The 10 Best Recurring Billing Software in 2024

Industries across the board are experiencing an explosive demand for subscription-based services.

Businesses and investors love the idea of recurring revenue streams. For obvious reasons — a subscription-based monetization approach is better than ‘one-off’ upfront payments. That’s not all; generating recurring revenue also translates to predictable cash flow.

Be it subscription-based services, membership plans, or installment payments — a recurring billing software is essential to ensure a steady inflow of revenue while also providing customers with a convenient payment schedule.

In the US, recurring payments are recognized as a high-growth market, projected to generate $830 billion in transaction volume by 2025. While the recurring billing model is a win-win for businesses and customers, it’s important to ensure that the payment processing experience is a smooth and frictionless one.

As seen below, businesses often face challenges when they rely on traditional modes like a debit or credit card to process recurring payments.

This is where a recurring billing software comes into play. A recurring billing software does more than just auto-charge customers at predetermined intervals.

TL;DR

• A recurring billing software is used by businesses to charge customers regularly — be it monthly, annually, or based on usage. By automating the process of invoicing, a recurring billing software is ideal for subscription-based businesses or membership programs.
• The top-rated recurring billing software on the market include — Zenskar, FreshBooks, Wave, Chargebee, Zoho Billing, Zuora, Stax Bill, Recurly, ChargeOver, and FastSpring.
• Flexibility in configuring subscription plans, automation capabilities, dunning systems, and accessibility to real-time data (and metrics like churn rate) are some of the key things to look out for in a recurring billing tool.

What is recurring billing software?

A recurring billing software is a tool used by businesses to schedule and automate the process of charging customers a recurring fee at specified intervals (monthly, quarterly, or annually) for the products provided or services rendered. 

By automatically charging a customer’s preferred payment method at regular intervals, recurring billing software enables businesses to easily monetize subscription offerings and provide a hassle-free billing experience that modern customers have come to expect. 

The 10 best recurring billing tools that you need to consider in 2024

We have done our research, and we have a lineup of the top 10 automated recurring billing software out there, such as Zenskar, Wave, Zoho Billing, Stax Bill, and ChargeOver.

To help you make the right choice, we are sharing their top features, the pros and cons, along with the pricing of each tool.‍

1. Zenskar

Zenskar’s no-code billing infrastructure is designed to automate and simplify recurring payments. It automates everything from billing, managing receivables, and monitoring usage to handling revenue recognition and all that is in between.

With Zenskar, businesses can configure flexible subscription models and preferred payment methods with ease.

Pontera, a fintech company with over 1500 customers, was able to break free from the shackles of manual invoicing using Zenskar.

Read how Zenskar helped Pontera bill 500+ customers in just two days, compared to weeks before.

Key features

• Flexible pricing configuration engine
• Customizable email templates for automated follow-ups on invoices and payment reminders
• Invoices with custom payment links
• Intuitive, drag-and-drop contract builder
• Easy-to-use, self-serve billing portal for customers

Pros

• Automates invoicing, payment collections, and reporting on revenue recognition
• Manages the most complex pricing plans and billing models with zero engineering bandwidth
• Modifies existing subscriptions without canceling old ones or creating new ones
• Monitors payments across multiple payment gateways with ease
• Uses a graphical data model to create nuanced billing plans
• Integrates with your existing tech stack, CRM, and other payment processing platforms like Stripe and Ayden

Cons

• Though Zenskar does not have an in-built CPQ model, the solution allows you to integrate with well-known CQP tools 

Pricing

Contact our team here to learn all about our pricing plans.

2. FreshBooks

FreshBooks is one of the most popular recurring billing software for small businesses. It simplifies the process of setting up and sending recurring invoices.

