Every other financial tool was built for the US or UK market. Folo is built from the ground up for EU freelancers — different laws, different taxes, different needs.
| Feature | Folo | FreshBooks | Xero | Wave | Spreadsheet |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Invoicing | |||||
| EU business ID & VAT pre-filled | ✓ | ✗ | Partial | ✗ | ✗ |
| QR payment code on invoices | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Public invoice payment link | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| PDF export | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Manual |
| Multi-currency | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Manual |
| Tax & Compliance | |||||
| EU VAT threshold tracker | ✓ | ✗ | Partial | ✗ | ✗ |
| Social & health contributions calc | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Flat-rate expense toggle | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Late payment interest calculator | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Tax return filing partner | ✓ | ✗ | 3rd party | ✗ | ✗ |
| Financial Management | |||||
| Auto-split earnings pots | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Financial health score | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Day rate calculator | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | Manual |
| Cash flow forecast | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Access & Pricing | |||||
| Free plan available | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Starting price (per month) | €0 / €9.99 | €17+ | €14+ | €0 (US only) | €0 |
| Accountant read-only portal | ✓ | Paid add-on | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| EU GDPR compliant | ✓ | Partial | Partial | ✗ | ✓ |
FreshBooks is a solid invoicing tool but it was built for the North American market. EU freelancers are an afterthought.
Xero is a powerful accounting platform — but it is designed for businesses with employees and accountants, not solo freelancers.
Wave is free — but it is built entirely for the US and Canadian market. EU features are limited or non-existent.
Most EU freelancers still track income in Excel or Google Sheets. It works — until it doesn't.