Comparison · Wave alternative
Hisabi vs Wave
The verdict
Wave is the stronger free pick for a US or Canada small business that wants zero-cost double-entry accounting and unlimited invoicing. But Wave only accepts new sign-ups from the US and Canada, has no Arabic or UAE VAT/FTA features, and no AI capture. For UAE and worldwide freelancers who want AI invoice creation and bilingual FTA-format invoices, Hisabi fits better.
Hisabi vs Wave, at a glance
| Feature | Wave | Hisabi |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes — permanent Starter: unlimited invoices, estimates, bills, full bookkeeping | Yes — Free: 3 clients, 10 invoices/mo, 20 AI ops/mo, core AI, no watermark |
| Paid price | Pro $19/mo (US) or $190/yr; $25/$250 CAD (a ~$9.50/mo first-3-months promo was running, July 2026) | Starter AED 39/mo (~$11), Professional AED 179/mo (~$49) |
| AI capture | None — ‘Mave’ is a support chatbot only | NL, email, photo, voice (EN+AR), bulk import; anything <70% flagged |
| Arabic / UAE FTA | No Arabic; no UAE VAT/FTA features | Bilingual Arabic+English FTA-format invoices, TRN validation, VAT 5%, CT estimate (not advice; not an FTA agent/ASP) |
| Availability | New sign-ups: US & Canada only (non-US/Canada discontinued Nov 30, 2020) | Worldwide — any ISO-4217 currency |
| Developer API | GraphQL API (OAuth 2.0), unversioned | Free REST on every plan: OpenAPI 3.1, Bearer, unlimited test mode, no per-invoice fees |
| Payments & payroll | US/Canada payments (2.9% + $0.60/card); payroll US $40/mo + $6/employee, Canada $25 CAD + $6/employee | Invoice + AI accountant focus; not a payroll/card processor |
| Best for | US/Canada businesses wanting free full accounting | UAE & worldwide freelancers/SMEs wanting AI capture + bilingual FTA-format invoices |
Where Wave wins
- Genuinely free, permanent Starter plan with unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and full double-entry bookkeeping — no monthly cap on invoice count.
- Mature, integrated US/Canada payments and payroll — US payroll is $40/mo + $6 per active employee/contractor (tax filing in all 50 states; Canada $25 CAD + $6/employee) — plus optional human bookkeeping via Wave Advisors, a deeper accounting stack than Hisabi offers.
- Owned by H&R Block since 2019 (announced June 2019, closed July 1, 2019), with a long track record and a large existing user base (400,000+ small businesses at acquisition).
- A long-standing GraphQL API with OAuth 2.0 and invoice-lifecycle webhooks for developers already in the Wave ecosystem.
Where Hisabi wins
- Available worldwide — any country, any ISO-4217 currency — while Wave only accepts new sign-ups from businesses in the US and Canada (non-US/Canada sign-ups were discontinued Nov 30, 2020, and the restriction still applies).
- AI-first capture Wave lacks: create invoices from natural language, email, photo/receipt, or voice (English + Arabic), plus bulk import, with per-field confidence and anything under 70% flagged. Wave has no AI invoice creation (its ‘Mave’ is a support chatbot).
- UAE compliance Wave doesn’t offer: bilingual Arabic + English FTA-format invoices (bilingual title/TRN/headers), TRN validation, VAT 5%, and a Corporate-Tax estimate (an estimate, not advice).
- A free REST API (OpenAPI 3.1, Bearer auth, unlimited test mode) on every plan including Free, with no per-invoice fees.
- A permanent free plan with core AI, custom branding and no watermark, plus low paid tiers from AED 39/mo (~$11) — Wave’s free tier has no AI.
FAQ
Hisabi vs Wave — common questions
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Yes. Wave keeps a permanent free ‘Starter’ plan with unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and full double-entry bookkeeping. Its paid ‘Pro’ plan is $19/mo (or $190/yr) in the US as of July 2026 — check their pricing page for current numbers. Payments and payroll are billed separately. Hisabi also has a permanent free plan, but unlike Wave it includes AI capture on the free tier.
Not for a new account. Wave only accepts new sign-ups from businesses in the US and Canada; it discontinued support outside those countries on Nov 30, 2020 and that restriction still holds in 2026. It also has no Arabic and no UAE VAT/FTA features. Hisabi is available worldwide with any ISO-4217 currency and offers UAE-specific bilingual FTA-format invoices, TRN validation and VAT 5%.
No. Wave has no AI invoice creation — its ‘Mave’ assistant is a customer-support chatbot, and receipt handling is OCR rather than AI-first extraction. Hisabi creates invoices from natural language, email, photo, or voice (English and Arabic) and does bulk import, flagging any field under 70% confidence for review.
Hisabi is the better fit: Wave can’t onboard a UAE business as a new user and has no Arabic or UAE VAT/FTA support, while Hisabi offers bilingual FTA-format invoices, TRN validation, and a VAT 5% and Corporate-Tax estimate (an estimate, not tax advice — Hisabi is not an FTA-accredited agent or e-invoicing ASP), plus a free REST API. Wave still wins if you’re a US/Canada business wanting free full accounting.
Wave details verified as of July 2026 — prices and features change, so confirm current terms on Wave’s own pricing page. Hisabi’s tax output is an estimate, not tax advice, and Hisabi is not an FTA-accredited tax agent or e-invoicing ASP.
Sources
- https://www.waveapps.com/pricing
- https://support.waveapps.com/hc/en-us/articles/27277914806804-Changes-for-Wave-users-outside-the-United-States-and-Canada
- https://support.waveapps.com/hc/en-us/articles/208621756-Payroll-pricing
- https://www.nerdwallet.com/business/software/reviews/wave-accounting
- https://developer.waveapps.com/hc/en-us/articles/360019968212-API-Reference