You're Switching from FreshBooks.
Here's Why Street Artists Choose Nexa.

FreshBooks
$33/mo
$396/year — every year, forever
Nexa
$279
Once. Own it forever.
or 3 payments of $99
Break even in 8.5 months. Then it's free forever.
"Switched from FreshBooks after the last price increase. Nexa does everything I needed for $279. Wish I'd done it sooner."
— Verified Street Artist, former FreshBooks customer

The Bottom Line

Street Artists 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 Street Artist earns $45,000/year, so FreshBooks's annual cost is roughly 0.9% of typical revenue — every year, forever.

Key Numbers

$45,000
Median Street Artist income
3.5%
Typical SaaS spend as % of revenue
8.5 mo
Break-even vs FreshBooks
$1,050
3-year savings switching to Nexa

What FreshBooks Is Costing You

The Damage

FreshBooks monthly $33/mo
Annual drain $396/yr
Year 2 (11.4% SaaS inflation) $441
Year 3 $491
3-year total $1,329

That's $1,329 gone. And you don't own anything. Stop paying, lose access.

Your FreshBooks subscription has cost you $0.00 since you opened this page.

Why Street Artists Leave FreshBooks

✗Client caps force upgrades ($5 to $50 clients is $20 jump)
✗Per-user pricing adds $132/year per team member
✗Loses all data access upon cancellation
✗Limited customization options
✗No bank reconciliation on Lite plan
✗When I canceled my FreshBooks subscription, I lost access to all my old invoices and customer data. It felt like canceli
✗Lite was useless after 2 months. Had to upgrade to Plus as soon as I crossed 5 clients.
Street Artists are leaving FreshBooks every week.

You're not the only one who's had enough.

Why This Matters for Street Artists

A live wall is a performance with a clock on it, so my day often starts by scouting the surface and the light, because a commissioned piece at a festival or a brand activation has a tight window and I don't own the wall I'm painting on. I plan the piece in my sketchbook and cut or load my stencils the night before, because once I'm on site with a crowd watching and a teardown deadline, there's no time to improvise the structure. On the wall I block the base with fat caps, then switch to skinny caps and paint markers for the linework and detail, working fast and reading the surface, which is sometimes raw brick that drinks paint and sometimes a slick panel that drips. I'm in a respirator the whole time because the fumes are no joke in a closed alley. Midday the light shifts and what looked bold in shade goes washed out in sun, so I push the contrast. There's always the business undertow: brands love the 'authentic street' look but try to lowball and quietly ask me to sign over all rights to the imagery so they can plaster it across an ad campaign, so I hold the line on rate and credit. Because walls are temporary and a piece can be buffed or tagged within a week, I get the deposit before I start and photograph the finished work in good light immediately, to protect my fee and make sure I, not the brand, own the documentation of what I made.

Street Artists face unique challenges: Walls are temporary and legality is murky, a commissioned piece can get buffed, tagged over, or torn down, so getting paid up front matters. Brands want the 'authentic street' look for festivals and ad shoots but lowball the rate and expect me to sign away all rights to the imagery. Spray work is weather-and-light dependent and often has to happen fast, in a tight window, on a surface I don't control. Getting credited and protecting my work, clients photograph the mural for campaigns and crop out or never name the artist. On top of all that, FreshBooks charges $33/month ($396/year) — money that comes directly from your revenue. The median Street Artist earns $45,000/year. Software at $396/year is a meaningful percentage of that income, every year, forever. And you do not own anything.

Your Montana and Molotow spray cans with a range of caps (fat caps to skinny tips) 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.

Your Full Stack Cost

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.

"I was paying FreshBooks $33/month and didn't question it until I did the math. $1,329 over 3 years for tools I don't even own. Nexa was $279. Once. Done."
— Street Artist business owner

What You Get Instead

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

Switching Takes 1-2 Days

Most street artists are fully switched before the weekend.

1

Export your data

Go to Settings → Export Data. Download clients, invoices, expenses, and time entries.

2

Set up Nexa

15-minute setup. Import your client list and expense categories from CSV.

3

Parallel run

Run both for 1-2 weeks. Verify invoice history and recurring invoices.

4

Cancel FreshBooks

Cancel subscription. Download a final data export for your records.

✓ Run both in parallel. Cancel FreshBooks when you're confident. Zero risk.

What street artists actually deal with

A day in the life of a street artist

A live wall is a performance with a clock on it, so my day often starts by scouting the surface and the light, because a commissioned piece at a festival or a brand activation has a tight window and I don't own the wall I'm painting on. I plan the piece in my sketchbook and cut or load my stencils the night before, because once I'm on site with a crowd watching and a teardown deadline, there's no time to improvise the structure. On the wall I block the base with fat caps, then switch to skinny caps and paint markers for the linework and detail, working fast and reading the surface, which is sometimes raw brick that drinks paint and sometimes a slick panel that drips. I'm in a respirator the whole time because the fumes are no joke in a closed alley. Midday the light shifts and what looked bold in shade goes washed out in sun, so I push the contrast. There's always the business undertow: brands love the 'authentic street' look but try to lowball and quietly ask me to sign over all rights to the imagery so they can plaster it across an ad campaign, so I hold the line on rate and credit. Because walls are temporary and a piece can be buffed or tagged within a week, I get the deposit before I start and photograph the finished work in good light immediately, to protect my fee and make sure I, not the brand, own the documentation of what I made.

The tools a working street artist actually owns

Local street artists on Nexa

Real street artists near you who run their business on Nexa — book directly, no platform fee. Are you a street artist? Post your business and get found in your area — $2.99 one-time. Or browse every street artist on Nexa →

FAQ

Is Nexa really a FreshBooks replacement for street artists?

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.

$279 seems like a lot.

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.

Can I pay in installments?

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.

What if I don't like it?

30-day money-back guarantee. Full refund. If Nexa doesn't save you $500 in year one, you get every penny back.

Can I import my FreshBooks data?

Export your data from FreshBooks as CSV, import into Nexa in about 5 minutes.

Street Artists in Lowell

The average solo operator there spends about $2,592/year on software — and Street Artist face their own version of that math. MA state licensing requirements apply.

Numbers reflect typical solo operators in the Lowell metro. Your situation will vary.

If You Need These — Nexa Has Them

Specific gaps Street Artists run into with FreshBooks, and what Nexa does instead.

✗
FreshBooks gapLimited inventory management
✓
NexaInventory tracking included for product and service businesses.
✗
FreshBooks gapNo scheduling/booking
✓
NexaBuilt-in scheduling and booking — no separate tier.
✗
FreshBooks gapBasic reporting compared to QB
✓
NexaP&L, balance sheet, and 21 reports — built in.
"FreshBooks raised prices again and I was done. Found Nexa — $279 once. I own it. No more 'we're updating our pricing' emails. Best business decision this year."
— Street Artist, switched from FreshBooks

Stop Losing $396/Year to FreshBooks

$1,329 over 3 years. Or $279 once (or 3 × $99). Own your tools.

Get Nexa — $279 Once
or 3 payments of $99
✓ 30-day money-back guarantee — save $500 or full refund

Still want FreshBooks?

We think Nexa is the better deal at $279 once vs $33/mo. But if you've decided on FreshBooks, here's the link. No hard feelings.

FreshBooks — $33/mo →

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