HoneyBook Alternatives and HoneyBook Competitors, Priced for What You Actually Pay a Year
Pick a profile
Type last month's gross from up to three platforms. Fees use each platform's published rate.
Gross
Fees
Take-home
...
Next month Estimate
Payout calendar
Saving keeps this month and adds every month after.
In short
The strongest HoneyBook alternatives are Dubsado ($35 or $55 a month, three extra users included, no transaction fee of its own), 17hats (one plan at $60 a month or $600 a year, half off the first year when bought outright), Plutio ($19 a month for up to 9 active clients, $49 for unlimited), Bonsai ($15 to $59 per user a month) and FreshBooks ($23 to $70 a month) if you want real books rather than a CRM. HoneyBook itself costs $36, $59 or $129 a month and charges a flat 1.5% on every ACH payment with no cap, which is the cost most switchers are really trying to escape. For a wedding photographer paid in large bank transfers, Dubsado comes out close to $1,000 a year cheaper.
The honest read
Most HoneyBook alternatives lists are written by the alternatives themselves, and several still quote prices that changed months ago: Dubsado at $20 and $40 (it moved to $35 and $55 on December 1, 2025) and 17hats on its old three-level ladder. We read every vendor's US pricing page in September 2026 and priced each tool against the same three businesses. Earnly is on this page for an honest reason: it does not replace HoneyBook. It tracks the income HoneyBook never sees, such as Etsy print sales, Gumroad templates, YouTube and Patreon, next to your client invoices. If you are switching client-work software, pick from the five tools below. If part of your income comes from platforms, Earnly sits beside whichever one you choose.
Published prices
HoneyBook alternatives by price, read on vendor pages in September 2026
US prices in USD before sales tax. Month-to-month price first, then the yearly price where the vendor publishes one. People included is the number of logins before you pay more, because that is where client-work software gets expensive.
| Tool | Month to month | Billed yearly | People included | Payment processing | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HoneyBook | $36 / $59 / $129 | $29 / $49 / $109 a month | Owner only, up to 2, unlimited | Built in, cards 2.9% + $0.25, ACH 1.5% no cap | Service businesses that want payments working on day one |
| Dubsado | $35 / $55 | $335 / $525 a year | Owner plus 3 additional users | No fee of its own; Stripe, Square or PayPal rates | Studios paid by bank transfer who like to configure |
| 17hats | $60, one plan | $600 a year or $800 for two years | Extra users sold as a $5 a month add-on | Stripe or Square rates | Solo owners who want every feature on one price |
| Plutio | $19 / $49 / $199 | About 2 months free on yearly | Core solo only, Pro 30 contributors | Through the payment account you connect | Freelancers with a handful of active clients |
| Bonsai | $15 / $25 / $39 / $59 per user | $9 / $19 / $29 / $49 per user | Per user, Elite needs 3 | Built in | Freelancers who need proposals, contracts and time tracking |
| FreshBooks | $23 / $43 / $70 | About 10% off yearly | 1 user, extra team members $11 a month | Built in | Invoice-led businesses that want a real ledger |
HoneyBook Starter at $36 month to month is the listed figure; its pricing page toggles monthly prices with a script and shows $29 billed yearly by default. Bonsai invoicing, proposals and contracts start on Essentials at $25 per user, not on Basic.
Published prices
The yearly cost of switching, for two real businesses
Subscription plus payment processing for a full year. Card fees use each tool's published US rate; Dubsado and 17hats use Stripe's standard 2.9% + $0.30 on cards and 0.8% capped at $5 on ACH, because both run payments through the Stripe account you connect. 17hats is shown at its $600 list price and at the $300 first-year price it offers when you buy without a trial.
| Business | HoneyBook | Dubsado | 17hats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wedding photographer, 25 weddings at $4,000: a $1,200 card retainer and a $2,800 ACH balance each, needs automations | Essentials $588 + $1,926.25 fees = $2,514.25 | Premier $525 + $1,002.50 fees = $1,527.50 | $600 + $1,002.50 = $1,602.50 ($1,302.50 in year one) |
| Solo coach, 8 clients at $1,500, each paid in three $500 card payments, needs a booking link | Starter $348 + $354 fees = $702 | Premier $525 + $355.20 fees = $880.20 | $600 + $355.20 = $955.20 ($655.20 in year one) |
The photographer case is where HoneyBook loses most: $42 of fees on every $2,800 bank transfer against $5 on Stripe. The coach case is where HoneyBook Starter wins, because it includes a scheduler and Dubsado keeps scheduling on Premier. If your ACH setup through 17hats differs, check the processor settings in your own account before relying on the year-one figure.
