Quick answer
The short version, by scenario
Solo freelancers who bill by the hour should probably stay put: Bonsai Essentials ($25/mo per seat) is still the cleanest proposals-to-contracts-to-time-tracking-to-invoice flow at that price, and as of our September 23, 2026 check the plans and prices are intact under Zoom. Books-first soloists who want real double-entry accounting should look at FreshBooks (Lite $23/mo).
Teams of three or more should run the per-seat math before renewing. Five seats on Essentials is $125/mo for the invoicing tier — for $24 more, Workspace369 Specialist ($149/mo, 10 seats flat) adds IVR and call queues, payment plans and basic accounting, while texts and calls start on Voyager ($74/mo, 2 seats).
If what you actually want is calling and texting next to the client record, Moxie and Workspace369 both build them in: Moxie from $25/mo for one line (up to five team members on Teams, $40), Workspace369 from Voyager ($74/mo, 2 seats), with IVR and call queues from Specialist. HoneyBook sells them as an $8/mo add-on in the US and Canada.
One by one
Best for: Solo creatives who want polished client flows — proposals, contracts, invoices — with a bigger template gallery than Bonsai, and who don’t bill by the hour.
Pricing: Starter $36/mo, Essentials $59/mo, Premium $129/mo on monthly billing ($29/$49/$109 billed yearly), checked September 23, 2026. Texting and calling are an add-on from $8/mo (300 texts) covering the US and Canada, per HoneyBook’s Phone & SMS page on October 12, 2026. Time Tracker was removed on September 8, 2026.
Skip it if: You bill by the hour (its time tracking is gone) or you are outside the US and need texting.
Best for: Solo creatives who want Bonsai-style client flows with much deeper automation — and who don’t need time tracking or a phone line in the same tool.
Pricing: Starter $35/mo, Premier $55/mo on monthly billing ($335/$525 a year), checked September 23, 2026, after the December 1, 2025 increase. Three extra users are free; bands of 4–10 users add $25/mo. The free plan was retired November 17, 2025 — new accounts get a 21-day trial.
Skip it if: You bill by the hour (its time tracking story is unclear), or you want a phone line or books in the same tool.
Best for: Freelancers and small teams whose first question is “where are the books?” — real double-entry accounting with invoicing on top, from an established vendor.
Pricing: Lite $23/mo, Plus $43/mo, Premium $70/mo on monthly billing, checked September 23, 2026 — the lineup in place since the March 2026 price change. Anything beyond the plan labels (seat costs, portal details) should be confirmed on its pricing page.
Skip it if: You want client work, comms and books in one tool rather than books with client features around them — or you need texting anywhere near the invoice.
Best for: Solo operators with a handful of live clients who want a modern, customizable workspace at the lowest entry price on this list.
Pricing: Core $19/mo (up to 9 active clients), Pro $49/mo (unlimited clients, up to 30 contributors), Max $199/mo (white-label, SSO), checked September 23, 2026. Yearly billing takes two months off. 7-day free trial, no card.
Skip it if: You juggle more than nine live clients at once and $49/mo is over budget — or you need texting next to the project.
Best for: Freelancers leaving Bonsai who want to keep time tracking and basic accounting — and gain an actual phone line — at nearly the same solo price.
Pricing: Starter $12/mo, Pro $25/mo, Teams $40/mo on monthly billing (annual: $10/$20/$32 per month), checked October 12, 2026. Teams covers up to five members and adds a second phone line.
Skip it if: You need more than five seats or deeper-than-basic accounting.
Best for: Freelancers-turned-teams who want client records, projects, a shared inbox, SMS, a business phone line, invoices, payment plans and accounting in one workspace — without per-seat pricing punishing every new hire.
Pricing: Cadet $29/mo (1 seat, with time tracking), Voyager $74/mo (2 seats — adds the shared inbox, texts and calls), Specialist $149/mo (10 seats — adds IVR and call queues, payment plans and basic accounting), Commander $299/mo (20 seats — full accounting), Enterprise $699/mo (50 seats). About 20% off on annual billing; extra seats $10. Claiming dedicated SMS/voice numbers carries a $50 one-time carrier compliance fee. Checked September 23, 2026 — every number is on the pricing page.
Skip it if: You are a solo hourly biller happy at $15–25/mo, or you mainly need contracts plus time tracking — Bonsai still wins that exact job on price, Zoom ownership or not.
FAQ
Questions Bonsai users actually ask
- Did Zoom buy Bonsai?
- Yes. Zoom announced the acquisition on November 5, 2025 on its official blog, and the transaction closed in December 2025. Bonsai now operates as a Zoom company.
- What does the Zoom acquisition mean for Bonsai users?
- As of our September 23, 2026 check, the plan lineup and prices are intact and the product is fully operating — Zoom’s announcement pitches Bonsai as its small-business play, not a product being wound down. What acquisitions change over time is roadmap priority and packaging, so the sensible move is to keep your exports current and re-check pricing at renewal, not to panic-move.
- Is Bonsai worth it for a team?
- Run the per-seat math first. Essentials is $25/mo per seat, so five people cost $125/mo — and QuickBooks/Xero sync needs Premium at $39/seat, or $195/mo for five. Flat-seat tools price the same team differently: Workspace369 Specialist is $149/mo for 10 seats with a phone system, payment plans and basic accounting included. For a solo user, though, $25/mo is hard to beat.
- Does Bonsai include accounting?
- Partly. Bonsai tracks income and expenses, and QuickBooks/Xero sync starts on Premium ($39/seat on monthly billing). It is not full double-entry accounting — for that, look at FreshBooks (Lite from $23/mo) or Workspace369, which includes basic accounting from Specialist ($149/mo) and full accounting from Commander ($299/mo).
- Does Bonsai have a phone line or texting?
- No. Bonsai has no native SMS and no business phone line. Moxie includes a phone line from its $25/mo Pro plan (US/CA/UK); Workspace369 includes texts and calls from Voyager ($74/mo, 2 seats), and IVR, call queues and call recording from Specialist ($149/mo, 10 seats).
- How much does Bonsai cost per month?
- On monthly billing, checked September 23, 2026: Basic $15, Essentials $25, Premium $39 and Elite $59 per seat, with Elite carrying a 3-user minimum. Annual billing drops the per-seat equivalents to $9/$19/$29/$49.
- How do I switch from Bonsai to another tool?
- Export your clients, open invoices and time entries, and download your contract and proposal templates. Workspace369’s AI Import maps those spreadsheets for you, so budget your time for rebuilding templates; support can help with anything unusual.
