Wave vs Rippling ATS

Wave

Wave is a free accounting and invoicing platform designed for small businesses, freelancers, and solopreneurs. It offers genuinely free accounting, invoicing, and receipt scanning with no subscription fee. Wave makes money through payment processing and payroll add-ons. It is one of the best free accounting tools available for very small businesses with simple needs.

Freemium pricing · Get Pricing →

Rippling ATS

Rippling Recruiting is the applicant tracking module within the Rippling platform. It connects recruiting directly to onboarding, payroll, and IT provisioning so that when a candidate is hired, their entire employee setup happens automatically. Rippling ATS is ideal for companies already using Rippling for HR who want a seamlessly integrated recruiting experience.

Paid pricing · Get Pricing →

Pros

• ✓Genuinely free accounting and invoicing — no subscription required
• ✓Clean and easy to use interface
• ✓Good enough for most very small businesses and freelancers
• ✓Receipt scanning and bank connections included free

Cons

• ✗Limited features compared to paid alternatives
• ✗Customer support is minimal on the free plan
• ✗Not suitable for growing businesses with complex needs
• ✗Payroll and payment processing add-ons can add up in cost

Pros

• ✓Seamless connection from hiring to onboarding to payroll — zero manual handoff
• ✓Automatically provisions IT accounts and equipment when a candidate is hired
• ✓Deep integration with the full Rippling platform
• ✓Eliminates duplicate data entry across HR systems

Cons

• ✗Only valuable if you use the full Rippling platform
• ✗Requires custom pricing quote
• ✗Less feature-rich as a standalone ATS compared to dedicated tools like Greenhouse
• ✗Overkill for companies not using Rippling

Best For

Solopreneurs and very small businesses wanting free accounting and invoicing software

Best For

Companies using Rippling for HR who want recruiting seamlessly connected to onboarding and payroll