Why people look for a HoneyBook alternative
Three things push people off HoneyBook, and price is only the first. The plans are $36, $59 and $129 a month, or $29, $49 and $109 billed yearly. The second is the payment fee. HoneyBook is your processor, and it charges a flat 1.5% on every ACH bank transfer with no cap, so a $5,000 balance costs you $75 to collect. The third is team size. Starter is owner only, Essentials allows two team members, and a third person or a second company moves you to Premium at $1,308 a year.
If none of those three bite, HoneyBook is a good product and switching costs you a weekend of rebuilding templates. If one of them does, the fix depends on which. Our HoneyBook pricing page has the full plan and fee schedule if you want to check your own numbers first.
Dubsado, the closest like-for-like switch
Dubsado does the same job: proposals, contracts, invoices, forms, a client portal and automated workflows. It costs $35 a month on Starter and $55 on Premier, or $335 and $525 billed yearly. Three additional users are included, and an extra brand is $10 a month. That alone fixes the team problem that pushes studios to HoneyBook Premium.
The bigger saving is payments. Dubsado adds no fee of its own and connects to Dubsado Payments (which is Stripe), Square or PayPal. On Stripe, ACH is 0.8% capped at $5. The catch is setup: Starter has no scheduler, no workflows and no bookkeeping integration, so most people end up on Premier, and building workflows takes longer than in HoneyBook. We priced the two head to head in HoneyBook vs Dubsado pricing.
17hats, one plan with everything on it
17hats sells a single plan: $60 a month, $600 a year, or $800 for two years. If you buy without taking the 7-day trial, the first year is half price, $300 on yearly or $400 for the two-year plan, with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Contacts and projects are unlimited, it connects Stripe or Square for payments, and it syncs to QuickBooks Online. Bank Connect, which pulls your expenses in, is $5 a month extra, and additional users are sold as a $5 a month add-on.
One thing to know before you buy. The top of the 17hats pricing page describes one all-inclusive plan, but the feature grid lower down still shows three columns from its older level structure, with features like client portal, workflows and the profit and loss report marked as missing in some columns. Confirm in the trial that the features you need are on your account. Our 17hats pricing breakdown walks through the add-ons.
Plutio and Bonsai, for freelancers rather than studios
Plutio is the cheapest serious option. Core is $19 a month with every feature, but it caps you at 9 active clients and allows no extra contributors. Pro at $49 removes the client cap and includes 30 contributors, and Max at $199 is for agencies. Paying yearly gets about two months free. For a freelancer with a handful of clients at a time, Core does most of what HoneyBook Starter does for about half the price.
Bonsai is priced per user: $15, $25, $39 and $59 a month, or $9 to $49 billed yearly. Basic has no invoicing, proposals or contracts, so the plan most people actually need is Essentials at $25 per user. It is strong on time tracking and fits consultants billing hours. It gets expensive fast as you add people. Our Hello Bonsai alternatives page covers it in more depth.
FreshBooks, when what you want is books
Some people searching for a HoneyBook alternative do not want a CRM at all. They want invoices that land in a real ledger, expenses, and a profit and loss statement their accountant accepts. That is FreshBooks, at $23, $43 and $70 a month. The limit to watch is billable clients: 5 on Lite and 50 on Plus. Every plan is a single user, and each additional team member is $11 a month.
FreshBooks has proposals and online payments but nothing like HoneyBook's client portal or workflow automation. If your process is quote, work, invoice, get paid, that is fine. If your clients move through a booking funnel with questionnaires and contracts, you will miss HoneyBook within a week. For a wider view of the bookkeeping side, see our guide to accounting software for photographers and accounting software for designers.
