Bonsai covers invoicing, contracts, proposals and time tracking in one plan you can set up in under an hour. Dubsado goes deeper on customizable client workflows, at the cost of a longer setup. Here is how they compare, verified against both vendors.
Pick Bonsai if you bill hourly and want time tracking built in from the cheapest tier. Pick Dubsado instead if your workflow needs deep, conditional automation and you're willing to spend the setup time to get it.
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If you're a solo consultant choosing between Bonsai and Dubsado, the short version: Bonsai is the only one of the two with built-in time tracking, useful if you bill by the hour. Dubsado has no built-in time tracker but goes deeper on customizable client workflows, at the cost of a much longer setup.
Last verified: September 14, 2026
| Attribute | Bonsai | Dubsado |
|---|---|---|
| Plan structure | 4 tiers: Basic, Essentials, Premium, Elite | 2 tiers: Starter, Premier |
| Starting price (relevant tier) | $19/user/month (Essentials, billed annually) or $25/month billed monthly | $525/year (Premier); Starter is $335/year but lacks scheduling and automation |
| Time tracking | Included, unlimited, on every tier including Basic Recurring | Not offered: no built-in time tracker on either plan |
| Proposals | Included from Essentials tier up | Public proposals on Premier only, not on Starter |
| Contracts / e-signature | Included from Essentials tier up | Included on both plans, unlimited |
| Invoicing & payments | Included from Essentials tier up | Included on both plans |
| Scheduling | Included from Essentials tier up (1 event type on Basic) | Premier plan only, not on Starter |
| Client portal | Included from Essentials tier up | Included on both plans |
| Free trial | 7 days, full unlimited access | 21 days, full Premier-tier access |
| Multi-user pricing | Per-user pricing on every tier; Elite requires 3+ users minimum | First 4 users included (1 plus 3 free); extra users $25 to $60/mo in bands |
Pricing and feature details re-verified directly against each vendor's public pricing page on 2026-09-28; every figure above is unchanged since the original 2026-08-22 check. Both vendors change plans and pricing periodically. Always confirm current pricing on the vendor's site before buying.
Time tracking is the clearest split. If you bill clients hourly, common for consultants, less common for photographers or wedding vendors, Bonsai has an unlimited time tracker built into every tier, including its cheapest Basic plan. Dubsado has no equivalent; you'd need a separate tool (Toggl, Harvest, and similar) and manually reconcile hours against invoices.
Setup time is a real cost, not just a feature checkbox. One independent freelancer blog that tested both tools directly wrote that with Dubsado, "I spent the first week just setting it up," calling the interface dated, though they noted other users found it "amazing once you set it up." The same reviewer found Bonsai "the closest to what I actually needed" for day-to-day freelance work, while flagging that its proposal builder felt limited compared to Dubsado's. Their overall verdict on Bonsai: "a solid B+," good coverage of the basics, nothing exceptional. (source)
Entry price vs. feature-complete price. Bonsai's Essentials tier ($19 to $25/month) is the plan you actually need for invoicing, contracts and scheduling. Basic ($15/user/month) leaves out all three. Compare that realistic Bonsai starting point against Dubsado's Premier ($525/year, roughly $44/month) rather than Dubsado's advertised Starter price, since Starter also lacks scheduling and automation.
Part of the best CRM, invoicing & scheduling tools for solo service providers hub. See also Dubsado vs Bonsai for virtual assistants, the same two tools compared for VAs managing multiple clients rather than hourly-billing consultants. And Dubsado vs 17hats for solo photographers, Dubsado compared against a different tool for a different solo service business.