Custom Exhaust Shops on FreshBooks pay $33/month — $396/year. Over three years, that's $1,329. Nexa is $279 once. Break-even runs about 8.5 months. The median Custom Exhaust Fabricator earns $48,000/year, so FreshBooks's annual cost is roughly 0.8% of typical revenue — every year, forever.
That's $1,329 gone. And you don't own anything. Stop paying, lose access.
You're not the only one who's had enough.
Custom Exhaust Shops face unique challenges: Custom systems are bent and welded to fit the specific car on the lift, so there is no parts-lookup price and every job is a one-off estimate built from tube footage, bends, and labor. Customers want a specific sound and 'not too droney,' which is subjective, so a finished system that booms on the highway becomes an argument and a rework even though it was built to spec. Cars come in mid-modification with headers or turbos the customer added, and discovering clearance and fitment surprises on the lift blows the time estimate. Emissions and noise regulations vary, so deleting a catalytic converter or going too loud is a liability the shop has to navigate against what the customer is demanding. On top of all that, FreshBooks charges $33/month ($396/year) — money that comes directly from your revenue. The median Custom Exhaust Fabricator earns $48,000/year. Software at $396/year is a meaningful percentage of that income, every year, forever. And you do not own anything.
Your Mandrel tube bender for kink-free pipe radii is yours. You bought it once. Nexa works the same way — $279 once for invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, and full accounting. All connected. All offline-capable. You own it like you own your tools.
FreshBooks is just one piece. What else are you losing money on?
Want this breakdown emailed to you?
Your exact FreshBooks cost, full stack total, and what switching saves. 10 seconds.
| Feature | FreshBooks | Nexa |
|---|---|---|
| Invoicing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Scheduling | ✗ | ✓ |
| CRM | ✗ | ✓ |
| Time Tracking | ✗ | ✓ |
| Full Accounting | ✗ | ✓ (SIMPL) |
| Task Management | ✗ | ✓ |
| Price | $33/mo forever | $279 once or 3 × $99 |
| 3-Year Cost | $1,329 | $279 |
| Stop paying? | Lose everything | Keep everything forever |
Most custom exhaust shops are fully switched before the weekend.
Go to Settings → Export Data. Download clients, invoices, expenses, and time entries.
15-minute setup. Import your client list and expense categories from CSV.
Run both for 1-2 weeks. Verify invoice history and recurring invoices.
Cancel subscription. Download a final data export for your records.
A custom exhaust shop builds, it does not just bolt on. A car goes up on the lift and the job is read from underneath: where the stock system runs, where the obstacles are, where the customer wants the tips to exit. The craft is in the mandrel bender and the welder. Lengths of stainless or aluminized tube get measured, marked, and bent to clear the subframe and the rear axle without kinking, then tacked together piece by piece under the car, checking clearance to the floor pan and the heat shields as it goes. Once the geometry is right, it comes down for final TIG or MIG welding, the mufflers and resonators chosen as much for sound as for flow. Then it goes back up, gets hung on rubber isolators so it does not rattle, and finally the moment of truth: starting the car and listening. Sound is the whole point and the whole problem, because 'aggressive but not droney' means something different to every customer, and a system that sounds great at idle can drone miserably at 70 mph. The recurring frictions are pricing a one-off build with no catalog number, managing the subjective sound expectation, and handling the customer who shows up with aftermarket headers or a turbo that changes everything about the fit. Underneath is the regulatory line on emissions and noise that the shop has to walk carefully.
Real custom exhaust shops near you who run their business on Nexa — book directly, no platform fee. Are you a custom exhaust fabricator? Post your business and get found in your area — $2.99 one-time. Or browse every custom exhaust fabricator on Nexa →
For solo operators and small teams (1-5), yes. Nexa includes invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, task management, and full accounting. FreshBooks may be better if you have a large team (10+) or need enterprise-specific features.
It's $7.75/month over 3 years. FreshBooks is $33/month — that's $1,329 over 3 years. Which is more? And if you'd rather split it, Nexa is also available as 3 payments of $99.
Yes. Nexa is $279 as a one-time payment, or 3 payments of $99 ($297 total). Either way it's a one-time purchase — no subscription, no recurring fees ever.
30-day money-back guarantee. Full refund. If Nexa doesn't save you $500 in year one, you get every penny back.
Export your data from FreshBooks as CSV, import into Nexa in about 5 minutes.
The average solo operator there spends about $3,360/year on software — and Custom Exhaust Fabricator face their own version of that math. CO state licensing requirements apply.
Numbers reflect typical solo operators in the Boulder metro. Your situation will vary.
Specific gaps Custom Exhaust Shops run into with FreshBooks, and what Nexa does instead.
$1,329 over 3 years. Or $279 once (or 3 × $99). Own your tools.
Get Nexa — $279 Once