Own the database, or let someone else run it.

Why pay anything when you can run it yourself

The honest answer is that many people should not pay. If you can run a server, you can run Invoice Ninja. Their project page says the code is source-available under the Elastic License, and that all Pro and Enterprise features from the hosted app are included. You keep the database. You choose the backups. A white-label license to remove the branding from the parts clients see is $40 a year, on their 1 January 2026 pricing note and on that same project page. The software license is not the $40.

That is not the same sentence as "open source, so it is free." The Elastic License is not a grant to resell the app, and a server is not free once you count the machine, the mail, and the Sunday the update fails. If you want those Sundays, take them. If you want an invoice out this afternoon, a self-hosted install is the long way around. Wave is the other conversation people start with a free tier. Zoho Invoice is the hosted suite. Neither one hands you the database.

Hosted prices, checked 7 November 2026 on invoiceninja.com: Free is 5 clients and unlimited invoices. Pro is $14 a month for 1 user, or $140 a year. Enterprise is $18 a month for 2 users, then $32 for 5, $54 for 10, $84 for 20, $96 for 30, $160 for 50, and $300 a month for 100 users. The pricing page's own FAQ describes that as $18 for 1–2 users up to $300 for 51–100 users. The 1 January 2026 note lists the new rates and does not list the old ones, so this page has no price-history table.

Self-host Invoice Ninja if you want the database.
The code includes the hosted Pro and Enterprise features.
White label, to remove the branding: $40 a year.

Hosted Pro: $14 a month, 1 user, or $140 a year.
Enterprise: $18 a month for 2 users, up to $300 for 100.
Free hosted plan: 5 clients.

You patch it. You back it up. You watch the mail.
Incusia Starter is $9 a month, and you do none of those.

What the hosted free plan actually is

The free plan is not a demo. Invoice Ninja lists unlimited invoices inside 5 clients, templates, your logo, online payments, recurring invoices, projects, time tracking, expenses, deposits, and a client portal. Reminders that chase a late payment are marked on Pro, not on Free. Removing "Created by Invoice Ninja" is Pro. Reports for invoices, expenses, and profit are Pro. A sixth client is the wall.

Incusia does not offer that free plan, and it does not offer a 5-client plan either. Starter is $9 a month with unlimited clients and unlimited invoices from the first paid day. The 7 day trial is full Pro access, no card, and it ends. It does not shrink into a free account. If five clients is your whole book and you are happy to host nothing, Invoice Ninja Free is the cheaper product. Pay when the sixth client shows up, or self-host before then if the database is the point.

Payments are a gateway you connect. The pricing FAQ names Stripe, PayPal, Square, and GoCardless. Incusia takes cards through Stripe and does not offer PayPal. If a client will only pay inside PayPal, keep a tool that has it. Invoice Ninja is one. The free invoice generator is useful for a one-off PDF. It is not a database you own.

• Free: 5 clients, unlimited invoices, portal, recurring, time, and expenses.
• Pro: $14 a month, unlimited clients, reminders, and no Invoice Ninja branding.
• Enterprise: from $18 a month for 2 users to $300 a month for 100.
• Self-host: the features are in the code. White label is $40 a year.

Nothing to host is the whole product

The failure mode of self-hosting is not the install. It is the month you are on a job and the invoice does not send because a certificate, a queue, or a backup was yours to notice. Incusia's side of that trade is dull on purpose. The app is hosted. Updates are not your task. Backups are not your task. Export of PDF and CSV is on paid plans when you want to leave. Starter is $9. Pro at $29 adds the client pipeline, late fees, and a portal. Lifetime is $99 once.

A person who enjoys owning the stack should ignore that paragraph and install Invoice Ninja. I would, in their place. The page exists so the other person, the one who asked "why pay anything," can see that the payment is for not running the server. Hosted Pro at $14 is Invoice Ninja's version of the same idea, with a larger feature list and a company inbox. Compare those two hosted prices. Do not compare a $9 subscription with a server you have not priced.