‍Key features

• Automatic tracking of inventory billed on invoices
• Invoices can be previewed prior to sending them out
• Retainer summary reports can be sent out at any point during a retainer

Pros

• Manages billable hours and client timelines with ease
• Accepts multiple currencies
• Notifies you when invoices are viewed

Cons

• Challenges in handling split transactions
• Issues with integrating bank accounts into the system

Pricing

• Lite: $7.60/month 
• Plus: $13.2/month
• Premium: $24/month
• Select: Reach out to their team to know about their pricing plans for enterprises

‍3. Wave

The cloud-based recurring billing software, Wave, offers billing automation features for free. Wave is ideal for freelancers and smaller businesses and can be used to send customized recurring invoices at different frequencies.

‍Key features

• The free plan allows users to customize invoices by adding company logos, whereas pro plan users can access various invoice templates
• Financial statements to file business income tax returns are available
• Free double-entry bookkeeping feature

Pros

• Authorizes credit card payments for all future invoices 
• Streamlines accounting for all accounts receivable
• Offers global payment support

Cons

• Cannot track expenses and incomes by project 
• Unable to handle inventory accounting

Pricing

• Starter plan: Free
• Pro plan: $16/month

4. Chargebee

Chargebee is a well-known recurring billing software that offers a wide range of features to users. It automates the subscription billing workflow, right from the point of checkout up until reconciliations.

‍Key features

• Payments can be accepted in 100+ local currencies 
• Secure zero-code checkout
• Entitlements and trial management platform

‍Pros

• Automates the quote-to-cash process
• Integrates with popular third-party apps
• Accepts recurring payments online as well as offline

Cons

• Limited customization functionalities
• Pricing is on the higher end

Pricing

• Starter: Free 
• Performance: $575/month
• Enterprise: Get a custom quote based on your requirements

5. Zoho Billing

Whether you plan to bill monthly, annually, or specifically on the date that your customer signed up — Zoho lets you set unique billing dates and automates your recurring billing workflow.

Key features

• Usage-based billing
• Pricing table widget
• Comprehensive business analytics

Pros

• Integrates with other Zoho products, including Zoho Books, for online accounting
• Handles partial and bulk payments 
• Generates e-invoices

Cons

• Additional fees apply for payment gateways
• A complex tool for beginners

Pricing

• Standard: $15/month
• Professional: $39/month
• Premium: $79/month
• Custom pricing is available for users with growing billing capabilities

6. Zuora

Zuora is a recurring billing software that is best suited for large-scale enterprises. Packed with functionalities like payment gateway integrations and tax automation features, Zuora caters to the growing needs of modern businesses.

Key features

• API-first and built to handle scalable billing models
• Multi-currency and payment support
• Low-code/no-code pricing designer and real-time rating engine
• Pre-built integrations for tax and e-invoicing compliance

Pros

• Adjusts pricing and billing mid-cycle without downstream disruptions
• Provides visibility into billed and unbilled usage
• Configures custom billing logic and business workflows

Cons

• Challenges in third-party integrations
• Bulk editing requires engineering efforts

Pricing 

Reach out to the sales team for pricing details.‍

7. Stax Bill (formerly Fusebill)

Stax Bill is an easy-to-use tool that simplifies subscription lifecycle management and automates repetitive tasks such as invoicing, dunning, and reporting.

‍Key features

• Self-service portal 
• Dunning automation capabilities
• Credit card retry schedules

Pros

• Provides advanced accounting functionalities
• Streamlines implementation with a dedicated implementation manager and customer support representative
• Pulls up real-time subscription and billing information

‍Cons

• Comprehensive features require a steep learning curve
• Slow test environments 
• Payment tracking features can be confusing

Pricing 

• Starter: $199/month
• Growth: $399/month
• Enterprise: Reach out to their team for a quote

8. Recurly

This beginner-friendly tool has a wide range of features to help you streamline your recurring billing workflows. Ideal for small to medium-sized businesses, Recurly automates billing workflows while allowing for manual input as well. 

