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freee

freee

Cloud accounting and HR software built for Japan's small businesses and freelancers.

softwareAccounting & Financejapancloud-accountingsmb-finance
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What is freee?

freee is Japan's leading cloud accounting platform, automatically syncing with bank accounts and credit cards to categorize transactions and generate the financial statements and tax filings required under Japanese accounting rules. It is used by more than a million businesses, from sole proprietors filing blue-form tax returns to growing corporations, and pairs its accounting product with cloud HR and payroll tools that handle Japan's social insurance and withholding tax calculations.

SpecificationsAI-estimated

deploymentCloud/SaaS
open source❌ No
api available✅ Yes
support optionsHelp center, chat, phone support on higher tiers
key integrationsJapanese banks, credit cards, e-commerce platforms

Key Features of freee

Automatically imports and categorizes transactions from linked Japanese bank accounts and credit cards.
Generates the blue-form and white-form tax return documents required by Japan's National Tax Agency.
Uses OCR to scan paper receipts and convert them into bookkeeping entries.
Offers a companion HR and payroll product that calculates Japanese social insurance and withholding tax.
Provides mobile apps for iOS and Android so sole proprietors can manage books on the go.
Supports multi-user access and approval workflows for growing corporations.
Integrates with major Japanese banks and e-commerce platforms for automated data entry.

Use Cases for freee

1

Freelancer tax filing

Sole proprietors in Japan use freee to track income and expenses year-round and auto-generate blue-form tax returns at filing time.

2

SMB back-office automation

Small companies connect bank feeds to freee to cut manual bookkeeping and produce monthly financial statements.

3

Payroll for growing teams

Businesses hiring their first employees use freee HR to calculate Japanese social insurance and withholding tax automatically.

Pros & Cons of freee

Pros

  • Deep compliance with Japan-specific tax and accounting requirements
  • Strong bank and card sync coverage across Japanese financial institutions
  • English-language corporate site makes it accessible to foreign-affiliated companies
  • Large existing user base of over one million businesses provides mature support resources

Cons

  • Core product interface is Japanese-first, with limited English in the actual accounting app
  • Pricing and terminology assume familiarity with Japanese tax categories
  • Advanced multi-entity features require higher-cost Premium tier

Frequently Asked Questions

Is freee available in English?

The corporate site has an English version, but the core accounting product interface is primarily in Japanese, which suits foreign-affiliated companies operating locally with bilingual staff.

Does freee support Japan's invoice registration system?

Yes, freee supports Japan's qualified invoice (Tekikaku Seikyusho) requirements introduced under the consumption tax invoicing system.

Can freee handle payroll as well as accounting?

Yes, freee offers a separate but integrated HR and payroll product that calculates social insurance and withholding tax alongside the accounting software.

Pricing Overview

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Paid (Subscription)

Starter

1180

Standard

2380

Premium

39800

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Best For

🧑‍💻Freelancers🏪Small Business Owners

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About the Product

Unclaimed Listing
Platforms
WebiOSAndroid
Target AudienceFreelancers, sole proprietors, and SMBs operating in Japan

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Tags

japancloud-accountingsmb-financetax-filingpayroll

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