The income none of these tools see
Every tool on this page tracks money that flows through a client invoice. Many photographers, designers, planners and coaches also earn in places a CRM never reads: prints on Etsy, presets and templates on Gumroad, a YouTube channel, a Patreon, affiliate payouts. Each platform pays on its own schedule and takes its cut before the deposit hits your bank, so the net deposit is all your bookkeeping ever sees.
Earnly puts that side of the business on one board: gross, fees and take-home for every platform, a payout calendar with expected pay dates, and a next-month forecast labeled as an estimate. Its invoice tracker keeps client invoices and overdue balances next to it, so the year's real total is in one place. It does not send contracts or process payments. It sits beside HoneyBook, Dubsado or 17hats, from $12 a month billed yearly. If you are leaving HoneyBook mainly for its contract tool, dedicated contract management software is another route worth pricing.
Side by side
Where the boards differ
| What you get | Earnly | HoneyBook |
|---|---|---|
| Proposals, contracts and e-signature | No | Yes |
| Client invoices | Tracks sent, paid and overdue | Yes |
| Payment processing | No | Built in, ACH 1.5% no cap |
| Scheduler and client portal | No | Yes |
| Per-platform gross -> fees -> take-home | Yes | No |
| Payout calendar for Etsy, Stripe, PayPal, YouTube and more | Yes | No |
| Income from platforms outside the CRM | Yes | No |
| Price | From $12/mo billed yearly | From $29/mo billed yearly |
Comparison reflects published pricing and feature descriptions at the time of our last check; both products change. Pick the tool that fits how you earn. See what the board looks like on the income tracker homepage, or start with the revenue dashboard.
Questions people actually ask
What is the best alternative to HoneyBook?
For most studios it is Dubsado. It does the same client-work job, costs $35 or $55 a month, includes three additional users, and adds no transaction fee, so ACH through Stripe costs 0.8% capped at $5 instead of HoneyBook's flat 1.5%. Solo freelancers with few clients often do better on Plutio Core at $19 a month.
What is cheaper than HoneyBook?
Plutio Core at $19 a month, Bonsai Basic at $15 per user, FreshBooks Lite at $23 and Dubsado Starter at $35 are all below HoneyBook Starter at $36 month to month. The fair comparison is the plan you would really need: Dubsado Premier at $525 a year undercuts HoneyBook Essentials at $588 and includes more users.
Who are HoneyBook's competitors?
The main HoneyBook competitors in the US are Dubsado, 17hats, Plutio, Bonsai and FreshBooks, plus niche studio tools for photographers. Dubsado and 17hats are the closest in scope. Bonsai leans toward freelancers billing hours, Plutio toward solo freelancers, and FreshBooks toward accounting rather than client workflow.
Is Dubsado better than HoneyBook?
Dubsado is cheaper and more flexible, and HoneyBook is faster to set up. Dubsado wins on price, users and ACH fees; its forms and workflows go deeper. HoneyBook wins on setup, with free template migration and payments working the day you sign up, and it includes a scheduler on Starter where Dubsado keeps scheduling on Premier.
Is 17hats better than HoneyBook?
17hats is better value if you want every feature on one price and are happy with Stripe or Square rates: $600 a year, or $300 in the first year when you buy outright. HoneyBook is more polished and has its own processor. Check the 17hats feature grid during the trial, because it still shows older level columns.
Does HoneyBook have a free version?
No. HoneyBook has no free plan. It offers a 30-day trial without a card and a 60-day money-back guarantee after you subscribe, then Starter at $29 a month billed yearly. None of the alternatives on this page have a permanent no-cost tier for the full client workflow either.
What is the best HoneyBook alternative for photographers?
For a photographer paid in large balances by bank transfer, Dubsado usually saves close to $1,000 a year, mostly on ACH fees. At 25 weddings a year with a $2,800 ACH balance each, HoneyBook charges $1,050 in ACH fees and Stripe through Dubsado charges $125. Studio tools built for photographers are worth a look if you need galleries.
Can I use Earnly instead of HoneyBook?
No, and we would not suggest it. Earnly does not send contracts, proposals or payments. It tracks platform income such as Etsy, Gumroad, YouTube and Patreon payouts, with fees and pay dates, next to your client invoices. Most people who find it use it beside HoneyBook or Dubsado, and the freelance income tracker page shows how.