Chasing unpaid invoices is the fastest way to burn out as a creative freelancer. We compared PayPal, Stripe, Wise, and Square to find the best invoicing tools for getting paid faster, looking professional, and keeping more of your money.
You just wrapped a campaign for a brand you love. You sent the invoice. Then you waited. And waited. For a creative freelancer or influencer, nothing kills momentum like chasing payments. The right invoicing software changes that — it makes you look professional, automates the reminders, and lets clients pay however they want.
Here are the four tools we recommend for creative freelancers, ranked by how well they balance ease of use, international reach, and automation.
Best for: instant trust and ease of use
PayPal is the default for a reason. Over 400 million people have an account, and most brands are already comfortable paying through it.1 PayPal Invoicing lets you create branded invoices with your logo, send them from anywhere, and let clients pay even if they don't have a PayPal account — they can use a credit or debit card instead.1
Recurring invoices and payment reminders are built in, so you set it once and stop chasing. For influencers who work with multiple brands on repeat campaigns, this alone saves hours a month.
Best if: you want something that works immediately and clients already trust.
Best for: scaling into products and subscriptions
If you're a creator selling digital products, memberships, or paid newsletters, Stripe is the backbone. Its invoicing product is professional and deeply customizable — custom branding, line-item details, and flexible payment terms.2
Stripe also handles subscriptions natively, which means you can bill Patreon-style supporters or recurring retainer clients without a third-party tool. And because Stripe powers payment rails for thousands of apps, it integrates with nearly every tool you already use.
Best if: you're growing beyond one-off invoices into recurring revenue or digital sales.
Best for: international freelancers and remote creators
If you work with clients in different currencies, standard invoicing tools eat your margin on exchange rates. Wise (formerly TransferWise) offers multi-currency invoicing with the mid-market exchange rate and low, transparent fees.3
You can invoice in USD, EUR, GBP, AUD, and dozens of other currencies, receive payments into local account details, and hold balances in multiple currencies. For influencers with international brand deals or freelance designers with overseas clients, this is the difference between keeping 97% of your payment versus 93%.
Best if: you invoice clients in multiple currencies and want to keep more of what you earn.
Best for: hybrid creators who also sell in person
If you sell physical merch at pop-ups, shoot at events, or offer in-person services, Square bridges the gap between POS and invoicing. You can send a professional invoice from the same dashboard that tracks your card swipes at a market.2
Square's invoicing includes automatic payment reminders, custom branding, and the ability to accept Apple Pay and Google Pay. The hardware integration is a bonus — one ecosystem for everything.
Best if: you do a mix of online invoicing and in-person sales.
| Feature | PayPal | Stripe | Wise | Square |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transaction fee | 2.99% + fixed fee | 2.9% + 30¢ | 0.41–1% (currency dependent) | 2.9% + 30¢ |
| International | Yes, but higher FX fees | Yes, competitive FX | Yes, mid-market rate | Limited |
| Recurring invoices | Built-in | Built-in (subscriptions) | Manual | Built-in |
| Auto reminders | Yes | Via API or integrations | No | Yes |
| Client payment methods | PayPal, credit/debit card | Credit/debit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay | Bank transfer, local methods | Credit/debit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay |
Three things separate good invoicing from great invoicing for freelancers:
Professional branding. Every invoice you send is a touchpoint. Custom logos, consistent colors, and clean formatting signal that you run a real business. PayPal, Stripe, and Square all support custom branding on invoices.1
Payment flexibility. The easier you make it to pay, the faster you get paid. Apple Pay, Google Pay, Venmo (via PayPal), and credit cards all remove friction. Stripe and Square lead on modern wallet support.
Time-saving automation. Recurring invoices for retainer clients and automatic reminders for overdue payments are not nice-to-haves — they're the difference between a 14-day payment cycle and a 45-day one.3
There's no single best invoicing tool — it depends on how you work. If you're just starting out and want something that works today, PayPal is the easiest start. If you're building a subscription business, Stripe scales with you. If you work across borders, Wise saves you real money. And if you mix online with in-person, Square keeps everything in one place.
Pick the one that fits your workflow, set up a branded template, and stop chasing payments.
Disclosure: We may earn a commission if you sign up through links on this page. We only recommend tools we've researched and believe add genuine value for creative freelancers.
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