QuickBooks vs FreshBooks vs Wave: Best Bookkeeping for Solo Pet Services
As a solo dog walker, pet sitter, or mobile groomer, you spend your time caring for animals, not crunching numbers. But knowing how much you earn from walks and sits, and what you spend on leashes, treats, and gas, is critical for your business. QuickBooks, FreshBooks, and Wave can help. Each software fits different solo pet service businesses and budgets. Here’s how to pick the best one for where your pet care business is today.
READY TO TAKE ACTION?
Use the free LaunchAdvisor checklist to track every step in this guide.
The quick answer
Wave is the best free option for solo dog walkers or pet sitters just starting out with simple finances. FreshBooks works best for independent pet sitters and mobile groomers who send invoices for services like daily walks, overnight stays, or grooming packages, and want to track time spent with each furry client. QuickBooks is the standard for pet businesses that are growing, perhaps hiring a helper, buying expensive grooming gear, or working with a dedicated pet business bookkeeper.
Side-by-side breakdown
Wave: completely free for managing invoices for dog walks, tracking expenses like gas for mobile grooming or new leashes, and scanning receipts for treats. It charges small fees if clients pay you directly through Wave. It has basic reports, good enough to see if you made money on a busy week of pet sitting. It's best for solo pet service pros making under $5,000 a month with straightforward income from a few clients.
FreshBooks: starts around $19/month. It has top-notch invoicing, perfect for sending professional bills for varied services like dog walks, cat visits, or full grooming sessions. You can easily track your time spent with each pet, which is great for showing clients detailed service breakdowns or figuring out how profitable those long pet-sitting gigs are. It’s built for service pros, not for tracking inventory of pet products you might sell.
QuickBooks: starts around $35/month. It's the industry standard; almost every accountant or bookkeeper specializing in small businesses, including pet services, knows it. It can handle payroll if you hire another dog walker, track detailed expenses for different services (e.g., specific grooming supplies vs. walking gear), and prepare you for tax time, especially if you have multiple income sources beyond basic services, like selling custom pet treats. It takes more time to learn but offers the most complete financial picture.
When to choose Wave
Choose Wave if you’re just starting your solo dog walking business or pet sitting side hustle, or if money is tight. It’s perfect if you only need to send simple invoices for daily walks and track basic expenses like gas for mobile grooming, new leashes, or client treats. The free version works well; it’s not a trick to make you pay later. Switch when your business grows, you hire a part-time pet care assistant, or need professional accounting help for your pet service taxes.
When to choose QuickBooks
Choose QuickBooks when you hire a specialized pet business bookkeeper, or when your mobile grooming business starts offering multiple services like advanced styling and selling pet products. It’s also the go-to when you bring on another dog walker as a contractor or employee. If your accountant, who understands pet service businesses, tells you to use it for easier tax preparation, then make the switch. It’s the standard, which makes working with pros much smoother.
The verdict
Start with Wave if you are a solo dog walker or pet sitter making under $5,000 a month and keeping expenses low for things like gas and treats. Switch to FreshBooks if your independent pet service business relies heavily on sending detailed invoices for varied services (e.g., overnight stays, grooming packages) and you want better time tracking. Move to QuickBooks when your pet business finances become more complex, perhaps with multiple contractors, inventory for pet products, or when your tax advisor for pet businesses advises it.
How to get started
Open a free Wave account today and link your bank account used for your pet services. Spend an hour categorizing all your transactions from the last month. Tag your 'dog walking income,' 'pet sitting fees,' 'mobile grooming revenue,' and expenses like 'gas for routes,' 'treats,' 'leashes,' or 'grooming supplies.' This step alone—seeing exactly what you earn and where your money goes—is more valuable than any sales trick. You can't improve your pet business finances if you don't track them.
RECOMMENDED TOOLS
Wave
Free accounting, invoicing, and receipt tracking — no monthly fee
FreshBooks
Best invoicing and time tracking for service businesses
QuickBooks
Industry standard — works with every bookkeeper and accountant
Some links above are affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you sign up — at no extra cost to you.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Can I switch from Wave to QuickBooks later without losing data?
Yes. You can export your chart of accounts and transaction history from Wave and import into QuickBooks. The migration takes a few hours and is worth doing at a fiscal year boundary to keep your records clean.
Does Wave really have no monthly fee?
Wave's core accounting, invoicing, and receipt scanning features are free. Wave charges transaction fees when customers pay invoices through the platform (similar to Stripe or PayPal). Payroll is a paid add-on starting at $20/month.
Apply This in Your Checklist