How to Migrate WaveApps to FreshBooks

Switching your accounting software from Wave to FreshBooks doesn't have to be a major disruption. With careful planning and a clear process, you can move your financial data efficiently and get back to business. This guide provides a detailed, step-by-step walkthrough to ensure your migration is accurate and smooth, from preparing your data in Wave to getting fully operational in your new FreshBooks account.

Pre-Migration Planning: Setting Yourself Up for Success

A successful data migration begins long before you export your first file. Laying the right groundwork prevents data loss, reduces errors, and minimizes downtime. Think of this phase as creating the blueprint for your entire migration project.

1. Assess Your Data Needs

Before moving anything, decide exactly what needs to come with you. A full historical data dump isn't always necessary or practical. Make a checklist of essential data categories:

• Client Information: Names, addresses, contact details.
• Vendor Information: Company names, contact info, payment terms.
• Chart of Accounts: The backbone of your accounting system.
• Open Invoices: All unpaid customer invoices (Accounts Receivable).
• Unpaid Bills: All outstanding bills you owe to vendors (Accounts Payable).
• Product/Service Items: The list of items you use on invoices and bills.

For historical transactions (paid invoices, old expenses), it's often more practical to leave them in your old Wave account for reference rather than trying to import years of data. Your main goal is to transition your live, ongoing financial picture.

2. Choose a Migration Date

Timing is everything. Don't attempt to migrate in the middle of a busy week or during a tax deadline. The best time to make the switch is at the end of an accounting period, such as the end of a month or quarter. This gives you a clean cut-off point and makes reconciling your opening balances in FreshBooks much simpler. Schedule a window of a few hours or even a full day where you won't be actively invoicing or processing payments to avoid data discrepancies.

3. Back Up Absolutely Everything

This is a non-negotiable step. Before you change anything, you must create a complete backup of your Wave data. Export everything you possibly can, even records you don't plan to import. This includes key financial reports like the Profit & Loss, Balance Sheet, Trial Balance, and a full General Ledger or Account Transactions report for the last fiscal year. Save these files in a secure folder on your computer or cloud storage. This backup is your safety net if you need to reference old data or verify numbers later.

Exporting Your Key Data from WaveApps

Wave allows you to export most of your core data in a CSV (Comma-Separated Values) format, which is perfect for preparing it for FreshBooks. Log into your Wave account and navigate to the following sections to pull your information.

Customers and Vendors

To get your customer and vendor lists, Wave makes it fairly straightforward.

• For customers, go to Sales & Payments > Customers. In the top right corner, you'll see an option to export your list as a CSV or Excel file.
• For vendors, navigate to Purchases > Vendors. You'll find a similar export option there.

Chart of Accounts

Your Chart of Accounts defines how your transactions are categorized. To export it:

• Go to Accounting > Chart of Accounts. Look for an export button to download the list. Matching this structure in FreshBooks is important for financial reporting consistency.

Transactions and Reports

This is where you'll get the financial meat. You cannot directly export a list of invoices or bills, so you will rely on reports.

• Account Transactions (General Ledger): This is your most important report. Go to Reports > Account Transactions (General Ledger). Set the date range to cover the period you want data for (e.g., your current fiscal year) and export it. This file will contain details of every transaction that has been posted to your accounts.
• Aged Receivables: Go to Reports > Aged Receivables. This report lists all currently outstanding invoices. Export it to get a clear picture of what needs to be manually entered as open invoices in FreshBooks.
• Aged Payables: Similarly, find the Reports > Aged Payables report to get a list of all your unpaid bills.

Keep these exported files organized in a dedicated folder. Rename them so you know exactly what each file contains (e.g., "Wave_Customers_Export.csv").

Preparing Your Data for Import into FreshBooks

This is the most critical and time-intensive part of the process. Raw export files from Wave will not import cleanly into FreshBooks. You need to reformat and "map" the data to fit FreshBooks' import templates.

