Cloudyawn Tools

Tools for freelancers who want to get paid

Stop Paying $43/Month Just to Send Invoices

FreshBooks. Wave. QuickBooks. They're accounting platforms for businesses with employees. If you're a solo freelancer who just needs to track invoices and follow up on late payments, you're overpaying by $400-500/year for features you don't use.

See the Full Comparison ↓ Invoice Chaser — $9 One-Time
The Real Cost

What Freelancers Actually Pay for Invoice Software

Prices shown at regular rates (not promotional intro pricing). Most freelancers stay subscribed for years.

FreshBooks

$43/mo
Plus plan — the minimum most freelancers need. Lite ($23/mo) caps you at 5 clients.
  • $516/year minimum
  • 5-client cap on cheaper plan
  • Advanced payments +$20/mo
  • Overkill for solo operators

Wave

$19/mo
Pro plan needed for late payment reminders and bank auto-import. Starter is free but limited.
  • $228/year for reminders
  • 2.9% + $0.60 per payment
  • Receipt scanning +$11/mo
  • No free late payment automation

QuickBooks

$18/mo
Simple Start — bare minimum plan. Most freelancers outgrow this in months and upgrade to $30/mo Essentials.
  • $216-360/year
  • Built for accountants, not freelancers
  • Steep learning curve
  • Invoice reminders need upgrade

Cloudyawn Tools

$9 one-time
5 human-toned email templates + interactive tracking spreadsheet. Buy once, use forever.
  • $9 total, not per month
  • No client caps, no feature gates
  • Works offline — no internet needed
  • DOCX + Markdown — edit anywhere

Side-by-Side: What You Actually Get

For a freelancer sending 10-30 invoices/month with 2-5 late payments to chase.

Feature FreshBooks
Plus $43/mo		 Wave
Pro $19/mo		 QuickBooks
Simple Start $18/mo		 Cloudyawn
$9 one-time
Price (1 year) $516 $228 $216 $9
Price (3 years) $1,548 $684 $648 $9
Send invoices ✓ (50 clients) ✓ Unlimited ✓ Unlimited — (use your existing tool)
Invoice follow-up emails ✓ Automated ✓ Automated (Pro) ~ Needs upgrade ✓ 5 human-toned templates
Payment tracking ✓ Built-in dashboard ✓ Built-in dashboard ✓ Built-in dashboard ✓ Interactive spreadsheet
Expense tracking ✓ ✓ ✓ — (not included)
Bank reconciliation ✓ ✓ (Pro) ✓ — (not included)
Tax reports ✓ ✓ ✓ — (not included)
Client limit 50 clients Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited
Offline access ✗ ✗ ✗ ✓ Works without internet
Edit templates ✓ Limited customization ✓ Limited customization ✓ Limited customization ✓ Full DOCX edit in Word/Google Docs
Best for Small businesses with employees Solopreneurs who need accounting Businesses that need tax prep Freelancers who just want to get paid
You're Not Alone

Real Freelancers Fed Up With Expensive Tools

These aren't made up. Every quote is from real Reddit threads on r/freelance and r/smallbusiness.

"Most tools felt too heavy or overkill for what I needed. I just wanted a simple way to track who owes me what and send polite reminders."

u/Equivalent_Pack_8095 — r/freelance

"Invoice chasing has to be one of the biggest pain points as freelancers. It's demoralizing to nag clients for money you already earned."

u/RosalinoTranslations — r/freelance

"I just finished my 2025 post-mortem. I realized I lost over $3,000 because I'm too socially awkward to chase invoices."

r/smallbusiness

"Late invoices are killing me. I'm so tired of reminding busy clients to pay. They're not bad people — they just forget."

u/gsmetz — r/smallbusiness

The Math

What 3 Years of Invoice Software Actually Costs

Most freelancers don't cancel subscriptions. Here's what you're signing up for.

FreshBooks Plus
$1,548
$43/mo × 36 months
Plus $20/mo if you need Advanced Payments = $2,268
Wave Pro
$684
$19/mo × 36 months
Plus 2.9% + $0.60 per transaction on top
Cloudyawn Tools
$9
One payment. $9 total.
For 3 years. For 10 years. Same price.
The Freelancer Reality

You Don't Need Accounting Software. You Need Payment Follow-Up.

