You're Switching from Harvest. Here's Why Illustrators Choose Nexa.
Harvest
$13/mo
$156/year — every year, forever
Nexa
$279
Once. Own it forever.
or 3 payments of $99
Break even in 21.5 months. Then it's free forever.
"Switched from Harvest after the last price increase. Nexa does everything I needed for $279. Wish I'd done it sooner."
— Verified illustrator, former Harvest customer
The Bottom Line
Illustrators on Harvest pay $13/month — $156/year. Over three years, that's $523. Nexa is $279 once. Break-even runs about 21.5 months. The median illustrator earns $42,000/year, so Harvest's annual cost is roughly 0.4% of typical revenue — every year, forever.
Key Numbers
$42,000
Median illustrator income
2.8%
Typical SaaS spend as % of revenue
21.5 mo
Break-even vs Harvest
$244
3-year savings switching to Nexa
What Harvest Is Costing You
The Damage
Harvest monthly$13/mo
Annual drain$156/yr
Year 2 (11.4% SaaS inflation)$174
Year 3$194
3-year total$523
That's $523 gone. And you don't own anything. Stop paying, lose access.
Your Harvest subscription has cost you $0.00 since you opened this page.
Why Illustrators Leave Harvest
✗Per-user pricing: 10 users = $110-$140/mo
✗Forecast add-on adds another $5/user/mo
✗Full workflow (Harvest + Forecast): ~$480/mo for 30 users
✗No built-in PTO/leave management
✗Just time + invoicing - need other tools for CRM/scheduling
✗Added a new forecasting tool as a separate product... costs additional monthly fee per user
✗Instead of extending Harvest capabilities, they froze features and charge more
✗The hidden application fee structure makes it most expensive despite appearing affordable
Illustrators are leaving Harvest every week.
You're not the only one who's had enough.
Why This Matters for Illustrators
You're working on a children's book illustration — page 7 of 24. The author wants the dragon to look 'more friendly but still scary.' This is revision 3 on this page alone. Meanwhile a board game company needs character concept art by Friday and you haven't started sketching. Your Toggl timer has been running on the book project for 8 hours but you spent 2 of those hours on email and admin. FreshBooks wants $17/month to invoice two clients this month.
Illustrators face unique challenges: Pricing creative work — hourly vs per-piece vs licensing royalties. Tracking time on projects that involve research, sketching, and final rendering. Clients wanting unlimited revisions on commission work. Managing licensing agreements and usage rights across clients. On top of all that, Harvest charges $13/month ($156/year) — money that comes directly from your revenue. The median illustrator earns $42,000/year. Software at $156/year is a meaningful percentage of that income, every year, forever. And you do not own anything.
Your Drawing tablet (Wacom Cintiq, iPad Pro with Apple Pencil) 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
Harvest is just one piece. What else are you losing money on?
Want this breakdown emailed to you?
Your exact Harvest cost, full stack total, and what switching saves. 10 seconds.
"I was paying Harvest $13/month and didn't question it until I did the math. $523 over 3 years for tools I don't even own. Nexa was $279. Once. Done."
— Illustrator business owner
What You Get Instead
Feature
Harvest
Nexa
Invoicing
✓
✓
Scheduling
✗
✓
CRM
✗
✓
Time Tracking
✗
✓
Full Accounting
✗
✓ (SIMPL)
Task Management
✗
✓
Price
$13/mo forever
$279 once or 3 × $99
3-Year Cost
$523
$279
Stop paying?
Lose everything
Keep everything forever
Switching Takes 1-2 Days
Most illustrators are fully switched before the weekend.
1
Export your data
Go to Settings → Manage → Export. Download time entries, invoices, and expenses.
2
Set up Nexa
10-minute setup. Import your client list and project structure.
3
Start tracking in Nexa
Begin using Nexa time tracker. Import historical time data if needed.
4
Cancel Harvest
Cancel subscription. Download a final export for your records.
✓ Run both in parallel. Cancel Harvest when you're confident. Zero risk.
What illustrators actually deal with
Pricing creative work — hourly vs per-piece vs licensing royalties
Tracking time on projects that involve research, sketching, and final rendering
Clients wanting unlimited revisions on commission work
Managing licensing agreements and usage rights across clients
A day in the life of a illustrator
You're working on a children's book illustration — page 7 of 24. The author wants the dragon to look 'more friendly but still scary.' This is revision 3 on this page alone. Meanwhile a board game company needs character concept art by Friday and you haven't started sketching. Your Toggl timer has been running on the book project for 8 hours but you spent 2 of those hours on email and admin. FreshBooks wants $17/month to invoice two clients this month.
The tools a working illustrator actually owns
Drawing tablet (Wacom Cintiq, iPad Pro with Apple Pencil)
Digital art software (Procreate, Clip Studio, Photoshop)
Scanner for traditional media
Reference and art book library
Why illustrators leave the big platforms
freshbooks: $17/month for the lowest tier. Illustrators often have feast-or-famine months — paying $17 when you invoice zero clients is frustrating.
toggl: A timer that can't distinguish between sketching (billable), reference gathering (debatable), and email (not billable).
harvest: Fine for tracking hours but illustrators need to track per-piece and licensing fees, not just hourly.
Where illustrators actually talk shop
r/illustration (Reddit)
r/DigitalArt (Reddit)
r/artbusiness (Reddit)
r/freelance (Reddit)
ConceptArt.org (Forum)
Muddy Colors Blog (Forum)
Jazza (YouTube)
Marco Bucci (YouTube)
Local illustrators on Nexa
Real illustrators near you who run their business on Nexa — book directly, no platform fee.
Are you an illustrator? Post your business and get found in your area — $2.99 one-time.
Or browse every illustrator on Nexa →
FAQ
Is Nexa really a Harvest replacement for illustrators?
For solo operators and small teams (1-5), yes. Nexa includes invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, task management, and full accounting. Harvest 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. Harvest is $13/month — that's $523 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 Harvest data?
Export your data from Harvest as CSV, import into Nexa in about 5 minutes.
Illustrators in Santa Ana
The average solo operator there spends about $3,072/year on software — and illustrator face their own version of that math. CA state licensing requirements apply.
Numbers reflect typical solo operators in the Santa Ana metro. Your situation will vary.
If You Need These — Nexa Has Them
Specific gaps Illustrators run into with Harvest, and what Nexa does instead.
✗
Harvest gapScheduling
✓
NexaBuilt-in scheduling and booking — no separate tier.
✗
Harvest gapCRM
✓
NexaFull CRM module included in $279.
✗
Harvest gapFull financial suite
✓
NexaBuilt into Nexa’s $279 once purchase — no separate add-on.
Where Illustrators Talk Shop
If you want to compare notes or see how other illustrators are running their tools, here's where the conversation happens.
3 Point Perspective, The Illustration Department Podcast
"Harvest 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."
— Illustrator, switched from Harvest
Stop Losing $156/Year to Harvest
$523 over 3 years. Or $279 once (or 3 × $99). Own your tools.