Settle vs. Invoice Ninja
A Invoice Ninja alternative for solo contractors
What Invoice Ninja costs, where it caps you, and when it is the better pick. Prices checked November 3, 2026.
Invoice Ninja is a general-purpose invoicing and quoting platform (open source, with a hosted version) for freelancers and small businesses, with recurring billing, expenses, projects and time tracking. Settle is a free iPhone app for solo contractors with no cap on estimates or invoices, where payments go to your own Stripe account. Choose Settle if you work alone on an iPhone. Stay with Invoice Ninja if you bill the same clients every month.
Side by side
| Settle | Invoice Ninja | |
|---|---|---|
| Unlimited estimates and invoices | Free: $0, no document limit | Pro, $14 a month billed monthly, or $140 a year |
| Limits on lower plans | None on any plan. AI drafts: 3 free, then Pro | Free plan is limited to 5 clients (invoicing itself is unlimited) |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes, up to 5 clients, with a "Created by Invoice Ninja" line on documents |
| Card payment fee | Stripe's standard 2.9% + 30¢ paid to Stripe; Settle adds nothing | Whatever your own gateway charges. Invoice Ninja connects Stripe, PayPal, Square, GoCardless and others; its pricing page doesn't add a platform fee |
| Payouts | Paid straight to your own Stripe account. Stripe sets payout timing and runs its own risk checks; Settle never holds the money | Your clients pay through a gateway you connect (Stripe, PayPal, Square, GoCardless and more), so the money goes to your own account at that gateway's rate |
| Scheduling and dispatch | No | No scheduling or dispatch; it has projects, tasks and time tracking |
| Platforms | iPhone only | Web, iOS, Android, macOS, Windows, Linux |
From each company's public pages, checked November 3, 2026. Confirm on Invoice Ninja's page before you buy.
Why contractors look for a Invoice Ninja alternative
The free plan stops at 5 clients
Invoice Ninja's pricing page says the free plan allows up to 5 clients with unlimited invoicing; Pro at $14 a month ($140 a year) removes the cap and the "Created by Invoice Ninja" line. A handyman gets past five customers in a week. Settle's free plan has no customer or document limit.
Source: Invoice Ninja pricing
You type every estimate
Invoice Ninja builds quotes from a product library and templates on a web form; nothing on its features page describes drafting from speech. In Settle you describe the job out loud and it writes the lines from the prices you charged last time.
Source: Invoice Ninja features
It is built for an office, not a truck
Projects, Kanban boards, inventory, vendors, bank sync, PEPPOL e-invoicing and a 100-user Enterprise tier are the features on the pricing page. They are useful for an agency and dead weight for a solo plumber who needs to send a number from the driveway.
Source: Invoice Ninja pricing
When Invoice Ninja is the better choice
- You bill the same clients every month. Invoice Ninja has auto-billing and recurring invoices; Settle doesn't.
- You track time and expenses against projects, or need a client portal with statements.
- You want a web app, Android, or desktop apps, or want to self-host the open-source version. Settle is iPhone only.
- You take PayPal, Square or GoCardless rather than Stripe. Settle pays out through Stripe only.
When Settle is not the right app
We would rather you know before you download:
- iPhone only. There is no Android app and no web app.
- No scheduling, dispatching, GPS or time tracking.
- No QuickBooks sync. You can export everything to CSV.
- One user per account. No crew or team logins.
- Documents live on your phone. There is no sync between devices yet.
- English only for now.
- A new app from a small team. Most of the apps it competes with have been around for years.
How to switch from Invoice Ninja
Invoice Ninja's pricing page says paid plans have a 30-day money-back promise and the free plan never forces an upgrade, so you can drop to free rather than cancel. Reports export to CSV. We did not find a cancellation walkthrough on the pages we checked.
- Invoice Ninja pricing FAQ: 30-day money back on paid plans
- Invoice Ninja features: reports export to CSV
There is nothing to import into Settle. Open the app, tap the orange button, and describe your next job. Your own prices are remembered from what you send, so your old price list doesn't need to come along.
Questions
Is Settle a good alternative to Invoice Ninja?
Settle is a good alternative to Invoice Ninja if you work alone, use an iPhone, and want no cap on how many estimates and invoices you send. It is not a replacement if you need scheduling, dispatch, a crew login, QuickBooks sync, or an Android or web app.
How much does Invoice Ninja cost compared to Settle?
Invoice Ninja: Pro, $14 a month billed monthly, or $140 a year. Cheapest plan: Free plan. Free plan is limited to 5 clients (invoicing itself is unlimited). Settle's free plan sends unlimited estimates and invoices; Settle Pro is $19.99 a month or $149.99 a year and adds unlimited AI-written drafts. Prices checked November 3, 2026.
Can I export my data from Invoice Ninja before I switch?
Invoice Ninja's pricing page says paid plans have a 30-day money-back promise and the free plan never forces an upgrade, so you can drop to free rather than cancel. Reports export to CSV. We did not find a cancellation walkthrough on the pages we checked.
Does Settle hold my money?
No. Customers pay through a link, and the payment goes to a Stripe account in your own name. Settle takes no cut and is never in the money path. Stripe sets payout timing and still runs its own identity and risk checks, as it does for any business.
Sources
Try Settle alongside Invoice Ninja.
Free on iPhone. Unlimited estimates and invoices. 7 days of Pro to try the voice drafts, and you cancel in two taps.
Download on the App StoreiPhone, iOS 17 or later. Questions? Text Nina: (818) 945-9686