FreshBooks, Wave, and QuickBooks are accounting platforms first. Invoice reminders are a tiny feature buried inside a $19-43/month subscription. Here's what 90% of freelancers actually need:

✓ What You Actually Need

  • ✓ A way to track who owes you money
  • ✓ Email templates for polite follow-up (not automated spam)
  • ✓ A schedule so you know when to send each reminder
  • ✓ Human tone — so you don't sound like a collection agency
  • ✓ Works with your existing invoice tool (Stripe, PayPal, Word, Google Docs)

✗ What You're Paying For (But Don't Need)

  • ✗ Double-entry accounting — that's what accountants are for
  • ✗ Bank reconciliation — if you have 10 transactions/month, a spreadsheet is fine
  • ✗ Payroll — you're solo, nobody's on your payroll
  • ✗ Project profitability reports — you know which clients pay
  • ✗ Team member seats ($11/mo each) — there is no team
The Alternative

Two Template Packs That Do What Freelancers Actually Need

No subscriptions. No feature gates. No "upgrade to unlock." Buy once, download the files, use them forever.

💰

Invoice Chaser

$9
one-time purchase

5 human-toned email templates (from friendly reminder to final notice), an interactive tracking spreadsheet, and a complete follow-up schedule. Everything you need to stop chasing payments manually.

Get Invoice Chaser — $9
📝

Scope Creep Prevention Kit

$12
one-time purchase

5 professional templates: Client Proposal with "What's NOT Included," Scope of Work Agreement, Change Order Form, Revision Policy, and 5 Pushback Email Scripts. Stop working for free.

Get Scope Creep Kit — $12
Questions

Common Questions About Invoice Tool Alternatives

Why would I use templates instead of FreshBooks or Wave?
If you need full accounting (tax prep, bank reconciliation, expense tracking, payroll), FreshBooks or Wave are good tools. But if you're a solo freelancer who already sends invoices through Stripe, PayPal, or even Word/PDF, and your real problem is chasing late payments — our templates do that one job for $9 one-time instead of $19-43/month forever. Use your existing invoicing tool. Add our follow-up system on top.
Is Wave really free?
Wave's Starter plan is free and includes invoicing, but it does not include automated late payment reminders. That's locked behind Wave Pro at $19/month. You also pay 2.9% + $0.60 per credit card transaction if you accept payments through Wave. So it's "free" for basic invoicing, but the moment you need to chase payments (which is the whole reason you're reading this), you're paying $228/year.
Can't I just use FreshBooks Lite at $23/month?
FreshBooks Lite caps you at 5 billable clients. If you have more than 5 clients, you need Plus at $43/month. Even at the promo price of $6.90/month, that jumps to $23/month after 4 months. For a freelancer with 10+ clients, the real cost is $43/month = $516/year minimum.
What formats do the templates come in?
Both DOCX (editable in Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Apple Pages) and Markdown (plain text, works in any editor). The tracking spreadsheet comes as CSV that opens in Excel, Google Sheets, or Numbers. Everything is editable — replace the placeholders with your name, your client's name, and the amount, then send.
What if I don't like them?
30-day money-back guarantee. Email [email protected] and we'll refund your purchase. No questions asked. We can offer this because the templates work — they're based on real freelancer conversations and proven follow-up psychology.
Do I need any special software?
No. The email templates are text — copy and paste them into Gmail, Outlook, or any email client. The tracking spreadsheet opens in Excel, Google Sheets, or Numbers. Everything works offline. No internet connection required after download. No API keys. No integrations. Just files.
What's the catch? How is this only $9?
No catch. We're a two-person operation, not a SaaS company with 500 employees, office leases, and a sales team. Our cost to produce these templates was time, not infrastructure. We sell them as digital downloads — no servers to maintain, no customer success team to pay. The $9 covers our time creating the templates and pays for the free demo tool we built. If you want the bells and whistles (accounting, payroll, team management), FreshBooks and Wave exist for that. We do one thing: help freelancers get paid.

Try the Free Demo First. Buy When You're Ready.

Use our free interactive invoice tracker (no signup, no email) to see how the 5-stage follow-up system works. Then grab the templates for $9.

Try Free Demo Tool Get Invoice Chaser — $9 One-Time