Billed vs Stripe Invoicing

Creating and sending invoices

Stripe Invoicing: you create an invoice in the Stripe Dashboard, with no code, or through Stripe's API. An invoice can include product details, line items, custom invoice numbering, discounts or coupons, tax rates, a memo and a footer, and you can customize the logo and colors. Stripe's invoicing page says you can "email your customers a PDF invoice or a link to a Stripe-hosted invoice page", which can come from a custom email domain. From the Dashboard you can update, void, duplicate or refund invoices, or mark them as paid outside of Stripe.

Billed: Billed's invoice software page says: "Choose an invoice template, add your logo and business details, and save the products and services you sell so you can pull them into an invoice instead of retyping them." Billed sends the invoice by email, and you can customize those emails or send them through your own SMTP settings. Billed calculates taxes from the rates you save, and you can give discounts or create coupons. You can also void an invoice, attach files, chat with the client about an invoice and see its full history.

Getting paid

Stripe Invoicing: Stripe's invoicing page says "Customers can pay immediately with a credit card, ACH Direct Debit, bank transfer, or other global payment method", and the hosted invoice page offers Apple Pay and Google Pay. Stripe says invoices support 25+ languages, 135+ currencies and 100+ payment methods, and shows payment methods based on the customer's location. Its automatic collection uses smart retries and automatic email reminders. Stripe's pricing page says "Stripe automatically reconciles invoices paid by ACH credit or wire transfers."

Billed: Billed's invoice software page says: "Connect your Stripe account and every invoice you send gets a pay button, so clients can pay by card. Connect PayPal to add a PayPal option as well." Record payments by check or cash as offline payments, and send the client a receipt once they've paid. You can also refund customers from within Billed.

Reminders and recurring billing

Stripe Invoicing: automatic email reminders are part of automatic collection on both plans. Stripe lists Invoicing as "one-time or recurring", and points recurring and subscription businesses to Stripe Billing, which has its own pricing.

Billed: a recurring profile sends invoices daily, weekly, monthly or yearly, for a set number of invoices or until you stop it. Billed's invoice software page says "Invoice reports show which invoices are paid, partially paid or past due, and you can see who owes you money and send them a payment reminder. Payment reminders can be customized."

Quotes and estimates

Stripe Invoicing: quotes ("an initial estimate before creating an invoice") are included in Invoicing Plus, not Starter.

Billed: estimates can be approved by the client online and converted to an invoice in a few clicks, and you can create them in any currency.

Customer self-service

Stripe Invoicing: a customer portal lets your customers view, pay and manage their invoices and payment details, on both plans.

Billed: Clients pay from the invoice itself, and you can chat with a client about an invoice.

Time, expenses and more than one business

Stripe Invoicing: Stripe's invoicing pages don't describe time tracking or expense tracking.

Billed: track time against tasks and projects and invoice hourly projects from the tracked time, record expenses with their receipts, and run reports on invoices, expenses and time. Billed's invoice software page says "If you run more than one business, manage them in one place and switch between them. Invite your team, accountant or contractors and give them permissions in your account."