Contracts, invoices and booking: what a freelancer actually pays

Compare document limits, client-management subscriptions and appointment booking costs. See which fees are separate and why a nonprofit price is not a general offer.

About this guide

Published by StackOnSale. Publisher: Emmanuel Grenier. Guide updated: 2026-09-15.

Research based on official vendor pages, not a hands-on review.

StackOnSale may earn a commission through disclosed affiliate links on the site. This does not decide which tool fits your needs.

Three different jobs, three base budgets

USD before taxes and extras. Annual totals below are calculated from advertised monthly annual-billing rates, not final quotes. These are different workflows, not a cheapest-to-best ranking.

Sources reviewed 2026-09-15. These are dated plan details, not a live checkout quote. Confirm current pricing and eligibility on the official pages.

Some vendor links on offer pages are disclosed affiliate links; this is not a paid ranking.

Plans recorded in this guide, with billing and important limits
Plan	Recorded price	Billing and limits	Before choosing
PandaDoc Free	$0	Document signing, within the free allowance	The page says 60 documents/year and also 5/month. Confirm the limit for a busy month.
Bonsai Essentials	$228/person/year	Calculated: $19 × 12, billed annually	Client management, contracts and invoices. Our recorded Bonsai offer is Premium, not this Essentials plan.
SimplyBook.me Standard	$298.80/year	Calculated: $24.90 × 12, billed annually	Appointment booking: 500 bookings/month, 15 providers, 8 premium custom features. Processing and optional credits are separate.

Start with the work, not the discount

List how many documents you send in your busiest month, how many people need access, and how many client appointments you take. Add the features you cannot work without: invoicing, online payments, reminders or accounting integration.

These are different jobs. A signature service does not automatically replace invoicing or appointment booking. This guide is pricing research from official pages, not hands-on testing or a ranking of interchangeable products.

Bonsai: check Essentials before paying for Premium

Bonsai lists Essentials at $19 per user per month billed annually, or $25 on monthly billing. The annual-rate calculation is $228 per user for twelve months. Its listed features include invoices, payments, proposals, contracts and scheduling; Basic is not the equivalent bundle.

Premium is $29 per user per month annually ($348 for twelve months), with branding removal and additional integrations among its extras. Do not pay for that tier unless its extra features matter to your workflow. Payment processing and taxes still need checking.

PandaDoc Free: the monthly and annual statements differ

PandaDoc's Free card read "Create 5 documents per month" on October 5, 2026, then went back to 60 documents per year ("Includes 60 docs for free per year") on October 8, 2026, while the comparison table on the same page gives "5/month shared limit". The help centre keeps 60 per year only for older annual Free accounts (read on October 5, 2026). On a new account, plan for five sends a month, not an annual pool.

Its FAQ counts documents sent for signature, approval or review, not only completed signatures. A free plan may fit a low-volume workflow, but neither the word 'free' nor an average of five a month proves that it covers your busiest period or required features.

SimplyBook.me: three limits, not just bookings

SimplyBook.me Standard lists 500 bookings per month, 15 providers and 8 premium custom features. Check all three limits against your appointment workflow. Free may be enough to start if its 50 monthly bookings, one provider and one premium custom feature fit.

The vendor charges no additional transaction fee on customer payments, but payment processors charge their own fees. SMS, WhatsApp and other optional credits can cost extra. A scheduling subscription is not a replacement for your full contracts and invoicing workflow.

Annual billing: distinguish the rate from the commitment

Standard shows $24.90 per month billed annually versus $29.90 on monthly billing. Multiplying the displayed rates by twelve gives $298.80 versus $358.80, a calculated $60 difference for a full year. These are USD base calculations, not checkout quotes or Canadian-dollar conversions.

A lower annual rate does not make a longer commitment suitable for every business. Check the renewal total, cancellation terms and required extras before paying. Compare a bundle only with the separate tools you actually need; there is no universal cheapest combination.

Docusign nonprofit pricing is not the ordinary freelancer price

The US nonprofit page lists eSignature Standard at $210 per user billed annually, with 100 envelopes per user per year. An envelope can contain multiple documents; it is not the same unit as a document or a signature.

This offer requires eligible nonprofit status and verification through Goodstack. It is not a general freelancer discount. Keep it out of your budget unless your organisation qualifies, and confirm the regional offer and verification process before purchasing.

Test one complete client journey before committing

Use a dummy document with no client information to check the workflow you need: prepare it, request a signature, send an invoice, accept a booking and export a record. Check phone usability and accessibility, too.

This is a suggested buyer checklist, not a test we claim to have performed. Start with the smallest plan that meets your requirements, then compare the full subscription, usage and payment-processing costs before an annual commitment.

Questions

Is PandaDoc Free unlimited?

No. The official page mentions both 60 documents per year and 5 per month. Confirm the applicable limit rather than treating the annual number as a pool you can use at once.

Do I need Bonsai Premium for contracts and invoices?

Not solely for those features: the pricing page lists them in Essentials. Compare the specific Premium extras you need before upgrading.

Is SimplyBook.me billed per employee?

Its plans include a provider allowance for a flat plan price. Booking volume and premium custom-feature limits also matter; adding staff beyond the allowance can require a different plan.

Can any freelancer use the Docusign nonprofit rate?

No. That offer depends on nonprofit eligibility and verification; it is not the general commercial price.

Are these tested recommendations?

No. This is source-based pricing research. Try your actual workflow before choosing; the listed products do different jobs.

Related offers

Sources

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