Is Basware or FreeAgent better?

Neither clearly leads. Basware starts at On request and FreeAgent at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, Basware or FreeAgent?

FreeAgent has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Basware and Free for FreeAgent.

Does Basware or FreeAgent run on more platforms?

Basware runs on Web, iOS, Android. FreeAgent runs on Web.

Can I use FreeAgent for free?

Yes. FreeAgent has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Basware starts at On request.

What is Basware best used for?

Basware is most often used for a multinational needing compliant electronic invoicing across italy, poland, france and mexico without building each mandate itself, a shared service centre processing hundreds of thousands of invoices a year that needs touchless processing rates measured and improved, a group standardising accounts payable across subsidiaries running different erp systems, a finance function trying to capture early payment discounts that are currently lost to slow approval cycles. Of those, a multinational needing compliant electronic invoicing across italy, poland, france and mexico without building each mandate itself and a shared service centre processing hundreds of thousands of invoices a year that needs touchless processing rates measured and improved are not what FreeAgent is typically brought in for.

What can Basware do that FreeAgent cannot?

Basware covers Invoice capture, Matching, Approval workflow, E-invoicing compliance.

Accounting · head to head

Basware vs FreeAgent

Basware

Accounting

Invoice automation and e-invoicing compliance across a large number of national mandates

From: On request
Rated: -

Full review Website

FreeAgent

Accounting

Accounting software for small businesses and freelancers

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Only FreeAgent has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
Each has a real cost: Basware the e-invoicing compliance breadth that justifies the price is worthless to a company operating in a single country, where cheaper AP automation tools will do the same work.; FreeAgent introductory pricing shown is 50% off the regular rates
Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Basware and FreeAgent actually diverge.

Attributes where Basware and FreeAgent differ
Attribute	Basware	FreeAgent
Starting price	On request	Free
Pricing model	quote	subscription
Free tier	No	Yes
Platforms	Web, iOS, Android	Web

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Accounting).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Basware

Invoice capture
Matching
Approval workflow
E-invoicing compliance
Supplier network
Payment execution
Spend analytics
ERP integration

Only in FreeAgent

Nothing recorded that Basware does not also cover.

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Basware

A multinational needing compliant electronic invoicing across Italy, Poland, France and Mexico without building each mandate itselfnot FreeAgent
A shared service centre processing hundreds of thousands of invoices a year that needs touchless processing rates measured and improvednot FreeAgent
A group standardising accounts payable across subsidiaries running different ERP systemsnot FreeAgent
A finance function trying to capture early payment discounts that are currently lost to slow approval cyclesnot FreeAgent

FreeAgent

Submitting VAT and Self Assessment tax returns to HMRC directlynot Basware
Splitting rental income and expenses across multiple properties automaticallynot Basware
Collecting invoice payments faster through one-click payments and remindersnot Basware
Capturing bills and receipts via AI to auto-categorize expensesnot Basware
Filing Real Time Information payroll directly to HMRC for employeesnot Basware

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Basware

The e-invoicing compliance breadth that justifies the price is worthless to a company operating in a single country, where cheaper AP automation tools will do the same work.
Implementation is a substantial integration project involving ERP connectors, supplier onboarding and country-by-country compliance configuration, and it is priced and timed accordingly.
The user interface is dated next to newer accounts payable products, and approvers outside finance find it unintuitive, which slows the very cycle times the system is bought to improve.
Supplier onboarding onto the network is the hidden effort: the touchless processing rate depends on how many suppliers actually send electronic invoices, and that is a change management programme, not a software setting.
Growth by acquisition, including Glantus, has left overlapping analytics capability and integration work still in progress, so buyers should check which components share a data model today.

FreeAgent

Introductory pricing shown is 50% off the regular rates
All prices exclude 20% VAT
Add-ons required for some features (Smart Capture Unlimited £5/month, Amazon integration £6/month)

Pricing, plan by plan

Basware

On request

Basware$undefined/year
- Invoice automation, matching and approval
- E-invoicing compliance across national mandates
- Supplier network connectivity

FreeAgent

Free

Sole Traders$9.5/month
- Introductory rate (regular price £19/month)
- Annual option at £95/year (regular £190)
Landlords$5/month
- Introductory rate (regular price £10/month)
- Annual option at £50/year (regular £100)
UK Partnerships/LLPs$13.5/month
- Introductory rate (regular price £27/month)
- Annual option at £135/year (regular £270)
UK Limited Companies$16.5/month
- Introductory rate (regular price £33/month)
- Annual option at £330/year (regular £330)

Which should you pick?

Choose Basware if

You need invoice capture.
You work on Web, iOS, Android.
You also want matching.

Basware review

Choose FreeAgent if

You want to start without paying.

FreeAgent review

Questions people ask

Is Basware or FreeAgent better?: Neither clearly leads. Basware starts at On request and FreeAgent at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Basware or FreeAgent?: FreeAgent has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Basware and Free for FreeAgent.
Does Basware or FreeAgent run on more platforms?: Basware runs on Web, iOS, Android. FreeAgent runs on Web.
Can I use FreeAgent for free?: Yes. FreeAgent has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Basware starts at On request.
What is Basware best used for?: Basware is most often used for a multinational needing compliant electronic invoicing across italy, poland, france and mexico without building each mandate itself, a shared service centre processing hundreds of thousands of invoices a year that needs touchless processing rates measured and improved, a group standardising accounts payable across subsidiaries running different erp systems, a finance function trying to capture early payment discounts that are currently lost to slow approval cycles. Of those, a multinational needing compliant electronic invoicing across italy, poland, france and mexico without building each mandate itself and a shared service centre processing hundreds of thousands of invoices a year that needs touchless processing rates measured and improved are not what FreeAgent is typically brought in for.
What can Basware do that FreeAgent cannot?: Basware covers Invoice capture, Matching, Approval workflow, E-invoicing compliance.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Basware: Should we buy Basware if we only operate in one country?

Probably not. Its main advantage is multi-country e-invoicing compliance. In a single jurisdiction, cheaper AP automation gives you the same result.

FreeAgent: Does FreeAgent offer a free option?

FreeAgent is free for qualifying customers maintaining business accounts with NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland, Ulster Bank, or certain Mettle accounts.

Source

Basware: Does it handle mandatory e-invoicing regimes?

Yes, and that is the core reason to choose it. It covers a wide set of national mandates as a service rather than an integration project you run yourself.

FreeAgent: What is FreeAgent's pricing for sole traders?

Sole traders pay £9.50/month (50% introductory rate; regular £19/month), or £95/year annually (regular £190/year), excluding 20% VAT.

Source

Basware: What drives the price?

Invoice volume, number of countries and modules. It is quoted, and implementation with ERP connectors and supplier onboarding is separate.

FreeAgent: What add-ons does FreeAgent offer?

Optional add-ons include Smart Capture Unlimited at £5/month and Amazon integration at £6/month, allowing customers to extend base plan functionality.

Source

Basware: What determines the return?

The share of invoices arriving electronically. Touchless rates depend on supplier adoption, so budget for a supplier onboarding programme, not just the software.

FreeAgent: Does FreeAgent offer a trial?

FreeAgent provides a 30-day free trial with no commitment, and customers can cancel at any time during or after the trial period.

Source

Basware vs FreeAgent

Basware

FreeAgent

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in Basware

Only in FreeAgent

What people use each for

Basware

FreeAgent

Where each one falls short

Basware

FreeAgent

Pricing, plan by plan

Basware

FreeAgent

Which should you pick?

Choose Basware if

Choose FreeAgent if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Basware

More on FreeAgent

Keep looking

Other head to heads