1. Clean the Data in a Spreadsheet Program

Open each exported CSV file (like your customer list) in Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets. Go through it line by line and look for inconsistencies:

• Check for Duplicates: Remove any duplicate client or vendor entries.
• Standardize Formatting: Ensure consistent formatting for names, addresses, and phone numbers. For example, make sure all states are two-letter abbreviations (e.g., "CA," not "California" or "Cali").
• Fill in Missing Information: If you spot clients with missing email addresses or phone numbers, now is a good time to fill them in.

2. Map Wave Data to FreshBooks Templates

FreshBooks provides specific CSV templates for importing clients, vendors, and items. You must download these templates from the FreshBooks support center. Your task is to copy the cleaned data from your Wave export files and paste it into the correct columns of the FreshBooks templates.

For example, Wave's customer export might have a single "Name" column, while the FreshBooks Client template has separate columns for "FirstName" and "LastName." You will need to split the name from the Wave file into two columns in the FreshBooks file. Mismatched columns are the number one cause of failed imports, so be meticulous. Pay close attention to any required fields noted in the template.

Importing Data and Configuring Your FreshBooks Account

With your data cleaned and formatted, you’re ready to populate your new FreshBooks account.

1. Import Clients, Vendors, and Items

Within your FreshBooks account, find the import section for each data type. This is typically located within the "Clients" or "Vendors" sections. Upload your prepared CSV files one at a time. FreshBooks will give you a preview of the import and flag any immediate errors it detects. Review this carefully before confirming the import.

2. Set Your Opening Balances

This step ensures your financial reports in FreshBooks start right where they left off in Wave. You'll need the Trial Balance report you saved from Wave, dated for your migration cut-off date (e.g., the last day of the previous quarter).

In FreshBooks, navigate to your Chart of Accounts and find the feature for setting opening balances. You will manually enter the ending balance for each account from your Wave trial balance. Your total debits must equal your total credits. Get this part right, and your financial reporting continuity will be secure.

3. Manually Enter Open Invoices and Unpaid Bills

Unfortunately, FreshBooks does not support a bulk import of historical invoices or bills. Using the Aged Receivables and Aged Payables reports you exported from Wave, you will need to re-create each open invoice and unpaid bill in FreshBooks. While tedious, this ensures accuracy in your receivables and payables tracking. Set the issue dates on these transactions to match their original dates.

4. Connect Your Bank Feeds

The final step in the setup is connecting your business bank and credit card accounts. In FreshBooks, go to the Banking section and add your accounts. Once connected, FreshBooks will automatically begin pulling in new transactions, making ongoing bookkeeping and reconciliation much easier.

Post-Migration Checklist: Verify and Finalize

Your data is in, but your job isn't done. The final phase involves verifying everything to ensure accuracy and officially retiring your old system.

• Run Parallel Reports: Run a Balance Sheet and Profit & Loss statement in FreshBooks for the start of your new period. Compare them to the final reports from Wave. The numbers (aside from any opening balance equity adjustments) should align logically.
• Check Your Aged Reports: Pull an Aged Receivables report in FreshBooks. Make sure the total matches the corresponding report from Wave. Do the same for your Aged Payables.
• Send a Test Invoice: Create and send one real invoice to a trusted client to ensure the system, templates, and payment integrations are working correctly.
• Keep Wave Accessible (Read-Only): Do not delete your Wave account right away! Keep it for at least one to two years. You'll need it for historical reference and in the event of an audit. Downgrade any paid services and simply stop using it for new transactions.

Following this structured migration process minimizes stress and sets your business up for a successful future with FreshBooks.

Final Thoughts

Migrating from Wave to FreshBooks is a manageable process that hinges on careful preparation, data cleaning, and methodical verification. By breaking it down into these distinct stages, you can confidently transfer your financial information and establish a solid accounting foundation in your new platform.

As you manage your updated accounting system, questions about tax compliance for specific transactions or state nexus rules are bound to come up. For accountants and tax teams needing quick confirmation, hunting for answers can take hours. Feather AI provides instant, audit-ready answers from authoritative sources like the IRS and state tax codes, helping you handle compliance and client queries with confidence.