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Square Invoices alternatives, and when to keep Square.

Square Invoices costs nothing to use, takes almost any way a customer wants to pay, and Square publishes pages for contractors. When a contractor shops around, it's rarely the invoice. It's the week around it: who's booked, what's quoted, which finished job never got billed.

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Who uses Square Invoices, and what it leaves to other apps

Square Invoices is the billing side of Square's payments platform. You get estimates customers approve online, e-sign contracts, deposits with a separate balance due date, automatic payment reminders, and payment by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Cash App Pay, ACH bank transfer or Afterpay. Square publishes pages aimed at contractors, landscapers, electricians and home and repair services.

The free plan is genuinely free to use. Square's pricing page lists unlimited invoices, estimates and contracts on Free, and you pay only when you take a payment. Processing is how it's paid for: Square lists online card processing at 3.3% + 30 cents on Free and 2.9% + 30 cents on Plus, which is $49 a month per location and adds milestone payment schedules, multi-package estimates and project tracking.

What Square doesn't put inside Invoices is the schedule. Its contractor page points you to separate Square products for appointments and team management, used alongside Invoices. If your billing works but your calendar lives on the back of a supply-house receipt, that's the gap the tools below fill. Two-way comparison: Redline vs Square Invoices.

The part around the invoice

Anything finished this week that I haven't billed?
Redline

Two jobs are done but not invoiced: Kowalski panel swap, $2,400, and Reyes two GFCI circuits, $640. Want me to draft both?

Yes. Then find me a slot Thursday for the Brennan estimate in Medford.
Redline

Thursday 1pm works, right after your Ortiz job, also in Medford. Book it?

Example names and amounts. The calendar and scheduling are on the Free plan; invoices need Solo at $29 a month.

Square Invoices alternatives

Redline

Calendar, contacts, job pipeline and quotes by chat on the Free plan. Invoices and card pay links start on Solo at $29 a month, so Redline is not a free replacement for Square's invoicing. Card only on the pay page, no automatic customer reminders, and customers can't approve quotes online yet.

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Wave

Also free to invoice, with bookkeeping on top. Wave's pricing page lists Starter at $0 and Pro at $19 a month for bank import, receipt scanning and recurring invoices. Its pages don't describe scheduling or a job list.

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Joist

Estimates and invoices for small residential contractors, with e-signatures, deposits and financing. Its pricing page lists Basics at $10 a month for 5 estimates or invoices; scheduling is only on the top Run plan.

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ServiceM8

Scheduling and dispatch, which Square Invoices doesn't have, on a free plan for one user and 30 jobs a month.

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Jobber

Quotes, scheduling, online booking and card and bank payments in one system. Its pricing page lists Core at $29 a month billed annually, $49 with no commitment.

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Side by side

Dollar figures only where the vendor's own pricing page confirmed them. Card processing fees are extra on every one of these.

Built forPricing as publishedFree plan or trialFits a Square Invoices user who
RedlineContractors and home-service businesses, solo up to about 10 peopleFree; Solo $29 a month; Team $129 with 3 seats; Team+ $299 with 10 seatsFree plan, no card. Solo has a 7-day trial on the webWants a calendar and job list next to the invoices, free, and pays $29 only to move billing over
WaveFreelancers, sole proprietors and small businesses in the US and Canada; not trade-specificWave's pricing page lists Starter at $0 and Pro at $19 a month ($190 a year)Free planWants free invoicing plus the books in one place
JoistSmall residential contractors, typically 1 to 3 peopleJoist's pricing page lists Basics at $10 a month (5 estimates or invoices a month) up to Run at $70 a month (a promo price) with schedulingNo free plan. 14-day trial, no cardBids residential work and wants signed estimates
ServiceM8Trade and service businesses: electrical, plumbing, HVAC, locksmithServiceM8's pricing page lists a Free plan (1 user, 30 jobs a month), then Starter at $29 a month for 50 jobs, up to Premium Plus at $349. Unlimited users on paid plansFree planWants a schedule and job list, free at low volume
JobberHome and commercial service businesses, solo to multi-crewJobber's pricing page lists Core at $29 a month billed annually ($49 with no commitment), Connect $99 and Grow $149 for 1 user billed annuallyNo free plan. 14-day trial, no cardWants online booking and bank payments in one system
Square InvoicesSmall businesses that send estimates and invoices and take payments, with pages for contractors and home repairSquare's pricing page lists a Free plan (you pay card processing fees) and Plus at $49 a month per locationFree plan. 30-day trial on PlusFor reference

Square Invoices and Redline: the honest version

Square has, Redline doesn't

  • Free invoicing (Redline invoicing starts on Solo)
  • Online estimate approval and e-sign contracts
  • ACH, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Cash App Pay and Afterpay
  • Automatic payment reminders sent to the customer
  • In-person payments

What Redline adds around the invoice

  • A calendar with a scheduling assistant, on Free
  • A job pipeline from Lead to Paid
  • Quotes built by chat or from a site photo
  • Overdue alerts at day 3, 7 and 14 telling you who to call (Solo)
  • A crew dispatch board and tech app on Team

Questions contractors ask

Is there a free alternative to Square Invoices?

For invoicing itself, yes: Wave's Starter plan is free, and so is Yardbook's if you mow or plow. Redline's Free plan is not a free invoicing tool. It covers the chat, contacts, pipeline, calendar and quotes, and invoicing starts on Solo at $29 a month.

Can I keep Square for payments and use Redline for the schedule?

Yes. Redline Free runs the calendar, contacts, pipeline and quotes without touching your payments. The two don't connect, so when Square shows a job paid, you move it to Paid in Redline yourself.

Does Redline charge a fee on card payments?

Redline adds no fee on top of Stripe's processing. Payments run on your own Stripe account at Stripe's rates, so compare those with Square's before you move your billing. See invoicing.

Sources

Keep your invoices. Fix your week.

Start Redline free for the calendar, pipeline and quotes. Move billing over only if Solo earns it.

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