Key features

• Supports account hierarchy
• An all-in-one platform to manage subscriber data
• Smooth integrations with CRMs and ERPs

Pros

• Handles multiple subscriptions per account
• Manages and monitors all subscription data on one central platform
• Customizes email templates to suit your business needs

Cons

• The admin interface is limited and lacks user auditing ability
• Does not support advanced reporting functionalities

Pricing

For subscription management, Recurly has three pricing plans:

• Starter: Free plan for startups and SMBs
• Professional: Mid-sized companies can speak to their sales team to chalk out a plan that fits their needs
• Elite: Organizations that have large payment volumes can get in touch with their team for exclusive pricing plans

9. ChargeOver

ChargeOver is a recurring billing and payments app that is designed to replace spreadsheets and automate the time-crunching parts of recurring billing and subscription management. Its automated dunning and billing reminders module is built to help businesses retrieve payments faster.

‍‍Key features

• Autopay facility for invoices 
• Integrations with QuickBooks and Xero
• Customizable billing schedules‍

Pros

• Calculates and adds late fees to invoices based on custom rules
• Enables clients to update their own payment details easily
• Monitors and reports missed invoices and open customer balances‍

Cons

• Poor accessibility via mobile
• Lacks advanced reporting capabilities‍

Pricing

Along with a free trial, customers can get customized pricing plans starting at $229 per month, based on their recurring billing needs.

10. FastSpring

FastSpring, a trusted e-commerce solution, is also an ideal tool to manage subscriptions and handle recurring billing needs. With a range of subscription management features, FastSpring helps you handle everything from trial periods to upgrades, proration, paused subscriptions, and more.

‍Key features

• Supports recurring billing in 20+ currencies
• Zero-code infrastructure to set up billing workflows
• Merchant of record model

Pros

• Automates failure handling, notifications, and retries
• Manages complex subscription logic
• Enables automatic and manual renewals

Cons

• Clunky UI and outdated features on the dashboard

Pricing

Contact their sales team to know about their all-in-one pricing plan.

How do you choose the right recurring billing software?

There are a few factors to keep in mind when you are choosing a recurring billing software, such as the ability to configure subscription plans, automation capabilities, dunning systems, real-time data on upgrades, downgrades, or cancellations, and access to key metrics like churn rates.

As sales teams have gotten a lot more creative, pricing and billing models have only gotten a lot more complex over the years. Every once in a while, sales reps try to offer ramp deals or credits that can be carried over to win over a new client. Overages, minimum commitments, and custom pricing units only make processing recurring payments much more complex.

Against this backdrop, it’s important to select a recurring billing software that can enable your business to:

• Build attractive billing models for customers — from regular subscription models to usage-based billing. 
• Automate recurring billing cycles and ensure the timely generation and delivery of invoices.
• Minimize missed or late payments with dunning systems and automated payment reminders.
• Get real-time access to customer balances, upgrades, downgrades, cancellations, and entitlements.
• Recognize earnings at every stage of the business and equip you with reports on key metrics like churn rate and Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR).

Get your recurring revenue to soar with Zenskar

By now, you have a good understanding of the top-rated recurring billing tools and their capabilities.

Some of the more advanced billing tools, like Zenskar, are built to help you automate any billing process, no matter how unique it is. 

Traditional billing systems, organized linearly with product lists and fixed prices, often fall short of handling the nuanced language of contracts. Zenskar defies these limitations by introducing an unmatched contract automation engine, allowing companies to configure complex contracts seamlessly through a user-friendly drag-and-drop builder. Whether dealing with sophisticated product details or usage-based agreements, Zenskar revolutionizes recurring billing practices for the unique demands of enterprises today!

Create flexible subscriptions and manage your recurring payments from a single dashboard. Schedule a demo with us to learn more.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. How does recurring billing software work?

A recurring billing software works by scheduling and automating the process of charging customers regularly at predefined intervals. From automated invoicing to seamless payment collections, a recurring billing software streamlines the process of regularly charging customers for goods provided or services rendered.

2. What features should I look for in recurring billing software?

Some of the key features to look for in a recurring billing software are subscription management, automation capabilities, dunning systems, integration with payment processing platforms, and advanced reporting and analytics.

3. What types of businesses can benefit from recurring billing software?

Businesses that can benefit from using a recurring billing software are those that need to auto-charge their customers at regular intervals, such as membership-based businesses like gyms and subscription-based services like streaming services and software providers.

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