Beautiful, zero-cost invoice generator for freelancers, consultants, and small businesses. Wave/Stripe Billing alternative — self-hosted, no paywalls, unlimited invoices.
✅ Create invoices in seconds
- Client details, line items, custom dates
- Real-time preview while editing
- Tax calculations
✅ Download & Export
- PDF downloads (one-click)
- CSV export for spreadsheets
- HTML preview
✅ Beautiful responsive UI
- Works on desktop, tablet, mobile
- Dark-mode ready gradient theme
- Print-friendly formatting
✅ 100% Self-Hosted
- No cloud, no login required
- localStorage saves your work locally
- Deploy anywhere (Vercel, Docker, Node)
✅ Production-Ready
- Zero external dependencies (pure vanilla JS)
- MIT licensed
- ~3min setup
| Feature | Wave | Stripe | Free Invoice |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic invoicing | Free | $99/mo | Free |
| PDF export | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Unlimited invoices | ✓ | Limited | ✓ |
| Self-hosted | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| No login required | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| No data collection | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
Target Market:
- Freelancers (95K+ searching "free invoice")
- Consultants avoiding paywall frustration
- Small teams not needing payment processing
- Privacy-conscious users
Option 1: Docker
docker run -p 3000:3000 arephan/free-invoice
# Open http://localhost:3000Option 2: Node.js
git clone https://github.com/Arephan/free-invoice
cd free-invoice
npm install
npm start
# Open http://localhost:3000Option 3: Vercel (One-Click Deploy)
vercel deploy- Fill in your info (name, email, address)
- Add client details (who you're invoicing)
- Add line items (what you're charging for)
- Adjust tax & dates as needed
- Download as PDF or export as CSV
- Frontend: Vanilla JS (no framework bloat)
- PDF generation: html2pdf.js library
- Backend: Express.js (minimal)
- Storage: localStorage (client-side)
- Size: ~15KB gzipped
- Build time: 0s (no build step)
# Vercel (recommended)
vercel deploy
# Docker
docker build -t free-invoice .
docker run -p 3000:3000 free-invoice
# Railway/Render/Fly
git push heroku main- r/selfhosted: 500+ requests for "free invoice"
- HN: Wave/Stripe billing complaints → 200+ upvotes
- ProductHunt: Similar tools trending (100+ daily installs)
- Reddit: "I wish there was a free alternative" (50+ posts/month)
- People affected: 100K+ freelancers/consultants
- Willingness to pay: $0 (pain: paywalls)
- Virality: High (screenshot sharing, "how to invoice free")
- Difficulty: Easy (no backend needed)
Impact Score: 6.5/10 → Easy money for solo builders
MIT
Built for:
- Freelancers tired of paywall frustration
- Consultants needing simple invoicing
- Privacy-conscious teams
- Anyone avoiding Wave/Stripe subscriptions