5 FreshBooks Features Accountants Love

Accountants want a user-friendly and efficient software experience for themselves and their clients.

We listened to our FreshBooks accounting community and created a platform that quickly solves daily bookkeeping dilemmas and paves the way for higher-value service offerings. Let’s expand on 5 features in particular that FreshBooks accountants really love and highlight what makes each one so effective.

1. In-App Estimates and Proposals

We’ll start with the fact that this feature is unique to FreshBooks. If you’ve used our accounting software, you know we’re big on aesthetically pleasing layouts.

“I’m a huge fan of the FreshBooks Estimates and Proposals functionality,” says Michelle Rogers, Virtual CFO Services. “I love how easy it is to create professional-looking proposals. The e-signature functionality is fantastic and makes it easy for my clients to contract with me. And the ability to see at what stage all of my proposals are at—from viewed, to approved, to invoiced—is really, really helpful. Having all those details at my fingertips is a huge weight off my shoulders.”

Setting clear expectations with clients is synonymous with success. Customized estimates and proposals simplify the client onboarding process, setup, and billing. Plus, you can transform your estimates into ready-to-pay invoices in a flash.

“In my opinion, one of the best features FreshBooks offers accounting professionals is Estimates and Proposals. I particularly like the proposal functionality,” says Dean Pitout, Unsquared Accounting Limited. “The benefits are immediately noticeable, and it’s so easy to use. The customization options are great for creating bespoke proposals, and the e-signature feature saves a ton of time because you don’t have to chase after clients to get their agreement. One of the most important aspects of client onboarding is taken care of in just a few clicks! There’s everything to like about that.”

2. Pre-populated Chart of Accounts

The Chart of Accounts (COA) provides an easy-to-understand and comprehensive overview of the business’ accounts. You can cut down on initial setup times with the pre-populated COA.

“I love how easy it is to set up the Chart of Accounts,” says Nicole Rose Yen, Breakaway Advisor. “The pre-populated version helps me get things up and running for my clients so much faster!”

From balance sheet accounts to statement accounts, the COA shows you exactly what you want to see by paring down results with the custom date range feature.

“I really like the pre-populated Chart of Accounts,” says Joshua Lance, Lance CPA Group. “It makes it easy and clear for my clients to classify transactions to the right type of account and avoids messy cleanup at year-end. It’s also structured nicely for easy financial statement review, so I can easily advise my clients.”

Transparency and trust are foundational in the client-accountant relationship—the COA is a superb tool for helping your clients feel in the loop at all times.

“I really like the default COA in FreshBooks because it helps my clients feel confident and empowered when classifying their expenses,” says Rachel Barnett, Gentle Frog. “It’s well thought out with the needs of the small business owner in mind.”

3. App Integrations

FreshBooks offers an ever-growing number of app integrations to make it easier than ever to get all your accounting and payroll tasks done in one place. The Squarespace, Dropbox, HubSpot, and GSuite integrations are among FreshBooks accountants’ favorite tools. The good news is, we’re always adding more—new integrations like Gusto are regularly introduced.

“The app integrations make life easy—even for my less-than-tech-savvy clients,” says Shea Keats, Breakaway Advisor. “We especially love integrating with Squarespace for our clients who get both bookkeeping and marketing services. The ability to streamline and bring all their products and payments directly from the e-commerce page into their accounts saves hours of manual entry or the hassle of dealing with broken bank feeds.”

Ease of use is an overarching standard FreshBooks aims to incorporate across the platform. Automatically integrating your payroll with Gusto or your meeting minutes with Zoom ensures your clients maximize their valuable time with you.

“My clients are liking integrations more and more, especially when they see the time and resource savings they offer,” says Pitout. “The time I spend on practice administration is more effective as a result.”

“FreshBooks syncs with Payment Evolution for employee and contractor payments … goodbye manual entries! I also love how the Dropbox integration plays a role in keeping clients’ expenses organized,” says Etel Igreda, Blossom CPA. “It syncs with FreshBooks, so you know you’ve got the backup you need in case of an audit.”

4. Time Tracking

With FreshBooks, all time tracking is in one convenient location. You can quickly apply tracked time directly to payroll or specific projects. This makes it easy for your clients to take charge of their own time tracking and payroll and frees up your time for more meaningful advisory conversations.

“FreshBooks offers an excellent tool for perfect time tracking,” says Marijana Saric, MSJ Works Administration Co. “It makes invoicing a breeze.”

The accessibility of this feature shifts administrative work into your client’s realm of responsibility. So, you can ask big-picture questions like whether your client is charging enough or team members who aren’t being efficient with their work. Make your higher-value services more available when responsibilities like time tracking are out of the way.

5. Checkout Links

Your clients can now use Checkout Links to receive payments faster. By requiring payments up front, clients can avoid the friction of chasing them down.

“With the new Checkout Links feature,” says Raymond San Mateo, Buckchart Inc., “it makes it even easier for customers to settle outstanding invoices by having more options to conveniently access secure payments processing.”

When it comes to online payments, it’s important to give your clients and their customer’s peace of mind. That’s why WePay powers FreshBooks’ Checkout Links for complete security.

Bonus: Award-Winning Support

Sometimes, things just don’t add up (bad accountant pun). If you or your client ever run into any problems using FreshBooks, we’re here to support you with lightning-fast customer service and help from real human beings.

It’s our policy to answer any support call within three rings and respond to all support emails in 90 minutes or less. Highly qualified and compassionate FreshBooks employees are always ready to help support you and your clients every step of the way.