Entry No. 04 — Payments Software

What should I use to pay bills and get paid faster?

Once you're managing more than a few vendor bills or customer invoices a month, doing accounts payable and receivable by hand starts costing real time — and creates real room for mistakes.

The pick

Bill.com

Automates the bills you pay and the invoices you send — without hiring an AP clerk.

Bill.com captures incoming vendor bills, routes them through an approval chain, and pays them by ACH, check, or wire — then syncs the whole thing into QuickBooks automatically. On the receivable side, it automates sending invoices and chasing payment, so it speeds up both directions of your cash flow, not just the outgoing one. It's priced per user plus a fee on every payment, so it earns its keep once you have real bill volume or more than one person touching approvals — not for a solo founder paying two vendors a month.

$45–$89per user/month, by plan
Get started with Bill.com → Free trial available
Why this one

The reasoning, not just the recommendation

At a glance

Quick facts

Best forBusinesses paying more than a handful of vendor bills a month, or wanting to speed up collecting from customers
Starting priceEssentials ~$45/user/mo, Team ~$55/user/mo, Corporate ~$89/user/mo — plus a separate fee per payment (roughly $0.49–$0.59 ACH, ~$1.99 check, ~$9.99–$11.99 wire, ~2.9% card)
Free trialYes — a free trial is available, plus a no-cost Spend & Expense plan for teams that just need corporate cards and budgets
Setup timeA day or two to connect your bank and accounting software and invite approvers
Pairs well withQuickBooks Online — bills and payments sync directly into your books

Pricing checked August 2026 based on published rates — per-user and per-payment fees mean your real monthly cost depends on headcount and payment volume, not just the plan tier. Confirm current pricing before you buy.

When Bill.com is the wrong call

If you're a solo founder paying two or three vendors a month, the per-user subscription plus per-payment fees can cost more than the time it saves — just paying directly from your bank or using QuickBooks' built-in bill pay may be enough for now. It's also worth doing the math before adding a long chain of approvers, since Corporate-tier per-user pricing adds up fast on a large team.

Notes

Common questions

Does this replace QuickBooks?

No — it pairs with it. Bill.com handles the bill-pay and invoicing workflow, then syncs the resulting transactions into QuickBooks so your books stay accurate without double entry.

What are the payment fees, exactly?

On top of the per-user subscription, Bill.com charges per payment sent — roughly $0.49–$0.59 for ACH, about $1.99 for a mailed check, $9.99–$11.99 for an international wire, and around 2.9% for card payments. These add up separately from your plan cost, so factor in how you actually pay vendors.

Do I need this as a solo founder?

Probably not yet. It starts earning its cost once you have real, recurring vendor bill volume, want to delegate approvals to someone else, or are spending real time each month chasing customer payments.

Does it help me get paid, not just pay bills?

Yes — the accounts receivable side automates sending invoices, reminders, and accepting online payment from customers, so it covers both directions of cash flow, not just what you owe.

Ready to get bills off your plate?

Connect your bank and QuickBooks, then invite your first approver.

Get started with Bill.com →