Clear Books vs FreshBooks
Verified ratings, real UK pricing and the compliance detail, weighed side by side — with a written verdict at the end.
Clear Books
Accounting Software
- United Kingdom
- Phone
- Knowledge Base
- Forum
FreshBooks
Accounting Software
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Canada
- Phone
- Knowledge Base
Evenly matched on verified reviews — 4.0 against 4.1. Price and fit will decide this one, not the score.
The short version
What each one costs and how each one rates, side by side. Only the rows where leading means something are marked; vendor and availability are in the overview above.
| Detail | Clear Books | FreshBooks |
|---|---|---|
| What it costs | ||
| Starting priceLowest paid tier, excluding VAT | £16/mo | £16/mo |
| Free version | YesYes | NoNo |
| Free trial | YesYes | YesYes |
| How it rates | ||
| Overall ratingMean of verified Assaylist reviews | 4.0 | 4.1 |
| Verified reviewsVolume is evidence, not a score — this row is not a contest | 299 reviews | 261 reviews |
How reviewers score them
Across the four dimensions we ask every reviewer about — and, below, the star split each average is built from.
- Clear Books
- FreshBooks
| Dimension | Clear Books | FreshBooks | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ease of use | 3.9 | 4.0 | 0.1 to FreshBooks |
| Value for money | 3.9 | 4.0 | 0.1 to FreshBooks |
| Customer support | 3.9 | 4.0 | 0.1 to FreshBooks |
| Functionality | 3.9 | 4.0 | 0.1 to FreshBooks |
What each average is made of
Two products can share an average and not share a reputation. These bars show the star split behind each score.
| Product | 5 star | 4 star | 3 star | 2 star | 1 star |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clear Books | 38% (115 reviews) | 38% (113 reviews) | 14% (41 reviews) | 5% (15 reviews) | 5% (15 reviews) |
| FreshBooks | 42% (109 reviews) | 36% (95 reviews) | 14% (36 reviews) | 7% (18 reviews) | 1% (3 reviews) |
Feature by feature
Everything either vendor publishes, split into what separates them and what they share.
- Both products
- 16%
- Only Clear Books
- 844%
- Only FreshBooks
- 950%
18 features listed across both products.
What only one of them does
Clear Books
8- Bank reconciliation
- Expense management
- Free MTD plan for sole traders and landlords
- Invoicing and estimates
+ 4 more in the table below
FreshBooks
9- Automated payment reminders
- Client portal
- Expense and mileage tracking
- Mobile app
+ 5 more in the table below
Showing 18 of 18 features
| Detail | Clear Books | FreshBooks |
|---|---|---|
| Where they differ · 17 | ||
| Bank reconciliation | YesYes | NoNo |
| Expense management | YesYes | NoNo |
| Free MTD plan for sole traders and landlords | YesYes | NoNo |
| Invoicing and estimates | YesYes | NoNo |
| Multi user access | YesYes | NoNo |
| Reporting | YesYes | NoNo |
| UK based support | YesYes | NoNo |
| VAT returns | YesYes | NoNo |
| Automated payment reminders | NoNo | YesYes |
| Client portal | NoNo | YesYes |
| Expense and mileage tracking | NoNo | YesYes |
| Mobile app | NoNo | YesYes |
| Online payments | NoNo | YesYes |
| Professional invoicing | NoNo | YesYes |
| Project profitability | NoNo | YesYes |
| Recurring invoices | NoNo | YesYes |
| Time tracking | NoNo | YesYes |
| Where they match · 1 | ||
| Making Tax Digital for VAT | YesYes | YesYes |
A dash means the vendor has not published a feature list — which is not the same as the feature being unavailable.
How they handle UK obligations
Checked against the vendor's own documentation or HMRC's published list. A dash means we have not verified it — never that it is missing.
| Detail | Clear Books | FreshBooks |
|---|---|---|
| Verified against vendor documentation | ||
| HMRC-recognised for MTD for VAT | YesYes | YesYes |
| Making Tax Digital ready | YesYes | YesYes |
| Data residency | United Kingdom | Not stated |
| UK-based support | UK support team | Not stated |
What each tier costs
Both line-ups on one ladder, so the middle tier on one side sits next to the middle tier on the other.
Clear Books
FreshBooks
Free MTD (sole traders and landlords)
FreeLower
- Making Tax Digital records
- For self employed and landlords
- Basic invoicing
Lite
£16/mo
- Unlimited invoices
- Up to 5 billable clients
- Expense tracking
Small
£16/moLower
- Invoicing and expenses
- VAT returns
- Bank reconciliation
Plus
£30/mo
- Up to 50 billable clients
- Recurring invoices
- Project profitability
Medium
£34/user/monthLower
- More users
- Advanced features
- Everything in Small
Premium
£42/mo
- Unlimited billable clients
- Advanced reporting
- Everything in Plus
Rungs are matched by position in each vendor’s own line-up, not by what the tiers include — an entry plan on one side may cover more than the other. Prices exclude VAT unless stated, and per-seat plans are quoted per seat. Always confirm on the vendor’s own site.
Which should you choose?
Two answers, because there are two right ones depending on what you need.
Choose Clear Books if
- There is a free tier you can stay on, which FreshBooks does not offer.
- It lists 8 features FreshBooks does not, including bank reconciliation.
- It covers more of the UK obligations we check — 3 of them against 1.
Choose FreshBooks if
- It lists 9 features Clear Books does not, including automated payment reminders.
On verified Assaylist reviews, FreshBooks currently rates 4.1 against 4.0 for Clear Books. That gap is not the whole story: Clear Books starts at £16/mo and FreshBooks at £16/mo, so the right answer depends on the tier you actually need and on which one handles your UK obligations. Read both profiles before you commit, and confirm current pricing on the vendor's own site.
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