Fathom HQ vs FreshBooks
Side-by-side comparison for accounting professionals.
Fathom HQ
AI management reporting and KPI dashboards
$46/mo
★4.7/ 5
14-day free
FreshBooks
AI-powered invoicing and accounting for small firms
$23/mo
★4.5/ 5
30-day free
| Feature | Fathom HQ | FreshBooks |
|---|---|---|
| Core accounting | ||
| Bank reconciliation | Not available Not an accounting platform. Requires connected Xero, QuickBooks, or MYOB to function. | LimitedPlus+ only Basic bank feed matching. Not available on Lite ($23/mo). Lacks the AI-driven reconciliation depth of Xero or QuickBooks. |
| Invoicing | Not available No invoicing features. | AvailableAll plans Fastest invoicing tested — under 60 seconds. Unlimited invoices on all plans. Recurring invoices, estimates, proposals. |
| Expense categorisation | Not available Not available. Reads data from your accounting platform — does not manage transactions. | AvailableAll plans 94% accuracy on standard transactions. Learns from corrections. Late payment prediction flags at-risk invoices 7 days early. |
| Receipt capture | Not available Not available. | LimitedPlus+ only Mobile OCR on Plus+. Bill receipt capture with automatic line item extraction on Premium+. |
| AI & reporting | ||
| Cash flow forecasting | AvailableAll plans Three-way forecasting (P&L, balance sheet, cash flow) with scenario modelling on all plans. Goalseek tool for decision modelling. | Not available Not available. Consider adding Fathom HQ for advisory cash flow reporting. |
| Management reporting | AvailableAll plans Core product. AI Commentary Writer, KPI dashboards, white-label reports, industry benchmarking. All features on every plan. | LimitedPlus+ only P&L, balance sheet, expense reports on Plus+. Limited customisation. No AI narrative generation. |
| Business features | ||
| Multi-currency | AvailableAll plans Multi-currency consolidations included on all plans at no extra cost. | Not available Not supported. Not suitable for clients with international transactions. |
| Time tracking | Not available Not available. | AvailableAll plans Native time tracking converts directly to invoice line items. Best-in-class for hourly billing workflows. |
| Payroll | Not available Not available. | LimitedUS add-on only FreshBooks Payroll available in the US as an add-on. Covers W-2 and 1099. Not available outside US. |
| Multi-entity consolidation | AvailableAll plans Consolidated reporting across multiple entities. Intercompany eliminations. Unlimited consolidated groups at no extra cost. | Not available Not designed for multi-entity consolidation. One business per account. |
| Sales tax automation | Not available Not available. | LimitedAll plans Basic tax-time reports. No automated multi-state sales tax calculation. |
| Support & pricing | ||
| Client portal | Not available No client portal. Clients receive branded report exports or dashboard links. | AvailableAll plans Clients view invoices, approve estimates, and pay online through a branded portal. |
| Phone support | AvailableAll plans Multi-channel support. Reviewers consistently note ~10 minute response times. | AvailableAll plans Phone and live chat on all plans. Key differentiator over Xero and QuickBooks. |
| User seats | AvailableAll plans Unlimited users on all plans. Priced per company connected, not per user. | Limited$11/mo per user Additional team members charged separately on all plans. Costs compound with team size. |
Which should you choose?
Choose Fathom HQ if…
Accounting firms that provide monthly advisory reporting to SMB clients and want to produce board-quality reports in under 30 minutes.
Not ideal: Firms that only need basic P&L and balance sheet reports — Xero/QuickBooks native reporting may be sufficient.
Choose FreshBooks if…
Sole practitioners and accountants managing up to 50 small business clients who prioritise fast invoicing and clean client experience.
Not ideal: Large firms needing multi-entity consolidation or complex inventory accounting.