Mercury vs Wave
The ultimate side-by-side head-to-head analysis for 2026.
Short answer
- Price: not directly comparable — Mercury is free, Wave is free tier available.
- How to start: Mercury is free, Wave is free tier available.
These lines are generated from the pricing we track, not from a paid placement. We do not publish a quality score, because we do not have one we can stand behind. They cannot tell you which tool fits your workflow — the sections below are there for that. How we score tools.
Mercury
Wave
Category
Finance Tools
Finance Tools
Base Price
Free
Free tier
Public API
Yes
No
Mobile app
Yes
Yes
Open source / self-hostable
No
No
SSO (SAML)
No
No
Choose Mercury if:
Startups and remote companies that need a US business account.
Choose Wave if:
Freelancers and micro businesses with simple books.
Mercury: pros & cons
- No monthly account fee
- Clean interface and solid API
- Designed around startup needs
- US-focused; availability varies
- Not a lender for most customers
- Support is online only
Wave: pros & cons
- Accounting and invoicing at no cost
- Simple enough to use without training
- Payments integrated
- Feature depth is limited
- Support is limited on the free product
- Availability varies by country
Our verdict on Mercury
A good default for startup banking. Keep expectations realistic about credit and lending.
Our verdict on Wave
Hard to argue with free for simple needs. Growth will push you to paid accounting.