The verdict for illustrators: Harvest is solid software, but at $13/month it costs $523 over 3 years. Nexa does most of what Harvest does for $279 once. For solo illustrators and small teams, Nexa is the better deal.
Nexa: $279. Once. You keep $244. And you own it — no more "we're updating our pricing" emails.
| Feature | Harvest | Nexa |
|---|---|---|
| Invoicing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Scheduling | ✗ | ✓ |
| CRM | ✗ | ✓ |
| Time Tracking | ✗ | ✓ |
| Full Accounting | ✗ | ✓ (SIMPL) |
| Task Management | ✗ | ✓ |
| Price | $13/mo | $279 once or 3 × $99 |
| 3-Year Total | $523 | $279 |
| You own it? | No — stop paying, lose access | Yes — forever |
Harvest plus whatever else you're paying for:
Email yourself this comparison?
The math doesn't lie.
Illustrators deal with unique challenges that generic software was not built for: 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. Harvest charges $13/month on top of these daily realities. The median illustrator earns $42,000/year — $156/year in software subscriptions is a significant percentage of that income, paid every year, forever.
Nexa is $279 once. Invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, accounting — all connected, built for illustrators. You own it like you own your Drawing tablet (Wacom Cintiq, iPad Pro with Apple Pencil).
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.
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 →
For solo illustrators and small teams, yes. invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, task management, and full accounting — all for $279 once. Harvest may be better if you have a large team (10+) or need enterprise-specific features.
Harvest has features like Clean, simple interface and Automatic invoice generation from time that some businesses rely on. For most solo illustrators, these aren't dealbreakers.
At $13/month, Nexa pays for itself in 21.5 months. After that: $156 saved every year.
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.
Own your tools. Stop renting your software.
Get Nexa — $279 Once