravel server and database maintenance
The Elastic License v2 restricts reselling or offering it as a hosted service to others
Interface feels less polished than some modern SaaS competitors
Free hosted plan is capped at just 5 clients
Advanced features like bank sync and e-invoicing credits are reserved for higher tiers
Use Cases
Choose Akaunting: Small businesses that want full double-entry accounting plus an app marketplace (payroll, CRM, POS) they can add on as they grow.
Choose Frappe Books: Freelancers and solo consultants who want a completely free, offline-first desktop app with zero subscription or cloud dependency.
Choose Invoice Ninja: Freelancers and agencies that need client-facing invoicing with 40-plus payment gateways and an option to scale into multi-user hosted plans.
Akaunting
Freelancer Invoicing — Sending professional invoices and tracking payments as a solo freelancer.
Self-Hosted Small Business Accounting — Running accounting software on a company's own infrastructure for data control and no subscription fees.
Multi-Client Bookkeeping — Accountants managing books for multiple client companies from one account.
Frappe Books
Freelancer invoicing and bookkeeping — Solo consultants and freelancers use Frappe Books to send invoices, track payments, and generate profit and loss statements without paying for cloud accounting software.
Small retail bookkeeping — Small shop owners use the built-in Point of Sale module alongside double-entry accounting to manage day-to-day sales and inventory-linked transactions.
Privacy-focused offline accounting — Businesses that prefer to keep financial records off third-party servers use Frappe Books for fully local, self-managed bookkeeping.
Invoice Ninja
Freelance and consultant billing — Freelancers and consultants bill clients directly with recurring invoices and online payments.
Agency time and billing management — Small agencies track billable time and expenses across client projects and invoice accordingly.
Self-hosted, privacy-focused billing — Privacy-conscious businesses self-host their billing data instead of using a third-party SaaS provider.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which of these three is completely free with no paid tier at all?
Frappe Books is the only one with no paid tier whatsoever. It's a free, open-source, offline-first desktop app with no official hosted or cloud edition to upgrade into.
Can I self-host all three?
Akaunting and Invoice Ninja can both be self-hosted for free on your own server. Frappe Books runs locally as a desktop application rather than a server you host, but it is also free.
Do any of them support multiple users?
Akaunting and Invoice Ninja both support multiple users, with Invoice Ninja's multi-user permissions gated to its Enterprise tier. Frappe Books is single-user only.
Which has the most payment gateway options?
Invoice Ninja supports more than 40 payment gateways, including Stripe, PayPal, Square, and Braintree, more than what's documented for Akaunting or Frappe Books.
Is Invoice Ninja fully open source?
Its version 5 codebase is source-available on GitHub under the Elastic License v2, which lets anyone view, self-host, and modify it for their own business, but reselling it or offering it as a hosted service to others requires a separate commercial agreement.
Which is best for a solo freelancer who wants to work offline?
Frappe Books is built specifically for this case: it's an offline-first desktop app with no login, no internet requirement, and all data stored locally, at no cost.