Pricing note: prices below were checked on 1 November 2026 and change often. Check each vendor's pricing page before you buy: HoneyBook pricing and Dubsado pricing. Feature statements below come from each vendor's own website, read on the day of publication.
Is HoneyBook or Dubsado better for freelancers?
There is no single winner. HoneyBook suits freelancers who want one product that processes payments itself and adds extras such as AI tools and SMS. Dubsado suits freelancers who want step-by-step workflows with optional manual approval and a choice of payment processors. Both cover leads, contracts, invoices, scheduling and a client portal. Our opinion, from each vendor's own pages.
HoneyBook vs Dubsado prices (checked 1 November 2026)
| Tier | HoneyBook | Dubsado |
|---|---|---|
| Entry, monthly billing | Starter $36/mo | Starter $35/mo |
| Entry, yearly billing | Starter $29/mo | Starter $335/yr (about $28/mo) |
| With scheduler and automation, monthly billing | Essentials $59/mo | Premier $55/mo |
| With scheduler and automation, yearly billing | Essentials $49/mo | Premier $525/yr (about $44/mo) |
| Top plan, monthly billing | Premium $129/mo | No higher plan listed |
| Payment processing | From 2.9% + $0.25 cards, 1.5% ACH | No Dubsado fee listed; provider fees apply |
| Free trial | 30 days | 21 days |
The tiers are our rough matching, so compare features as well as price. HoneyBook runs discounts on some plans, and the yearly Dubsado monthly figures are our arithmetic.
Feature comparison
| Feature | HoneyBook | Dubsado |
|---|---|---|
| Lead capture forms | Yes ("Lead Form") | Yes ("Lead capture") |
| Contracts and e-sign | Yes; described as legally binding | Yes ("Contracts & e-sign") |
| Proposals | Yes | Yes; "Public proposals" listed on the higher plan |
| Invoices | Yes; autopay for recurring invoices and retainers. Payment plans not mentioned on its payments page | "Invoices & payment plans" |
| Who processes payments | HoneyBook itself (card and bank transfer); help centre says other processors cannot be used | "Dubsado Payments", powered by Stripe; help centre also refers to Square and PayPal |
| Scheduler | Yes; listed from the middle plan (Essentials) | Yes; listed on the higher plan (Premier) only |
| Automation | "Automations" with triggers, waits and conditional logic; listed from Essentials | "Automated workflows" built from action-plus-trigger steps; listed on Premier only |
| Client portal | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | iOS and Android | Listed on its plans ("Mobile app access") |
| Accounting integrations | QuickBooks Online listed from Essentials; integrations page also names FreshBooks and Wave | QuickBooks Online and Xero named; "Bookkeeping integration" on Premier |
| AI features | "HoneyBook AI": email drafts, project recaps, business trends, meeting notetaker | Not listed on the pages we read |
| SMS | "Phone & SMS"; SMS reminders listed from Essentials | Not listed on the pages we read |
Plan names come from the official pricing pages: HoneyBook has Starter, Essentials and Premium; Dubsado has Starter and Premier. "Not listed" means we did not find it on the vendor pages we read, not that it does not exist.
How the automation differs
Both tools automate follow-ups, but they describe the job differently.
HoneyBook says each automation starts with one trigger, can include waits between steps, and can branch with conditional logic. You can edit emails before they send, and it says its AI can turn a plain description into a ready-made workflow.
Dubsado's help centre describes a flow as a series of steps, each pairing one action with one trigger. Actions include sending an email, form, contract or scheduler, creating an invoice or a task, and updating a project. Flows can pause, and several actions can be set to wait for your manual approval before they run.
If you want to check every client message before it goes out, Dubsado's approval option is the clearer match. If you want to describe a process and have it drafted for you, HoneyBook's AI route is the one to test.
Who should pick HoneyBook
- You want contracts, proposals, invoices, payments and messaging in one product, and you are happy for HoneyBook to process the payments.
- You like the idea of a proposal that lets clients book, sign and pay from a single link, which is how HoneyBook describes it.
- You want built-in AI drafting and SMS reminders.
- You are in the US or Canada, where its own help pages are clearest.
- You use QuickBooks, FreshBooks or Wave for your books.
Who should pick Dubsado
- You like to design your own process: workflows of timed steps, with the option to hold emails, forms or contracts for your approval before they send.
- You want a choice of payment processor, or already use Square or PayPal.
- You want a branded client portal per project, questionnaires and forms, and time tracking and reports, all of which Dubsado names on its homepage.
- You work outside the US and your home country is on the Dubsado Payments list.
- You use Xero for your books.
Where each falls short
HoneyBook
- Payments run only through HoneyBook. Its help centre says PayPal, Venmo, Stripe and other processors cannot be used, so outside payments have to be marked as paid by hand.
- Its pages disagree on country support. One page lists the US, Canada, UK and Australia, a notice on the same page says US and Canada, and the payments help article says invoices are in USD or CAD.
- The scheduler and automations are not on the entry plan.
Dubsado
- Scheduling, automated workflows and public proposals are listed on the higher plan only, so the features that make it attractive need that plan.
- Its help centre warns that when PayPal is connected, clients can bypass required autopay by paying through PayPal.
- The help centre mixes articles for an older version of the product with newer ones, and uses both "workflows" and "flows", so check you are reading the current version.
How to choose
- Start with your country. If you are outside the US and Canada, confirm support with HoneyBook before anything else. For Dubsado, check that your home country is on the Dubsado Payments list.
- Decide whether you want a choice of processor. If you do, Dubsado fits. If you would rather have one provider and one support route, HoneyBook fits.
- Price the plan that has automation. Both vendors list the scheduler and automation above the entry plan, so compare that plan, not the cheapest one.
- Match your accounting tool. Xero users should look at Dubsado; QuickBooks users can use either.
Both pricing pages mention a free trial. Use it: set up one real client project in each tool and see which one you would actually keep open.
If what you mainly need is invoicing, expense tracking and time tracking rather than a client-booking flow, our FreshBooks review may fit better; its own site names those features.
Read our full reviews of HoneyBook and Dubsado.
Sources checked (November 2026)
- HoneyBook pricing and HoneyBook FAQs: plan prices, processing fees and free trial
- Dubsado pricing: plan prices and free trial
- Prices checked on 1 November 2026.