Drone Instructors 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 Drone Instructor earns $42,000/year, so FreshBooks's annual cost is roughly 0.9% 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.
Drone Instructors face unique challenges: Part 107 exam students cram before their scheduled test date, bunching all the prep into the weeks before they sit the FAA knowledge test. Outdoor flight lessons are at the mercy of wind and rain, so weather scrubs sessions and forces constant rescheduling. Flight training needs legal, clear airspace, so I have to scout sites and check LAANC authorization, and that planning before each lesson is unbilled. Commercial-client students want job-specific training (mapping, inspection, real estate) so prep varies wildly and rarely carries over. On top of all that, FreshBooks charges $33/month ($396/year) — money that comes directly from your revenue. The median Drone Instructor earns $42,000/year. Software at $396/year is a meaningful percentage of that income, every year, forever. And you do not own anything.
Your A training drone (DJI or similar) with spare batteries and props 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?
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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 drone instructors are fully switched before the weekend.
Go to Settings → Export Data. Download clients, invoices, expenses, and time entries.
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Run both for 1-2 weeks. Verify invoice history and recurring invoices.
Cancel subscription. Download a final data export for your records.
I check the weather and the airspace before I check anything else, because both can ground a lesson. My morning student is studying for the Part 107 knowledge test, and her exam date is locked, so we are cramming the ground school the FAA actually tests, reading sectional charts, decoding a METAR, understanding why you can't just launch near an airport without LAANC authorization. The afternoon is hands-on, and that means finding a legal, open field clear of people, which I have to scout and clear through the airspace app before we ever drive out, planning that eats time nobody pays for. Today's flight student is a real-estate agent who only needs orbit shots of houses, so I tailor the whole lesson to smooth manual control and framing, nothing like the prep for the surveyor last week who needed mapping flight grids. We run the pre-flight checklist every time, because the habit is the safety, and then we practice hovering steady in a crosswind, the unglamorous skill that separates a usable shot from a wobbling mess. Wind is the enemy of all of it; a gusty afternoon either scrubs the lesson or turns it into a fight with the drone. I log every flight, because the FAA expects records and so do I.
Real drone instructors near you who run their business on Nexa — book directly, no platform fee. Are you a drone instructor? Post your business and get found in your area — $2.99 one-time. Or browse every drone instructor 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 $2,000/year on software — and Drone Instructor face their own version of that math. Virginia income tax up to 5.75%. Richmond's business license tax based on gross receipts adds to the burden. Virginia DPOR contractor license required for projects over $1,000. Richmond requires a business license with gross receipts reporting.
Numbers reflect typical solo operators in the Richmond metro. Your situation will vary.
Specific gaps Drone Instructors 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